The Echoes of Easter Pt 2
"His Conflict in Gethsemane"
Luke 22:39-46
Luke 22:39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. 45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.
Introduction: When we finished last week's study Jesus has observed the Passover, washed the disciple's feet, instituted the Lord's Supper and then after they had sung the Hallel they moved to the next phase of our Lord's date with destiny, Matthew 26:30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives, and that's where we begin this second part of this series entitled, "The Echoes of Easter." In this section we have the opportunity to examine the prayer life of Jesus and how He prepared Himself to do the will of His Father! Let's begin our study with:
I. The Transition to Gethsemane
a. The symbolism of His movements
John 18:1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples.
After leaving the Passover observance Jesus and the 11 remaining disciples made their way to the Garden of Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives. It bears this name for the obvious reason (olive trees) but before entering it was necessary to cross a ravine to enter the Mount and there is much symbolism attached to this crossing. Kidron is a Hebrew name for a ravine with a creek running through it on the eastern side of Jerusalem. Several writers including Josephus indicate that this creek was the place where the blood and animal remains from the Temple sacrifices would be dumped through a sewer pipe or drain of some kind. The name Kidron is translated "dark" and may refer to the color of the water related to this practice. As Jesus who is "the Lamb of God" crosses this creek where the blood and remains of thousands of lambs and we presume, many other sacrificially animals have found their final resting place, we can't help but think of the symbolism for Him. It is a dark place, crossed in the darkness leading to the darkest time of Jesus life on earth. Next, there is:
b. The seriousness of the moment
In verses 40, 46 Jesus cautions the disciples and urges them to pray. A good translation would be: "Keep on praying not to enter (ingressive aorist infinitive, not even once) into temptation." It is real "temptation" here, not just "trial." Jesus knew the power of temptation and the need of prayer. Robertson He understood better than they that this was a dangerous time for them, physically and more important, spiritually! Mark 14:38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. The disciples were flesh and blood and the Adversary is powerful and the danger was real. Jesus had already warned Peter that, "...Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat...But I have prayed for you, that thy faith fail not..." (31-32) Third, we get a glimpse into:
c. The struggles of the Master
The prayers of Jesus verbally reported in the Gospels are not many in number and are few in words; but the indications of his habit of intercession are abundant and convincing. Sermon Central Staff
What can we learn from the text? Verse 39 tells us that prayer was a regular spiritual exercise for the Lord for "...he came out, and went, as he was wont..." that ..." He withdrew Himself..." meaning that His habit was to isolate Himself and that He "...kneeled down..." and at some point, as His prayers intensified, He fell on His face, which in Eastern custom would be a sign of total and absolute submission to authority. Luke alone records the following, "Luke 22:43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. The word agony appears only here in the NT and indicates the increasing intensity of the struggle. This was a contest and it would be safe to say that Satan brought all his power to bear upon the Lord seeking to defeat Jesus before He went to the Cross. Luke tells us that an angel "strengthened" Him as He prayed.
There is also the issue of the "sweat drops of blood." The word for this condition is Hematohidrosis, also called blood sweat, which is a condition in which capillary blood vessels that feed the sweat glands rupture, causing them to exude blood, occurring under conditions of extreme physical or emotional stress. Wikipedia Remember, Luke was a physician and cannot not be accused of over dramatization or excess. I have heard individuals say that they were so stressed that they "sweat bullets and several historians record instances of soldiers experiencing the same condition in battle. Jesus literally "sweat blood" through the pores of His skin!
Application:
Next, we have:
II. The Trial in Gethsemane
A struggle occurred in the garden of Gethsemane on a scale that transcends all the conflicts and wars that the world has ever known but this conflict was not a test of guns and tanks, bombs or bullets. There were no legions or armies involved and not a shot was fired. There has never anything like it history but because of it, history was forever changed. Obviously I'm speaking of the prayer of our Lord in the Garden. I think I am safe in saying with no exaggeration that the spiritual fate of all humanity hung in the balance.
a. The place of prayer in His life
Thomas Goodwin writes: "Christ, when He saw that He must die, and that now His time was come, He wore His body out: He cared not, as it were, what became of Him: He wholly spent Himself in preaching all day, and in praying all night, preaching in the temple those terrible parables and praying in the garden such prayers, as the seventeenth of John, and "Thy will be done!" even to a bloody sweat."
E. M. Bounds wrote: "The great eras of His life were created and crowned with prayer. What were His habits of prayer during His stay at home and His toil as a carpenter in Nazareth; we have no means of knowing. God has veiled it, and guess and speculation are not only vain and misleading, but proud and prurient. It would be presumptuous searching into that which God has hidden, which would make us seek to be wise above that which was written, trying to lift up the veil with which God has covered His own revelation."
I want to call your attention to four episodes in the prayer life of Jesus:
1. At the commencement of His ministry. Luke 3:21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
2. During times of intense ministry. Mark 1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.
3. In the prelude to His passion. In John 17 we have the High Priestly prayer that He prayers for Himself, for His disciples, and for all those who would believe on Him in time to come.
4. At the end of His life. Luke 23:34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.
b. The potency of prayer in His life
The praying of Christ was real. No man prayed as He prayed. Prayer pressed upon Him as a solemn, all-imperative, all-commanding duty, as well as a royal privilege in which all sweetness was condensed, alluring and absorbing. Prayer was the secret of His power, the law of His life, the inspiration of His toil and the source of His wealth, His joy, His communion and His strength. To Christ Jesus prayer occupied no secondary place, but was exacting and paramount, a necessity, a life, the satisfying of a restless yearning and a preparation for heavy responsibilities. E. M. Bounds
There is power in prayer and its potency is limited only by our asking not or asking amiss!
Hebrews 5:7 "Who, in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications, with strong crying and tears, unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared." When Jesus prayed the foundations of heaven and hell were shaken and the dead heard His voice and lived!
John 11:41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. 42 And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me. 43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. 44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.
c. The peace in His prayer life
In time past we who are in the church used to use a very peculiar expression about "praying through." This simply meant that we prayed until we had an answer and we "got a peace" concerning the subject of our prayers. Jesus "prayed through" and nowhere is this more evident than His garden prayer. When He rose from His knees to confront His betrayer and those who had come to arrest Him, He was at perfect peace. How do know this pastor? How can you say this with any sort of certainty? Let's look at the narrative in John 18:1-11. Several things stand out:
1. His calm in the face of His antagonists
2. His compliance to the Father's will
3. His concern for His disciples
4. His compassion upon the high priests servant
Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
Application:
III. The Triumph in Gethsemane
These are not mere skirmishes; they are battles, one after another throughout the last few hours of the Lord's life. The upper room Passover gathering led Him to Gethsemane, which led to His trial at Gabatha, which led Him to Golgotha, which leads Him to the garden tomb etc. His conflict/contest is a victory, a triumph for Him and all humanity!
a. It was a triumph of submission to the LORD!
John 4:34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
Luke 22:42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
b. It was a triumph of a selfless life
HIS LONELINESS FOR YOURS
Here is the good news for us this morning. Each of us, every one of us received in that moment of time a great and precious gift. It is the gift of the presence of the Father -- the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Jesus paid the price for your sin and you do not have to experience loneliness anymore! Because of this one cry we understand that life without the presence of the Lord -- is a horror movie filled with fear and loneliness. It is filled with despair and hopelessness. But because of the sacrifice of Jesus we now have the privilege of the presence of God in our lives if we are a faithful believer.
So let me ask again: "Do you hear His lonely cry?" Remember He did this for you so that you would not have to go through the loneliness anymore!
John 13:12 So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? 13 Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. 16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. 17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.
c. It was a triumph of sacrificial love
Life Examples: Jesus: Example or Sacrifice (Mt. 26:39)
Some believe that Jesus came to show us how to live a good life-and to be sure, He is our example of righteousness. We are to become like Him. But that isn't the reason Jesus came. Jesus came to die, to become the sacrificial, substitutionary, all-sufficient atonement for our sins.
If Jesus didn't come to die, there is no purpose in the cross or the Resurrection The New Testament consistently confronts us with this message: Christ died for us. Jesus came so that you and I might transfer our guilt to Him and accept by faith that as the guiltless One, He has received our sin and taken it to Himself.
If you are looking for forgiveness on the basis of your pleas, promises, and performance, then you will remain in your sins. Only if you accept His sacrifice will you open yourself to receiving the fullness of God's life-giving Spirit.
-The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible
John 13:1 Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.
John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
CT Studd: "If Jesus Christ is God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him."
Conclusion: What is the sum of what we have learned today? The prayers of Jesus were real prayers. His struggles were real struggles. His loneliness was real. His betrayal was real. His pain was real. His danger was real. His
Application: What does all this mean to us this morning? Alistair Begg writes: "Because of what Jesus has done for us, "Every matter in my life may be shared with Him." He provides access to the throne room of God. His prayers are the model for ours!
Dr. Bob Jones senior is a name that is very familiar to folks in this part of the country. The judge in the criminal case of the state vs. Bob Jones said, "The defendant will rise as the charges are read." Mr. Jones's attorney stood and motioned for Mr. Jones to stand, but he remained seated.
The judge then asked, "Mr. Jones, are you the defendant in this case?"
"No sir, your honor, sir," replied Bob, "I've got a lawyer to do the defendin'. I'm just the guy who done it."
Just as Mr. Jones had an attorney who represented him before the judge and spoke on his behalf, so too all of us O.T. people and N.T. people need a representative to speak for us before the Judge.
The priest in the O.T. (in this case Aaron) did something similar in the presence of God. He represented the people before God (the Judge) and spoke to God on their behalf.
For the N.T. Christian we also have a High Priest (Jesus Christ) who is our defendant, since we also are "just the guy who done it (broke the law)". Christ represents us and speaks for us before God the Father.
Also, because of what Jesus has done, "Every moment in my life may be spent with Him." Chip Ingram notes: "In his landmark book Bowling Alone, Robert Putman makes the case that loneliness is America's new epidemic. People are searching for a place to belong. In the 1970s, it wasn't uncommon for someone to leave a job that paid well and go off into the woods in order to 'find himself.' The issue of the existential sixties and seventies was one of identity. Who am I and why am I here? The issue of the twenty-first century appears to be 'where do I belong?' Belonging is a God-given human need. We all need and want the security of belonging to a family, belonging to a group, belonging to a team, belonging with people who need us just like we need them in a healthy and productive way. The fragmentation of the family and the rapid growth in technology have made people more mobile and isolated than ever before. The aching need to belong is at an all-time high" (Living on the Edge, page 132). (From a sermon by Michael McCartney, Experience the Spirit in Service, 4/14/2011)
Lee Strobel writes: People today will admit any problem - drugs, divorce, alcoholism - "but there's one admission that people are loath to make, whether they're a star on television or someone who fixes televisions in a repair shop. It's just too embarrassing. It penetrates too deeply to the core of who they are." People don't want to admit that they are (sometimes) lonely. "Loneliness is such a humiliating malady that it ought to have its own politically correct euphemism: 'relationally challenged.' Or its own telethon. Anything to make it safer to confess.
Because right now it's a taboo, an affliction of losers and misfits. And - to be honest - of respectable people like you and me."
SOURCE: Lee Strobel, God's Outrageous Claims, p. 118-134.
