Friday, March 9, 2012
John 18:11 "Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given me?"
JESUS SUFFERS OBEDIENTLY
Thankfully Jesus was not looking for the path of least resistance. He was not trying to find the easiest way or what would be more pleasant for Himself. He was committed to doing His Father's will, even when that meant suffering for the sins of the world. "Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?" Jesus was here for a purpose. He would fulfill His Father's will to the bitter end.
That commitment to the will of His Father is our salvation. He did what we did not do. He always obeyed His Father, even in suffering. He paid for all the times when we, like Peter, followed our own heart and desires rather than following the will of our Father. While we are trying to find the path of the least suffering and trouble even if that means disobeying God's will, Jesus suffers the punishment of God for our selfish disobedience.
We marvel at Jesus' commitment to His Father's will. We rejoice in the forgiveness and salvation that He earned for us. Shall we not also be inspired and instilled with a desire to do the Father's will in all things and to accept His will in our life? If doing His will brings suffering or hatred from others, so be it, may God be glorified. If His will involves suffering from sickness or accident or other tragedy, we can accept that as well, knowing that ...
What God ordains is always good. No poison can be in the cup that my Physician sends me.
My God is true; each morn anew I’ll trust His grace unending, My life to Him commending.
(The Lutheran Hymnal, 521)
