GETHSEMANE

^{Anguish, Betrayal, Desertion, Submission, Obedience, Power, LOVE!}

Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”  When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy.  So, he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing. Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!

A Garden is a piece of land, where flowers and other plants are grown. It could be public or private. It is usually a peaceful place, where one can go to relax, read, meditate, pray, or even where one can go to, to escape the noise around. Jesus Christ the Saviour of the world went to a garden during his last days on earth, right before the time He was betrayed. And his disciples as usual went with him into the garden. But this time around, the atmosphere was quite tense, something was not quite right. The Master was troubled and in deep anguish. He asked them to wait for him while He went to pray. But He didn’t go further alone, He took Peter, James, and John along. To these ones, He opened up to, telling them; “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Although they were in a garden, a seemingly peaceful and harmless place, Jesus was in deep anguish. To know what was ahead, the magnitude of the cup of suffering He was going to drink of, and yet not desire above all else to escape, but rather choose to submit to the perfect will of God, what more could be more overwhelming?

Gethsemane is a place of submission, at Gethsemane, you may not hear God, but He is there. Going through the pain with you and fortifying you for the victories ahead. If you will submit. It is because of the victory ahead that you must go through; in order to fulfill your God-assigned Purpose. To the onlookers, it would seem like disgrace and shame. But they/nobody can understand, Gethsemane is puzzling to the human mind.

Jesus came back to meet his friends in a very deep sleep, not once but thrice. I can only imagine how the Master felt. Yet there is no record that he was angry or disappointed with them.

Some of the lessons of Gethsemane:

• Everyone will experience a form of Gethsemane
• When you do, retreat to a quiet place and pray
• This is not the time to be alone, surround yourself with friends
• Don’t get upset if the friends don’t respond the way you desire, it is not a shared cup.
• After you have poured out your soul and cried to God; Submit your will to His
• Be ready to face what comes – because Victory is sure! God is with you

One minute, Jesus was in deep anguish and deeply troubled, sweating and crying, the next minute he was ready! Waking his Disciples up, all of a sudden charged up. “Are you still sleeping and resting? He asked, Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer! And we know how the story went. From the Garden of Gethsemane to the Brutal Cross – one would ask, what kind of father would forsake his son like that? But did God really forsake Jesus? Ok, let’s say He did because even Jesus asked Him while on the cross, just before He gave up the Ghost. God, the Almighty, forsook His only son because of you! He meted out His anger at sin on His son while he was on the cross. And as a result, the Son of God paid the ultimate and full price for Sin – DEATH. He did this so that, for as many as will receive Him, to them He gave the RIGHT to become the sons of God.

Do you know JESUS?