Let us continue on with Isaiah's truths.
"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."
If we see the joy and rejoice, truly, in the existence of Gethsemane as a moment that is and always has been and always will be through the mortal portion of existence, then this verse also becomes more clear.
We esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, afflicted....BUT - or in other words, THAT IS NOT TRUE.
But He was wounded for us. He was bruised for us. The things we need to experience in this life that will lead us to really learn to accept peace into our souls are all His to carry. With His stripes WE ARE HEALED.
If you delight to save, then there is nothing more joyful than a soul who is healing. Nothing. His sacrifice only becomes burdensome when we choose to make it burdensome. We choose to see it as a horrible necessity rather than the joyful culmination of His mission on this earth. Yes, He went through great pain. So much pain that we cannot even comprehend. So much pain that we would shudder and shrink at the idea of even a minute portion of that pain being placed upon ourselves. We cannot comprehend the pain He felt.
But our focus on His pain does not help us move forward. Pitying Him is not loving Him. Pity is not love. If you really know Him and who He truly is, then you must rejoice with the deepest reverence and awe, at this miraculous reality.
This verse is not one of beating us down to feel horrible about ourselves because every time we mess up we make His suffering greater. That is a lie which Satan has thoroughly enjoyed spreading into the hearts of the children of men. We are to rejoice in our Savior. We are to receive His gift with gratitude, with thanksgiving, with rejoicing, with hope.
Do you feel the difference? Can you feel how your heart feels when you think about Gethsemane and His suffering as a horrible and awful but necessary thing? It weakens the spirit. It burdens the heart (which He is also now having to carry). It makes us try to separate ourselves from Him so that He won't have to carry so much. We try to make His burden lighter by thinking we can do more for ourselves.
What rubbish! What silly, deceitful rubbish!
You could never lighten His burden...it's not possible. Ever. Ever. Ever. But Satan would like you to think you can. Because if you think that you can make it lighter by separating yourself from Him, then you are no longer heading into that place of being one with the Lord. Satan would do anything to drive a wedge between your heart and your Savior. Anything. Including getting you to feel sorry for Him, to pity Him.
The Lord has never asked for your pity. He does not want it. Pity makes something sacred and beautiful into something dark and heavy. It changes His self-less act of love into something that is rejected because we feel badly for Him. Do you see what I'm trying to express? I hope you do. I hope you see how very much pity is a tool of Satan. It is not light. It does not bring in truth. It promotes darkness. It promotes separation and lies about ourselves and others.
When you pity, you think of yourself as better or worse than the person you are pitying. I am horrible, so I need to stay away because my interactions bring you pain. Pity. You need my help because you are struggling so much and I can see that I can help you. Pity.
These things are not of God. He does not deal in pity. He is a God of love.
Love says, I am with you in this. I am tethered to you. We will share this yoke and my awareness of you and your awareness of me will make this burden light. Love connects. Love rejoices. Love lifts and strengthens.
Love Him. Do not pity Him.
Let's look at this truth from another angle. If you truly love Him, you will not want Him to suffer needlessly. This means that when you make a mistake, you will ask for Grace rather than beating yourself up. This means that when you see your weakness you will go to Him and rejoice that He is allowing you to see one more thing. That by letting go of that one more thing, you are making that burden ever more full of light and releasing the darkness. If you love Him then you will rejoice and use that Atonement and relationship with Jesus Christ with the "roughest courage"* that this most solid relationship deserves.
If we love Him, when we are tempted to choose darkness we will instead ask for the yoke of Grace and take up the burden of light. We will not beat ourselves up. We will not beat each other up. We will love Him when we see ourselves. We will love Him when we see others. We will rejoice in each other and honor Him in this greatest and most exquisite gift He has given.
* This is in reference to Ralph Waldo Emerson's Essay on Friendship. He wrote, "I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and the new…My friends have come to me unsought. The great God gave them to me…High thanks I owe you, excellent lovers, who carry out the world for me to new and noble depths, and enlarge the meaning of all my thoughts…I do not wish to treat friendships daintily, but with roughest courage. When they are real, they are not glass threads or frostwork, but the solidest thing we know."
"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."
If we see the joy and rejoice, truly, in the existence of Gethsemane as a moment that is and always has been and always will be through the mortal portion of existence, then this verse also becomes more clear.
We esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, afflicted....BUT - or in other words, THAT IS NOT TRUE.
But He was wounded for us. He was bruised for us. The things we need to experience in this life that will lead us to really learn to accept peace into our souls are all His to carry. With His stripes WE ARE HEALED.
If you delight to save, then there is nothing more joyful than a soul who is healing. Nothing. His sacrifice only becomes burdensome when we choose to make it burdensome. We choose to see it as a horrible necessity rather than the joyful culmination of His mission on this earth. Yes, He went through great pain. So much pain that we cannot even comprehend. So much pain that we would shudder and shrink at the idea of even a minute portion of that pain being placed upon ourselves. We cannot comprehend the pain He felt.
But our focus on His pain does not help us move forward. Pitying Him is not loving Him. Pity is not love. If you really know Him and who He truly is, then you must rejoice with the deepest reverence and awe, at this miraculous reality.
This verse is not one of beating us down to feel horrible about ourselves because every time we mess up we make His suffering greater. That is a lie which Satan has thoroughly enjoyed spreading into the hearts of the children of men. We are to rejoice in our Savior. We are to receive His gift with gratitude, with thanksgiving, with rejoicing, with hope.
Do you feel the difference? Can you feel how your heart feels when you think about Gethsemane and His suffering as a horrible and awful but necessary thing? It weakens the spirit. It burdens the heart (which He is also now having to carry). It makes us try to separate ourselves from Him so that He won't have to carry so much. We try to make His burden lighter by thinking we can do more for ourselves.
What rubbish! What silly, deceitful rubbish!
You could never lighten His burden...it's not possible. Ever. Ever. Ever. But Satan would like you to think you can. Because if you think that you can make it lighter by separating yourself from Him, then you are no longer heading into that place of being one with the Lord. Satan would do anything to drive a wedge between your heart and your Savior. Anything. Including getting you to feel sorry for Him, to pity Him.
The Lord has never asked for your pity. He does not want it. Pity makes something sacred and beautiful into something dark and heavy. It changes His self-less act of love into something that is rejected because we feel badly for Him. Do you see what I'm trying to express? I hope you do. I hope you see how very much pity is a tool of Satan. It is not light. It does not bring in truth. It promotes darkness. It promotes separation and lies about ourselves and others.
When you pity, you think of yourself as better or worse than the person you are pitying. I am horrible, so I need to stay away because my interactions bring you pain. Pity. You need my help because you are struggling so much and I can see that I can help you. Pity.
These things are not of God. He does not deal in pity. He is a God of love.
Love says, I am with you in this. I am tethered to you. We will share this yoke and my awareness of you and your awareness of me will make this burden light. Love connects. Love rejoices. Love lifts and strengthens.
Love Him. Do not pity Him.
Let's look at this truth from another angle. If you truly love Him, you will not want Him to suffer needlessly. This means that when you make a mistake, you will ask for Grace rather than beating yourself up. This means that when you see your weakness you will go to Him and rejoice that He is allowing you to see one more thing. That by letting go of that one more thing, you are making that burden ever more full of light and releasing the darkness. If you love Him then you will rejoice and use that Atonement and relationship with Jesus Christ with the "roughest courage"* that this most solid relationship deserves.
If we love Him, when we are tempted to choose darkness we will instead ask for the yoke of Grace and take up the burden of light. We will not beat ourselves up. We will not beat each other up. We will love Him when we see ourselves. We will love Him when we see others. We will rejoice in each other and honor Him in this greatest and most exquisite gift He has given.
* This is in reference to Ralph Waldo Emerson's Essay on Friendship. He wrote, "I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and the new…My friends have come to me unsought. The great God gave them to me…High thanks I owe you, excellent lovers, who carry out the world for me to new and noble depths, and enlarge the meaning of all my thoughts…I do not wish to treat friendships daintily, but with roughest courage. When they are real, they are not glass threads or frostwork, but the solidest thing we know."
One thing I was thinking while reading this is the similarity of birthing pain and Christ's pain through the atonement (not comparable, yet I'm drawing the comparison). While in labor and transition the pain is very heavy. And yet, almost immediately when the baby is born, the pain turns into relief and joy. One of the few times that heavy anxiety, pain, and anguish is extended is when there are complications and the baby is still born or for some reason doesn't make it. I think Christ must feel the same way. Have we been spiritually born of God? Or have we had complications in our spiritual birthing process? Are we somehow struggling to maintain our spiritual vital signs? As we struggle, he is there, watching, hoping we will hold on and make it through. He lends us His breath, gives us every opportunity to hang on and gain strength, but we have to receive it and not reject it. Thanks for sharing your insights.
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