THE DEEPEST WOE

The Spirit is Willing...The Flesh is Weak

Grief. Agony. Sorrow. Misery. Affliction. Fear. Suffering. Calamity. These are examples of woe … a word not often heard in our everyday dialogue.

The Bible often uses this word to describe deep feelings of abandonment, alienation and suffering. And, such were the deepest emotional sufferings Jesus experienced as the weight of the sin of mankind was being transferred to Him. One sin at a time. All sin for all time. My sin and yours.

Utterly forsaken. Difficult to imagine the Son of God even entertaining this idea. To grasp the immensity of his grief would be impossible. It wasn’t easy. Fear of abandonment and alienation from the Father was literally breaking His heart. The voice of the enemy screaming in His ear, “See, you have a friend nowhere! Even your Father has shut up the bowels of His compassion against you! All heaven is alienated from you. You are alone…” Hell had unleashed its fiercest fury, summoning every prince of darkness as if to convince Him he was utterly alone while performing the greatest act of love mankind would or could ever witness. He felt the immense weight of mankind’s sin. So undeserved. So willingly submissive to the plan and purpose of the Father.

Jesus, while wrestling with the demons screaming in his ear, found His disciples asleep. Most likely, their rest and unawareness of His woeful agony lent to the feelings of abandonment. “Confirmation,” whispered the demonic voices tormenting Him.

His spirit was willing. His flesh was frail and weak. Yet, He knew He must overcome as the warfare increased.

Sweat as drops of blood puddled on the ground beneath Him. Crying out to the Father, “If it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will."

“...in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared…” (Heb 5:7)

In the midst of the deepest fear any man, woman or child could ever possibly experience, He was heard. Though all heaven seemed to have turned its back against Him, the Father heard His supplications. He was heard.

No matter what we face in this life, we never have to fear not being heard. In the midst of our deepest agony, sorrow or affliction, our prayers are heard. Even if it seems that all heaven has turned its back against us, our cries are heard.

God's ear is never deaf toward those who love Him and trust Him for salvation. Feelings will speak otherwise; they are part and parcel to the frailty of our flesh. But our soul is united with Him through faith in the finished work of the Cross of Christ. He hears. He is not deaf. He has not turned His back against us.

As Jesus was heard in the midst of His woes, so shall we be heard in our darkest hours.

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Note: Based on C. H. Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening: Daily Readings for March 24.