Seeds for 02/05/2024 - Matthew 26:36-38

Scripture: Then Jesus went with His disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and He said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with Him, and He began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then He said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

Observation: This week we find ourselves in one of the most remarkable episodes in the Bible. The doctrine of the Incarnation is on display here with a vividness reserved for only a handful of texts in scripture. An orthodox Christology (that is, theological understanding of the person, nature, and work of Christ) holds that Jesus is the second person of the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Spirit—and that He is both 100% divine and 100% human. We’re not into a demigod 50/50 scenario in Christianity. The ancient Nicene Creed says it like this in order to hold the full divine nature and full human nature of Jesus together: “of one being with the Father” or “of one substance with the Father.”

If we believe or are inclined to believe, the divine part is simpler for us to see in the pages of the Gospels. This episode showcases Jesus’ humanity. What do we see today?

In a dark and difficult moment, Jesus sought companionship.

“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

Jesus is clear about His calling and what the next hours will bring. This sorrow could be for the suffering He will shortly endure. It could be a sorrow over the sin of the world that He will soon bear. The weight of it all is soul-deep, and He is overwhelmed. In this state, Jesus asks not for disciples to fix the situation, nor for help escaping it. Instead, He asks for company: “Stay here and keep watch with me.”

The goal of the Christian life is very simply to become like Jesus Christ.

We usually think of that goal in terms of moral character and spiritual devotion. In other words, we think of things like kindness, truthfulness, patience, and the like, in addition to faithful prayer. Those are certainly good and we would do well to increase in all of them.

We seldom, however, think of growing in Christlikeness as involving an admission of our need for emotional and spiritual support as we approach God about something hard we are called to do. Yet, that is what Christ Himself did.

We may resist, preferring to keep up an illusion of invulnerability. Yet amazingly, it takes Jesus demonstrating His humanity to help us admit ours. If we will imitate Christ, we will seek the support of Christian community when we are weak and our soul is overwhelmed.

Application:

• What makes it hard to seek support we are overwhelmed in our soul?

• What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?

Prayer: Lord, I admit that I lack the strength within myself to handle everything life throws at me. Help me seek your strength through the company of Christian friends. Amen.

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“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)

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