Gethsemane Prayer (6)

 

 

 

[Luke 22:39-46]

 

 

 

                What was the content of Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane? (Content of prayer)  Look at Mark 14:35-36: “And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by.  And He was saying, ‘Abba! Father!  All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will’” (Note: Lk.22:42; Mt.26:39).  

 

  • First prayer: “… that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by.  And He was saying, "Abba! Father!  All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will” (Mk. 14:35-36).

 

Here, “the hour” and “this cup” have the same meaning, and the meaning of Jesus’ request to God, “Abba, Father!,” “the hour might pass Him by” and “remove this cup from Me” means that Jesus prayed that He would avoid (escape from) the death of the cross.  Clearly, the purpose of Jesus' coming to this earth was to bear all our sins and shed His blood on the cross, so why did Jesus ask for this?  This shows that Jesus is a perfect man.  In other words, Jesus, a righteous man without sin, had weaknesses as a perfect man (for example, Jesus was hungry if He didn't eat, and He was tired if He couldn't sleep).

 

Being weak is not a sin.  However, Satan and his subordinates tempt our weakness and put us into the temptation.  Then, if we fall into the temptation, we commit sins.  But if we overcome the temptation, we do not commit sins.  Weak people fear death and want to avoid death, but not everyone is like that.  For example, martyrs who risk their lives for the sake of their faith (e.g., James, Peter, etc.) do not avoid death because they are not afraid of it.  But why did Jesus ask Heavenly Father to avoid dying on the cross?  The reason is because even though Jesus did not have any sin worthy of dying on the cross, He took on all the sins of all peoples and suffered the punishment for those sins, even suffering the pain of hell.  That was why he prayed like that.  Also, the reason Jesus prayed so much was because He died on the cross to be forsaken by Heavenly Father.  This is Mark 15:34 – “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’-- which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’”

 

  • Second prayer: “… yet not what I will, but what You will” (Mk. 14:36).

 

This is the prayer of Jesus' powerful request.  In other words, Jesus prayed with a strong request to God, “Abba, Father,” “…  yet not what I will, but what You will.”  Here, “what Your will” is the will of Heavenly Father, and Jesus, the only begotten Son, was wounded and suffered and died on the cross as the sacrificial offering for our sins (Isa. 53:10).  So, if we look at Romans 8:32, the Bible says that God the Father did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all.

 

Because of our weakness, there are times when our earnest prayers do not align with Heavenly Father's will.  In other words, because we are weak, we often ask God for our will, not His will.  In Matthew 8, a leper came to Jesus and bowed down, asking the Lord like this: “…  Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean” (v. 2).  This is what the leper sought the will of the Lord.  Then Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him and said, “I am willing; be cleansed” (v. 3).  When Jesus said this, his leprosy was immediately cleansed (v. 3).

 

We must seek God's will rather than our own.  If this should be our attitude of faith, it should also be an act of faith.  We must commit ourselves to believe and follow God's will.  Look at Philippians 2:8 – “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”  Jesus not only sought the will of the Father, but also obeyed the will of the Father, even unto death.  In imitation of Jesus, we must not only seek God's will, but also obey God's will even unto death.  I hope and pray that we become those who only do God's will (1 Jn. 2:17) and pray only according to God's will (5:14).  “My Jesus, as Thou wilt!  All shall be well for me; Each changing future scene I gladly trust with Thee.  Straight to my home above I travel calmly on; And sing, in life or death, My Lord, Thy will be done. Amen” (Hymn “My Jesus, as Thou Wilt, v. 3).