These are the final few nights before Jesus' crucifiction
Jesus stayed in Bethany
On Thursday night He left Bethany but did not return
Jesus and the disciples went to a special garden
They had often gone here for prayer and fellowship
It was a secluded garden
It was called Gethsemane
It was a place of prayer
We do not not know what hour these events took place
It seemed to be late at night
Gardens are often places of tranquility (the church in Song of Solomon)
They can also be places of conflict and ugliness (the Garden of Eden)
We do not know what went on in the sinless soul and heart of the Lord Jesus
He saw the full horror, the dread and weight of sin
He had a perfect relationship with God but was now contemplating the cross
The devil came to Jesus just as he did at the start of Jesus' ministry
'The hour and the power' of darkness
A Place of Prayer
Jesus goes to pray (v32)
Heb 5:7 - with vehement cries
Jesus takes Peter, James and John with Him (v33)
These three were to come pillars in the church
They needed to see His glory and His sufferings
They needed to understand that with great authority comes great sacrifice
They needed to know close bonds of fellowship with Jesus
Jesus fell on the ground (v35)
The King of Kings prostrated Himself on the ground
Here we see the man Jesus
This was real prayer
cf Roman 8 - the spirit of God groans within ourself
Peter and the other disciples had fallen asleep - what a contrast
Luke 22:45 - the disciples slept for much sorrow
"The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak" (v38)
As people wait on God He gives them strength
Peter thought he was strong but he hadn't been in the place of prayer
Jesus knows they should be praying not sleeping (so tells them three times)
Gethsemane is a call to prayer
What prevents us from praying?
Jesus never gave up praying - "He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear" (Heb 5:7)
A Place of Isolation
If the upper room was a place of fellowship and intimacy - Gethsemane was a place of extreme isolation
It is the beginning of the full isolation of the cross
The disciples fall asleep
Afterwards His disciples abandon Him
He faces the courts and tribunal alone
He carries His cross alone
He faces terrible isolation on the cross - "My God, My God; why have you forsaken me?"
Isolation is a terrible thing
It is one thing for a Christian to face isolation
It is quite another to be totally isolated from God
The disciples did not pray with Jesus - He prayed alone
Jesus now had the Divine hand of judgement above His head
Jesus may have suffered from haematidriosis - when times of extreme stress cause capillary blood vessels near sweat glands to burst causing a person to sweat drops of blood
A Place of Battle
A supernatural struggle/battle is taking place
Satan entered into Judas
Satan has asked to sift Peter
Satan is surely trying to make Jesus doubt His Father's love
It was a battle between the forces of hell and the power of heaven
Jesus rises victorious (v42)
There was no self pity in Him
The battle begins in the garden
Struggling with being sinless and the will of the Father that says you must become sin
We are to follow what ever God calls us to do
No matter how costly
God will give us the victory
Think of Jacob and Esau
Jacob prayed all night
Jesus who wrestled in the garden
We cry out "Abba, Father" (v36)
A Place of Victory
Ultimately the garden of Gethsemane is a place of tremendous victory
It is one step on the way to the cross
Jesus is utterly submissive - like a lamb to the shearers
He can go as a voluntary sacrifice
'No man takes My life, but I give it freely'
He was God but He was not using His divine attributes
He paid for our sin in full
There is no condemnation for those who have believed in the Lord Jesus
