THE GARDEN
The Garden of Gethsemane was a place of struggle and decision for Christ. It is the place where he struggled with his assignment of going to the cross. Christ was born of a virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit all for the purpose of dying on a cross to redeem mankind from the grips of sin. It would be on this cross that he would embody the sin of all mankind then, now, and to come, which would cause him to be separated from God, the Father. Who could imagine that Jesus, the Son of God would ever be separated from/forsaken by God, the Father, but at that moment when he became our sin that is exactly what happened. What torture this must have been for Christ, but it had to be so. It was this tortuous thought that Christ agonized over in this garden. A garden is normally a place of beauty and relaxation, but here it was a place agony, struggle and decision. This bitter cup of suffering and separation is what faced Jesus in this garden so, he cried in Matthew 26:39, “O my Father, if it possible, let this cup pass from me.” This is the struggle between his humanity and his divinity. The divinity in him knew and understood the assignment set before him, but the humanity in him could not bear the thought of it and struggled against it. However, it does not end there; there is a continuation of that scripture. Christ comes to a tipping point, the place of decision. As he struggled, Jesus came to a decision; a decision to submit his will to that of God and he said, “nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." His struggle gave way to decision.
THE CROSS
The Cross was a place of suffering and submission for Christ. It is the place where he suffered the physical pain of being nailed through his hands and feet to the cross, pierced in his side, ridiculed, and mocked all while wearing a crown of thorns on his head. Though many who stood around him mocking and reviling him did not realize it, he was the suffering savior. Suffered he did, not only through the physical torture to his body, but also through the spiritual separation from his Father, God evidenced by his fourth statement on the cross, “my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” It was at that moment when Christ took on and became our sin that God could no longer look on him or be present with him that God the Son, Jesus, was forsaken by God the Father. What suffering indeed. In the midst of all this suffering Christ submitted to the will of God and gave up the ghost evidenced by his last two statements on the cross, “It is Finished” in John 19:30 declaring that his assignment (the work of redemption) was done and “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit” in Luke 23:46 declaring his return from whence he came. In humble submission he finished the task set before him through suffering submission.
THE GRAVE
The Grave was a place of triumph and witness for Christ. It is this place where Jesus’ declaration of resurrection in John 2:19 became reality bearing witness of his declaration. When the disciples of Christ went to the grave (the tomb where Christ had been laid) they found it empty except for the linens that Jesus had been wrapped in (John 20:1-20). While many, including Mary, initially supposed that Christ’s body had been stolen or moved, Jesus revealed himself to Mary and then to his disciples who were behind closed doors in his resurrected body. Triumphant indeed because death and the grave had no power over Christ. As it is written in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “O death, where is thy sting: O grave, where is thy victory?” From a place devoid of life sprang forth life, the resurrection and the life, in the person of Jesus Christ. Triumphant he rose on the third day just as he said. What some saw as the end was actually the beginning made available to us all who would believe on him who gave his life for all.
From Struggle to Decision - through Suffering Submission – to Triumph that Witnesses to us even today, over 2000 years later. JESUS IS LORD! Accept him by faith as your lord and savior today. As it is written in Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
- Dr. DeShonda Bailey
