958. Jesus in the Garden

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Today on The Daily Platform, Dr. Steve Pettit, longtime evangelist and now President of Bob Jones University, will preach a four-part series on Passion Week, the week leading up to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The main events of Christ's suffering are the Last Supper, the Garden of Gethsemane, the trial of Jesus before Caiaphas, and the Crucifixion. Today, Steve will lead us in a study of the Garden of Gethsemane. I'd like to invite your attention, if you'll turn, please, to the book of Mark, chapter 14, verse 32. We are walking through the last week of Christ, and yesterday morning we looked for a few moments at the Last Supper. Tomorrow we will look at the trial of Jesus before Caiaphas and then the Crucifixion. And, of course, as a reminder, we're marching our way up to Resurrection Sunday.

Today we're going to look at Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. To be honest with you, I've found that this is a very, very difficult passage of scripture to preach. It's not because the story isn't clear, but so much of it is enigmatic. It's hard to grasp just the simple words and the profound meaning of them. So as we look at this passage this morning, I'd like to follow two guiding principles or two guiding ideas through the passage. The first one is one that I mentioned yesterday, and that is I'd like to stay within the framework of the overall theme of the Gospel of Mark. The writer had a purpose.

He was trying to say something. And Mark was written because he is wanting people to become believers in Jesus Christ. Specifically, it was written to the people of Rome. He wanted them to understand that Jesus was not only God's Son, but he was God's suffering servant who would give his life as a ransom for our sins. But Mark's Gospel is not only about Jesus, but it's also about his disciples. And he teaches us what is involved in being a follower of Jesus. And that is if you're going to follow Jesus, there are non-negotiables.

You have to deny yourself. You have to take up your cross, and you have to follow him. But as we saw yesterday, and we'll definitely see today, the disciples were slow learners.

They were slow learners because first of all, they had the wrong perception about Jesus, and secondly, they had the wrong perception about themselves. And so we're going to stay within that framework. Second guiding idea is we want to follow Mark's style or his approach in writing this passage. Yesterday, for example, we looked at a Mark sandwich, and I mentioned there's about 11 passages in his Gospel account, but today it's a little bit different.

Today his style is more similar to like a TV show or a movie where there's a main character with a main plot, but as you're watching along, other scenes are inserted and you kind of move from one scene to another, and it kind of carries you through the main story and develops the plotline in further detail. We call that intercalation. And so actually, this passage in Gethsemane is clearly an intercalation, because here it's about Jesus' experience in the Garden of Gethsemane. But what does he do? He inserts the disciples, and they come into the picture. And why is Mark doing this?

Because he's making a contrast. The contrast is between the willingness of Jesus to follow his Heavenly Father, whatever the cost, and is contrasted with the disciples and their increasing unwillingness to follow Jesus and even pay the smallest price. So this morning, let's look at the Garden of Gethsemane, and really three simple things we're going to see this morning.

The first thing is the place itself. Notice what it says in verse 32. And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane.

And he saith to his disciples, sit ye here while I shall pray. The location where Jesus took his disciples was a place that they knew well. It was a place that they would go to and pray. It was called Gethsemane. What was Gethsemane? It was an orchard of olive trees that sat at the base of the Mount of Olives.

If I could take you to the Holy Land on a tour, we would definitely go to the Garden of Gethsemane because it's still there today. The word Gethsemane in the Greek means oil press. And there at the Garden of Gethsemane, there was an olive oil press. And olive oil was a main staple for the people that lived in the Mediterranean region. The olives would be picked, they would be put into the press.

The press would use a set of heavy weighted stones as leverage to press down the olives. And from the very first pressing would come the best oil. And that oil was devoted to God. It was used in the service of God in the temple.

That's what we call today virgin olive oil. So what does this say to us? God's best. The son in whom the Father delights, enters into the garden under the weight and the burden and the crushing pressure of being the world's sin bearer. That's what we see here in the Garden of Gethsemane. So what was Jesus' intention of going there?

He tells us. He says to his disciples, sit here while I shall pray. Jesus came to the garden to pray.

So why prayer? Well I think the question is of core importance for both Jesus and his disciples. You see in the Gospel of Mark, there are three main references to Jesus' prayer life.

And by the way, throughout these messages, listen how many times the idea of three comes up. The first time is in Mark chapter one verse 35, that was in the beginning of his ministry. The second time his prayer life is mentioned is in chapter six and verse 46, that's in the middle of his ministry. And then in chapter 14 and verse 32, we find Jesus at the end of his ministry. This does not mean that Jesus only prayed three times.

What it does mean is that the number three is the number of completion. You can see it this way, that Mark is telling us that prayer was a major component of Jesus' life. That everywhere he went, he prayed.

And in these three occasions, he prayed when he was alone and he prayed because of a big decision that he had to make. So why pray? What is it about prayer that is so important? And it is this, prayer testifies that spiritual power and spiritual ability is not in ourselves, but it is in God alone. Someone said that prayer is faith turned to God. It is reliance, it is dependence on God. How did Jesus begin his prayer? Look at verse 36, he said, Abba Luther, all things are possible under thee. Prayer, as someone says, turns the impossible into him possible. That with God, with him, all things are possible. So why prayer?

Think of it this way. Those who serve God are characterized not by their abilities, but by their inadequacies. Jesus and his disciples were called to tasks beyond their abilities.

And the fact that these tasks surpass their abilities is evidence that ministry is not something that is done by man's power. It can only be done by God's power. Therefore, what is prayer? Prayer is God's gift to the inadequate. God is saying to all of us, you, you are not capable.

You can't, but God can. And so he has gifted all of us with the privilege to pray. So in the Garden of Gethsemane, we see Jesus and his disciples going there to pray.

However, what Jesus did and what the disciples did were quite different. And that leads me to the second thing and that is the prayer itself. Because that's what they came to do in Gethsemane. It's right here that we see Jesus inserting his three inner disciples into the story. Look at verse 33.

He said, he said, sit ye here while I shall pray. And he taketh with him Peter and James and John. If you ever get to go to the Garden of Gethsemane, actually there's various spots there in the garden.

They're really cool caves there. We've held services and sang there many times. And basically Jesus took all of his disciples except Judas and they went to a spot and he left eight of the disciples and he went a little further and he took with him the three disciples, Peter, James, and John. And from there a little further Jesus went to pray. It's very interesting that in Mark's Gospel, Jesus brings these three disciples, this little select group to three unique events. The first event is the raising of Jairus' daughter in chapter five and verse 37. The second time these three disciples went with Jesus is his transfiguration on the mountain in chapter nine and verse two. And the third time is here in the Garden of Gethsemane in chapter 14 and verse 32. Each time Peter, James, and John go with him, they learn new things about Jesus. And I think we can see this paralleled in Philippians chapter three and verse ten where Paul says that I might know him, the transfiguration.

And the power of his resurrection, Jairus' daughter. And the fellowship of his sufferings, the Garden of Gethsemane. However, the disciples demonstrated through each of these events their growing inability to grasp the significance of what was going on in Christ's life. And in the Garden of Gethsemane, they reach not a spiritual high point, but a spiritual low point. In the Garden of Gethsemane, the scene shifts back and forth, the intercalation between what Jesus is doing and what the disciples are doing and the difference between the two is dramatic.

What is Jesus doing in the garden? And he tells us in verse 33, it says, and he began to be sore amazed and to be very heavy and saith unto them, my soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death. The word began there, refers to the starting of Christ's passion. For Jesus' suffering didn't begin on the cross. It ended on the cross. It began in the Garden of Gethsemane. His agony in the garden is a prelude to his agony on the cross.

And what was Jesus doing in the Garden of Gethsemane? Jesus was suffering. And notice the emotions that he experienced. It says he was sore amazed and he began to be very heavy. And he said, my soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death. Here we find three emotions of Jesus. Number one, he was shocked.

That's the idea of the word sore amazed. It means he was greatly upset. He was distressed.

Then secondly, the Bible says he was very heavy. That means he was under stress. His life was filled with anxiety, with fear, and with burden. And then the third is he was sorrowful unto death. There was sorrow. This is the idea that he was going through such depression that his heart was about to break and he was about to die. Think of it, distress, stress, and depression.

Recently I was at an event where they spoke about the greatest problems among college athletes and they said the number one problem is mental illness. And I think of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. And I thought of the fact that everybody has mental illness.

All of us do to a degree. We all suffer from anxiety and burdens and stress and depression and shock and our hearts break and I think of Jesus as he goes into this garden and you and I understand as Christians that we can go to Jesus and pray to him because we understand, we know that he understands everything that you have ever felt. Jesus has felt himself. And at that moment he turns to his friends. And what does he say to them? He gives them a simple command. He says, Terry here and watch. Stay here and watch.

His request was simple. Watch. Watch what? What do you think they were supposed to watch? Were they watch out for bad guys coming?

No. I think they were to watch him suffer. Do you know the Bible tells us that we're to watch Jesus suffering? In the book of Hebrews chapter 12 it says, looking unto Jesus who endured the cross. Consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners. As a Christian, God intends for you to watch the suffering of Christ.

To watch means to pay attention like a soldier standing watch at night. And if they had paid attention, if they had watched Jesus, what do you think they would have done? I think they would have seen his suffering. And if they watched him suffering, they would have been burdened for him. They would have prayed for him because watching people are always praying people.

And the question is, will they watch? They should have been willing to watch. They had already been told that they were going to deny Jesus.

They had already vowed that they would be committed to his death. They had already gone through that experience. They should have had a sense of urgency. They should have listened. They should have watched.

They should have been on the edge of their seat. But is that what happens? Well notice what verse 35 says. It says Jesus goes a little distance away to pray. It says he went forward a little and he fell on the ground and he prayed. Somebody said nothing in all the Bible compares to Jesus' agony and anguish in Gethsemane. Neither the laments of the Psalms nor the broken heart of Abraham as he prepared to sacrifice his son nor David's grief at the death of his son Absalom. Jesus was under the greatest strain and the greatest weight. He felt the weight and the burden of the cross. Luke tells us that when Jesus prayed, sweat fell to the ground like drops of blood. Was Jesus close enough for the disciples to see him and hear him? Yes, the book of Hebrews tells us this. Listen to Hebrews 5 and verse 7.

It says in the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to him who was able to save him from death. Folks, he wasn't that far away. It's not any more than the distance from here to the back wall. Probably less than that. It's about as far as you could throw a stone.

It's not that far away. If somebody falls to the ground, if they're weeping and they're crying, you could hear them. And what did Jesus pray? Jesus made a request for a possibility and he used two images. He asked for an hour to pass and he asked for a cup to be taken away. He said if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. He said, Abba Father, all things are possible unto thee.

Take away this cup from me. Nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt. The hour was the purpose for Jesus's coming. Why did Jesus come? To be a ransom for many. He came to be a lamb slain. He came to fulfill the Old Testament pictures and prophecies that spoke of one who had come at the right time in human history to be wounded for our transgressions and to bear our iniquities. The hour had come.

It was starting in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was asking that he would not go through this hour. Does that bother you a little bit that Jesus would pray that?

Well, let me ask you a question. Have you ever struggled with God's will? Have you ever prayed, Lord, I'm willing to do that, but I really don't want to do that? I take great comfort in the fact that the Son of God struggled with his own Father's will.

And all of us as a Christian find our victory before the Lord in prayer as we surrender ourselves to God's will. He prayed for the hour to pass. He also prayed for the cup to be taken away.

The word cup refers to experiencing something. Do you remember when James and John wanted to sit on the right and left hand of Jesus and Jesus said to them, can you drink of the cup that I drink of? In the Garden of Gethsemane, what was Jesus experiencing? He was experiencing the suffering that is caused by sin. Just think of the sorrow, the suffering, and the shame of the New Testament characters. Think of what they went through. Think of the mentally distressed maniac of Gadara.

The broken hearted synagogue ruler Jairus and his dying daughter. Think of desperate blind Bartimaeus who lived in darkness. Think of the lonely and the isolated leper who wanted to be cleansed.

Think of the confused and helpless father with a demon possessed son and nobody could help him. When Jesus drank the bitter cup, he was drinking our suffering. Folks, there is nothing that you've experienced in your life.

There's no abuse you've ever been through. There's no shock in your life that you've ever gone through that Jesus has not drunk that cup for you. But even more than that, the Bible says he tasted death for every man because he drank the cup of God's wrath.

All the full weight of sin of the world starting with Adam all the way up to today, Jesus Christ suffered and bled and died for us. That's what he began to experience in the Garden of Gethsemane. The weight of the hour and the taste of the cup came on Jesus in the garden.

And no wonder he said if there's another way, God if there's a different plan, would you please let me go that way. And yet what did Jesus do? Jesus was willing to obey us.

His desire to obey his father was stronger than his desire to avoid suffering. And throughout his ministry, Jesus embraced the pathway of suffering. And at this point, we see the real irony beginning. The scene now changes and we pan back to the disciples. Here he is suffering.

Here he is saying, God, if it's be possible, let this cup pass from me. And we see the disciples in verse 37. And what are the disciples doing?

What are they doing? Jesus was suffering, but the disciples were sleeping. And he cometh and he findeth them sleeping.

When I read that passage, I remember one day reading it in my devotions, I'm going, what? I mean, it's not that they're just sitting there. They're sleeping. They're snoozers.

They're losers. Because here, Christ is crying and he's on the ground and he's sweating blood and he's asking God to deliver him from the hour. And here they are, they're asleep. And look at verse 37. He comes to Peter and he says, Simon, sleepest thou? Could est not thou watch for one hour? I mean, Jesus had prayed about an hour. That's not that long.

It's about the length of a television show. And then he said to them, watch ye and pray lest you enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.

Does it irritate you that they slept? How could they, did they care about Jesus? Well, the Bible says they actually really did care. For the scripture says the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. These were not unwilling men. They had vowed to die for Jesus, but they were inexperienced men. They did not realize the state or the condition of their own weakness.

They assumed that they were strong. Let me put it this way. They were out of touch with their own flesh.

Let me ask you a question. Are you out of touch with your flesh? Seriously. I think some of you act like you don't even have the flesh.

Or if you do, you ignore it. The problem is that they failed to do what Jesus had commanded them. He told them to watch. Had they watched, they would have prayed. If they had prayed, they would have avoided temptation. When you and I are not careful, we don't watch our flesh, we don't pray, what does it do? It opens up to us to more temptations. And so the problem with the disciples is that they were spiritually dull.

And being spiritually dull is a problem. And so now the scene switches back. Verse 39. It says he went back away and prayed. That's the second time.

You could say it's take two from scene one. And what does Jesus do? He prays. He prayed three times. You know most of us when we pray, we don't just pray one time for one thing. We pray for that one thing over and over. Reminds me of Paul praying for something to be removed in his life three times.

What was that? A thorn in the flesh. But whether it was Jesus or Paul, who prayed for something to be removed, it was not God's plan to take it away. Sometimes it's not God's plan to take away our suffering. God wants us to stay in the suffering and pray and get His strength.

And we learn something here I think is really important. We learn to live with an open hand. I tell everybody that works on our executive team, I say we have to live with an open hand. And God can put in the hand what He wants or He can take out of it what He wants. And Jesus was living with an open hand before His Father. Father, if it's possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not my will but Thine be done. The people that get God's will done in the world are those that live with open hands.

An open hand is a surrendered heart. And so the scene goes back to the disciples, kind of deja vu, verse 40. He returned, He found them sleep again for their eyes were heavy. Neither knew they what to answer Him. They didn't have anything to say. They were falling asleep.

There was no answer for their impotency. And then He goes back a third time and He prays again the same prayer. And then He comes back the third time and the disciples are sleeping. Now it's really getting irritating. The first time, hey I can get it.

It's like me preaching to students and you know what, if you fall asleep here in chapel, I get it. Some of you are tired. Yesterday I got home from Salt Lake City. I was there over the weekend and my flight was delayed from Salt Lake City. I was supposed to get home at 1230 Sunday night and we didn't get out of town until 830.

We landed in Atlanta Sunday night at 2 a.m. or Monday morning at 2 a.m. and I couldn't get back so I rented a car and I drove home. So I got to my house at 5 o'clock in the morning yesterday. So when I preached yesterday I'd slept about two and a half hours so I was tired. And you know what, yesterday I had, Joseph I went to hear you sing.

You did a great job yesterday. But I have to admit my head bobbed a little bit, okay. I mean I was tired.

So I get it. I get it when somebody sleeps but when somebody comes to chapel and they sleep every day, some days I want to take a baseball and throw it at you because you are irritating. I mean really. I mean you can't even stay awake. So when you read the disciples, I mean, I mean they were sleepy.

Not once, not twice, but three times. What should be clear to us that we cannot follow Jesus in our own self-effort, we come to the final thing I want to say today and that's the point. It's very simple.

What is the point? When we read in verse 41, notice what it says, and he said unto them, sleep on now and take your rest. It is enough. The hour has come. Behold, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go. He that betrayeth me is at hand.

Think about it. Jesus prayed three times and the disciples slept three times. Three is the number of completion. Jesus said to them, it is enough. What is he saying to them? He's saying, wake up. He's saying, get up. He's saying, we're done.

He's saying, it's time to move on. You made your choice. I've made my choice. I'm going to follow God, but in just a few moments you're going to abandon God. I'm going to go to the cross and be broken and you're going to run away and you're going to be broken.

The issue is not that you guys don't care, it's that you guys don't realize you can't live without me. You have to be broken over your own self-ability in order to become really dependent on divine ability. And so what is the point? The point is that the disciples failed. They flunked.

They didn't pass the course. And in just a few moments in verse 50, the Bible says they all forsook him and fled. All of the disciples are going to run away from Jesus. And when you read the rest of the book of Mark, they never show up again.

They look like total failures, but there's a point that has to be made. And the point is this, they had to wait for the cross and they had to wait for the empty tomb. Because folks, to live the Christian life, victory is not in me.

Victory is in Jesus. You know what the disciples needed? They needed the resurrection. You know what you and I need? We need a resurrected Savior, brother. We need a Lord who has conquered sin and death and is raised and is seated at the Father's right hand.

You know what we need? We need a Pentecost where the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us. And the disciples were miserable failures in themselves, but they were glorious victors in the power of the resurrection. We're in the Garden of Gethsemane. It's not real good.

It's ugly. But resurrection's coming. And that's the victory that we find in Christ. Father, we thank you that it looks really bad in Gethsemane, but it looks really good in the empty tomb. Lord, we thank you that you've risen. And through your resurrection, we can live for you. Oh God, help us to live faithfully for you in Jesus' name. Amen. You've been listening to a sermon preached by Dr. Steve Pettit from the Gospel of Mark, which is part of the study called Passion Week. Thanks again for listening. Join us again tomorrow as we study God's Word together on The Daily Platform.