With The Bridegroom In Mind
Written by Jarred Rushing
(6 minutes)
Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”
He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. 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.”
Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him.
Then He came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.” (Mark 14:32-42)
When the disciples started walking with Jesus they were full of passion and enthusiasm. They left everything behind to follow the footsteps of the Anointed One. But in the hour of Jesus' greatest need all we see is apathy. This moment in the garden with His own inner circle is the first manifestation of what slowly begins to unfold in the rest of Jesus' followers - a dispassionate indifference. The man that drew crowds in the thousands is only left with a handful at the cross and only one of his twelve disciples, as He delivers His greatest message to the world.
What is this trying to show us?
Why were these details left in the scriptures by the very men who carried out these acts of betrayal, apathy, and indifference?
What if they are trying to show us what happens when we get distracted by the addition of our own ideas, opinions, ministries, and the busyness of life?
This is, after all, what causes us to be apathetic towards something that we were once passionate about. It's the migration from ONE thing to MANY things.
The disciples, who were once honored to drop everything and serve the Messiah, were preoccupied with very different concerns in their last days with Jesus.
In Matthew 26:8, days before the last Passover meal, we find the disciples offended when the woman breaks her alabaster flask of expensive oil and pours it over Jesus' head, grumbling that it was a total waste of resources.
In Mark 14:19, after hearing the shocking news that one of the disciples would betray Jesus, they were all secretly wondering if it was them.
In Luke 22:24, during the last Passover meal and hours away from the crucifixion of Christ, we see the disciples bickering and arguing over which of them would be considered the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus had to interrupt them, while He was eating His last meal, and turn their hearts back to Him.
And in John 18:15-27, while Jesus is being interrogated and beaten by the authorities, we are given the details of the first, second and third time that Peter denied knowing the Christ.
By the time we get to the cross, we're left with John the Beloved, Jesus' mother and aunt, and Mary Magdalene. These are the ones who loved Jesus to the bitter end. Dr. Simmons adds in his footnotes of John 19:26 that, "Love doesn't quit, run away, or hide from pain. It endures all things, overcomes all things, and empowers us in all things. John didn't run from the suffering of the Savior. We must be those who will stand next to Jesus even if the entire world is against us."
Falling in love with Jesus and being passionate about His presence is easy in the beginning when the first-love fires are burning bright. But that flame gets watered down as we introduce other loves into our life. These come in the form of our own opinions, thoughts and ideas. They also come in the form of distractions and restless busyness. They can even come in the form of ministries, causes and serving in His name. It's the subtle shift away from receiving validation only from His eyes. It's the migration from ONE thing to MANY things. And this shift may be acceptable in other areas of life, but when it comes to a covenant marriage it only has one name: adultery. That may seem heavy, but we have to keep all of our theology nestled in relational language or else we might start to see the whole thing as trivial and unimportant. You must understand, we're not talking about adding another side dish to a meal. We're talking about adding another lover to a marriage. We're talking about placing our trust and faith in a multitude of ideas, things and people, instead of letting Yahweh be our sole Protector, Provider and Priest. The ONE thing lifestyle is simply a decision to keep the Bridegroom in mind at all times. The ONE thing lifestyle is saying "Yes, and I do!" to ONE person. Princess Diana uttered a famous line about her relationship to Prince Charles that may help us understand. She said, “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded." There's not enough room for anyone else in our covenant marriage to Yahweh. He must be the ONE and ONLY.
Let's get back to the disciples. I'm happy to report that the previous accounts were not the end of their story. As a matter of fact, we find some very different disciples after the resurrection of Jesus. Thomas is no longer doubting. Peter is no longer denying. We don't hear anymore bickering or arguing about status and position. No, our post-resurrection disciples have been transformed. In the beginning, Jesus was someone they left everything to live for. After the resurrection, Jesus becomes someone they would leave everything to die for. What changed? What happened? What shifted in their hearts? Now, we have a group of men who are quite literally putting all of their eggs in ONE basket. They're not holding out hope for another savior. They have put their entire life, even unto death. in the hands of ONE person. What happened?
I believe Abba wants us to take this question into our intimacy with Him today. I feel like He wants to lead us into the answer Himself. He wants to usher us out of the chaos of doublemindedness back to a ONE thing lifestyle. He wants to carry us across the threshold and introduce us to a brand new life where we can trust Him with everything.
"Beloved Bride, there is no need for you to hold out hope for another savior today. You can trust me with everything. You no longer have to provide for yourself; I AM already providing for you. You no longer have to protect yourself; I AM already protecting you. You no longer have to sacrifice in order to gain acceptance; I have already done the sacrificing. You are safe in My arms. You can trust Me with your heart. You are my one thing. Will you make Me yours?"
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