Understanding Gethsemane

Is there anything as frustrating or painful as taking the punishment for what someone else has done?

I remember as a child, my sister would have all of her friends over during the summer days while my mother was at work. Without fail something would either get broken or they would end up doing something stupid like using a cup as an ashtray and not washing it afterwards. Also without fail, my sister would say, "Joe did it." And my mother always believed her. I remeber being so frustrated because there was absolutely nothing that I could do to prove my innocence.

Have you ever been in a situation where you say or do something, and someone overreacts in a BIG way? If you haven't I would be surprised. All of us have had someone hurt us. Most of us have had someone that we love desert us or stab us in the back in some way. Those are the wounds that cut the deepest, aren't they? Those are the ones that seem to linger for years. When someone, who is well-meaning, happens to do something that sparks that memory or puts you in a similar situation, it is EXTREMELY hard not to revert back to the pain of the original instance. This is the kind of thing that can start a fight or even end a friendship. It hurts, and it seems SO hard and SO unfair. Why should I have to deal with your bitterness or pain over what someone I've never met did to you? Why should I endure the pain and the punishment that is caused by someone else's sin.

Right?

On a mountainside, in a lush garden, almost 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ dealt with this same thing. The difference is, what we deal with is, normally, taking the brunt of the sin of one or two other people. If we are honest, we have sinned enough in our lives to deserve any punishment. We deserve to go to Hell, based on our own righteousness. But this Jesus, was completely sinless and He was dealing with ALL of the sins, that EVERYONE else had committed, EVER!!!

"This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins" (I John 4:10) Therein is the definition of love. You can find a good description of love in I Corinthians 13, but it is defined here. Jesus Christ was willing to go through the beatings, the mockings, the crucifiction, the death, not only that, but He was also willing to go through the anguish of taking the blame for what we did. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus cried out with pain coming out of emotions that we all face when someone lashes out at us or responds to us based upon someone else's sins. "God, do I have to go through this? I didn't do anything wrong here!" But He left the garden resolute in His decision to go through whatever He had to. His love for us was so great. It didn't matter who was at fault, He would take the punishment that would bring us peace. He would be mistreated so that we could see the love of God.

Are you willing to do that?

Obviously, we don't need to die on a cross, but we do need to die to ourselves. This is what I have heard called "Bloodless Martyrdom," it is setting aside your rights and allowing yourself to be abused in order for someone else to be able to see the love of God. Sometimes the people in your life will react to you based on what someone else has done. Are you willing to take it and love them through that? Are you willing to be like Jesus?