Day 39: How Did Father God Test Jesus?
1 Corinthians 15:45
Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
Just as Adam was tested and failed to trust God, so also Jesus was tested. Jesus, however, remained faithful, trusting His Father even in light of bearing the sins of the World on The Cross. The first man Adam brought sin and death into the human experience through his rebellion. The Last Adam – Jesus – brings righteousness and life through His faithfulness to all those who trust Him.
Jesus was tested and tempted in the Wilderness.
Just as Adam was tested, so also Jesus was tested to see if He would choose to live faithfully to His Heavenly Father or if He would choose some “alternative option.” In the beginning, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil (Matthew 4:1ff; Luke 4:1ff). Unlike Adam, Jesus passes his first test.
This first set of temptations was not the end of Jesus’ testing however. Luke tells us, “So when the Devil had completed every temptation, he departed from him until a more opportune time” [Luke 4:13]. This more opportune time came in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Jesus was tested and tempted in the Garden of Gethsemane.
At the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus faced His greatest test and temptation. Just as Adam had been tested and tempted in a Garden of Eden in relation to a Tree, so also Jesus was tempted in the Garden of Gethsemane with the reality of another tree—the Cross. We are going to discuss some key elements that took place in the Garden from the accounts that you find in Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42 and Luke 22:39-46.
On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus took part in the Passover with his disciples. He redefined one of the four cups of wine they drank together—the Cup of Redemption—as “His blood poured out for the forgiveness of sins.” The next day, at the Cross, He would drink a very different Cup—the Cup of Judgment, the Cup of Plagues, poured by God against all sin for all time. As Jesus prayed about this in the Garden he said,
Mark 14:36
And He said, “Abba, Father! All things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me. Nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”
In Mark 14:33-34 we hear, “[Jesus] began to be greatly distressed and troubled” when he first entered the Garden to pray. He also said, ‘My soul is very sorrowful, even to the point of death.” These terms “distressed” and “troubled” do not do justice what is intended here. Jesus experiences a “shuddering horror” and this sends Him into great anguish and distress, even to the point of death. This distress becomes so intense He begins to sweat drops of blood (Luke 22:44).
We know from what Jesus prays that His terror and anguish is related to the “Cup” that He must now drink. What is this cup? For now, understand that the “Cup” that Jesus is referring to is what will take place on the Cross on the following day. We are convinced that Jesus is not dreading the physical torment alone; there is something greater weighing on Him. Jesus is now faced with the reality that He will be separated from the Father, abandoned to sin, death, and condemnation to pay for our sins, defeat the powers of evil and bring peace between God and man. This is no small task, and the reality of this great work is terrifying to Jesus.
In this context, Jesus warns the disciples at least three times to be alert and pray that they not enter into temptation (see Luke 22:40 and Matthew 26:41). This whole scene is one of temptation. We are convinced that in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is being tormented (perhaps directly by Satan himself) with the reality of having to drink the Cup of God’s Judgment poured out against all sin for all time. But this is also a test, to see if Jesus will stay the course and do what no one else has done. Let’s consider three things here that parallel Adam’s temptation, but in light of Jesus’ faithfulness.
Jesus commits Himself to the truth of His mission. (Thoughts)
Jesus knew that He had been sent by the Father to accomplish salvation. For some time now, Jesus had been speaking to the disciples about the reality and necessity of His suffering and death:
Matthew 20:28
“…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life—a ransom for many.”
We even see that Jesus was ready and willing to die for his people, His sheep, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” [John 10:11]. Jesus did not accept any “alternative option” to His true mission.
Jesus did not allow His anguish to overcome His trust; He entrusted Himself fully to the goodness/justice of the Father. (Emotions)
1 Peter 2:22–23
He [Jesus] did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth; 2:23 when He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He was suffering, He did not threaten but entrusted Himself to the One who judges justly.
In all that we see Jesus do, He continually submits Himself to the wisdom, goodness, and justice of His Heavenly Father. He trusted that His father’s plans and purposes for Him were indeed good.
Jesus submits His desires to the Father’s will for His glory. (Desire)
Notice finally that despite Jesus’ fear and agony over doing what His Father calls Him to do, each time He responds with “Yet not what I desire, but what You desire” and “Let Your Will be done.” Earlier, thinking about all that was about to take place, Jesus prayed to the Father:
John 17:1
…“Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son,
so that The Son may glorify You…”
Unlike Adam, Jesus remained faithful to the Father in all things to the end.
Can you see how Jesus’ anguish in the Garden mirrors Adam’s temptation in Eden?
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
