Hebrews 5. 7 During
the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with
fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was
heard because of his reverent submission.
I have a hard time picturing Jesus offering up prayers
and petitions with fervent cries and tears. The word fervent strikes an odd conjure in me. I am more comfortable with
Jesus meek and mild. Predictable. Safe. Tame. I have a tough time with Jesus fervent and wild. It’s because my Jesus picture
is incomplete and I see Him how I want to see Him. (Maybe I'm afraid God wants me to act that way...)
The writer of the book of Hebrews must have had some good
intel on Jesus. He must have had some accounts of the Lord that would curl my
hair. His descriptor here in this short chapter is intense. I admit, a lot of
days, my relationship with God lacks intensity. I’m thinking about making some
changes.
There is a lady in my church that gets called on every once
in a while to pray (during our times of corporate prayer) and when she does,
her voice goes into fervent, and her eyes go into tears. I don’t think it’s
just whipping oneself into a frenzy, I think it’s a condition of the heart. I
think given the cultural and political landscape we find ourselves it is no
time for anything less than fervent cries and tears.
Jesus was not immune to the culture and politics of His
day. I think He was angry at the abuse and oppression by His own leaders
against their people at the expense of the occupying Romans. I think Jesus was
saddened and angered at the people’s
lack of trust in God, and their own lack of fervent cries and tears except when
someone was brutally cut down short in life and no one seemed to care.
Today, we have leaders who seem to be immune to the rules
the rest of us have to live by. If we’re not careful we’ll usher in cataclysmic
results: if so and so can do that, so can
I! That won’t work, but surely some will try to exploit it. And today we
seem to be in a racial frenzy, like we’re the evilest, oppressive people in the
world. Skin color has become a weapon, not for change, but for division. Who is
assaulting Heaven with loud cries and tears over that?
Jesus, a single simple man, came into His situation and
cried out to God over it. There may be loud cries and tears out there
somewhere, but it’s pretty quiet here in my little berg… The difference, to me,
seems to be what Jesus did because of His reverent submission to His Father.
God calls you and me to pray. I’m lacking, how about you?
Reverent submission is a part of the Jesus picture I do
get. Jesus honored God by including Him in the conversation. Today, while it’s
called today, needs to be for me, a day of reverent submission. I may not use
loud cries and tears in my soundproof office (it used to be where counseling
took place) but then again, I might. I’m challenged today, to up the volume,
and increase the fervor. Reverently. Submissively. Is there anything too
difficult for God?
Father, thank You
for answering my prayer yesterday and I cry out to You again today. My prayer
is, move me to move. If Jesus did, then it’s good enough for me too! Amen
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