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Luke 22: 42 “Father, if you are willing, take
this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” (NIV)
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Had any of God’s chosen ever understood why the Lord’s answer to a prayer was not exactly as anticipated?* |
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My friend
probably echoed this prayer for a couple of years. Beginning with the discovery
of breast cancer, she endured surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Before she
could savor a victory, she faced a new crisis – one after another. She was a
bright light of faith in the dark world of cancer sufferers and she was
surrounded by an army of prayer warriors. But at the end, she knew that the
answer to her prayers was “no.” What I am about to say would have provided
little comfort in the midst of her misery: We
can ask God to deliver us from our troubles and we have faith that he is able;
but if he denied the request of his beloved Son, how can we expect our cup of
suffering to be taken from us?
So why pray? Why did Jesus pray? He already knew what the
answer would be. He had lived his whole life knowing what to expect and yet he
begged to be released from his horrible fate. He knew it had to be done but
still he implored his Father to find some other way. What can we learn from our
Savior’s anguished cries in the garden that night?
First, we see Jesus submitting to his Father’s will. Before
and after his request, he expressed his willingness to submit. Second, we see
that Jesus was not hesitant to tell God what he wanted. Even knowing what he
knew, and what he knew that God knew, he clearly expressed what he wanted from
God for himself.
And finally, we learn the most important lesson from Jesus’
prayer: the true purpose of prayer. Jesus didn’t pray to get stuff from God; he
didn’t pray because God didn’t know what he wanted. Jesus prayed because he and
the Father needed to spend time together. When we spend time with our loved
ones, we talk; and God, a jealous God, wants our undivided attention. He wants
to draw us so close to him that we are compelled to spill our guts to him – to
purge ourselves of what we want and
binge on what he wants.
From scripture, we can compile lists of what we should pray
for, how we should pray, and whose prayers are answered. But we look to the
life of Jesus to see that the true purpose of prayer is . . . prayer.
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To be a master of the mystery of prayer one must pray, pray continually, pray hourly, pray at all times, pray without ceasing.* |
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