Seeds for 07/19/2024 - Yield - Matthew 26:36-39
In this series on prayer and scripture, we are following the acronym P.R.A.Y. as a guide for prayer. We are considering scriptures throughout the Bible on each theme. My prayer is that studying scriptures on these themes will give us biblical words to use as our own and simple insights for our praying.
Scripture:
36 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.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with Him, and He began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then He said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
39Going a little farther, He fell with His face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Observation:
The final letter of the acronym P.R.A.Y. is Yield. This is the final step in this framework for prayer. After we’ve asked the Lord for what we want to see happen in our lives and/or in the world, our next move is to yield ourselves to what God wants to do or how God wants to answer our petition.
There are various biblical texts that illustrate yielding to the Lord, but the first to consider must be Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. The scene is powerful, no matter how familiar.
Jesus went out to pray after the last supper with the disciples, taking the three who had shared other intimate moments with Him once again. What may we observe?
First, Jesus took others with Him because it was a heavy prayer to pray. That the disciples ultimately failed Him should not take away from His example. Yielding ourselves to the Lord may require strength beyond what we possess. Jesus demonstrates asking friends to accompany us for difficult prayers.
Second, Jesus shows us that we are free to be authentic in our asking, even though we must ultimately yield to God. Jesus knew that His destiny was the cross. Still, He asked that the cup of suffering might pass from Him before yielding to the will of the Father.
Third, Jesus shows us that sometimes yielding goes beyond simply laying down our preferences or desires. Our will—that part of us that makes choices and pursues them to their accomplishment—must yield to the will of God. In this case, Jesus yielded His will concerning the calling upon His life.
This leads to a fourth observation. If we are going to follow Jesus, we will at some time or another face a situation in which we would will something different if it wasn’t for being called to live as a Christian. That may come in the form of how we conduct ourselves in our character generally, or some specific work we are called to do. Either way, we will need to yield, or submit, our will to the will of God. We can do so knowing that the Christ who lives in us has already done so and will see us through.
Application:
When have you recognized a need to lay aside your will for a situation in order to be faithful to God’s leading in your life?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, help me to lay down my will when it doesn’t match what you want to do in or through me. Amen.
“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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