Lessons from the GardenSample

True faith

As we mentioned in yesterday’s reading, Jesus held nothing back when He prayed to the Father. He bore His soul. If there was any possible way out, Jesus was begging the Father to find that way out.

But notice the very end of Jesus’ prayer when He adds, “Only, not as I will but as You will,” (which is the more accurate translation).

Even in this moment of despair as He begs the Father for some other way, Jesus submits to the Father’s will. While He’s desperate for this to pass from Him, He’s even more desperate for the Father’s will to be done.

Here’s what Jesus knows in that moment:

He knows that the Father is perfectly good, and that only good can flow out of the Father’s will.

So, despite the horror Jesus was facing, He could say, “Only, not as I will but as You will.”

As you bare your soul before your Father, here are a few questions for you to consider:

• Do you believe the Father is perfectly good?
• Are you willing to submit to His will for you?
• Is His plan and His will what is ultimately most important to you?
• Can you truly trust that He knows best?

Jesus did, even though He faced what He knew would be the most horrific torture, suffering, and spiritual crushing. He knew what He faced – becoming sin – the One who knew no sin. He knew that “it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer” (Isaiah 53:10).

In spite of that, Jesus could say, “Only, not as I will but as You will.”

Can you?