MAY 12

OUR PERSONAL PROMISES

Psalm 16:11

“You will show me the path of life;  In Your presence is fullness of joy;  At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

1 Peter 4:13

“but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.”

Hebrews 2:17

“Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”

2 Corinthians 7:10

“For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”

Isaiah 53:4

“Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.”

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We will be reading from a book by Erwin Lutzer, President of Moody Bible Institute.  Dr. Lutzer comes right to the point.    It’s a short book about Christ’s sacrifice for us.  It’s called simply, “For Us.”

Mark 14:35-36

“He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.  And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”

Humanly speaking, Jesus didn’t want to die on the cross.  Despite His fears, He still said to His Father, “Not what I will but what You will.”

Sometimes we have to do the will of God whether we like it or not.  We live in a society where “feeling bad” is a sin we must avoid at all costs, but Jesus shows us that’s not God’s way.

Being filled with the Spirit doesn’t mean we’ll be happy all the time.  We can be anxious or troubled.  Like Jesus in Gethsemane, we can be so filled with dread we fall on our faces in fear.  But we must trust God to do the right thing.  “Your will, not mine,” can still be our battle cry.

If Jesus had taken the easy way out, you and I would be trapped in our sins forever.  There are times you have to say “no” to your emotions, submit to God’s plan, and simply trust Him for the glad day to come.

Mark 14:32-34

“ Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here while I pray.”  And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed.  Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”

Here in Gethsemane, we have the gift of seeing Jesus’ humanity most clearly.  He was “greatly distressed and troubled,” going through emotional turbulence so painful He couldn’t even stand up under it.  He knew He was about to have the full wrath of God unleashed upon Him because of your sin and mine.  Completely sinless Himself, He dreaded that onslaught of sin laid on Him.

Do we understand this?  When we suffer, Jesus is never far off.  He knows.  Whatever tragedy has happened in your life, He knows.  He has “been made like us in every respect,” so that you and I never have to suffer alone.  That was part of God’s plan ~ to give us a Savior unlike anything in any other religion, a Savior who understands everything because He has experience everything, yet without sinning.  Friends and family may desert us in our time of need, but Jesus is always there bearing our sorrow right along with us.  What a friend we have in Jesus, indeed!

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