When the girls were little, the husband would encourage them to jump off the side of the pool into his arms, assuring them that he would catch them and all would be well. It took some time to convince them to jump, but eventually their trust in their father won out and they would jump into the safety of his arms, laughing with joy and relief.
Of course now they are grown beyond the age of needing to be caught and spend fearless hours jumping into the pool on their own.
It never occurred to me then how much trust the girls needed to have in their father to be willing to jump. They had to put complete faith in him, that he was strong and trustworthy and that even if their heads went under water, he would lift them up to safety.
On this Good Friday, I have begun to think about the trust Jesus had to have in His Heavenly Father. Before He was crucified Jesus prayed " Father, if it is Your will, take this cup from me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."(Matthew 22:42) Jesus knew the plan was that He would die on the cross...one who never sinned, to take on the sin of the world, (For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21) that by believing in Jesus we could be forgiven of sin and have eternal life. (For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16)
I think the fact that Jesus asked that the cup be taken from Him was a clear indication that what He was about to do was an overwhelming task. A task that He would have gladly passed. But Jesus faith was absolute. He trusted in His Heavenly Father's plan. He had faith that if He jumped, His Heavenly Father would catch Him and lift His head out of the water. He loved us so completely that He was willing to die that we might be saved, because that was His Father's will...to save us.
I think everyone of us understands the willingness to give our own lives to save the life of someone we love. I imagine I would go to the utmost lengths to save my children.
I will admit, it is not easy to imagine that I could love someone I have never met, or someone who cried out for my own death, enough to think I would die for them. Yet, that is what Jesus did.
Sometimes it is easy for me to think...well, He knew what the outcome would be, that He would, on the third day, rise from death and maybe that made it easier for Him. Then again maybe I am looking for ways to make it easier for me to comprehend a love so deep and complete it would suffer so greatly for me. But even if Jesus knew the outcome of His Heavenly Father's plan, He had to have great trust that God would raise Him up again. (For to this end Christ (Jesus) died and rose and lived again. Romans 14:9a)
It frustrates me that I know that God has done something this awesome, that I have seen so many answers to my own prayers and that I have witnessed the incredible things my Heavenly Father has done in terrible situations and I still struggle to have complete trust.
It makes me that much more grateful for the unfailing trust Jesus had and the gift of salvation I can accept because of it.
The girls took a leap of faith into their father's arms because it gave them a feeling of exhilaration and freedom. They knew their father would lift them to safety.
Jesus took a leap of faith to offer us salvation and freedom through Him, in God. He rose to life, conquering death, lifted by the mighty arms of God...Happy Easter!
Now it's my turn to take that exhilarating a leap of faith, trusting in Jesus death and resurrection and the mighty arms of my Heavenly Father to lift me out of any water He calls me to jump into.
Christine
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