When Jesus was facing death and was in a garden with His disciples and praying but His disciples in tiredness at this sad time could only sleep, Jesus said “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak”. Years later the apostle Paul who was sent by Jesus wrote that we should live not by that weak flesh but live by that spirit which is willing to watch and pray. We should let that spirit press on, despite the flesh being weak: Then we shall live. Jesus pressed on that way. He kept on doing the will of God, despite that way ahead being darkened by a bloody cross and a temporary death. The way ahead for Jesus was extreme suffering of the flesh and death of the body but beyond it was joyful resurrection and glory in the fullness of God’s kindness and graciousness extended out to us all in the resurrected Son. We should press on. We should find the way ahead which the spirit within wills for us when it is sanctified by God’s grace and we should not be swayed from it by the weak flesh but press on towards it by the willingness of the spirit. The end of this is life, life for us and life extended from us to others, though death might be temporarily darkening our path.
