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Jesus And Emotions
by Jack Earl Do you remember Mr. Spock of the StarTrek television series? Mr. Spock was not human. One of his distinguishing features was that he had no emotions. He was completely logical. He could be objective in his decisions because they were not influenced by his feelings. I admired Mr. Spock and thought that he was superior to human beings who were often controlled by emotions. I noticed that doctors who had a family member who needed surgery would assign the task to another doctor who was not emotionally involved with the patient so they could be more objective in their decision making. I felt that nurses and paramedics who remained unattached from their patients were superior to those who allowed themselves to become emotionally involved. I considered emotions to be a weakness of the human makeup. Therefore I felt guilty when I experienced emotions of anger or sorrow. This was especially true as a Christian. I thought that to lose my cool and raise my voice was a sin. Or to feel discouraged or depressed was a weakness. If anyone could demonstrate the detachment from emotions, I thought it should be Jesus. However, a careful study of the gospels revealed to me a Jesus who was very emotional. A couple times they mention that He wept. His actions while cleaning the temple of the racketeers reveal His anger. However, the most revealing look into the intimacy of Jesus, emotions comes in the Garden of Gethsemane shortly before His arrest. Mark 14:32-42 32. Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray." 33. And He took Peter, James and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. 34. Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch." (Notice that even Jesus needed the support of friends during times of distress.) 35. He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it was that this would pass. 36. 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." 37. Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? 38. Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak." (Does not Jesus seem to be a little hurt and disappointed that His friends could not stay awake during His time of distress?) 39. Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. 40. And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. (Jesus was surely even more devastated to discover that His disciples could not stand by Him in His time of sorrow, even after His repeated request. His disciples sensed this and were ashamed of themselves. They could not give Jesus an excuse.) 41. 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. 42. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand." Luke's account of this incident adds a more detailed account of the agony that Jesus experienced. Luke 22:44 And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Why such agony? Jesus knew that his resurrection was only three days off. Had Jesus been like Mr. Spock and used only His logic, He would have calmly accepted the task before Him. But Jesus was like us in the sense that He had both a heart of emotions and a mind of logic. He also had a clear picture of what was ahead. There was to be the taunts and jears of people He desperately loved. There was to be the physical abuse and suffering. There was to be the shame of hanging naked on a cross for all to see. But even more horrible was to be the torment He would experience as He would descend into Hell. Jesus knew of the horrors of Hell. He knew that it was a place of terrible suffering and pain. (Something that those of us who have trusted Him for forgiveness will never have to experience.) It was this ability to see into the future that caused Jesus to experience such fear. Jesus had both a heart and a mind. This was not because He was human, but rather it was because He was God. We also have emotions and a brain. It is not some weakness that we have to deal with because we are humans but rather it is a blessing because we are created in God's image. Jack Earl is a retired Christian Bookstore manager, a graduate of Moody Bible Institute. He now lives in the Seirra Nevada Mountains in central California. He may be reached at [email protected] Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |