Two Gardens and The Cross

The Holy One calls to me this morning. The day we set aside to honor and celebrate as the day of the Resurrection of Jesus the Christ from the dead is almost here.

But before we can celebrate His resurrection, we need to come to terms with His crucifixion and that is the day we have come to call, “Good Friday”. As I get set to revisit the events of Good Friday so long ago, The Holy Spirit sets me to pondering,

“The Garden of Eden was Adam’s, the Garden of Gethsemane was Mine”.

Since the movie called “The Passion” was released, we have a more graphic picture and heartbreaking understanding of the torture of that day and what our Lord went through even before He hung on the Cross.

To those who may not know the history of the Jewish people, or its relevance to the Cross the timing of our Lord’s death matches up with the timing of the Jewish Passover celebrated because the Children of Israel were rescued out of Egyptian slavery (symbollic of our slavery to sin)  in a miraculous and dramatic way.

Moses was called by God to lead His people out of bondage and slavery under the Great Pharaoh of Egypt, but first he had to gain their release. Most of us know the story and the hardness of the Pharaoh’s heart, but the night of the Passover was the final act by God that actually forced the exodus out of Egypt.

For the release of the Hebrew slaves from bondage, one final act of God’s Sovereignty and power was unleashed over the Pharaoh and Egypt. The “Angel of death” passed through the land and was to kill the firstborn in every household both man and beast.

Exodus 11:4-7,  “Thus says the Lord, about midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of the Pharaoh who sits on his throne even to the firstborn of the female servants who is behind the hand mill and all the firstborn of the animals.

Then there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt such as was not like it before nor shall be like it again. But against none of the children of Israel shall a dog move its tongue against man or beast that you may know that the Lord does make a difference between the Egyptians and Israel”.

The Children of Israel were then given a life or death directive which served to identity them and their household and to test their obedience of faith in the One Who said unto Pharaoh, “Let My people go”. For the Lord God Almighty was their Deliverer.

Each household was to take a male lamb without blemish and keep it from the 10th day of the month until the 14th day of the month at twilight. They were then to kill the lamb and place its blood on the 2 doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they were to eat it. They were to roast it in the fire and consume all of the sacrificed lamb and what was not consumed was to be burned in the fire.

They were to prepare themselves to leave in haste in anticipation of their release. That night was called “Passover” because the Death Angel went through the land of Egypt and struck down every firstborn of men and animals in every household, but passed over the houses of the children of Israel where the blood of the lamb has been applied to the doorposts.

This Passover is one of the most important celebrations for the Children of Israel and is re-enacted by the Jewish people every year to commemorate that miraculous deliverance, protection of their firstborn,  and exodus out of slavery and bondage.

On the Thursday evening before “Good Friday” Jesus was celebrating the Galilean traditional supper with His disciples.  It was eaten tgether, then came a time of fasting until the sedar (passover meal) was eaten.  The period of fasting after this last supper was a  "fast for the first born".  According to Jewish tradition this fast was commemorating the Lord's protection of all the first born of Israel as the death angel went throughout the land of Egypt and killed the firstborn of every household that did not have the blood of the lamb on it's doorpost. They ate the meal and after Judas (the one who betrayed Jesus) was sent away to complete his infamous act of betrayal, Jesus set forth the directive from this “Last Supper” and last  meal that He would share with His disciples.

Little did they know at the time that Jesus Himself was to be the Passover Lamb they symbolically remembered in this way. He broke the bread and passed it out to His disciples, He poured the wine and told them to drink. As they did this in communion together Luke 22:19-20 says,

“And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke and gave it to them saying, ‘This is My body which is given for you’.

Likewise, He took the cup after supper saying, ‘This cup is the new Covenant in My blood which is shed for you’. "

After that, they left the place of the Last Supper and went to the Garden of Gethsemane as was their tradition to pray before ending the fast for the first born and where the final surrender of Christ as Savior and sacrificial Lamb of God was completed.

The death penalty that was initiated in the Garden of Eden for the first act of human rebellion of God’s Will, was about to be paid through the death of the innocent Lamb of God: Jesus the Christ.

The first Adam (man made in God’s image) refused to obey the one rule in submission to the Creator. The relationship between Creator God and His beloved created human was broken and until the penalty was paid there could be no reconciliation in the God/man relationship.

The terms of the redemption were impossible for a mortal human in the genealogy of Adam to meet. The death penalty would stand unless a perfect and blemish-free sacrifice was made. None born of human male seed could meet that criteria since the fall despoiled all flesh; So God Himself provided the Holy and innocent sacrifice.

The sin gene is carried by all the male of our species which answers the question of why an immaculate conception and virgin birth was necessary.

Temptation to sin had to be offered and rejected which answers the question of why the encounter with the devil in the wilderness took place and even when in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus broke under the pressure and asked that the cup of suffering might be taken away.  Still Jesus submitted to His Father's will. 

All the sin that is associated to our flesh under the rule of our sin nature had to be utterly destroyed which answers the question of the brutality of the flesh that Jesus endured.

The ultimate relational penalty of rejection of all that is unholy by a Holy God had to be complete which answers the question of Jesus’ dying words, “My God, My God why have you forsaken Me?”

Each element of the penalty of death for sin and the requirement of our redemption was paid and fulfilled by our Savior, God’s Only Son, Jesus.

The second garden was a reenactment of the first, but with an eternal difference. Where the first Adam failed the second Adam, Jesus in his same position succeeded. Where rebellion first got its start in the Garden of Eden, Jesus 's complete submission to the Father’s will ended the fatal consequence in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Taking on the sin of the world was something only the eternal God of all creation could do and live to tell about it, however as a side note: we will at times be taken to our own personal Garden of Gethsemane before we are taken to our personal cross where the question of surrender is still being asked.

The weight of that decision on a human body, caused the Lord to sweat drops of blood as He knew the pain and cost to His physical being yet He made that decision anyway.

The mystery of Holiness will never be completely understood this side of Heaven but the love actions of our creator to redeem His creation are clearly visible as we remember the two gardens and the Cross.

Recalling the past events in this commemoration of “Holy Week” enables me to appreciate the magnitude of the Father’s love and delight in the power of the Resurrection and the sacrificial life of our Messiah Jesus the Christ. 

Hallelujah He died for us and now is Risen! Resurrection life: Now that's something to celebrate!

The Holy Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?