“When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his
disciples across the brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which he and his
disciples entered.” (John 18:1, ESV)
Having inadvertently jumped back to the end of chapter 16
yesterday, today we continue from the end of chapter 17 when Jesus finished His
prayer to the Father on behalf of His disciples. According to the end of
chapter 14 in John, Jesus and His disciples had left the upper room after their
meal. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record for us that after they had sung a hymn
they left and went to the Mount of Olives where the conversations of chapters
15, 16, and 17 happened. Now that Jesus had concluded this time and prayed it
was time for them to leave for their next destination which was the garden
where He would be arrested.
John records little concerning what transpired between the
end of Jesus’ prayer and His arrest in the garden. According to John we read
that after He prayed He left with His disciples and entered a garden across the
brook Kidron. Looking to Matthew’s gospel record we read,
"(36) Then Jesus went with them to a place called
Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and
pray.” (37) And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee [James and
John], he began to be sorrowful and troubled. (38) Then he said to them, “My
soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” (39)
And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father,
if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but
as you will.” (40) And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he
said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? (41) Watch and pray
that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the
flesh is weak.” (42) Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My
Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” (43) And
again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. (44) So,
leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same
words again. (45) Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take
your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed
into the hands of sinners. (46) Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at
hand.”” (Matthew 26:36–46, ESV)
From this longer passage we see many things. The most
obvious two are the passion of the prayers of Jesus and the passivity on the
part of His disciples. Jesus had gone to great length to let His disciples know
that He was going to be taken away. He had selected three of them to go with
Him into the garden—the three that were frequently mentioned by His side and
possibly the closest to Him—and He asked the others to remain where they had
been left knowing He had gone to pray.
Knowing the importance and the intensity of what was lying
before Him as He was preparing to take on the fullness of man’s sin and satisfy
the wrath of the Father, even taking it on Himself as the sacrifice for man’s
sin, Jesus was heavily burdened. Prior to leaving the three He told them that
He as very sorrowful, even to the point of death. This is unlike anything He
had ever told them, and the intensity of His sorrow was something they had
never seen from Him. Telling them this, Jesus asked them to stay and watch with
Him while He went ahead. He then left them and went a little further into the
garden where He fell on His face and prayed asking the Father—His Father, “If
it be possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as
You will.” We know from the next verse when He returned to His disciples that
He had been praying in this way for an hour, and while He was intensely in
prayer His disciples rather than watching as He asked, fell asleep. Jesus woke
them as spoke directly to Peter asking why he couldn’t even watch with Him for
one hour. Imagine the disappointment as Jesus agonized in prayer finding that
His closest friends were not concerned enough to even stay awake and watch.
Speaking to them again Jesus asked them not only to watch,
but to watch and pray so that they might not fall into temptation. He
acknowledged to them His awareness that as willing as they might have been to
be both watching and praying the spirit was also weak. There is a very real
aspect to this that I understand having tried on numerous occasions to be quiet
before God, waiting on Him only to find myself as well falling asleep or
becoming otherwise distracted. But Jesus knew the importance of this
instruction even if not for that night, but for many times in the future where
they will need to watch and pray again and again.
Having read this passage numerous times I know that as Jesus
went back in and prayed essentially the same prayer, My Father, if this cannot
pass unless I drink it, your will be done,” His disciples again fell asleep.
After an unspecified period of time in intense prayer we read that He returned
and found them sleeping “for their eyes were heavy.” Once again they had succumbed
to their weariness and fell asleep rather than being compelled to the point of
being watchful and praying.
But Jesus did not give up on them. Rather, He left again
expecting them to remain watching and praying while He prayed the same intense
prayer again. And of course, when He returned He found them asleep. This time
Jesus spoke to them saying, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour
is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let
us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
Jesus knew how intent Satan was to bring about His
destruction. He knew the pain would be intense and the cost high, but He also
knew in His great sorrow that the Father’s plan was the right and perfect plan
to bring about the salvation of man. For that reason He was prepared to
willingly suffer the wrath of the Father in taking on the sin of man that His
perfect will might be accomplished. For His disciples there was a time to
sleep, but this was not it. There was a great evil about to happen and they
needed to be in prayer. The time for which Jesus had come was at hand, and they
needed to be on the alert and ready.”
Returning again to recent events in our land and around the
world we are reminded that evil does not go on vacation. Some days are quieter
that others and we might easily be able to rest, but some days are quite
intense and we need to be watching and praying for Satan, the great betrayer is
at hand. In the garden Jesus disciples were told to watch and pray. Today as we
face challenges to our faith and persecution is surely to increase we can
follow the same instruction to watch and pray.
The evil one was defeated at the cross, but God in His plan
has not yet bound him from his influence in this world so that even in the
midst of great people might be saved and God glorified. Evil is happening and
we need to be alert and praying for ourselves, other believers, and our
response to the world.
As we encounter other Christians who seem to be unaware or
neglecting the intensity of the day we can speak to them the words of Paul to
the believers at Corinth, “Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”
Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For
some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.” (1 Corinthians
15:33–34, ESV)
And for all of us Peter wrote, “Humble yourselves,
therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt
you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. Be
sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a
roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith,
knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your
brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while,
the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself
restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To Him be the dominion forever
and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 5:6–11, ESV)
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