Not My Will But Thine
Jesus said those words in Matthew 26:39 “Going a little farther, he fell on his face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’” (NIV)
If we truly want to be someone who follows Christ, this must be our rallying cry as well. Hebrews 12:2 tells us to fix our eyes on Jesus, Paul tells us to imitate him because he imitates Christ (I Corinthians 4:15-17).
This phrase that appears in Matthew 26:39 shows that even Jesus did the will of God. How in the world do we think we can get by with doing what we want when Jesus couldn’t even do it?
Some things about the context of this passage. This was a fervent prayer. Jesus was physically struggling with knowing that His time to go to the cross was near. He cared so much for us – that even though physically he was having trouble with it – he knew that He had to do what He came for and that was go to sacrifice himself for us.
That was the will of the Father and that’s why he uttered the words “not my but thine.” Jesus obeyed the will of God, despite his sad tone, despite being alone and in absolute agony. He said, “not my will but thine.” He was to be the lamb that was led to slaughter (Isaiah 53:7).
Jesus is the head of the church – He is in charge, what He says goes. With that being the case, we must say “not my will but thine.” One thing that I have learned since becoming a Christian 30 years ago – is that Christianity is not about my wants, my likes and what I can get out of it. It’s about what God and Christ want, i.e “not my will but thine.”
As a Christian, I am a part of the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-33). Therefore if Christ is the groom than I must be submissive to His will. Many today are serving God on their terms, when they should be serving Him on His terms. Again, in other words, “not my will but thine.”
I may like something – it may not be something the Head (Jesus) has said he wants done. How then can I go ahead with it and think that it is pleasing to Him.? That is the height of arrogance. Our attitude should be “not my will but thine.”
We are obligated to follow Christ and His commands. We need to respect His position as the Head and also respect ours, as the body. The body does what the Head instructs it to, not the other way around.
Let us have the attitude of Christ in following Him, “not my will but thine.”
