DRINK THIS CUP

So there's Jesus, praying in the garden, waiting to be sold down the river by Judas, possibly at his weakest moment. He says that he is "overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death". 3 times he asks God to take away "this cup", but that if He can't, then Jesus is willing to drink it. I've read that a hundred times, seen it acted out in movies, but I don't know that I've ever totally understood it.

On the one hand, it's totally clear- the cup is the pain and suffering, the sin-payment he was going to take on for all of us. Seriously Jesus, no joke, that is huge.....that's a whole lotta justice about to be heaped on him, and that's just for the crap I do! Anyway, the second time he prays, he says "if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away UNLESS I DRINK IT, may Your will be done". What does that mean? He didn't say "take the cup away, but if you can't, I'll drink it". He said, "take the cup, but if the only way to take it away is for me to drink it, then I will". Is there something more than the obvious there? My initial thought is this- Jesus knew what had to happen, but he was scared. In his request, he is looking for another way, but knows that the plan is that for the sins of the world, and the punishment for those sins, to be taken away, that punishment has to be "drunk" by someone. God can't (because He is perfect and wouldn't contradict His commands) just give everyone a do-over....someone has to take the fall for all the crud we've done. Jesus knows this, and shows it in saying that if the only way to remove "the cup" is for him to "drink" it, then he would.

And he's not saying he WANTS to, either. He says "not MY will, but YOURS be done". So it's "God, I don't want to have to die to take the punishment for their sins, but if that's what has to be done, I will be the one to do it." Wow, imagine going through that thought/prayer process, just for a second. Yikes. It's amazing that someone, even Jesus, who was fully God and fully man, could defeat the "man" within him and follow through with the plan. Thank you God.

YOU GOT SERVED

Reading this morning in Matthew 25, where Jesus was talking about the Judgement, viewing men as sheep and goats. God says basically, "you're in, because you saw needs in this world and served people. As my creations, when you serve people you serve Me." It reminded me of earlier in Matthew where Jesus says, "I didn't come to BE served, but TO serve, and to give my life as a ransom". So, wrap it all up together, being Christ-like means being a servant, obedient to God and meeting needs in this world, BECAUSE of the hope we have of the next. Man, I suck at that!

My wife and I have had the opportunity over the past 2 weeks to befriend and help out a family in need, and through the whole process I've seen just how crappy at serving I really am. It's not out of outright selfishness, more just out of discomfort and cynicism. My wife had a feeling she needed to go to a certain store (she had already been to), and met a single mom there, several kids at home, living in 1 room of someone's apartment, on one mattress, because they had fled from an abusive dad. She had a baby die this week, and is just in a lot of pain. My wife just instinctively jumped into action, but of course I am being all careful and verifying the story, all that kind of thing. Of course I want to make sure we're not being scammed, but seriously, this whole process has shown me just how hard my heart can be, when it actually comes time to put my money where my mouth is. Part of my prayer today is that God makes me more like Christ, and I guess I also want God to make me more like my wife....