In the Gethsemane encounter I was particularly struck by Jesus’ healing of the servants ear. Jesus was on a path to knowingly suffer injustice, to be whipped, beaten, tormented and die a horrific death, yet He was concerned how He walked that path and who was affected. To top it all, He was not on a path He would have chosen for himself, but was doing it because it was the will of the Father.
This is in stark contrast to our goal-oriented society where casualties are calculated and accepted as long as the end goal is achieved. I believe Jesus was showing us that how you do something, and the motivation for doing it, are as important, if not more important, than the goal itself. How you correct someone, and the motivation for the correction, for a Christian is more important than the correction itself. To experience the miraculous, we need to pay attention to our motivation, and how we carry out the work at hand, leaving the results to God, relying on Him alone, never forcing our way.
This has led me to believe that Jesus is more interested in how we react to situations than who was actually right or wrong. So much so that not even an ear of those who would falsely accuse, torment, beat and kill Him would be harmed.
~ Written by Peter Wilmot
