Tuesday, November 3, 2020

Orange Moon "Possible?"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…

 

(Friends: the subject matter of this essay concerns a foundational truth about our Lord every believer must know and embrace in order to avoid much confusion and frustration in our walk with Him.  Indeed, you might say this is one the "101" truths of Scripture. Thanks, Glen). 

 

"Possible?"

 

     "Then saith He unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with Me. And He went a little further, and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt" (Matthew 26:38-39).

 

    Was it possible for the cup of sorrow, pain, forsakenness, and death to pass from the Lord Jesus Christ?  Could His Father have saved Him from the terrible hour?  Certainly, the answer is yes, if we consider the almighty God's capability.  As Jeremiah exulted, "There is nothing too hard for Thee!" (Jeremiah 32:17).

 

    However, since God did not spare our Savior from the cross, it must be that in some manner, it was not possible to rescue Him.  This is indeed the case.  Our Heavenly Father's character prohibited Him from responding to His beloved Son's request.  God's eternal purpose involved the death of the Lord Jesus for our sins, a determination so fixed in His eternal heart that the book of Revelation declares Christ to be "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Revelation 13:8).  God would have contradicted His Word and His trustworthiness had He delivered His Son from drinking the full dregs of the cup of Calvary.  This He cannot do because He is who He is.  "I am the Lord.  I change not... Thou art good and doest good" (Malachi 3:6; Psalm 119:68).  Thus, God's character made it impossible to deliver our Lord from the cup.  He went to Calvary, suffered and died for our sins, and rose again the third day as the sacrificial lamb who became our saving Lord.

 

   Were God's heart not possessed of perfect character, His powerfully capable hand could do anything.  This is not the case, and we should fall before Him with praise and thanksgiving for the things He can do, and the things He cannot do.  Indeed, an all-powerful God who did not also possess perfect integrity would be fearful beyond all imagining.  Thus, when we remember the impossibility of saving the Lord Jesus from the cross, we must understand the corollary truth that we may also sometimes ask our Father to do that certainly within the scope of His  capabilities, but outside the range of His character.  His way is perfect because His heart is perfect, which means we do well to frequently pray as did our Lord, "Father, if it be possible…"

 

"God… cannot lie."

(Titus 1:2)

 

Weekly Memory Verse 

    "Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh unto you."

(James 4:8)

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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