Devo 32: In the Garden

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.” He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”


Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Matthew 26:36-41

Have you ever considered why Peter, James, and John were not able to stay awake with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane the night before He died?

Think about the reason Jesus was awake. Pain. He was in so much pain and anguish as He wrestled with His heart, mind, will, and emotions. Basically, He was dying to Himself that night (Mk. 8). He was already taking up His cross and losing His life before He had even been captured. In the pain of it all, there was no way He could sleep. He even said to His disciples, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me” (Mt. 26:38).

Twice, He woke His three closest disciples and said, “Could you not watch with me for one hour?” (Mr. 26:40). Yet, they continued to sleep.

The reality of what was about to happen had not hit them yet. If it had, they would not have been able to sleep. Jesus was wrestling over losing His life while the disciples still held on to theirs.

If they had already given up their lives and taken up their cross, then they would have felt the pain Jesus was feeling in knowing they were going to die. Yet, when the time came for them to lose their bodily life—they ran.

A friend pointed out to me the other day that when Pilate said to Jesus, “Do you not that I have the power to crucify you or release you?” (John 19:9-11). He was trying to intimidate Jesus by emphasizing that he had the power to take His life or give it to Him. It did not sway Jesus, however, because He had already given His life away.

He had been walking out the reality of “losing His life” since His birth and had faced the ultimate reality of it in the garden of Gethsemane (Mk. 8).

His disciples had not yet grasped that reality, however. He had warned them of His death. He had warned them of persecution against them. He had told them that He would be delivered into their hands soon, but still they slept. The pain was not there, because the giving up of their lives had not yet become a reality.

In Gethsemane, Jesus surrendered to the leadership of the Father, even though He knew it would lead Him to death on the cross. Even though He surrendered, the pain of it was so much that He sweated blood. No one can sleep with that much pain. No wonder He could not believe His friends were sleeping.

Both times He addressed the disciples in the garden, He said, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation” (Mt. 26:40). What was this temptation? I believe the temptation was holding on to their lives. It is not a coincidence that He specifically addressed this question to Peter.

It was in the place of “watching” that Jesus surrendered His life to God and said, “Not my will, but Yours be done” (Lk. 22:42). And there was pain. It was a reality to Jesus, a heart matter.

For the disciples, however, it had not yet become a reality. They had not yet felt the pain of losing their lives, because they had not yet surrendered them. Just before they went to the garden, Peter said, “I will die with you,” but the true surrender of the heart, mind, will, and emotions had not yet occurred (Mt 26:35). When the time came for him to truly lay down his life, Peter denied Jesus.

I would like to think that if I was going to be killed for the Gospel, that I would not deny Him; yet, when it comes to dying daily, have I really experienced the pain of it? Have I really been in that place of “watching and praying”? Have I really lost my life?

Well, fortunately, He gives us opportunities to practice. When He lets that pain of losing our lives touch us, we have no problems staying awake with Him in the place of watching and praying.

I invite you to meditate on this passage of Jesus in the garden. Also, meditate on Mark 8:34-38. Ask the Lord to take your life and truly give it to Him. Take up your cross daily, and when the time comes for someone to take your life, you will have already given it away.

Blessings,

Amanda
 
Copyright © 2010, Amanda Rich, All Rights Reserved