JESUS PRAYS AT GETHSEMANE

Today’s passage is the culmination of Jesus’ Messianic ministry. Jesus submitted the will of God to die on the cross to carry the sin of the world including my sin and your sin. The real spiritual battle was not fought on the cross but here in the Garden of Gethsemane. What made him to obey the will of God? It was his prayer. Prayer was his spiritual weapon to overcome the agony of death and to triumph over the intense temptation of his own desire. If we want to obey the will of God, we have to use our spiritual weapon to defeat Satan’s temptation and win victory. May God help us overcome our weaknesses through prayers.

PART I. JESUS PREDICTS PETER’S DENIAL (27-31).

As soon as they arrived at the Mount of Olives, Jesus told them more shocking news that they would all fall away. Look at verse 27. “You will all fall away...for it is written: ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’” This is the prophecy in Zechariah 13:7. Here, “shepherd” refers to Jesus, and “sheep,” to the disciples. It was God’s plan to strike our shepherd and the disciples will be scattered. Who can stop God’s plan? So Jesus explained God’s plan to them. It was not to discourage them or scare them. Jesus simply wanted to give them a warning. Jesus told them this in advance so that they might remember what he said and stand firm in the middle of suffering so that they might be shepherds for those whose faith was weak. In addition, he predicted his resurrection. Look at verse 28. “But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” This promise does not seem to be much of a help to the disciples, who would soon be in great trouble. However, this promise declares that even though evil men put Jesus to death, he would rise again on the third day. After that, Jesus would give all men eternal salvation (Jn 3:16), and a living hope in the kingdom of God (1Pe 1:3-4). Jesus was confident about his spiritual victory and planted the hope of God in their hearts. Jesus also promised that he would go ahead of his disciples into Galilee. How did Peter respond? Look at verse 29. “Peter declared, ‘Even if all fall away, I will not.’” Peter declared his heart-moving loyalty to Jesus. To Peter Jesus’ prediction was unacceptable and unthinkable. Probability was zero. Maybe John and James may fall but I will never. He could not believe that he would fall away from Jesus like a coward. He could not believe that he would be a failure in his loyalty to his master. So he declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not” (29).

In verse 30 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth...today—yes, tonight—before the rooster crows twice you yourself will disown me three times.” Jesus knew when Peter would deny him. It would be before the rooster crows. What time the rooster crows? How many times will Peter disown Jesus? Jesus knew everything about Peter. Now Peter expressed his loyalty stronger than before. He said, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you” (31). Peter was ready to die with Jesus. But Jesus knew Peter better than Peter knew himself. I am sure that Peter was leading Jesus or Jesus was leading Peter. As Jesus’ disciple, Peter should have listened to Jesus with humble heart. As Jesus predicted, Peter denied Jesus three times before a little girl and broke down and wept. Are we different from the disciples? We are self-confident in our human loyalty to Jesus. However, in following Jesus we should not rely on our own human strength but the grace of Jesus because Jesus know each of us very well. Jesus knows Jay’s struggle. Jesus knows us more than we know ourselves. We should not use the “I” word but “Jesus” word when we follow Jesus. We should say, “I cannot do it but Jesus can do it for me.” We don’t like to admit our own weaknesses in front of others. One shepherd declared, “I will live like Apostle Paul without marriage because I am strong over woman’s temptation.” Next moment we saw him following a woman. One missionary confessed, “My wife points out my weaknesses and she is right most of the time but I deny it emphatically.” Don’t insist if someone reveals your weaknesses. Rather, be thankful and accept it as a prayer for you. One time Dr. Samuel said, “Jacob Lee put his one feet in UBF and other feet in the world.” I was upset first. But it was true and helped me to struggle with God. I asked him why you wrote that article last October. He said, “I did not remember.” In spite of Peter’s weakness, Jesus endured Peter to the end and prayed for him to become a spiritual leader who would change the world history. Though we may fail in following Jesus many times, we may use it to be an opportunity to listen to Jesus more and grow in the image of Jesus.

PART II. GETHSEMANE (32-42).

Look at verse 32. Jesus went with his disciples to Gethsemane to seek the will of God as his death was approaching. He said to them, “Sit here while I pray” (32b). “He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ‘My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,’ he said to them. ‘Stay here and keep watch’” (33,34). He wanted his three top disciples to support him in prayer. It is a great blessing to have prayer partners when we do the work of God. When you have a difficult situation in your life, go to someone like your shepherd and get help to overcome your problem. Don’t stay alone. Jesus never revealed feelings of distress, but this time he said, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” Why was Jesus so distressed and troubled? It was the burdens of our sins. God was going to put all our sins and inequities upon him. Jesus would be judged in our place. He would be forsaken by God in order to carry our sorrows and wounds. Later Jesus cried, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Mark 15:34) He would be rejected, smitten and crucified to save us from the wrath of God. That’s reason why he was overwhelmed in his deep soul.

What did Jesus pray? Look at verse 35. “Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him.” When we read this verse, there seem to be many prayer topics. But when we carefully read it, we find only one prayer topic. His prayer begins with the request that “if possible the hour might pass from him.” Here, “the hour” refers to the time of execution on the cross. That hour was appointed by God, according to his promise. It was the hour when Jesus would shed his blood as the Paschal Lamb for the sin of the world. When he thought about that hour, he was overwhelmed. So he prayed that the hour might pass from him. If possible, Jesus wanted to avoid that hour. But he did not stop there. He wanted to seek the will of God. So he prayed before God. Jesus prayed all night to obey the will of God. Look at verse 36. “’Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will’” (36). Here the “cup” does not refer to the cup of victory like the Super Ball trophey or a gold medal in the Salt Lake winter Olympics. It is used in the Bible as the cup of God’s wrath poured out on sinners. If Jesus did not drink this cup, we have to drink this cup of God’s wrath. We must be punished if Jesus did not drink this cup of suffering. We are thankful to Jesus and endured the pain of rejection, suffering, death on the cross in our place. Without Jesus we live as the objects of God’s wrath and will receive eternal condemnation due to our sins. Apostle Paul said in Romans 7:24-25a, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Do you remember how Jesus took the cup of suffering for you? Then give thanks and honor to him.

In this situation, Jesus prayed to seek the will of God. What was his main prayer topic? At first, it seemed that he tried to avoid the cross. But if we examine carefully, he wanted to do the will of God. His prayer topic was to do the will of God. He needed intensive prayer to narrow the gap between his will and God’s will. His will was to take the cup from him but God’s will was for him to drink the cup. Let’s clarify one thing. We struggle between our will and God’s will. Our will originated from our desire while God’s will from God. Sometimes we only pray that God will grant our own will. We list all we want. Then we never ask what is God’s will. We demand that God may give us what we want. Of course sometimes God’s will and my will is different. We want to avoid cross and take easy. But God want us to take up cross and serve his will first. God did not grant Jesus’ request to pass the hour. Why? It was not the will of God. Sometimes we insist that our will is always God’s will. God may not answer all your prayer request because it is not his will.

Jesus prayed until God’s will became his will. He prayed three times with the same prayer topic. He prayed again and again to accept the will of God for himself. Jesus' prayer shows us that it is not easy for us to do God's will. We need to pray until God's will becomes our own will. As a fallen man, we have many worldly desires and human will. Many good Christians in the past had sincere desires to do God's will, but many failed to do so as soon as they knew the will of God in their life. Why? Because they did not pray until the will of God become their own will. They did not pray intensively. They yielded to their human desires. Though we have many years of spiritual life serving God's work sacrificially, sometimes we are tempted to put our own desire above God's will. Then we become very weak and sorrowful and complacent and powerless. But when we make a clear decision to do the will of God, suddenly we become powerful and joyful in the midst of suffering. These days M. Christine Yun seemed to be very happy. What made her so happy? Maybe her handsome first son made her so happy. Or her faithful husband made her so happy? Many American students like Ashley and Isabel want to learn Bible from her. What made her so popular among students? The answer is that she is a woman of prayer. Every early morning she kneels down before God to seek the will of God. It is God who brought many sheep to her. God answered her prayer request. I know there are many obstacles to prevent us from prayer life. We are very busy to take care of many things while living in this world. We have many worries. But prayer draws us nearer to God. I am very thankful to God that there are many praying people in our ministry. As we know, obedience does not come naturally. Hebrews 5:8-9 say, “Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him...” It was Jesus’ prayer of Gethsemane that gave him the strength to accomplish the work of world salvation. The same is true with us. If we want to be servants of God, we must have a night of prayer at Gethsemane.

Jesus’ prayer was a spiritual battle. Jesus prepared his impending suffering with prayer. Luke the physician described Jesus’ prayer more vividly in Luke 22:44, “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” His prayer was so intense that his sweat turned into blood. Prayer is a battle to be won. Prayer is a bloody battle. Prayer requires a resolution to succeed. Jesus first time began to pray about 11:00 p.m., and he finished one hour of intense prayer. He repeated the same prayer topic again and again saying, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.” He repeated it until he won the battle. Verse 39 says, “Once more he went away and prayed the same thing.” Some people ask, “Why did Jacob Lee give us the same prayer topic again and again?” Why do we have to pray for America to become a kingdom of priests and a holy nation? I know you are tired of hearing it. But it is important to accept it as the will of God. Maryland basketball coach, Gary Williams sweat a lot during the game. He is very intense during the game. Sometimes his sweats dropped on the players in the bench. He sweats to win the game. How much more should we sweat in prayer to win the spiritual battle to obey the will of God? May God help us to win the spiritual battle to fill our center with a flock of 120 and 300 1:1 Bible studies in this spring semester.

What happened to Jesus’ three top disciples? Look at verses 37-38. “Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Simon,’ he said to Peter, ‘Are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak’" What a contrast! Peter was confident that he would not fall away. So he did not pray. Jesus expected prayer support from them but they were sleeping. Their eyes were heavy. While Jesus engaged in prayer battle, they were sleeping. Jesus asked them to watch and pray, but they were sleeping. Here the word “spirit” is “pnuma” which means blowing, breathing, spirit, and soul that gives life to the body. The spirit denotes inner aspect of our personality and the body outer aspect. There is a constant battle between the spirit and the body. All men carry the weakness in the body. Many smokers want to quit smoking but they yield to the demand of the body. Many drinkers want to quit drinking but they fall into the temptation of the body. One Maryland freshman student died last week due to binge drinking. He was just 19 years old. It was a big tragedy. Many students want to study hard but they fall into sleep during the study. Unless the spirit is strong, the body takes over. We want to get up in the early morning and pray and do daily bread, but when the alarm clock starts to ring, our weak body takes over. Many people share their key verses with resolutions to have prayer life, but they do not last long. Most Christians are willing to pray, but many sleep instead of praying. When they don't pray, they fall into the Satan's temptations. No one can withstand Satan's temptations without praying. Prayer is our spiritual weapon to prevent us from falling into temptations. Many mighty people fell to the temptations because they did not pray. If students sincerely start the day with prayer, there will be no school violence. If couples pray together, there will be no divorce. If businessmen start the day with prayer, we may not have a scandal like Enron. Laziness is another temptation for us to overcome. With prayer we can overcome all kinds of temptations and have victorious spiritual life. When Jesus came to his disciples a second time, they were again sleeping. But this time, Jesus did not wake them up. Perhaps he covered them with a blanket so that they could sleep better. When he returned a third time, he saw that they were oversleeping. So he said, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough!” On the other hand, Jesus himself was fully prepared to meet any kind of trial—even crucifixion. The time of suffering came upon him, but he was ready to confront it. Jesus’ heart was not shaken by his beloved one’s betrayal or by separation from his beloved disciples or by being handed over like a criminal. Rather, Jesus was full of spirit and said, “The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!” (41b,42) Jesus resolved to obey the will of God and was fully prepared to meet his enemies through his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.

PART III. JESUS ARRESTED (43-52).

Look at verse 43. To our surprise, the traitor was one of the Twelve. He was Judas Iscariot, the treasurer of Jesus’ company. He appeared in the dim light of the garden, accompanied by a crowd armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders. It is unbelievable that one of the Twelve now stood on the side of the enemies. Judas, the betrayer, coming up to Jesus said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. It was a signal to the Sanhedrin police. A kiss is a symbol of love. But Judas misused it as a symbol of betrayal. When he followed Jesus without any commitment, Judas became a betrayer and a man of tragedy.

Look at verse 47. “Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.” John 18:10 tells us that this was Peter. But Mark omitted the name because he respected Peter as his own father, both humanly and spiritually. In this terrifying atmosphere, Peter was the one who drew his sword to hack a man. It was an expression of his loyalty to Jesus. In the scuffle, he drew his sword and struck a blow for Jesus. We see Peter’s readiness to do something for Jesus. But his impulsive action was not at all helpful to Jesus. Because of the blow, things were getting worse. What did Jesus do in that situation? Look at verse 48. “’Am I leading a rebellion?’ said Jesus.” Those people saw Jesus teaching every day in the temple courts, but they did not do anything. Now, they came to him fully prepared for a blood-shedding fight. In this scene, we find the greatness of Jesus in his fortitude and serenity. He was assaulted by Judas’ betrayal and by the court police. There was nothing but heartbreak behind and torture ahead, yet he was quiet and consistent. He controlled the situation.

But we cannot stop at the sheer heroism of Jesus. We must find what made it possible for him to be so supremely majestic in controlling the situation. It was prayer—a spiritual battle. When he prayed, God helped him to overcome the power of death. The disciples were in Jesus’ mind at the time of his arrest, but he could entrust them to God’s hand in prayer, based on the prophecy of Zechariah. After prayer, Jesus was ready to be arrested like a criminal. If only he could obey the will of God, nothing mattered to him. Our 16^th President Abraham Lincoln was a man of prayer. The fate of the nation was hanging precariously in the balance. General Lee and his army had surged forward to the environs of Gettysburg, where the fateful, decisive battle of the Civil War was in the making. The sorrows and burdens of the war-torn nation had exacted its terrible toll on the occupant of the White House, Abraham Lincoln. Yet, on the eve of the crucial Battle of Gettysburg, he was calm and assured. His serenity was reassuring to his generals.When they inquired, “How can you be so self-possessed in this hour of the nation’s mortal peril and darkness?” Lincoln said, “I spent last night in prayer before the Lord. He has given to me the assurance that our cause will triumph and that the nation will be preserved!”

Look at verses 51,52. “A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.” Many guess that perhaps this was Mark, the author of this gospel. He was the ancestor of streaking. He was a man with a willing spirit but a weak body. He wanted to a missionary but he could not handle small persecution. Later, he was changed by accepting Jesus’ death and resurrection and became a gospel writer.

In this passage we learn how to fight spiritually in prayer at the Garden of Gethsemane. We also learn how to fight the spiritual battle in prayer. The life of faith is the life of a battle or war in prayer. Jesus had a daily prayer life. He prayed at Gethsemane often. Prayer was his source of strength to do the will of God. May we each have our own personal Gethsemane where we fight the prayer battle to meet God personally and serve his will on earth. May God bless your prayer life abundantly. Let’s read the key verse 36.

JESUS PRAYS AT GETHSEMANE

Mark 14:27-52