Famous Last Words - Week 3

INTRODUCTION

1.5 MINUTES

Have you ever watched a TV show or movie, and you figured out who the “bad guy” is, but none of the characters in the show or movie had yet? You’re practically yelling at your TV or phone, “No!! Don’t trust him!!” Or, “Noooo! Don’t believe her!”

It’s maddening, because you can see what’s happening, but the people in the show or the movie can’t. You put the pieces together about who the bad guy really is, but everyone else is completely blind to it!

Maybe you’ve also had an experience like this in real life. You felt like you figured out something about someone. You thought . . .

That a teacher was out to get you. That a friend was betraying you.That a parent was trying to kill all the fun in your life.

And in that moment, that person became the “bad guy,” and you couldn’t imagine them any other way. You couldn’t possibly fathom…

That teacher looking out for your best interests.That friend being someone you could trust. That parent being capable of showing you some grace.

See, even though life isn’t a movie, we all have rotating good guys and bad guys, don’t we? And when somebody works their way into your “bad guy” list, it’s tough for them to get out, isn’t it? We’ve made up our mind about that person and boxed them into our idea of who we think they are.

And nothing they do can change it.

TENSION

1.5 MINUTES

If we’re honest, I bet some of us would admit that, at some point or another, we’ve seen God in a similar way. We wouldn’t say it out loud, especially in church, but God seemed like the “bad guy.”

Maybe there was a time when you saw God (or saw Him portrayed) as angry, mean, and constantly looking to see if you’re messing up. Or maybe if you were honest, to you God seems like a distant grandpa in the sky. He’s nice, but He’s disinterested in you and what you’re going through.

Maybe your view of God is completely different. Or maybe you had a different view of God in the past. But for many people, when we go through seasons of life when we feel like God is the “bad guy,” it’s hard to imagine Him any other way.

And if we’re being honest, it’s hard to pursue an active, growing relationship with God when He seems like the bad guy. It’s tough to pray, read the Bible, worship, or engage in small group discussion. I mean, why would we want to pursue Someone who was distant, cold, judgmental, or just plain mean?

But sometimes, how we feel about God doesn’t represent what is true about God. And here’s what’s pretty cool: You and I can find an incredible demonstration of this as we look at some of Jesus’ famous last words.

TRUTH

7.5 MINUTES

In the New Testament of the Bible, we find the book of Luke, which is one of the four accounts of Jesus’ life. Basically, Luke investigated what everybody said about Jesus and wrote it all down. And in his account, Luke does a great job of giving us some insight into what Jesus was going through as He got closer to being arrested and put to death.

In fact, on the very night Jesus would be arrested, He asked His disciples to go with Him to Gethsemane, a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Why did Jesus want His friends to go with Him to the park at night? Well, there are probably lots of reasons, some of which I don’t even understand. But there are a few things to note here:

Jesus knew He was on the verge of something painful.Jesus wanted to talk to His Heavenly Father about it.Jesus wanted His friends there for support.

Check it out:

Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. There he told them, “Pray that you will not give in to temptation.” He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me” (Luke 22:39-42a NLT).

This is so honest and vulnerable. And in true Jesus fashion, so humble. As much as you may think that Jesus was a mini-God robot when He was on Earth, you have to remember that Jesus was also a man. He was fully God but also was fully a human being. He was a full-blooded human! So He didn’t like the idea of getting a “cup of suffering” any more than the rest of us. And like many of us, one of Jesus’ first responses was to look upward.

So often in my own life, when things aren’t going well or the way I want, I look upward, too. But I often don’t do it in the way Jesus modeled. When I look upward, I blame God, ask Him why He would allow this to happen, and demand that He fix things immediately. I start to see God as the “bad guy” again. Or, I assume that He is punishing me for some area of my life where my thinking or behavior has been bad. So I ask things like, “God, why are you allowing this to happen? Is it because of something I’ve done? Can you please forgive me for whatever that is and make this situation better?”

And while God is totally fine with us talking to Him that way (as we see in today’s passage, Jesus was totally honest with God!), it’s more about my view of God than it is what I say or don’t say to Him.

It’s really about the underlying questions that we ask when we’re going through something we don’t want to go through:

Can I trust God?Will God take care of me? Does God care about what’s happening to me?Is God good? Is God there for me?

Which brings us back to Jesus in the garden as our model. But first, let’s recap:

First, Jesus was honest with His Father. Not surprising at all. In fact, Him talking to God honestly is Something we can all learn from. Second, Jesus asked His Father to help or fix the situation. Again, not surprising. One of the simplest things we neglect or forget to do in difficult situations is pause and ask God for help.

But it’s what comes next that IS surprising. So after all of that, Jesus says this:

“Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” (Luke 22: 42b NLT).

Minutes away from His betrayal, arrest, and torture, Jesus essentially says, “Father, I trust you no matter what happens.”

What?? How does He do that?

It doesn’t make any sense. Not even a little bit.

Unless.

Unless Jesus knew something about God we don’t. Unless He believed something about God we have a hard time believing.

Even when His circumstances didn’t make sense, Even when His fear felt overwhelming (Remember: Jesus was fully human. His fear was real!), Even when the future seemed terrible in every way imaginable (and in this circumstance, unimaginable to us!),

Even with all of that happening, Jesus chose to see His circumstances through what He knew to be true of God, instead of changing what He thought of God based on what He experienced or felt.

See, it takes an extraordinary amount of trust in God to face extraordinarily difficult circumstances. And certainly no circumstance matches what Jesus was about to face. But Jesus had a view of God, and understanding of Him, that comforted Him despite what He was about to face.

And what did He know about God?

He knew that His Heavenly Father was good. He knew that His Heavenly Father was loving.He knew that His Heavenly Father had a bigger picture in mind.

In fact, Jesus also knew that God would walk with Him through His difficulty. Check out what happens next:

Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood (Luke 22:43-44 NLT).

Jesus said, “God, your will be done.” And then He was comforted by an angel from heaven. Which sounds crazy for the way we see the world today. But hang with me. The angel appeared as comfort, but it didn’t make the bad feelings go away. In fact, look at how He was sweating! What’s the significance of this? Well, it’s cool to note that God didn’t just cross His arms and say, “Good luck!” No, He sent an angel. Meaning, He cared. He wanted to send comfort.

But knowing that God cares and is with you doesn’t mean you’ll suddenly feel better. I mean, let’s just admit it: Bad circumstances feel bad. Jesus still felt agony. Trusting God doesn’t mean that your hard circumstances will disappear.

Also, trusting God doesn’t automatically mean that things will go your way. Trusting God is about understanding who God is more than it’s about getting what we want.

Jesus’ famous last words in this prayer are powerful, no doubt. But it wasn’t just about His words; it was about His confidence, courage, and trust in God while He was having a really tough night.

You and I can learn a lot from this view of God. There will be a lot of tough nights in our lives. Nights where we wonder what God is doing and why. Nights where we can’t see what God Is up to, and when that happens, you and I can . . .

Trust who God is, even when you don’t understand.

Because He knew what God was like, Jesus could trust Him no matter what happened. Jesus could face whatever was coming because He could trust completely in who God had shown Himself to be.

That’s why how we see God matters. That’s why, if we have an idea about God that isn’t accurate, it’s a big deal. Because at some point, we’re all going to face difficult circumstances and tough seasons of life. And if we see God as if He’s a policeman in the sky, a disinterested grandfather, or a referee keeping score, we’re going to have a harder time trusting Him. Our circumstances and emotions are going to overpower our view of God.

On the other hand, if we can face those circumstances with confidence that God is with us, for us, trustworthy, and compassionate, our trust will give us the fuel we need to endure these difficult times.

Our circumstances may not change. And our emotions may not change, either. But we’ll have what (and Who) we need to make it through!

APPLICATION

1.5 MINUTES

So, what does this mean for us today? Well for starters, it means we have permission to be real with God. We don’t have to hide from God or be afraid to tell Him how we feel. Honesty doesn’t make us a “bad Christian,” and it doesn’t mean we don’t trust God. It means we’re human. In fact, I’d say that how honest we are reveals how much we trust Him. When we trust someone completely, we don’t hold anything back.

And when we’re being honest with God, it creates an opportunity for God to show Himself in way we may not have known otherwise. He will show Himself to be faithful, loving, and close to us. Because, like with any relationship, honesty builds a deeper and stronger connection.

But even more than that, we need to get in a habit of reminding ourselves of what’s true about God. That way, when things look bleak, we have truth to hold on to. Sure, we can ask questions. We can doubt. We can be honest. But we can also hold on to truth:

God is love. God is compassionate.God is gracious.God is for you.God is better than you imagined.

When we get to a point in life where we are discovering more of the things that are TRUE about God, and we’re learning more of what He’s really like, we’ll start living with more confidence in Him. In other words, when we know what’s true about Him, we can trust Him. And yes, that will be easier when things are going great. But it will also be a lifesaver on a really tough night.

Here’s the truth: We won’t always know what God is doing. We won’t know how or when or if He’ll change our circumstances. We won’t know how He’ll use our situations. But we can trust Who God is even when we don’t know what He’s doing.

LANDING

1 MINUTE

As we close, I want you to think about one area of your life where you’re not sure what God is doing. What would it look like for you to trust in who God is, even when you don’t understand?

Maybe for you it means letting go of worry that He won’t come through or anger that He didn’t come through in the way you had hoped. Maybe it means living the way He says to even when it doesn’t make sense. Maybe it means praying—honestly—and trusting He will hear you and not hate you.

The truth is, God is good. His character is good. And that doesn’t change when our circumstances are hard. Jesus trusted God enough to say, “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine”. And because of Jesus, we can do the same.