How many times have I skimmed over this passage? I knew about the angel who strengthened Jesus after spending 40 days fasting in the desert. How did I miss this angel? I actually went back to my last 3 Bibles to see if I had highlighted the passage and just forgotten it. Nope. Somehow, as many times as I have read this passage, I missed it.
This verse appears between 2 I am very familiar with.
"Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done." and
"And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground."
It took an angelic visit to strengthen Jesus enough to go on. And even then, He was in anguish to the point of shedding blood like sweat. For some reason, this verse changes how I look at the passage.
Am I the only one who has overlooked this gem of a verse? Does it impact anyone else strongly?
Luke 22:43
1 comment:
The question of angels and demons in the bible is an interesting one, especially when we examine what was included and was was left out of the bible, both by the Christian Church and, before that, by senior Rabbis. But, that aside, what I love about that verse is two-fold:
1 - Jesus was human enough to need help in facing his death and suffering.
2 - God gave strength for the task at hand.
I remember some years ago hearing a preacher saying that we should quit praying for a lighter cross and start praying for a stronger back.
I've become quite a weak individual, but I've always found that God provides strength for the task at hand, no matter how big or small; whether it's meetings with executives and handling layoffs and re-orgs in Denver, sick children, death of a loved one, or going to Wal-Mart to shop. I need added strength in all of these cases.
Also, this verse makes Jesus less distant and ethereal. I like it when Jesus is "just" some guy, because then I can relate. If he's "God", then how do I relate to that? Of course there's no implied contradiction if He's both, but I like seeing the human bit.
Thank you, God, for strength of back to match weight of cross.
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