Mark 14:35-36
A few weeks ago a buddy of mine gave me a copy of his audio bible, and it is incredible. It's called The Bible Experience...and you need to get it. For real. I didn't utilize it until this morning on my way into work. I listened to Mark chapter 14. And it absolutely wrecked me. I usually keep my emotions under control, but this morning driving into town it got to this passage. And I was crying. In my car. Looking like a completely ridiculous mess. I've read this account many times. I know what it says, and I feel like I understand the gravity of this situation...but never have I become that kind of emotional when reading it.
So I know most of you who read this have probably looked at that passage before, but it really hit me this morning. This was Christ's humanity coming face to face with His deity. This was Christ the man, understanding the gravity of what was taking place. He was about to half to walk smack dab into the middle of something He had never experienced in His entire life. He had seen 33 years come and go, without ever stumbling, without ever sinning, without ever doing anything to cross the boundary of the law that His Father had set up for His people...and He was about to experience ALL of it. Do you understand that? This was a man who had never had a bad thought. He had never said a bad word. He had never committed a sinful action in any way. Ever. In His ENTIRE life. And now...He was going to not experience His first sinful act. He was going to experience EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MINE. He was going to experience EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOURS. EVERY SINGLE SIN FROM BEGINNING TO END OF TIME. Can you even come close to grasping that? Can you? Because I can't. I sin on a daily basis. I fall short of perfection every single day. This man had gone over twelve thousand days in His life without ever falling short, without ever doing anything wrong. Ever.
This is why He says to Abba, "All things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me." He's pleading for Himself. This is why He told the disciples, "Can you drink this cup?" Of course not! Of course they couldn't. Of course we couldn't! He was our only hope. And our hope was trying to find another avenue. This was the first time that Christ struggled with what His call was. He knew from the beginning that this was His job. Redemption was His calling, and it was His life's work. And our redeemer came face to face with His humanity and realized that He had never sinned. He realized that He was about to experience the most soul crushing thing He had ever felt. He would experience hate, anger, jealousy, wrath, guilt, shame, lust...all of mine, and all of yours, and all of everyone's from the beginning of time to the end of the world...all at once. This is why before He goes into the garden to pray, He says, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful...even unto death." Those weren't just words. He was literally dying inside. You see...for Him to free us from our sins, He had to take them upon Himself. For Him to unlock the chains, and for Him to redeem humanity, He had to experience the very thing He was redeeming, unlocking, and loosing us from.
Then there comes a turning point. "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me..." the next word uttered out of His mouth saved our lives. He is pleading with Dad to give Him another option...but then Jesus says, "nevertheless not what I will, but what I will." Nevertheless is one of the most important words spoken in human history. When Jesus uttered this word, He resolved within Himself that there indeed was no alternative. There was absolutely no other way. He HAD to be made sin on our behalf.
I used to think that He was worried about the gruesome death that He was about to face, and He didn't want to be bruised, scarred, and wounded. Looking at it now, I think He was much more concerned with experiencing sin. If He wouldn't have had to endure the sinfulness of humanity, I think He would have been like, "Peace of cake. Beat me and hang me on the cross. I'm still perfect." Instead, He had to be numbered among the transgressors. He had to be made into sinful flesh so that we could have redemption from sinfulness. He had to experience the fallen nature before He could save it. I'm still trying to grasp this. I'm still trying to understand the brevity of what Jesus endured for me.
Jesus said nevertheless, because He knew what was at stake. He knew the future of the world hung in the balance. He knew that His destiny was what John the Baptist said of Him. "Behold! The Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world!" Remember, Jesus went to great lengths to pay a great, and heavy price for your soul, spirit, and life. You were bought with a price. And Jesus thought you were 100% worth it. If you have accepted His forgiveness and His new abundant life, then hopefully this encourages you that Jesus went through everything you went through. He felt all the pain. He felt all the guilt, and all the shame on that night in Gethsemane. And He endured the cross because of the joy that was set before Him. That joy was you and I friends.
If you don't know Him as your Savior. If you don't know Him as your redeemer, know this, He was in the garden redeeming all of humanity. Everyone who dies and goes to heaven, dies and is forgiven. Everyone who dies and goes to hell, dies, and they were also forgiven. The difference? Acceptance of the forgiveness. Acceptance of the invitation to the abundant life. Acceptance to His grace, and peace, and love. Jesus loves you, and died for you. He experienced all of your sin. And He left it in the tomb when He rose. His love knows no bounds and His redemption knows no bounds. Will you accept it? Will you RSVP to the greatest invitation of all time?
Be blessed.
