“…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. Finally two came forward 61 and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’” Matthew 26:60-61
On the night of Jesus’ arrest, Jesus went to the garden of Gethsemane and took Peter, John and James with Him to pray, so He could receive comfort and company in His time of need. Over the past weeks, Jesus was reiterating His imminent death to them, constantly. Left and right as, they traveled to Jerusalem Jesus told His disciples, “7 ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” (Luke 24:7)
And though Jesus foreknew the whole point He left heaven and became the Son of Man on Earth was to die on the Cross for our sins, such profound knowledge did not eclipse the pain and anguish of Jesus knowing He would experience the darkest and worst parts of humanity.
- Betrayal from a person (Judas) he loved and spent three years with.
- Rejection as his disciples scattered like lost sheep, “…then all his disciples deserted him and fled.”
- Peter’s impassioned rejection and three time denial of Him.
- And Loneliness for while Jesus Christ was on the Cross, bearing the sins of the world, God forsook Him.
- And the temptation to give into fear, because Jesus knew the unfolding drama and pain waiting for Him at His doorstop, which is why He had to pray to God.
He had to pray to God to receive strength, to receive comfort from angels to overcome His greatest battle and triumph on Calvary. It was difficult for Jesus to move forward, there was so much pain and loss awaiting Him, yet Jesus handled the Judas’s kiss of betrayal, His unjust and slanderous trial, Peter’s denial, the crowd’s persecution, His flogging and His terrible, painful death completely dependent on the power and strength of God.
Therefore, ease and happiness are not promised if you choose to move forward in your life. Although today is 2022, know the same rules still apply from last year in that your success, your growth, your life are all dependent upon your choices. Jesus made a series of decisions that led to the redemption of mankind and the greatest victory in all of history. Jesus made the decision to move forward and not become bitter when His disciples abandoned Him. Jesus chose to remain obedient to God’s will when Peter cuts off the soldier’s ear, by sticking to God’s methods of carrying out the plan of salvation and not humanly means.
Listen, Beloved life is a road paved with our choices and if you want to move forward you cannot look back at what you lost or what God is instructing you to let go, repent, and surrender. That baggage, that sin will only hold you back, and continuously create in you the desire to look back because there is the comfort of familiarity in our past. But looking back confuses your feet, subtracts the opportunities in your future and dwindles your time in the present. If you keep looking back the act prevents you from moving forward.
That’s what happened to Lot’s wife.
“Genesis 19:26 says, “26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” She looked back, her heart attached to what she lost, and though what she lost was not good for her, she trusted and gave more power to what she had instead of having faith in the Lord God saving her from Sodom and Gomorrah, which was literal hell on Earth.
The truth is what God is delivering us to is difficult, hard, but as Jesus’ earthly life did not end in death, but in Him defying death and resurrecting with all power. Know God desires to do the same for you, but you and I must make the consistent choice to obey God’s will, even when it gets hard and to know the unknown by which we enter is real, based in reality, and has the fertile grounds to birth something amazing.
A Meeting at the Well 