Jesus Knows

by Raymund Tamayo

³⁶ Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” ³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26:36-39

One can clearly see in this passage the humanity of Jesus Christ. While reading, there may be people who are surprised by our Lord’s level of distress.

I think this is because there are those who fail to realize Jesus’ humanness, if there is such a word. Some think of Jesus more regularly in terms of Him being God and tend to ignore His humanity.

But Jesus is also human, and that is important because His humanity is what makes Him relate to us.

Here are three things to reflect upon in these verses:

1. Jesus knows what we feel in times of trouble. Jesus is 100% God and 100% man. Because of that, He knows how it feels like to be a man, to be sorrowful and troubled. He can empathize with us, so we can count on Him and trust that He understands what we are going through.

2. God sometimes let us go through a period of suffering in order to accomplish His will. Although God the Father can rescue Jesus anytime He wants (also, Jesus can save Himself anytime He wants because He is God), He allowed Jesus to be crucified and to die on the cross. Of course, now we know this is needed in order to fulfill His plan of saving mankind from eternal damnation.

However, most of the time, we don’t know why we are going through hardships. This is because we don’t know the reasons beforehand. But the real question is, like Jesus, are you willing to give up your life for the sake of fulfilling God’s purpose?

3. God’s plan will happen and nothing or no one can hinder it. Since God is sovereign, it is safe to say that He allowed this Coronavirus pandemic to take place. He has a purpose for this event. We may not understand it right now, but sooner or later, He will reveal His plan and purpose to His children.

But as God’s children, we do not have to fear or be dismayed. We can hold on to God’s promises of protection, safety, and provision amidst this global killer.

Final Words

What we can do is trust God. We must believe He knows what He is doing. We must realize He has a purpose for everything and He is in control always.

We must continue to live our lives in obedience to Him. And, like what Jesus did, let us fulfill God’s purpose for our lives while we are here on earth… until He comes back again or at the point of death.