(April 20, 2017 at 1:10 pm)Chad32 Wrote: It is a bit odd. Not just the spilling of blood, but the spilling of innocent blood. Meaning you have to murder something so you can be forgiven for your wrongdoings. Talk about two wrongs making a right, somehow. What absolves you of the sin of murder, then? It makes no sense, except within a culture where blood sacrifice and scapegoating is the norm.
And yes, Jesus was following a rule imposed on him that he didn't want to follow. There's even a verse explicitely saying this, where Jesus asked Yahweh/Jehova to let this cup pass from him. Matthew 26:36.
Jesus was afraid as any human would be. That was part of the suffering he would endure. But......
John 10:18New Living Translation (NLT)
18 No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”
Jesus and the Father are in total agreement.
John 10:30New Living Translation (NLT)
30 The Father and I are one.”