32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
Jesus took His disciples to a place called Gethsemane (“oil press”) which was a garden-like area in an olive grove on the Mount of Olives. It was a place Jesus liked to go and where Judas would know to find Him. He told the disciples to wait while He prayed, then He took Peter, James, and John a little further. There He confided in them that He was greatly distressed. His heart was heavy with everything that was about to happen, including the sins He would have to take on Himself, as well as the wrath and abandonment of God the Father He would have to bear. This burden brought Him to the brink of death. He told the three to watch (and pray) and He went further and prayed by Himself. Jesus’ prayer was a prayer based on the knowledge that God could prevent the things that were going to happen from happening. He knew all things are possible with God. Jesus felt the full weight of what He was about to endure—so much so that He would have preferred not to do it. But He knew the consequence of not doing it and He was fully surrendered to the Father’s will. Jesus’ prayer shows us that we can pray in full confidence that God both hears us and is able to do whatever we ask. But we must also pray in full submission to His sovereignty, completely willing to do things His way in faith that He knows better than we do (Eph 3:20). Jesus paused His praying to check on His disciples and found them sleeping. He was disappointed that they could not remain awake for one hour. He exhorted them to pray because that was how they would resist temptation. The spirit is willing (Peter was adamant that He would never desert Jesus) but the flesh is weak (in his own strength he was not going to be able to live up to his intention). Jesus went away and prayed again. He returned to find them sleeping again. A third time the disciples failed to remain awake and pray. Jesus said it was enough, the time had come and His betrayer had arrived. Three times Peter failed to pray and three times He would disown Jesus. This is a strong reminder that if we fail to pray and draw on God’s strength, we will fail to do things God’s way no matter how strong our spiritual desire to honour God.
Verse 36b stood out to me because I often struggle to surrender myself, my life and my future to God and trust that His plan is perfect and right. I need to work on saying this verse daily in my prayers.