THE GARDEN OF UNC0NDITIONAL LOVE

“Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.  And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.  Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.  And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.”

Matthew 26:36-39 KJV

Not only is the Garden of Gethsemane the garden of love, it is also the Garden of unconditional love.  God did not make Jesus leave Heaven to be crucified for our sins.  Jesus willingly came to earth on the mission His Father had given Him.  We need to remember that Jesus was human when He prayed this prayer.

Being human when He was here on earth, Jesus felt pain and sorrow.  He was discouraged at times just like we are and that is why Jesus understands how we feel when we are discouraged.  The thing that fills my heart with love for Jesus is that He could have come down from the cross but He stayed on the cross.

Rev. Ray Overholt wrote a beautiful hymn about Jesus staying on the cross  “Ten Thousand Angels”.  “He could have called ten thousand angels To destroy the world and set Him free.  He could have called ten thousand angels, but He died alone for you and me.”  Our Saviour loves us and He will always love us.

How much do we love Jesus and what are we doing for Him?  Are we serving Him full time or just when it is convenient for us?  Jesus deserves to have first place in our heart, in our life and in our time.  Jesus, I love You so much and I appreciate You.

Joanne Lowe

August 11, 2015