Jesus and the will of God

This past Sunday marked the start of Christianity's Holy Week, the last week of the life of Jesus, beginning with Palm Sunday and ending with His resurrection on Easter Sunday. Today is Maundy Thursday, the day of the Last Supper.

My description of this blog says that I have unconventional views on spirituality and religion. Well, buckle up, boys and girls, because you are about to read some of those views.

I have a view of Easter that is very different from what most Christians are taught. Before proceeding, I want it known that I believe Jesus was and is the Christ. I believe that He is the Son of God. However, just as importantly, He is Son of Man (indeed, in the Gospels, Jesus almost always refers to Himself as Son of Man). Now on to the discussion...

Jesus is known by many names: Christ, Savior, Messiah, Lamb of God, Son of God, Son of Man...However, one that does not get enough emphasis (in my opinion) is Exemplar. Jesus did not teach only by words. He showed through his actions how to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and strength and love your neighbor as yourself," and those actions included His Crucifixion.

Major elements of Christian dogma are 1) Jesus died for our sins, and 2) God so gave His only Son to die upon the cross. I have a different take on these matters.

Jesus died upon the cross because that was God's will. Three times before Jesus went to Jerusalem, he told the Disciples that he would be killed there (Matthew 16:21; 17:22; and 20:17-19). Now consider the Gospels' description of what transpired after the Last Supper on Maundy Thursday. As written in Matthew 26:36-46 and Mark 14:32-42, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. According to Matthew, Jesus prayed "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want." And then twice he prayed "My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done." The "cup" was Jesus's impending crucifixion, and it seems to me that Jesus's will was not to go through with it. He wanted the cup taken away, and he did not want to drink from it. However, Jesus also made it clear that He would follow God's will.

One part of following God's will took place immediately after Jesus prayed to be spared a wordly death. Upon completing His prayers, Judas arrived with a crowd of armed men, betrayed Jesus, and Jesus was arrested (see Matthew 26:47-56 and Mark 14:43-50). For me, Matthew 26:50-54 is particularly important:

Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him. Suddenly, one of those with Jesus put his hand on his sword, drew it, and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the scriptures be fulfilled, which say it must happen in this way?"

(emphasis added). What this says to me is that if Jesus wanted to ask God to save him from being arrested, if Jesus merely asked for God to save Him, God would have done so. However, Jesus did not make such a request, for He instead followed God's will. Further Biblical support for this view comes from Phillipians 2:5-9, where Paul writes

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself,taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death--even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name[.]

(emphasis added).

Thus, it seems to me that while "God gave the world His only begotten Son," God's Son gave Himself up to die on the cross because God had willed it.

And what happened to Jesus because he followed God's will and not His own? As we say in the Apostles' Creed, "He ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty[.]" (See also Mark 16:19 and Luke 24:50-51.)

So for me part of the message of Easter is to follow the example of Jesus and follow God's will. Another part of the Easter message is that we all should do that, regardless of our place or position. I mean to say, if God's own Son is supposed to do that, so are we all. The Crucifixion and Resurrection also shows that regardless of what God's will is, the perceived cost of following it pales in comparison to the benefit. After all, what is dying in comparison to sitting at God's right hand? The Easter message also says that following God's will is a way to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and strength. Therein lies the path to true union with God.