Easter is All About the Future

This—the trust, the faith, the heartfelt assurance, the confident expectancy—is what it takes to get thought the Garden of Gethsemane moments. It is where KatieLyn stumbled and froze.

This is Holy Week, sometimes called Passion Week, on the Christian Church calendar. Holy Week began on Palm Sunday, which commemorates the Triumphal Entry, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a never-ridden donkey. During the early part of the week, Jesus cursed a fig tree, overturned the table of the money changers in the Temple, and went to the Mount of Olives, just east of Jerusalem, where he shared some final parables and teaching with his disciples. In the middle of the week He celebrated the Passover feast with His disciples, and afterwards went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. It was here that he fought the fight of faith; Luke describes his sweat becoming like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

In many real ways, it was here in the garden that Jesus won his battle. That is where the heart and mind submitted to God.  Thank God He did not run away in the middle of the night like KatieLyn! Jesus trusted the future of all mankind to the Father He knew.

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:1, 2.

For the Joy set before Him
Jesus saw a bigger picture with the eyes of his heart than could be seen in the natural. He saw joy in the future. He did not let Satan rob Him of that. Jesus did not listen to advice from Peter. He did not consider how brutal and ugly crucifixion was. He talked to His Father.


The Lesson
KatieLyn wasn't able to take that step of faith. Her family wasn't looking at her future with spiritual eyes either, and therefore the so-called support that her family gave her was actually negative and encouraged her to play it safe instead of to trust God. (I am not sure if she ever talked to her father.)
Her Heavenly Father had made provision for a thrilling and fulfilling future, but she flunked her Garden of Gethsemane test.