I love the way “The Passion of The Christ” movie begins, with the reminder that 400 years before Jesus was born his sacrifice was foretold in a vivid way.
Isaiah 53:5 (LB)
But he was wounded and bruised for our sins. He was beaten that we might have peace; he was lashed--and we were healed!
No single person in history knows more about suffering than Jesus! Does that surprise you? It should! I have heard of many people who have died equally as awful a death as crucifixion and some who have even died worse deaths. If that statement was only in reference to the type of death He died it may not be accurate. However, the fact that He was, is, and always will be, God. The fact that He never sinned, the fact that He who was without sin took on all the sins of mankind while suffering His sentence, this makes His death and suffering unparalleled.
Jesus knew how to follow God’s plan even when times were terrible.
Have you been going through tough times? We all have tough times to endure. This may sound cliché but Jesus knows your hurt. He knows how you feel, as a matter of fact in his last 12 hours of life he gives us the steps to following Him in times of despair. Let’s seek to follow Jesus’ example as we encounter trials along life’s path.
As you study Jesus’ life you realize that even though He did not lay aside his deity, He did humble himself as a man, to serve all humanity. So Jesus understands what we are facing in our lives.
Hebrews 2:16-18 (MSG)
It’s obvious, of course, that he didn’t go to all this trouble for angels. It was for people like us, children of Abraham. That’s why he had to enter into every detail of human life. Then, when he came before God as high priest to get rid of the people’s sins, he would have already experienced it all himself—all the pain, all the testing—and would be able to help where help was needed.
So, since Jesus knows what it is like to suffer like we suffer then He must have had a plan for overcoming these problems. Let’s look at the three Keys to following God in times of despair.
Three Keys to Following God in Times of Despair:
Jesus did what we all must learn to do.
1. Pray for your will to be God’s will.
Matthew 26:39 (GW)
After walking a little farther, he quickly bowed with his face to the ground and prayed, “Father, if it’s possible, let this cup {of suffering} be taken away from me. But let your will be done rather than mine.”
In the most difficult time of Jesus’ life on earth, the night before He was crucified Jesus went to pray. The way he prayed is 180 degrees different than what many churches teach today. A false view is that with enough prayer and enough faith you can get God’s will to become your will. Jesus prayed the way we should. He said. “Father not my will but your will be done.” Prayer is the important ingredient to a submissive and obedient Christian. Prayer is aligning our will with God’s not vice versa.
Like the Christian Prisoner Ivan in the midst of all the horrors of a Soviet prison camp said; One day as he was praying with his eyes closed a fellow prisoner notices him and says with ridicule, “Prayers won’t help you get out of here any faster.” Opening his eyes, Ivan answered, “I do not pray to get out of prison but that I may do the will of God.”
You do this by following the example of Jesus in regards to prayer.
• Adoration – Adore God for who He is.
When Jesus says earlier in His ministry, this is how you should pray; He shows the four keys to effective prayer. I use the ACTS acronym. This begins with Adoration.
Matthew 6:9-10 (NIV)
"This, then, is how you should pray:” Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
When we pray we need to Adore God in our hearts. We don’t need flattering words or even a great deal of words. However we must acknowledge Him as our Father in heaven, bless His name.
Jesus also taught us to take time to admit your sins.
• Confession – Confess your sins.
Matthew 6:12 (NIV)
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Even though Jesus never sinned, He knew we would, and challenges us to be honest before God. Remember Christian, your sins are erased by the blood of Jesus, as is the guilt of your sin, but this does not make you incapable to sin. So when you sin, just be honest. Confess means literally to “say it is so!” Admit you’re a sinner. God loves humility and honors those who are true to their word. Remember He already knows what you have done, He is just waiting for you to admit it.
Illustration – Talk about when you know your children have done wrong and you give them a chance to admit it before you let them know, you know. What a blessing! When they actually fess up before you have to drop the hammer.
Jesus also teaches this prayer should be in the attitude of…
• Thanksgiving – Thank God for everything He has done.
Jesus did this in advance of the resurrection of Lazarus. He was setting an example for us. We may not know what is going to happen in advance, like Jesus did, but we know whatever answer god gives us; it will be only what is best for us.
John 11:41-42 (NIV)
So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
Thank Him for what He is going to do. And finally, when we pray for God’s will to be ours we must pray a prayer of…
• Supplication – Ask him to supply your needs.
God wants us to lift up our needs. He cares about every little detail of our lives.
Matthew 6:11 (NIV)
Give us today our daily bread.
Even down to the food we eat.
This is how we pray. Adore God for who He is. Confess what we have done, thank Him for all He does and will do and ask Him to supply your needs. As we pray this way we learn that God’s will must take precedence over our will.
Now, let’s get this straight. It is not natural, nor part of our flesh to desire God’s will above our own. We must yield to the Spirit of God and realize this is a daily struggle. To do God’s will takes persistence. It takes Christians who will persevere even after they have blown it.
Hebrews 10:36 (NJB)
You will need perseverance if you are to do God’s will and gain what he
has promised.
Circle “perseverance”. God’s desire is to bless Christians who are persevering in prayer. When we say “God, I want what you want,” we need to be ready for some changes in our lives. He will shake things up because our ways are not His ways. Let’s make our prayer, “God, your will be done.” This is where the battle between our human desires and God’s will is fought.
1 Peter 4:2 (TEV)
From now on, then, you must live the rest of your earthly lives controlled by God’s will and not by human desires.
The second key to following God in times of despair
2. Plan your response before troubles come.
I love the way Jesus carefully planned every word. I love His depth in every thought and I love His pointedness. We need to learn from this example. First – problems will come, however, most of us will never be falsely accused for a crime that will condemn us to the torture of the cross. The question is do we plan for problems by planning our approach? Here in this passage Jesus was being falsely accused, beaten, mocked and led toward His death. Yet he carefully responds with boldness and confidence. Take a look
Matthew 26:62,64a (NLT)
Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?" … Jesus replied, "Yes, it is as you say…
Three Steps to A Planned Response
In Jesus’ life He shows three steps to responding to trouble. Just like Jesus we need to…
• Look ahead.
Though you and I do not know what is going to happen in the future, we know trouble is a guarantee. Jesus told us “In this world we will have trouble…” This is a guarantee. So, if we can count on problems we must try to look ahead so our response is appropriate. Jesus was the wisest man who ever lived because He was, is, and always will be God. So His decisions were always right. We do not have that luxury so we must follow His example. Only a fool leaves life up to chances. Wise men plan ahead. Look ahead!
Proverbs 14:8 (NLT)
The wise look ahead to see what is coming, but fools deceive themselves.
In Pompeii in 79 A.D. Mount Vesuvius began to shake and throw out warning signs. In fact, about one year before the devastation of this city, a large earthquake toppled ¼ of the city, yet people paid no attention. Their lives went on as normal until the volcano erupted and 3360 people were killed. They did not look ahead. Our words are volcanoes that can erupt with the lava of emotions in times of trouble. The only way to avoid the devastation is to learn from the past and look ahead to the next time.
Another step -
• Choose wisely.
We are only going to be able to respond to trouble appropriately and in a godly way if we are hearing God’s word and living it out.
Illustrate – A friend mentioned to me that he struggled with his language and that it was because the people he is around at work are vulgar and use this language constantly. He also said that his dyslexia keeps him from reading God’s word. My advice was to pick up the word of God on tape or cassette. Listen to it, and let it fill his mind. I told him the only chance to choose his response wisely is to have his mind filled with God’s word.
Psalm 19:7 (NCV)
The teachings of the Lord are perfect; they give new strength. The rules of the Lord can be trusted; they make plain people wise.
God’s word makes you wise. To be able to respond in tough times we must allow God’s word to make plain people like you and I, wise.
We must look ahead, choose wisely and the third step is…
• Act don’t react.
Only when you look ahead and fill your mind with God’s word can you avoid despair and truly follow God. When we look ahead and choose our words wisely, then we will act instead of react.
Wow! How many problems we would avoid in our marriages, our relationships, our jobs, our fun times, if we would choose to act and not react. When we react we are saying “I am allowing someone else’s actions to determine my response.”
Illustrations From Your Life
When we are made wise by God’s word and the transformation of our minds we will develop good timing and good actions.
Ecclesiastes 8:5b (GW)
…The mind of a wise person will know the right time and the right way {to act}.
When troubles come, to follow the example of Jesus we need to pray for God’s will, plan how you will respond and lastly…
3. Praise God in the worst of times.
As I watched the vivid portrayal of Christ’s death in “The Passion” movie, I thought more about Jesus’ courage, His commitment, and His sacrifice than I had ever done in the past. Yet, what spoke so boldly to me in reading and seeing the biblical account was how Jesus wanted only to bring glory to God from His life and death.
John 12:28 (NLT)
Father, bring glory to your name." Then a voice spoke from heaven, saying, "I have already brought it glory, and I will do it again."
That I would live and die this way, what a prayer. I love God’s response. I have already brought glory to my name and I will do it again. This tells me God will get His glory regardless of me. God’s will is a constant, unchanging will. He is God and I am not!
John 17:1, 5 (NJB)
After saying this, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: Father, the hour has come:
glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you; … Now, Father, glorify me with that glory I had with you before ever the world existed.
Jesus gave up His heavenly glory to be mocked and crucified for our sins. But in all He did He gave praise to the Father.
This is a great example for us, that in the worst of times, from our human perspective, we can still give praise to God. We can count on the fact that eternity is waiting. The only way to truly follow God in this hopeless world with all of its troubles is to keep your mind on heaven. There is a better place awaiting. Heaven is real; and eternal glory awaits all those who know Jesus as their personal Savior.
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NLT)
For our present troubles are quite small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.
We falter and even fail when we put our eyes on our troubles, when we look at the temporary struggles instead of eternity. Jesus came because you were His passion. He came because you are a sinner just like me. The Bible says that for all those who die in their sins they will spend eternity in hell, separated from God forever. This bad news is made worse by the reality that you and I cannot do enough good works, we can’t be religious enough to take away these sins. God’s requirement for salvation is perfection. Not only perfection, but the Holiness of God. This means we are without hope!
(Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8, 9, Revelation 21:27, Ephesians 2:1-6.)
The good news is that Jesus, God in the flesh, God’s son came into this world and died for our sins. All our sins, past, present and future sins you don’t even know about. Jesus paid for them all. He died on a cross and was buried but three days later He rose again. This fact proves He is God and is the only one able to save you.
(Romans 5:8, Romans 4:5, John 6:47, 1 John 5:13)
Jesus says He is the only way to heaven. So to get there you must believe in Him alone. Trust in Jesus and what he did 2000 years ago to save you. The moment you do this, you are saved. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell you and you are going to heaven when
you die.
(John 10:28-30, John 14:6, Ephesians 1:13-14)
This is what it’s all about. If you want victory over despair then trust in Jesus Christ to save you. If you know Christ personally, choose to yield to the Holy Spirit and live in obedience to these three keys and despair will not defeat you.
Pray, Plan and Praise
Prayer
Jesus: How to be a Follower in Times of Despair- Outline
Isaiah 53:5 (LB)
But he was wounded and bruised for our sins. He was beaten that we might have peace; he was lashed--and we were healed!
Hebrews 2:16-18 (MSG)
It’s obvious, of course, that he didn’t go to all this trouble for angels. It was for people like us, children of Abraham. That’s why he had to enter into every detail of human life. Then, when he came before God as high priest to get rid of the people’s sins, he would have already experienced it all himself—all the pain, all the testing—and would be able to help where help was needed.
Three Keys to Following God in Times of Despair:
1. Pray for your will to be God’s will.
Matthew 26:39 (GW)
After walking a little farther, he quickly bowed with his face to the ground and prayed, “Father, if it’s possible, let this cup {of suffering} be taken away from me. But let your will be done rather than mine.”
You do this by following the example of Jesus in regards to prayer.
• Adoration – Adore God for who He is.
Matthew 6:9-10 (NIV)
"This, then, is how you should pray:” Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
• Confession – Confess your sins.
Matthew 6:12 (NIV)
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
• Thanksgiving – Thank God for everything He has done.
John 11:41-42 (NIV)
So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
• Supplication – Ask him to supply your needs.
Matthew 6:11 (NIV)
Give us today our daily bread.
Hebrews 10:36 (NJB)
You will need perseverance if you are to do God’s will and gain what he
has promised.
1 Peter 4:2 (TEV)
From now on, then, you must live the rest of your earthly lives controlled by God’s will and not by human desires.
2. Plan your response before troubles come.
Matthew 26:62,64a (NLT)
Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?" … Jesus replied, "Yes, it is as you say…
Three Steps To A Planned Response
• Look ahead.
Proverbs 14:8 (NLT)
The wise look ahead to see what is coming, but fools deceive themselves.
• Choose wisely.
Psalm 19:7 (NCV)
The teachings of the Lord are perfect; they give new strength. The rules of the Lord can be trusted; they make plain people wise.
• Act don’t react.
Ecclesiastes 8:5b (GW)
…The mind of a wise person will know the right time and the right way {to act}.
3. Praise God in the worst of times.
John 12:28 (NLT)
Father, bring glory to your name." Then a voice spoke from heaven, saying, "I have already brought it glory, and I will do it again."
John 17:1, 5 (NJB)
After saying this, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: Father, the hour has come:
glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you; … Now, Father, glorify me with that glory I had with you before ever the world existed.
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NLT)
For our present troubles are quite small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.
