Psalm 22:1 NIV84, Matthew 4:1-11 NIV84, Matthew 26:36-44 NIV84, Matthew 27:46 NIV84 and John 11:35 NIV84

Mark, thanks again for your analysis and points from yesterday. I'm going to try and point out some of the parts in scripture that might indicate Jesus' human condition makes him susceptible to temptation, but that he never succumbs because he submits himself fully the the Father. I don't know if any of it is conclusive, but I do feel these references bring up some questions we should ask about his humanness.

First, to address Mark's email from yesterday, I agree that there are no instances of Jesus being spiritually weak in Matthew 4. The text does say in verse 2, however, that "after fasting for forty days and nights, he was hungry" (NIV). I infer that he is physically quite weak from hunger at this point. He never falters or gives in to the temptations from Satan, as Mark has already pointed out in his analysis of Jesus' scriptural responses to each individual temptation. As for your comment about imagining that he wasn't crying during the time that the angels ministered to him, I'm not sure what that would mean or why you would take issue with it if he were. Do you mean that crying would imply weakness of some sort? I can think of at least one specific instance where Jesus weeps with Mary and Martha for the loss of their brother, Lazarus (John 11:35). Crying isn't weakness, but simply the natural result of being connected with one's emotions.

I agree that Jesus is the ultimate example for us, and that we can learn from everything he did in his time here on earth.

As for his humanness and need, certain parts of Jesus' story were nudging around in my brain when he was at Gethsemane and when he was upon the cross. He obviously never sins, nor does he ever succumb to temptation, but take a look at this first passage from Matthew 26 as an example of humanness and aligning himself with God's will over the temptation :

36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.

38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.

41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy.

44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.

It would seem in verse 37 that Jesus is not confident. I don't mean that he doesn't believe or know what the outcome will be of his endeavors, but doesn't approach this situation with tranquil security. On the other hand, he is so deeply troubled by what lies ahead of him that his "soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death" (v. 38). In the following verse we see Jesus being tempted to let the "cup be taken from [him]." The humanness in him wants to avoid this method of suffering, if possible, but since it is not possible, he accepts it and embraces it. And how is this for a mind-bender? Though Jesus and God are one, it would seem their wills are not one: "Yet not as I will, but as you will" (v. 39). He has to submit his own human will to the Father's. The last verse I highlighted here (41) might be interpreted as an example of what the disciples should be doing instead of sleeping, but they also are exactly what Jesus is doing to avoid succumbing to the temptation of letting the cup pass.

The other piece of Jesus' story that I was thinking about these last two days was just before his death. When he was hanging on the cross, he loudly cries out in Matthew 27:46:
“Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Again, just as before in Gethsemane, it would seem that Jesus is deeply distressed to the point of feeling forsaken by his Father. A fascinating fact about this verse is that it is also the first line in Psalm 22, which is one of the prophetic psalms that speaks of the Messiah.

So, what do you guys think? Does this shed any new light on our discussion? In being fully human and fully God, the person of Jesus certainly poses some challenges to my thinking and understanding. I'd love to know what you guys have come up with over these past few days as well.