gethsemane-this may touch your heart

Gethsemane


He had managed to do it all throughout His life...running to the secret place...pouring out His tears and longings to Abba. The gospels say that He trusted Himself to no man. He must have shared His happiness with His Father as well but tonight was not a time for laughter and happy expressions.

It was close to midnight when Jesus arrived in the Garden of Gethsemane with His friends. He had asked eight of the disciples to remain near the gate while He invited three, His closest friends, Peter, James and John to enter into the inner most part of the Garden. Here the Garden was more seculded. The olive trees and ascending foliage provided a natural lattice for Jesus and His men screening them from the outside world. He had done so well all that time, all during the countless mornings He awoke and many nights He laid His head done to sleep. "Abba, My Abba..." He had whispered, "My life is in Your hands. Always Your will be done. Abba I trust You." Each and every moment when sufferings and trials had crossed His path Jesus said, "Yes!" Now, there in the Garden was indeed a cross in His path. It arose large and menacing in His mind, it's dark forbading timbers intruding upon the fagrances and sounds within the Garden, the beauty of the starlit heavens and dew covered grass soothing His bare feet.

The cross came so close that everything else faded away. There it was, the cross, the object He had saught after all His days and suddenly, very unexpectedly Jesus felt incredibly alone. He knew that in the prime of His life He was about to die. Instinctively He reached His hands out to His companions. He was surprised at the weight of sorrow that suddenly pressed heavily upon His soul. He could hardly breathe as He tried to comprehend this feeling. He had done so well, had been so courageous during supper but now when He opened His mouth to ask His disciples to pray, instead of words tears came and the deep sort of crying that felt like wounded innocence. He longed for understanding, for one of His friends to be able to reach the pain, sorrow and lonliness within the depths of His heart and some how give what He was feeling a safe place of sympathy and understanding. Jesus desperately searched their faces.

"My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death!"

His groans were met with startled expressions.

They could not know. They could not possibly know what He was feeling. They could never bear this dreadful weight, not even a tiny portion.

He truly was alone. He would be grateful if His friends would just keep watch and pray. Jesus wouldn't burden them any further. He moved deeper into the Garden where there was a rock standing alone in the moonlight, a fortress it seemed to Jesus. For now sadness had turned into fear. He was aware of the cross and all the torments that came with it. The most terrible torment being the horrible blackness within and without the cross which meant one thing:THE CURSE The deserving are cursed, sinners, evil people, what goes around comes around...He must become sin and be infected with the curse.

If only I can get to that rock! Jesus thought.

He sensed the approch of demons from every direction and He truly believed if His strength gave way and He fell in the opened space He would become prey to their vulture like attacks.

At last He reached the rock and hid behind it pressing His body to the ground and covering His head with His hands trying to shut out the black cross.

His sobs were rung from His heart.

Then a voice came, soothing and comforting, some how finding Him in His hiding place, speaking from somewhere above Him. In fact the voice came so close that it stirred His hair.

"Poor Jesus...You don't have to go through this. You have suffered enough, all your life. Nothing more is required of You. They wiil treat Your sacrifice with contempt, just as they have always done. Your death will be in vain. They are not worth such a sacrifice. Come now Jesus...the way has been made for You to escape. Come Jesus...take Your men and flee. There is a full moon and the path will be well lit..."

Jesus trembled. The voice was not His Abba, His Father...He knew the dreadful truth.

His battle was just beginning.

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Thank You for sharing kisstheson...Makes me tremble and cry when I meditate what he went though. Yet Jesus asks us to dwell upon His Victory.

Thank You Jesus for choosing the Cross for our salvation!

He loves us so much.

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for jesus...

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