Sermon Central
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Why Did Jesus Pray "Remove This Cup” In The Garden Of Gethsemane?
Contributed by Dr. Craig Nelson on Sep 1, 2023 (message contributor)
Summary: Throughout history, there have been several explanations given regarding why Jesus asked God, the Father, to remove the cup from Him.
During His ministry, Jesus spoke of His coming death in graphic detail (Matthew 16:21, 17:22-23; Mark 10:32-33; Luke 9:22). He also used the imagery of drinking deeply from a cup to describe this painful suffering and death He would endure (Matthew 20:22-23).
Conclusion
Jesus did not pray to avoid the Cross or to experience the wrath of God against sin, nor was it to help win the battle of the enemy's last temptation. He was not praying to bypass pain and death but to end the reign of sin and death once and for all, in Himself, on the Cross. Jesus was praying to finish the plan, to bring it to completion.
Given the facts, it seems impossible that Jesus, the Creator of all things, had a moment of weakness and asked not to die on the Cross (John 1:3). Jesus was under extreme physical duress and asked not to die in the Garden before the Cross, yet, if that was the plan, His will would be done.
Jesus did not change His mind about the Cross, nor did God the Father. Together, they endured the Cross, despising its shame, so that Jesus could once again sit down at the right hand of the Father in Heaven so that we could be offered eternal life by repenting of our sin and receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior.
