Jesus understands your suffering - https://www.pexels.com/el-gr/photo/208216/
[Yes. Jesus suffered and prayed to be released from it, but added the phrase in His prayer to the Father, “Your will be done.” He was not released from that suffering. The prayer phrase “Your will be done,” is found twice in the Word in two very different contexts. Both were uttered by Jesus. One instance was in the Garden of Gethsemane just before Jesus was to experience the most severe cup of suffering and persecution ever experienced by any man. It was about to commence and He knew it, so this is what Jesus prayed to the Father.]
[Mat 26:42 NKJV] 42 Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done."
[Jesus knew God’s plan of suffering for His life from the prophecy in the O.T. Book of Isaiah about the suffering servant (Isa 52:13-53:12). Faced with this cup of extreme suffering, Jesus prays to His Farther in this passage, “if this suffering cannot pass away from me…Your will be done.” This prayer Re-affirmed to the Father, Jesus will do the Father’s will, not questioning it like He doesn’t know what God’s will is. A prayer I have often prayed in the past is the phrase, “if it be your will Lord...” It sounds good, even pious, but it is very different from the example of prayers in the Word which say – “Your will be done!” My prayer was one of unbelief—Jesus’ prayer was a prayer of confidence and commitment. Jesus, prayed this prayer knowing that through the suffering, much joy and victory was on the other side of that suffering and death.]
[Heb 12:2 NKJV] 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of [our] faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
[When we are facing suffering, persecution and tribulation, Jesus showed that it is ok to ask and pray for it to pass away from us. However, He knew in this instance, from prophecy in the Word, He was to be like a lamb led to slaughter and not resist Satan, especially with the power of His words which had spoken the universe into existence. With a word He could have stopped the suffering at any moment.]
[Isa 53:7 NKJV] 7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
[By contrast, the other location of the phrase “Your will be done” is found in a model prayer Jesus used to teach His followers how to pray. This time the prayer is not about submitting to Satan’s intended suffering, but to overcome it! It is a prayer for the coming of God’s victorious kingdom like it is in Heaven.]
[Mat 6:9-13 NKJV] 9 "In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.”
[In this model prayer from Jesus, He again prays, “Your will be done.” But He adds the phrase “On earth as it is in Heaven.” Unlike Jesus’ prayer in the Garden, where Jesus was praying for that cup of suffering to pass away from Him, here He asks us to pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is in Heaven, where there is no earthly suffering, persecution or tribulation—pray for the situation to be like it was in the Garden of Eden before the fall. One prayer, Jesus asks for the suffering to pass, the other is a prayer for the establishment of His kingdom, Heaven on earth, relief from a fallen world, Eden, where there is no suffering.
So, what happens when we pray to be freed from suffering when the Word promises persecution? Many Scriptures promise personal discomfort, the sacrifice of our wants and needs, persecution and tribulation even to the point of death.]
[Luk 9:23 NKJV] 23 Then He said to [them] all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross [an instrument of persecution of early Christians] daily, and follow Me.
[2Ti 3:12 NKJV] 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.
[Jhn 15:20 NKJV] 20 "Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.
[Luk 21:12 NKJV] 12 "But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute [you], delivering [you] up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name's sake.
[Mat 10:17 NKJV] 17 "But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues.
[Jhn 16:2 NKJV] 2 "They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.
[Rev 2:10 NKJV] 10 "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw [some] of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
[1Co 4:11-13 NKJV] 11 To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. 12 And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; 13 being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now.
[Rom 8:35, 39 NKJV] 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? [Shall] tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ... 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[Mat 24:9 NKJV] 9 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.
[1Th 3:3-4 NKJV] 3 that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this. 4 For, in fact, we told you before when we were with you that we would suffer tribulation, just as it happened, and you know.
[Jhn 16:33 NKJV] 33 "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."
[1Pe 4:1-2, 12-19 NKJV] 1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of [his] time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. ... 12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. 14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed [are you], for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's matters. 16 Yet if [anyone suffers] as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. 17 For the time [has come] for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if [it begins] with us first, what will [be] the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 Now "If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?" 19 Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls [to Him] in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.
[This last passage on promised persecution and tribulation mentions two types of suffering. The first is persecution for the name of Jesus even to the point of death. The second is the result of consequences for our sin and mistakes. This passage commands that we live godly lives and avoid suffering caused by our ungodliness and sin. A third type of suffering is mentioned in this next passage.]
[2Co 4:16-18 NKJV] 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward [man] is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding [and] eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen [are] temporary, but the things which are not seen [are] eternal.
[“Our outward man is perishing” is a result of the fall in the Garden of Eden. The consequences include the ailments of old age, disease, injuries, and other calamities common to this fallen world. Jesus commanded us to pray that it be here on Earth as it is in Heaven where these sufferings of the fallen world don’t exist.
We can also pray for relief from the ailments that are the consequences of our own sin, such as addictions and lies. God’s Word has numerous promises we can stand on to see relief from these types of suffering—see 17) Praying God’s Word is the Best Way to Pray God’s Will.
However, praying for relief from suffering caused by persecution for the name of Jesus is one area even Jesus prayed to be released from but wasn’t because of suffering promised in the Word. We too have suffering promised in the Word as followers of Jesus. Like Jesus we too can pray to be released from it. However, this is the only type of suffering we can pray for that God may use in His plan to reveal himself to others through our commitment to Him even to the point of death.
I have heard some television preachers so emphasize prayer being all about our healing, comfort and prosperity, it almost sounded like they treat God like their spiritual vending machine or wish granting genie. Although there are numerous promises about meeting our needs according to His riches in Heaven, these other Scriptures we just read clearly command self-denial, and promise suffering from persecution and tribulations. We need to be willing to persevere persecution and suffering when we follow Jesus’s example, and partake in the suffering of the cross. However, we often confuse the sufferings of a fallen world with persecution for our following Jesus. Diseases like cancer are a result of this fallen world, and are NOT persecution. They are a work of Satan and we should actively fight against cancer in prayer (Jam 4:7)—see tip 35) Promise 2. How to Pray for Healing & Salvation.
Similarly, men who commit persecution on Jesus’ followers are under the deception of Satan. We must resist the satanic persecution of our faith, however, in a different way. We are commanded to resist by loving our enemies.]
[Mat 5:44 NKJV] 44 "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
[Luk 6:27-31, 35-36 NKJV] 27 "But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 "bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 "To him who strikes you on the [one] cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold [your] tunic either. 30 "Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask [them] back. 31 "And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. ... 35 "But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36 "Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
[Pro 25:21-22 NKJV] 21 If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; 22 For [so] you will heap coals of fire on his head, And the LORD will reward you.
[Rom 12:20 NKJV] 20 Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head."
[It is easier love your enemies when you realize they are deceived. By being kind to them gives you an opportunity to share the truth to them in Love. See tip 34) Promise: 1, How to Pray That We Complete God’s Great Commission.
The second way we actively fight in prayer the suffering in this fallen world is to praise, rejoice and be joyful. For more on this see tips 6) Jesus’ Training Prayer, and 7) As You Go – Walking with God – Praying, Praising, Rejoicing.]
[Phl 4:4 NKJV] 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
[Jas 1:2-4 NKJV] 2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have [its] perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
[Jhn 14:1-3 NKJV] 1 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 "In My Father's house are many mansions; if [it were] not [so], I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, [there] you may be also.
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