Jesus Goes to His Father

WEEK ONE

 

 

Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O Lord, thou preservest man and beast. How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. Psalm 36 5-7

 

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IN THE GARDEN

DAY ONE

 

Jesus went to the mount of Olives, over the brook Cedron called Gethsemane; and his disciples also followed him.

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Jesus saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, James and John and began to be sore amazed, sorrowful and very heavy.

Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, fell on his face and prayed,

Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; if it be possible take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.

 

Matthew 26:39

Mark 14:33, 36

Luke: 22:39, 41

John 18:1-2

 

A MOMENT WITH THE WORD

 

Under the weight of the conspiracy vying for His life, Jesus knelt in the garden. While the troubles of the world tested His humanity, He triumphed in the arms of His Father. He walked to the cross, each step revealing gifts which enabled Him to overcome conspiracy-driven fear, and to walk in love. 

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The waves of conspiracy threatening Jesus’ life continue to buffet us today with politics, commercialism, crime, and hatred. When the difficulties of this world threaten our security and disturb our peace, we have access to the same powerful gifts that facilitated Jesus’s victory. 

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This week’s devotional study reveals the importance of our relationship with our heavenly Father. His master plan for these days is love, and He is ever present to help us live out His plan.

 

This first week we will look at five gifts that can help us get through challenging times and empower us to walk in His ministry of love. Start by connecting with the Holy Spirit and reading the scripture above. 

 

  Here are some gifts for you to consider. 

-The gift of a relationship with our heavenly Father. Can you think of ways your relationship with your heavenly Father might affect your daily life for the better?  

-The gift of obedience. With the Holy Spirit in attendance, open your heart to the idea of obedience to your heavenly Father, trusting He has your best interest at heart. 

-The gift of mercy. Allow the Holy Spirit to teach you to rest in your heavenly Father's powerful mercy, and help others find it as well. 

-The gift of witnesses. Consider those in history who have sacrificed for love. Does this encourage you to trust God today? 

-The gift of childhood. Spend a moment with the Holy Spirit and consider your spiritual maturity as a child of God, and the work you do with Him in His Kingdom. 

  

You will find your heavenly Father's heart in the garden. 

 

THE GIFT OF RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR HEAVENLY FATHER 

DAY TWO 

  

Immediately after sitting in time out, a child runs with tear-streaked cheeks to its parent’s arms for comfort. Parents work together, and as the father and child tackle every problem, mom’s loving hands wipe the tears away. As a result, the child knows deep down that his or her parent’s love transcends discipline. In the same way, Jesus ran into His Father’s arms where He felt safe. 

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Among the gnarled trunks of olive trees, the Garden of Gesthemene in Jesus’ day lacked the luster of a garden; having no flowers, white fences or paved walkways, the only decoration was a wine press. Jesus Christ, who is God and man (John 1:14), knelt there alone. Because He was God, He clearly saw His purpose; and thus, Jesus made His decision: He was committed to saving humanity by going to the cross. But, as a man, He shared the emotions we experience (Hebrews 2:14-18). In His humanity, the agony of the cross loomed too much for Him to bear, and His soul quaked with fear at the suffering and death He faced (Matthew 26:38). 

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His friends slept nearby. They gave no assistance to the prostrate man who knelt alone among the olive trees. To men, the decision to give up His life was unthinkable. Anyone would advise Jesus to forget the cross; their own fears blinded them to the wisdom of His mission. Who, on earth, would console His heart without jeopardizing His commission? 

In this dark night of the soul, a fragile Jesus sought comfort from His Father (Matthew 26:36-39). Of course, Jesus went to His Father; God the Father adored His only begotten Son (Mark 1:9-11). More than once, the Father broke into the earthly realm saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:17).” In the book of Hebrews, you can hear the Father bragging about His Son: 

  

… [My] Son, whom [I] appointed heir of all things, by whom also [I] made the worlds; [He is] the brightness of [My] glory, and the express image of [My] person. 

-Hebrews 1:2-3 (paraphrased) 

 

Jesus understood His Father loved Him unconditionally. When His mission was most difficult, He ran into His Father’s arms and exposed His vulnerable heart. He expressed his dismay at the impending trial and its terrible consequences. He asked the Father to take away the suffering—Still His Father asked for the cross. Finally, His conflict washed away in drops of blood as with the Father, He worked out the frailties of His mortality. Jesus found unity of body, spirit, and soul, in His Father’s embrace; then turned His face to the cross (Mark 14:35-36). 

  

The Father Asks for Love 

Alone in the garden, with drops of blood streaming down His cheeks, Jesus completed His Father’s heart (Isaiah 53:8-12): By His blood, He would reunite Father and child. His obedience miraculously transformed sinners into righteous people. The Father proudly declares us to be His beloved sons and daughters (Romans 8:14-17). (Learn more about the 'The Sinner Becomes the Righteous' in the Meditation Trail #5.)  

Jesus died on the cross to spare us the agony of God's wrath. Now the Father asks just one thing from us: Love, God's master plan for today. (Learn more about 'The Ministry of Love' in the Meditation Trail #6.) 

Jesus told His disciples: 

  

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  

-Matthew 22:37-39 

  

It is hard to love other people sometimes. We may fail a lot, but there is no shame with the Father. He is aware of our weak hearts. Our heavenly Father loves us even in our fallen state, however, He will not leave us in that condition.  

Remember: Our relationship with our heavenly Father is a powerful gift to help us walk in love. We, like Jesus, can tell our Father about our wrong thinking and feelings, and discuss the difficulties we face.

 

There in His arms, The Father leads us to repentance in a way that is gentle, kind, and patient; not harsh, and never judging. We take our place as His children where He nurtures us, until, like Christ, we achieve unity of body, spirit, and soul, to live in His perfect will of love (Ephesians 1:3-11). 

 

THE GIFT OF OBEDIENCE 

DAY THREE 

  

One young man with callused hands deftly works the soil in his father’s fields creating the perfect bed for seeds to grow. His father taught him well, but his passion for his work was as much a part of him as it was his father's nature. Placing each seed gently in the loose furrows, he covered them tenderly and left them to the care of the warm sun and refreshing rain. The youngster waits, daydreaming of his father walking the rows of sprouting grains, inspecting their precise placement, and thriving growth. He looks forward to the day when he can harvest the mature plants, reveling in his father’s approval. This is a good, faithful, and obedient son, to whom his father says, “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine (Luke 15:31).”  

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Another young man, his brother, sits on the roof in the cool morning air, daydreaming of an exciting life. He pines for the city; for the music, the parties, and luxury. The only calluses on his hands result from his father’s strict demands. He wants nothing more than to put distance between him and this irritating farm. This son is prodigal. 

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These two young men are the pride and joy of their father. Everything he built is for them. It is theirs to take over, and in that laid the fulfillment of his heart. He did not see the farm as a business, to him, it represented an inheritance. 

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One day, the listless son broke his father’s heart. He insisted on his inheritance. The father sat, downtrodden, because he knew of the world’s tendency to suck up money like a dry sponge. But it was not the waste of money that bothered him most, but rather the pain that would follow in his son’s life. Still, he relied on God; for himself, his farm, and his children. Under that anointing, he gave up the inheritance and sent his son on his way. 

 

Jesus sat alone in another garden, wrestling with His decision to face the cross. Surely, he remembered the story He told of the good son and the prodigal. You can find this parable in the book of Luke chapter 15:11-32. Jesus told of these sons to explain our heavenly Father’s love for us. As the good son in the parable, Jesus spent eternity working alongside His Father to build a legacy, an inheritance, and a relationship with humanity. (Learn more about 'The Good, Faithful, and Obedient Son' in the Meditation Trail #7; and Jesus' Legacy' in the Meditation Trail #8.)  

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Just like the prodigal son in the parable, humanity set its eyes on the world. A bite of an apple declared his choice; he would do things his way. 

In Gesthemane Jesus gazed on us, the prodigals. It was not our sin that drew His attention. He gazed at us with love. We provided the joy that allowed Him to bear the agony and suffering of the cross (Hebrews 12:2). By dying for us, Jesus completed His Father’s heart. His sacrifice made a way for the prodigal’s return. Jesus, the good, faithful, and obedient son, loved us even unto death. 

  

The Prodigal Returns 

Jesus’ parable of the two sons has a good ending, even though the path was difficult. The prodigal son did indeed lose everything. As a starving young man, he envied even the pig's slop. Desperate and miserable, the son returned home. He hoped his father would accept him as a servant and give him shelter, food, and clothing. 

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We, too, dwelt far from our heavenly Father, far from home. Some of us, like the prodigal son, came to the end of ourselves dramatically, while others just needed more out of life. In either case, we turned our feet towards home, praying for our heavenly Father’s acceptance; praying for a better life. 

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Then, something miraculous happened. We turned around, and our heavenly Father was watching for us like the father in Luke's story which says, “But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion (Luke 15:20).” We took one step toward home, and our heavenly Father, like the father in Luke's story came running toward us. Luke says in 15:20, when the father saw his son, he “ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.”  

 

We, like the prodigal son, did nothing to deserve God’s love. We brought nothing to show for ourselves (Ephesians 2:8-9). Still, our heavenly Father accepts us as sons and daughters. Jesus told of the heavenly Father's heart in the Book of Luke: 

  

For [these my son's and daughters] [were] dead, and [are] alive again; [they were] lost, and [are] found. 

-Luke 15:24 (paraphrased) 

  

Please listen: We were the prodigals, but now His Spirit living in us matures us until we show the same obedience as Jesus, the good Son. As sons and daughters, we are an integral part of God's master plan for today. Obedience is a gift from God that enables us to minister after His heart to save the prodigals and build an inheritance. We take on our heavenly Father's heart of love, drawing those in our lives with patience to complete His family.  

 

THE GIFT OF MERCY  

DAY FOUR 

  

God wept: 

  

Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people. For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains. 

-Isaiah 22:4-5  

  

God promised: 

  

Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. 

-Isaiah 54:4-5,7,10 

 

Since the fall of humanity, our heavenly Father, whose nature is love (1 John 4:7-8), held one sole desire: to reconcile us to Himself. Verse 22, in the book of Isaiah tells us our heavenly Father weeps over the destruction His wrath brings on His children. Then, in Isaiah 54, He promises to love us completely. It appears His mercy conflicts with His justice. Of course not; our heavenly Father is perfect, and thus no schism exists in Him. To man it seems like a dilemma: our heavenly Father’s passion for righteousness, for justice, is strong enough to demand it, but His powerful love for His people is unwavering. (Learn more about 'God's Mercy' in the Meditation Trail #9.)  

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This conflict permeates the Bible. The people sinned, and that separated them from their heavenly Father. No one could save them. They were under His wrath, but He promised nothing would shake His love for them. Raging, His face showed fury as hot burning anger (Strong's Exhaustive Concordance G2740 and G3709), yet He promised to show compassion, and to gather us with great mercies and everlasting kindness (Psalm 94:14-15). 

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There had to be an agreement between our heavenly Father’s justice and His mercy. On the one hand, man’s sin demanded wrath; on the other hand, God’s wrath would destroy us. Our heavenly Father is not a liar (Numbers 23:19); He would unleash His wrath. What is the solution? 

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Fortunately, our heavenly Father had a plan to satisfy both His wrath and His mercy. His Son, Jesus Christ, took our sins and carried them to the cross (Isaiah 53:4). Because of the sin, our heavenly Father’s wrath overtook His own Son. Rather, when Jesus Christ took our sins upon Himself, He drew His Father’s wrath. At the moment of His death, right after He declared “It is finished” (John 19:30), “mercy and truth met together, righteousness and peace kissed” Psalm (85:1-13). Jesus Christ offered His soul as an atonement for sin, and it pleased His Father (Isaiah 53:9-11). Christ bore our sins, drawing the wrath of His Father on Himself, and thus overcoming death, He set us free. 

  

The Sinners are Converted to the Righteous ones 

Many times, we live in the war between mercy and justice. People make mistakes. Anger rises in our hearts and keeps us from walking in love. Our souls experience the conflict and resolve it with feelings of anger, guilt, and desperation. Having no answer, we, as the Israelite Nation, cry for help. However, it was never a conflict for us; mercy and justice have kissed. 

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We are brand new because of what Christ did for us (Ephesians 2:15). Before His sacrifice, righteousness remained unreachable. Devoted to sin, each of us lived separate from our heavenly Father. Jesus Christ’s death on the cross purchased our right standing with God. Christ converted those devoted to sin; now we are the righteous ones. (This is a good time to review 'The Sinner Becomes the Righteous' in the Meditation Trail #5.) 

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Oh, we continue to sin, but those sins do not change the fact that we are righteous, any more than our good deeds bought our righteousness. His blood solves the problem of justice and mercy. Your heavenly Father has forgiven you, so do the same for yourself.  

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Rest your heart in this: The good son and the prodigal were the apple of their father's eye. Not after the prodigal returned, but always. You too are the apple of your Father's eye; always have been. Now by Christ's blood, we the prodigals, covered by mercy, become mercy carriers. Having obtained the gift of mercy, we complete our heavenly Father's heart by teaching mercy to His family. 

 

THE CLOUD OF WITNESSES  

DAY FIVE 

 

Extreme! Alexei Ananenko, Valeri Bespalov, and Boris Baranov were numbered with a large body of men that risked their lives to minimize the 1986, Chernobyl disaster. In what was likely a suicide mission, they navigated through a series of underground corridors which had become flooded in the days prior with firefighting and coolant water. Their mission was to open two release valves to drain the water. They eventually died from radiation poisoning. [i] In 1943, the Four Chaplains aboard the sinking Dorchester removed their own life jackets and gave them to others. They helped as many men as they could into lifeboats, and then linked arms and, saying prayers and singing hymns, went down with the ship.[ii] Then there was Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., who despite many threats to his life, mostly by public authorities, continued to promote racial equality and peace. He was fatally shot by a sniper April 4, 1968.[iii] 

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Ultimately, these sacrifices throughout history are acts of love that show our heavenly Father’s heart. Still, while none of them are useless, none of them can reunite our souls with our heavenly Father. Redemption comes through a man who is also God (John 1:1-14). Our heavenly Father went to great lengths to reconcile us to Himself. He kept nothing back; His Son, Jesus Christ, paid the ultimate price. He loved us to death (Romans 5:8). 

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The Bible is full of stories telling of men and women who shared our heavenly Father’s heart of compassion. Abraham, for example, believed his heavenly Father when He promised him more descendants than the stars. On that promise, he left home and traveled to unknown lands. God changed his name, as well as his religion. In fact, God altered every part of Abraham’s life. Extreme? Yes! Abraham trusted his heavenly Father to love and bless his descendants, both those born in his day and those born throughout the ages. The story unfolds in the book of Genesis starting at Chapter 12. 

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Later, our heavenly Father put Moses to work for Him. Moses, born a Hebrew, should have died when the Egyptians killed the male Hebrew babies. His mother saved him by putting him in a basket and setting it in the reeds. The Egyptian Pharaoh’s daughter found him and raised him as one of her own. Later, his heavenly Father asked Moses to risk his life to free the Hebrews from the Egyptians.

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Obeying, he liberated the people. Then Moses led the heavenly Father’s people in the wilderness for forty years, bearing their weaknesses as they fell into fear, doubt, and sin. He shared his Father’s heart concerning their hardships. He continued to beg God’s mercy until he led the Hebrews to the promised land. You can read this story throughout the Book of Exodus. Forty years in the wilderness—extreme? Yes! 

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The Bible has far too many heroes to name. The book of Hebrews includes a list resembling a hall of fame, honoring many who gave their lives for our heavenly Father’s children. They “stopped the mouths of lions...quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword.” Others were “tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection, while still others suffered, cruel mocking and scourging...bonds and imprisonment.” There were those who were, “stoned, they were sawn asunder, they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented (Hebrew 11:32-39 in part).” Extreme! (You can learn more about 'God's Heroes' in the Meditation Trail #10.) 

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While the suffering heroes brought Abraham’s family closer to salvation (Acts 3:25), none of them could save humanity. Still, it brought Abraham’s family through time to the One who could (John 14:6). 

  

God’s Extreme Reach Today 

The compassion of our heavenly Father’s heart still drives men to extremes. It is because of love, His grand design for the ages. You will find them displaying extreme love in your home; such as a mother who sacrifices her dreams to care for her children, or the father working long hours to provide for his family. It is the one who takes time to prepare a meal for a sick neighbor, or the teenager who mows the lawn for an older couple. Others walk together with an addict until that tortured soul achieves freedom. Some visit desolate areas, bringing food and clothing to the homeless. Many work in hospitals caring for the sick and in the homes of the lonely. There are those ministering in the remotest parts of Africa, or in the dangerous parts of the Middle East. And an extraordinary few ventures to the hidden lost places. 

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Bible scholars sometimes refer to the ones who went before us as a cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). This heroic heritage is our heavenly Father's gift for our encouragement.

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Find your niche: Today, it honors us to take our place in the hall of fame as we continue the extreme reach of our heavenly Father. By His Holy Spirit in us, He will bring all His children home. 

  

THE GIFT OF CHILDHOOD 

DAY SIX 

  

In essence, the plot to kill Jesus was Satan’s plan to steal God’s children (John 10:7-10). Surprisingly, he discovered that killing Jesus did not destroy our heavenly Father’s love for us, but rather established more sons and daughters than the stars in the heavens.    To the world, the death of Jesus appeared to be the end of God’s plans, but His Son’s resurrection removed the barrier that separated us from our heavenly Father. As prodigals, we return home, broken, and hungry, and full of shame, but our heavenly Father rejoices. He runs to us. Instead of lecturing, He drapes His own robe over our shame and places the family ring on our finger. According to Paul, when Jesus rose from the dead, He was no longer the “only begotten Son,” but the “first born of many brethren” (Romans 8:28-31). 

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Holding the new-born babe in her arms, the mother begins a journey of caring for and nourishing her child. Yet, the relationship God envisioned is not always how things go. Many children worldwide have lost parents, becoming orphans. Adoption allows these little ones to experience childhood in the arms of love. 

The Christian tradition of adoption differs as shown by Paul in the book of Galatians. In the New Testament, the Greek word huiothesia means “adoption as a son of God (G5206).” This adoption is about our relationship with our heavenly Father.

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We are all born sons of God. He is the one who created us; He is the one who sustains us. His very breath keeps us alive, yet He entrusts us to earthly parents who will teach and train us until we are mature. An adoption takes place when the Spirit of God comes to live in our hearts. We leave our parents’ care and instruction for the tutorage of our heavenly Father, who guides us in learning His style of service. We become mature sons of God. You can read about adoption in Romans 8:15,23: 9:4; Galatians 4:5; and in Ephesians 1:5. 

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Paul addressed a certain group of followers stuck in an immature relationship, such as young children are known to be.  

 

And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?  

-1 Corinthians 3:1-3 

  

Paul teaches the Galatians that when the Holy Spirit fills a child, who is already a son or daughter, they are taught the ways of maturity. Their heavenly Father feeds them with the meat of spirituality.  

  

Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. 

-Galatians 4:1-6 

  

What Does a Child of God Look Like? 

It is a matter of the heart; love and acceptance await broken and contrite men and women who enter His Kingdom. Realizing we are nothing, it becomes obvious that Christ in us is everything (Matthew 5:1-12). The righteousness He instilled in us drives us to His table where we eat of the bread of His body and drink of His blood for free (Isaiah 55:1). Our heavenly Father teaches our hearts to see His Family through His mercy-filled eyes. As a result, all men walk in harmony because we are all brothers and sisters. 

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Still, as human beings, we are prone to weakness and temptation. Even so, we, the errant children, run to our loving Father, tears streaming down our cheeks as we nestle in His warm embrace. Once, Jesus in the garden abandoned His heart to His Father, holding nothing back. Now the child of God finds security in abandonment to the Father’s protection. Once free of insecurity, the child sees the world through the eyes of his heavenly Father, seeking not his own benefit but the fulfillment of his or her Father’s heart. The child, just as Jesus did in the Garden, finds unity in his body, soul, and spirit; he rejoices in doing his heavenly Father’s will. 

Listen to your Father's heart: As mature sons and daughters, we reflect His nature, His love for all people. The power of His Spirit transforms us so that what exists in the spiritual world becomes visible in the natural world, and we realize we are the children of the Highest (Luke 6:27-36). Luke describes the relationship well: 

  

For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. 

-Luke 6:32-35 

 

 

[i] Individual involvement in the Chernobyl Disaster, (https://en.wikipedia.org) 

For more information see an article on Sky History UK, The real story of the Chernobyl divers, (https://www.history.co.uk) 

 

 

[ii] Four Chaplains, (https://en.wikipedia.org) 

For more information see an article by Command Sergeant Major James H. Clifford, USA-Ret., No Greater Glory: The Four Chaplains and the Sinking of the USAT Dorchester, (armyhistory.org) 

 

[iii] Martin Luther King Jr. (https://en.wikipedia.org) 

For more information see an article, The Nobel Prize, (https://www.nobelprize)