This week’s Resurrection Egg contains praying hands. What do you think they symbolize? If you said Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, you are correct. All four gospels record this momentous event. Each one tells it a little differently, highlighting different things. I will be looking mostly at Matthew’s record of it.
Directly after the Last Supper, Matthew 26:30 says, “When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” (I wish I knew what hymn they sang.) They went specifically to the Garden of Gethsemane. Verse 36 says, “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.’”
The Garden of Gethsemane is on the Mount of Olives. It was a place Jesus and His disciples went to often. John 18:2 tells us, “Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples.” And Luke 21:37-38 says, “Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.
Also, Matthew 24:3-11 says:
“As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. ‘Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’
Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.”
Even after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Acts 1:12 tells us, “Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.” This area, not too far from Jerusalem, seems to be a very significant location to Jesus.
Back to the night of prayer, Matthew 26:36- 39 tells us:
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.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
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.”
The two sons of Zebedee are the disciples, James and John. The text doesn’t tell us why the other disciples did not come with or where they are during this time. I think I always kind of thought all the disciples were with them. Luke 22:39-44 gives us some more information: “Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, ‘Pray that you will not fall into temptation.’ He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.’ An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”
There has always been debate about whether Jesus literally sweat drops of blood, or whether the sweat was like drops of blood. Medically, it has been proven that it is possible to sweat blood when under severe distress. Jesus knew exactly what He was about to undertake. He would have known precisely how much pain He was going to endure. As gotquestions.org points out, “Crucifixion was considered to be the most painful and torturous method of execution ever devised and was used on the most despised and wicked people. In fact, so horrific was the pain that a word was designed to help explain it—excruciating, which literally means “from the cross.”
I wonder if Jesus, knowing the future, had it so much worse because of that. He not only was going to experience that excruciating pain, He would have been mentally experiencing it before it even happened by knowing that it was going to happen. Does that make sense? The only way I can personally relate this concept is a very weak comparison, but I will share it for analogy’s sake. My second baby was born through emergency C-section. It was a very difficult delivery, and I went into shock with sudden low body temperature and loss of blood pressure after the delivery. The recovery afterwards was very difficult. When I became pregnant with my third child, as happy as I was to be pregnant, I was also distressed thinking about the delivery, knowing it would be another c-section. I was worried about the risk. The anticipation was much more stressful to me than the first time I went through the trauma. When I went through the first trauma, I didn’t know what would happen. I just went through it. If I had known beforehand that I might die, I would have been beside myself with worry. Again, I am not at all meaning to compare the level of trauma to what Jesus experienced, I merely trying to make the point that because Jesus, knew what He was about to endure, it must have made His torture and death a million times worse for Him, because He would have also had to experience the anticipation of the torture and death. That is why it seems very plausible to me that He literally did sweat drops of blood. And knowing what He was about to endure, He must have been exponentially frustrated to find the disciples sleeping. He wanted their support. He wanted their prayer. Yet, as Matthew 26:40-41 says, they didn’t stay awake: “Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?’ he asked Peter. ‘Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.’”
Why do you think the disciples kept falling asleep? Have you ever found yourself yawning when you pray? Usually, when we pray, we sit down and close our eyes. We try to quiet our mind and concentrate. Maybe that has something to do with why it makes us sleepy? A lot of times, if I can’t fall asleep at night, I will start praying. Inevitably, I will fall asleep. Maybe it’s similar to why we tend to fall asleep easier if we read a book. In any case, the disciples with Jesus could not stay awake and pray with Him. Luke 22:45 tells us the answer. It says, “When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.”
The three disciples were so distraught that they fell asleep. If you’ve ever experienced deep sorrow, maybe you have had that same experience. It seems like it’s a sort of defense mechanism our bodies have. Jesus was frustrated by them falling asleep. He wanted them to stay awake and pray with him. He wanted them to pray that they would not give into temptation.
I think Jesus was concerned about this because He already knew that Peter would deny Him three times. On their way to the Garden, or possibly right after they arrived there, Jesus said to them:
“This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.”
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”
But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same (Matthew 26:31-35).
What if they all gave into the temptation to run away? What if they lost faith? It seems like Jesus was also battling temptation. He knew what He was about to endure and He was extremely stressed out by it.
Remember, temptation is not sin. Jesus was so troubled by what He knew He was about to face that He even asked the Father if there was another way. Matthew 26:42 says, “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.’”
Worded a little differently, Mark 14:35-36 records, “Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ‘Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.’”
We should note the words Mark records. Jesus says, “Take this cup from me.” That of course matches what Jesus had spoken merely a few hours earlier when He said in Luke 22:20, “In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.’”
He is asking the Father if there is any way to not have to go through this shedding of His blood. This proves that His suffering on the cross was not reduced in some way because He is fully God and fully man. My guess is that some people think that Jesus, being God and capable of all things, must have reduced the amount of pain and anguish He went through. Reading of Jesus’ experience in the Garden tells me He did not reduce His own suffering. He experienced the excruciating pain in its fullness. That is why He asked God if there was any other way.
Even though His distress was so great that He said in Mark 14:34, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” instead of giving into the temptation to escape His impending death, He did not refuse. He submitted to His Father’s will. I think this glimpse we are given into Jesus’ struggle is so helpful for us all. It shows us that it is not wrong when we are confronted with some unsettling or traumatic news to react initially with sorrow and fear. What is important is what we do after that. Do we let the sorrow and trouble overwhelm us to the point where we dig in our heals and refuse, or crumble and panic? Or do we go to God and ask Him to help us? It is deeply reassuring to me that even Jesus had to regroup, so to speak. He had to go to His Father and ask for help. That tells me it is only human to experience fear, but if we go to God in prayer, He will help us overcome it.
Concluding this text, Matthew 26:43-46 says, “When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing. Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!’”
Then Judas arrives and he betrays Jesus with a kiss. This is where we will pause in the timeline of our Lenten journey to the cross.
I want to point out something I learned while studying for this sermon. Just as Jesus prophesied when He was on the Mount of Olives about the end times, Zechariah prophesies that when Jesus returns, He will stand on the Mount of Olives. Zechariah 14:1-9 says, “A day of the LORD is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls. I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked… then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. It will be a unique day—a day known only to the LORD—with no distinction between day and night. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter. The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.”
I don’t think it is a coincidence that the location in which Jesus submitted His will to endure the cross is where He will return and stand in power. When Jesus died on the cross, becoming the sacrificial Passover Lamb, He triumphed over sin and death because His resurrection declared Him the victor. When the Lord returns, He will be king over the whole earth. His obedience to the Father’s will is why when He comes back, “On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.” Philippians 2:6-11 states, that Jesus, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Jesus’ obedience to die on the cross is why He is exalted to the highest place. He took the “cup” that was prepared for Him, and He poured out His blood upon the cross.
Last week, we looked at the Lord’s Supper. It is so important that I want to state it again. Jesus said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” He poured out His blood for us. He died on the cross for us. He knew what He would have to endure, but He did it anyway. He did it because He loves us.
Again, I want to turn to my very poor analogy. Again, I want to emphasize that I am not comparing the suffering or significance, it’s only an illustration. When I learned I was pregnant with baby number three, I was afraid of what I knew was to come, but much greater than the fear that I faced was the love I already had for my child that was growing inside of me. That love far outweighed what I would endure. My love for my child compelled me to give my fear to God and submit to His plan. I focused on the joy that I hoped for; the joy of seeing my child. That is what Scripture tells us Jesus did. Hebrews 12:2 states, “For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before Him. He knew what lay on the other side of the cross. Even though His sweat was like drops of blood, He said yes to the cross.
When we consider what Jesus endured for us, what should be our response? We should praise Him, worship Him, glorify His name, and perhaps far more difficult, we should stay awake and pray. What do I mean by that? Of course, we cannot time travel back to the Garden of Gethsemane. And of course, we should not be so egoistical to think we would have stayed awake when Peter, James and John could not. What I mean by this is simply this: stay awake and pray.
The Bible uses the terms awake and asleep as metaphors. A good example of this is 1 Thessalonians 5:5-6, “You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.”
If we are metaphorically awake, then we will be alert and be on guard. If we fall asleep metaphorically, it means that we are not paying attention and not following Jesus. Jesus uses this metaphor too in Luke 21:36 (ESV) one time when He was talking to the disciples, “But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” He doesn’t mean to stay literally awake at all times. He means we should stay alert or stay aware. We should be on guard. This same directive He gave Matthew, James, and John to stay awake it what He says to us today. The question is, will we stay awake and pray?
If we are awake and praying, then we will be in constant communication with the Lord. We will live in such a way that Jesus is first place in our lives. We won’t be sleepily following the ways of the world, but carefully keeping our eyes on the Lord and following Him. We will follow what Ephesians 5:11-14 says, “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:
‘Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’”
During this time of Lent, may we be wide awake and praying. May the Holy Spirit work faith in our hearts and minds and keep us focused on Jesus. May He work repentance into our hearts and show where we have fallen asleep and failed to pray, so we can be forgiven and grow.
Pray: Thank You Father God, for sending us Your Son so we can be forgiven. We ask for Your help to stay awake and pray. Please lead us away from temptation and away from deeds of darkness. Help us to walk in the light of Your Son. And may His love shine upon us. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
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