Agony & Glory in The Garden | Mark 14:32-42 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Series)

I hope you recovered from conference last week. And as I said Friday, what was more exciting than any funds that we were ray raising for the building fund is that we saw people give their lives to Jesus Christ. We saw people confessing Christ for the first time, and, that is the greatest thing that can ever happen in any church meeting. So we give God glory for that, and we trust that those who knew Christ and knew Christ then, were built up in their faith. And we're gonna build our faith even more as we come to the bible together.

Do you have a copy of God's word in your hand? I hope you do. Meet me in Mark chapter 14, please. Mark chapter 14 beginning in verse 32. And we're gonna read down to verse 42.

And they went to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, sit here while I pray. And he took with him Peter and James and John and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, my soul is very sorrowful even to death. Remain here and watch. And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.

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. And he came and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, Simon, are you asleep?

Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. And again, he went away and prayed saying the same words. And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him.

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. Rise.

Let us be going. See my betrayer is at hand. Lord, this is a text that we need your help with. It requires your wisdom. It requires your guidance.

It requires your power for the full force of the agony and the glory that Jesus displayed in this garden to make an impact in our hearts. So we ask in great humility that we would see something that we've not seen, that these truths would reignite a love, a passion, a worship for what you've done for us. We trust that you will be here as we come to your word. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

According to the law, during the Passover, faithful Israelites were to remain in their homes until morning during the feast. And this practice commemorates the original Passover when the Israelites were protected by the smeared blood of a lamb on their doorpost while the angel of death passed over and claimed his victims. But on this particular Passover, this very unique evening, we don't find the Lord Jesus in the upper room. We don't find him in any room. As you and I read, we see him transitioning and making his way to this place called Gethsemane.

And according to John's gospel in chapter 18 verse one, Gethsemane was a garden. And it's important to confirm that the departure Christ and the disciples made here was not defiance. When Jesus made this move, he was symbolically confronting death. Not hiding from it, but embracing it so that he would conquer it, overcome it, and then through that make way for a new exodus. Because as much as Jesus was the perfectly obedient servant, perfectly obedient Israelite, he was also sent to fulfill his duty as the lamb of God who was to take away the sin of the world.

But I read this and I think to myself, why did the Lord Jesus move from the upper room to this place? And it's very plain. There's no mystery here. We're told right in the beginning of where we read that he went to this place to pray. In fact, prayer is the theme that dominates this section of scripture.

We find the Lord Jesus aware that his hour has come, feeling the great need and urgency to commune with the father, to be alone with the father. However, we know that he was not completely isolated because in verse 33, he called for three out of the 11 disciples to join him at a nearer distance. Why? Why did Jesus call for Peter, James, and John to be near to him? There are different reasons.

And one of the reasons I believe, according to Jesus' own words, was for the sake of companionship, for the sake of a level of support. You may not get that impression from Mark's account, but listen to how Matthew adds two important words when he invites these three, his inner circle to join him this very important night. You don't have to turn there, but listen to Matthew 26 verse 38. Then he said to them, my soul is very sorrowful even to death. Remain here and watch with me.

Watch with me. There's a level of fellowship that the Lord desired in his greatest hour, A great hour of trouble. But it's more than that. Christ and his invitation for these three leaders was also intended for their instruction. The same group that learned from Jesus as they were called up to that mount remember that mount called the Mount Of Transfiguration when Jesus unveiled his majesty and his splendor?

Oh, there was instruction there. There was something that they were to apply to their own hearts. It is no different as they are now led into this garden. They are to learn a few things. Learn a few things about Jesus and learn a few things about themselves.

And that is why you and I also have been invited to witness a very solemn scene. The Lord Jesus Christ enduring this great agony before his arrest. More than just for you to be moved by it, but also to grow and mature from it. And since prayer is what permeates this passage, that will be the main focus of our instruction as we consider three vital truths that the master models for us. And this will be our source of meditation before we come and partake of the bread and the cup.

The first thing that we should take away there there are many ways to go about this text, many angles. But the first thing that we should absorb from this is that like our master, we must go to prayer in our times of sorrow. Very quickly, we read that Jesus felt and even admitted the deep despair and anguish that was rising within his soul soul. What was it though? What was it that caused him to be distressed?

And not just distressed, look here again at verse 33. We're told there, and began to be greatly distressed. And in his own words in verse 34, not just sorrowful but he says, my soul is very sorrowful. And it makes you wonder what was this agony about. But before we get there, the agony was so profound, so extreme, so intense that the beloved physician, Luke, documents something that a doctor would document.

That when Jesus was there writhing and wrestling with this inner turmoil, it did something to him physically. It brought him to a a point in which Luke tells us that great drops of blood were falling down to the ground. And Luke was not speaking in hyperbole. Luke here is telling us and detailing for us a very rare but very real medical condition known as hematidrosis. Tiny blood vessels around the sweat glands dilate and can even erupt, causing the blood to leak into the sweat glands and that emotional stress can bring somebody to the point where it looks like there is an open wound on their skin when in fact that is not the case.

It's a phenomenon. And the cause of this condition is exactly what Jesus here is describing, but what's taking place in his heart. And it makes you wonder, what was it? Was it the faithlessness of his disciples? Was it the vile partnership between Judas and this vicious group known as the Pharisees?

Would it be the false accusations as he stood on trial and all these people lied about his character and his actions? Would it be the torture that he would experience, the shame of hanging suspended on a cross for all to mock and for all to add to his pain with their slander and their spit? Would it be all of those things combined? I don't think so. I don't think so because history testifies of many saints who were martyred and who also experienced devastating betrayals and excruciating executions, but had resolve and were embracing their death with singing hymns and smiles and bold witness, I refuse to believe that mere men showed more determination than the savior.

No. What Jesus is experiencing is beyond human comprehension. Never mind what humans have experienced, the imagination can't even conjure up what he was undergoing. The eternal son of God moments away of becoming the sin bearer of the world. And as a consequence, becoming the object of God's fury, the father's wrath, and for the first time, sensing a separation from the one that he has known uninterrupted communion with.

The thought alone for the Lord Jesus was crushing. And it is no coincidence that Jesus experiencing this pulverizing of the soul took place in Gethsemane because the very name of that garden means oil press. And so in this grove of oil trees would have been an instrument that would allow for olives to be crushed until every drop of oil can come out of its skin and substance. And here we find Jesus being crushed. Why?

Because he said right before approaching Gethsemane that his blood would be poured out for many, and it's beginning here. But I I do not believe this is the only reason why the Lord chose this location to prepare himself to be the ultimate sacrifice for humanity. Turn to John 18. I I quoted to you briefly John eighteen one where Gethsemane, according to John's word, was a garden, but look at it John 18 verse two. John 18 verse two.

Now Judas who betrayed him also knew the place for Jesus often met there with his disciples. This is not Christ's first time at the site. The spirit through John tells us it was a very familiar place. He frequently visited there. And I believe the reason why he visited there was because it was his pleasurable preference.

That was his spot. He delighted to be there. That is where he retreated from all the noise and all the demands of ministry. That is where he felt the greatest refreshment. That is where he would pray often with the beautiful scenery and helpful seclusion.

Jesus went to this place many times before he would come here with his disciples, so it is no surprise that this was where he decided to pour out his heart before before the father. You might have a room like that in your house. You might have one particular bible that you enjoy going to, and Gethsemane was a preferable place for Christ. And though you and I can't relate to the source of his suffering, we can identify with how he handles it. The Lord shows us here where you and I must flee when we begin to feel our hearts flooded with pain and fear.

Not necessarily to a garden, but before God. And there's so many staggering things about this moment including how Jesus Christ addresses God as he senses his very body being crushed. Go here to Mark fourteen thirty six with me. And he said, Abba, Abba father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me, yet not what I will, but what you will.

Abba. Abba. You know, sometimes art muddies our picture of what the bible portrays. You've probably seen the image of Christ there in the Garden Of Gethsemane with a halo around his head kneeling on some rock. So poised, so put together.

That that is not the image that we get from the bible. He fell to the ground. There was red stains of blood mingling with dirt as he fell on his face. And yet with all of that, he did not lose sight of the comforting truth of who God is in his immense love and compassion and who he was to him. He could have said father, that's how he always addressed the father, but he adds Abba according to Mark, and it's a word in the Aramaic that a child would use to address his dad in a very personal and intimate way.

The Lord didn't lose touch of his father and he fully understood the amazing mercy of the one that he was spilling his soul before, and I believe there are many who can't seem to find the liberty to do that as Christians even before God because they can't seem to shake off this idea that God is more like an unpredictable boss, a very hard to read judge who is more inclined to listen to you on some days over others. What a great loss to have such a poor perspective of who God is and never challenge it. The proper revelation of the character of God will make prayer a real experiential means of relief. Even though you don't receive what you are requesting in the way or in the timing you are hoping for. Simply knowing simply knowing that you're entrusting your burdens into the hands of an all powerful yet incredibly wise and personally caring father is healing in itself.

And I I just want to speak to you from my heart to yours. If you go to the Lord and pray, not believing that, not seeing him in that way, you're not gonna know the potential of this heavenly gift. And if you go to him but are not sensing increments of comfort, then perhaps you have to rediscover his character before you can actually enjoy communion with him. Here's the Lord who comes before God, the very one who is going to pour out his judgment and yet he addresses him as Abba, father. He runs to God.

Yes. The son of God runs to God with his sorrow, but it's more than that because we also learned that we must go to prayer not just because of our sorrow, but in order to overcome temptation. Let me read to you again verse 37. Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. Simon, he said to Peter, Simon, are you asleep?

Could you not watch one hour? That must have stung. He doesn't call him Peter. He calls him what his name was before he met Christ. Simon, are you asleep?

Could you not watch one hour so we know how much time Christ spent in prayer up to this point? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Some here might deem Christ's rebuke as being insensitive, but we have to remember that earlier, he commanded all the disciples to pray while he was praying. You won't find that in in Mark.

You're gonna find that in Luke's version. If you want the reference, it's Luke twenty two forty. He tells all the disciples to be in prayer, including these three. And that's important to know because whenever the Lord commands anything, we are assured that he provides the grace to fulfill it. And if he provides the grace to fulfill any of his commands, then we are without excuse to realize it, including these three disciples.

They were asleep. Yes. It was late, but Christ gave them an order, and with that order, he gave them the power, surely, the mercy, the grace to be able to walk in it. Now on a side note, let me make this practical point of discipleship. Okay?

I would never use a text like this to teach Christians to deprive themselves from needed sleep even in the name of spiritual discipline. I'm saying this for a reason. I know it seems like it doesn't flow with the main sermon but give me some space, please. Godly saints who have done this to themselves admitted later in life of the great harm that they put themselves through because of such thinking. So let me let me be very clear here as as a person who loves you and cares about your sanctification, beware of extreme measures and of those who teach and advocate them.

Nonetheless, this was a very important evening. This was a unique time for the disciples. One that in a few moments would present a tremendous challenge to their faith. And the Lord was aware of that. And so he wanted them to be prepared for that.

These obstacles were about to come and they needed to pray to overcome them. And what would be the temptation that these disciples would face exactly? We all know it very well. To flee. To flee from danger because they were associated with Christ and even to deny him.

Did the Lord expect faithfulness from his own? Yes. Especially after their collective boasting in the upper room that they would go to the end with him. You remember that. Right?

Led by Peter, of course. Look at Jesus' last words of their of our text. Look at verse 42. Maybe you missed this. When he said that his betrayer was at hand, he said something right before it.

Rise, let us be going. He didn't say, alright, it's time for me to go. I know you're gonna flee, so go ahead. He said, let let us be going. Let's go together now.

Let us be going. My betrayer is at hand. So Christ expected them to stand with him like he expects us to stand for him. Unfortunately, it did not matter what the disciples said earlier that evening, and it even didn't matter the command that Christ called them to follow. Do you know why?

Because the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. We need power. We need supernatural help. We need God even to please God. And interestingly here, Peter's threefold denial.

That's how many times he denied Christ. Right? Peter's threefold denial came soon after his threefold failure to pray. Let me remind you, look at Mark 14 verse 30. And Jesus said to him, truly I tell you, this very night before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.

And how many times did Jesus go back and forth between his private time of prayer and assuring and calling his disciples to pray? Look at verse 41 of Mark 14. 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. You're gonna deny me three times and have followed a threefold failure of praying. For every temptation, it doesn't matter its frequency, regardless of how fierce it is, prayer can help us defeat it. Prayer can help us conquer it. But listen, this victorious temptation defeating kind of prayer carries a quality that you and I cannot afford to overlook, and many people do.

When did Christ call his disciples to be watchful and to be prayerful? Can I tell you when? Before the temptation came. You know why I say that? Because it's the tendency of Christians to run and rely on this resource called prayer the moment temptation comes.

The moment the test surprises you. That is not how Jesus trained his disciples to pray. Instead, he calls them and he calls us to draw from it even when the sun is shining. Because the design of prayers that as you engage in it and as you enjoy it, it builds you and that building then prepares you and that preparedness keeps you when unforeseen tribulation visits you. We see this working positively and negatively in this very scene.

Christ was able to succeed and stand and go to the cross. Why? In great part because he was victorious in the garden. Whereas the disciples, when their test came, collapsed. What was the difference?

One was watching and praying and the others were sleeping and snoring. That's the difference. And one minister put it wisely. Listen to this. This is this is gold.

He said, oftentimes the spiritual battle is won or lost before the crisis comes. Spiritual battles are often won or lost before the crisis. Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. Have you ever wondered why the disciples fell asleep? Even after Jesus how are you sleeping?

You would think that if Jesus tells you wake up, you need to pray that you're gonna wake up and you're gonna pray. They were tired. Yes, they were tired. Do you know why they were tired? It was late.

Yeah. It was late but there was something else Luke tells us. You'll see it in Luke 22, meet me there. Luke 22 verse 45. And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow.

Why were their eyes very heavy? Why were they exhausted? Because emotionally, they were spent. They were absolutely drained. Why were they drained emotionally?

Well, just look at the events leading up to this. They were told by their master, one of you is going to betray me. Things began to register and they were grieved, and so that weight caused them to doze off. But that wasn't an excuse. The sorrow wasn't an excuse.

What did Jesus do with his sorrow? He spread it at the feet of the one who said, cast all your anxieties on me. It wasn't an excuse. And the broader lesson is this. This is so important.

So vital to grasp. The lesson is that we cannot afford to allow what you feel to keep you from doing what you know you need to do. Brother, do you always feel like praying? No. Sometimes it's flesh.

I wake up to it and it's more aggressive than I thought it would be. But I don't go with what I feel. I go with what I know. I know that I need prayer. I know it.

And I I've read the bible, yes, and I've also witnessed enough tragedies among ministers especially to realize that when people crash and fall, usually where it all begins is when they neglect prayer. That's the common denominator. That's where it all starts. The first thing to usually go before somebody's faith goes, before somebody's testimony goes, is a dependency on God expressed in prayer. I don't go with what I if I go by what I feel, disaster awaits me, and disaster awaits you.

You go with what you know. Unfortunately, these disciples allowed what they felt to remain in the driver's seat of the devotion. And Jesus here reminds them, you must watch and pray if you're gonna overcome anything. We must go to prayer with our sorrows because there is a loving God who has, yes, all power, but also immense affection for us, who is willing to hear us and do something with our request. We must go to prayer to overcome temptation and closely associate with that truth.

Number three, we must go to prayer to receive grace to do his will. Mark tells us that after the third session of prayer in verse forty one and forty two, Christ returns to his sleeping students and announces that his betrayer is only steps away. But when you read verse 41 and verse 42, you get this impression. You are moved by his choice of words as though he emerges from this time of prayer with remarkable ascendency and authority. Read it again with me in verse 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. Rise. Let us be going.

See, my betrayer is at hand. Do you sense it? A strong savior with his shoulders rolled back and his head up. Yes, perhaps there are stains of blood on his brow. Yes, perhaps there is dirt on his knees.

But what we see here is a Jesus ready to drink the cup that his father prepared for him. Don't you dare disconnect the awesome determination we see here in Jesus from his time of prayer. That would be a grave mistake. He is ready to drink the cup. Now, I have to say this, I have to make mention of this and briefly address the need to carefully interpret Jesus' words when he came before the father and said, not my will but yours be done.

When he requested, take this cup. If it's possible, let it be removed from me. When Christ prayed that, it is in no way any indication that he was forced to do this and that he was trying to escape it. That he was begging for this not to happen. That would be wrong.

Instead, what you see here in his reaction is exactly what you and I should expect from the perfectly holy, extremely, and eternally pure, sinless son of God. The fact that Christ cringes and he shudders at the thought of becoming, in Paul's words, becoming sin, you gotta tread carefully with that verse. Becoming sin and drinking the wrath of God would make sense in light of his immaculate purity. He who knew no sin would become sin. So why is it even a debate?

Why is it a matter of criticism to see Christ here? Saying, if it's possible, let this cup be removed from me. And the fact that it was not removed from him and he did embrace the cross means for us today that there is no other way to be saved. There is no other way to be saved. This is the only way.

Not only because the apostles who were indwelt with the Holy Spirit and inspired by the spirit, writing that in their epistles, But because of the Father's silence, there's no other way. This is the only way that humanity will be redeemed. This is the only way that sins can be forgiven. This is the only way that we'll be able to populate heaven with fallen sons and daughters of Adam. Is there another way?

There is no other way. Why the request then? Because of his royal holiness. The horrific thought of the sin being placed on him, and as a result, God, the father turning his face away. If anything, this does not defame his character, it actually affirms his transcendent holiness.

That is why he wrestled. But he was able to, in his wrestling, overcome and embrace the will of the father because when he prayed not my will but yours be done, something happened. Can I tell you what happened? Luke tells us what happened. Again, in Luke twenty two forty two, saying, father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me.

Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done. And there appeared to him an angel from heaven strengthening him. And so great was this supernatural strength that was administered to him that when Judas and the mob were around the corner, Christ said, rise, let us be going. What would be the reflex of any of us if we knew that a mob, a crowd of enemies were on their way to apprehend you? It wouldn't be rise.

It would be retreat. It wouldn't be let us be going. It would be let us be fleeing. But what was it that contributed to Christ standing tall and not running from his enemies, get this, walking towards them? He prayed.

He prayed, let your will be done. And when you, like the master, pray and desire God's will, he doesn't just grant his will, he grants the strength to obey it and to walk in it. It sustains you and it surges through you and it's only reserved for the prayerful. And despite the intimidations or the persuasions ready to confront you, Jesus shows us he showed it to his apostles who would know great suffering after his departure and his ascension into heaven. Seek him.

Wait on him and trust that with all his resources, he will find a way to strengthen you for any temptation. Is this the only time an angel came and ministered unto the Lord Jesus? No. You remember in Matthew where he was tempted by the devil. And at the end of that account, Matthew tells us that there were dispatched angels ministering to the Lord Jesus.

He is faithful. So Christ here in this holy moment, he shows us that we must pray. Run to him with your sorrow, that you must pray if you're gonna overcome any temptation, and you must pray if you're gonna receive grace to do his will. Jesus, his agony, his glory in the garden. The Bible is a masterpiece for different reasons, including how it all connects.

We read early in Romans five the contrast between the first Adam and the last Adam, And that theme continues even here in this gospel account because the first Adam was in a garden, but he rebelled. The second and last Adam was also in a garden, but he submitted. The first Adam was in a garden, and he did not care for the will of God. He cared for his will to be done. But now you have the last Adam who says, not my will, but yours be done.

You have the first Adam who through disobedience brought in sin into the world. Now you have Jesus, the last Adam, in his obedience in a garden bringing redemption and hope and salvation. There's a lot of debate today about identity. Right? Identity politics, university classes about identity, classes of identity.

The bible talks about identity, but it presents two classes and only two. You're either in Adam or you're in Christ. You're either a part of the the race that is condemned or you're part of the race that is redeemed. And what makes a difference is you making the willful choice of who will be your representative. You have a choice in how you are identified in this way.

And so every person has a choice to either remain under Adam and to expect the consequences of his failure in the Garden of Eden or to shift your allegiance to a new representative for humanity in the person of the Jesus Christ, where he at a garden wins your obedience and wins eternal life. And the way you transfer that is through repentance and faith. Are your sins forgiven? Are you sitting here today with the full assurance that if you stand before God, your record of wrong will not be held against you? Have you made a conscience decision to say, Jesus Christ, I receive what you've done on the cross for me.

If not, believe. Turn to him. Receive him. Repent. He will receive you.

He will forgive you. He will make you new. Do not wait. Do not delay. Do not harden your hearts.

So I invite you, if you're not a Christian here, if there's any response to this message is, did you get a did you get a taste of what this Jesus of Nazareth went through for you? Has it moved you? Has it convicted you? I pray to God that it does do something to you. But for the believer, see what pain, see what sorrow, see what difficulty Christ endured so that you can rest.

Are you moved by that? Or has the good news become old news to you? Yeah. That happens a lot. I hope the name of Jesus has not become tasteless to you.

I pray that you savor it. And Christ, knowing our forgetfulness, has instituted something to help us remember, something that we can even taste so that we can connect it to the goodness that is found in the savior. Let's prepare our hearts to partake in the celebration. Shall we? Father, what we read, we believe actually happened.

And we are grateful that it happened. Thank you for the practical truths, but Lord, we are more grateful for the positional promise that these truths have won for us. Lord, we today gladly admit that we can't be saved apart from you. Every vile, filthy, despicable thing has been plunged beneath the blood. Move our hearts to worship you for that.

We honor you. And today, we give you glory as we remember you. In Jesus' name, amen.