Reflecting on Luke 22:39-46And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” (Luke 22:44)
What kind of picture do You have of God?
When we imagine God, we use images of power, glorious light and majesty.
We stress the awesomeness and holiness of God, a God to be feared.
What image does God choose to make for us: how does Jesus picture God?
A God in anguish, desperate and sweating blood with tears!
According to Jesus, when we see Him, we see the Father (John 14:8-11).
But do we see God in Jesus, in suffering in anguish?
We have separated Jesus from God when we speak of the cross.
As we see it, God is angry, and Jesus suffers to satisfy God’s wrath.
We see Jesus crucified, not God… but that is NOT how the gospel works.
The good news is NOT that God is so angry He sends Jesus to die for us.
God so loves us that God becomes one with us, and suffers and dies for us.
‘God with us’ becomes weak and is broken, to make us whole!
When we see Jesus in the garden, we hear Isaiah: “Here is your God!” (Isaiah 40:9-11)
We need not fear God’s anger, for we can be in awe of God’s desperate love!
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, forgive us for emptying God's suffering love and turning it into fearful rage. Help us to see the desperate, long-suffering love of the Father in You, our God crucified!
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” The sacrificial love of God, also known as agape love, stands as the “greater love” and is how the Source of Love saved us.