87. FINDING PEACE AMIDST AGONYHow can you have peace?
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Have you ever found yourself faced with a serious choice? Have you ever been stuck between two options with no clear way forward? Or even worse, have you been in a situation where the logical option seems to be the hardest and least desirable? It is times like these that our mind seems like a battle eld, with competing thoughts as the opponents. In this lesson we consider just such a moment in the life of Jesus. It was a battle between Jesus' desire to live, or die and fulfill God's will. Some of the strongest bonds we can conceive of on earth are love for country, love for family, and self-preservation. In a unique way, Jesus met all of these mighty forces at once. Would he win? What can we learn from his battle?
Ayşe despised the life she was living. After working all night, she boarded a bus. Although she had never ridden it before, she knew exactly where it was headed and she had a plan. It was 6:15 in the morning. She peered out across the Bosporus. It was rainy and cold. The bus’ foggy windows obscured her view and reminded her of the dull, gray reality that she wished was just a dream she could wake from. She had two small children, which she had not seen for over a month. It was no life for a mother, and certainly not the life she hoped for her children.
The children stayed with a hired “aunt” nearly 80 kilometers away. It was the only arrangement she could nd in which the children
would receive proper care and nourishment. Ayşe earned enough money. Money wasn't her problem. It was that Ayşe was a night maid at a bar. From this work she earned over four times what a normal factory worker could earn on a day shift. But money wasn’t everything; the job was taking its toll on her body and spirit. Her life hadn't begun this way, and now she was tempted to end it all. She dreamed of a different life where she could kiss her children every day and live without shame. But year after year that life hadn’t come.
Ayşe's husband had died almost five years earlier in a freak accident when he fell to his death while building an apartment complex. He didn’t die instantly, and medical attempts to save his life quickly consumed their small savings and wedding gold. They had begun to buy an apartment together on credit, and it was the only thing that gave her hope. She decided that she had to hang on to it at any cost. In another six years of working at the bar, she could have the house paid for. But, could she survive six more years? Why not get another job? Why not clean houses? Why not work in a cafe? The answer was simple; an ordinary job would provide her with barely enough to live on, and certainly no money to put toward a house. And then what would become of her children while she worked? If they went to daycare, she wouldn’t have any money left after paying the bills to even live.
The city bus stopped and Ayşe got off. She spoke to herself as she walked,
“God forgive me for this work! And forgive me for killing myself. I have to do it.”
She didn't want to live such a shameful life anymore. Men would often squeeze her and touch her in ways that at first she didn't like. Now after five years of being without a husband, she found herself actually desiring their touch. This is why she wanted to commit suicide. She despised the woman she had become. For this reason she thought, God would forgive her – she would die for an honest motive.
She walked sleepily, tearfully, but steadily toward the bridge. It was fitting that she should die on a bridge, at the midway point between two locations. She was neither here or there, living in suspended animation, a fitting symbol of her life, which was interrupted by her husband’s tragedy. She would join her husband who had only lived half a life.
The rush of morning traffic had begun. Her plan was to leap off the bridge in front of a passing truck and end her life. As she looked down and watched the passing cars, her dark thoughts of death were soon ooded with memories of her beloved children. She remembered their births, their touch on her breast, their trust, their first steps, and their embrace. She watched the trucks pass by and prepared to leap in front of the right one. She shuffled her feet and loosened her grip on the rail. Death was only a step away.
As she closed her eyes to make the leap, suddenly a wave of determination swept over her.
“I must work to save my children! I must go on.”
Like a flash of lightning, an image of her children receiving the news of her suicide ashed across her mind.
“No!” she shouted.
Arriving home, she laid down on the oor. A stream of tears ran down the side of her face and lled her ears. She lay in silence. The tears wouldn’t stop. She was hurting inside. She could almost feel her boys’ soft cheeks and feel their tiny fingers in hers. It had been five weeks since she had seen them.
“Oh, God, help me!” she prayed. “Help me, what should I do?
Ayşe's love for her children made her willing to do anything for them. She found herself at a crossroads between her values to be a
woman of dignity and to be a mother who provided for her children. She was carrying a load of guilt and a burden of sinfulness.
In this lesson, we will see that Jesus also suffered tremendous emotional stress. He had been telling his disciples for nearly a year that he would be tortured and hung on a cross. He predicted that one of them would betray him. Now, the hour had come. Judas had left the upper room where they were eating and gone to the high priests. For a bag full of silver coins, he would betray the master he had followed for nearly three years by taking them to Jesus. Jesus knew that only a few hours remained until they would come and arrest him like a criminal. With foreknowledge of impending danger, Jesus knew he was in desperate need for prayer.
With his dearest students, Jesus stepped out into the night air and walked to his secret place of prayer in a nearby olive grove. Al- though both Matthew and Luke give us a description of the event, they each provide unique details that give us further insight as to what Jesus experienced. Let’s start by reading Matthew chapter 26 verses 30-39:
30 “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the ock will be scattered. 32 But after I have been raised, I will go before you into Galilee. 33 Peter answered and said to Him, Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble. 34 Jesus said to him, Truly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times. 35 Peter said to Him, Even if I have to die with You, I will not at all deny You! And so said all the disciples. 36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Geth- semane, and said to the disciples, Sit here while I go and pray over there. 37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and in extreme anguish. 38 And He said to them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. Stay here and watch with Me. 39 And 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.
Why was Jesus in “extreme anguish”? It is helpful for us to notice what he does not say. He doesn’t say that he is exceedingly afraid, nor does he say he is exceedingly worried. Rather, he says he is exceedingly sorrowful. In spite of being just a few hours away, Jesus wasn’t afraid of death or torture. He knew his mission and purpose. He was sad! What could make Jesus so sad?
Jesus gives us a clue to the root of his anguish when he prayed,
“Let this cup pass from me.”
What “cup” was he referring to? It was none other than the Messiah’s cup of fate. Jesus knew his fate was changeable and that he had a choice. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought his request to God. This begs the question: what was the Messiah going to do that would cause Jesus to be sorrowful? Let us review what the prophets wrote regarding the Messiah.
Do you remember reading about Abraham taking his son Isaac, to the mountain as a sacrifice? The boy did not feel the sting of the blade, but he was willing to. Ultimately, they sacri ced a ram in his place, a substitute for the boy. However, even after God provided a ram, Abraham had named the place, "God will provide." This was Abraham foretelling the arrival of a future substitute. God promised Abraham that in his seed the entire world would be blessed. The sacrifice of Abraham's son was not only a test of obedience, it was an acted out prophecy pointing to the mission of the Messiah.
Almost 700 years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah described what would happen to the Messiah. Let’s read his words in Isaiah chapter 53 verse 7:
7 “He was oppressed, and he was af icted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”
Then, almost 100 years later, the prophet Daniel gave additional information about the Messiah. Let’s read what he wrote in Daniel chapter 9 verse 26:
26 And the anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing.
Between Abraham and Jesus, there is a bridge of time stretching for 2000 years. In that span of time, literally millions of sheep were slaughtered in faith as symbols of the coming Messiah. After 2000 years, the day finally came for the promised seed of Abraham to fulfill his mission and bless the whole world. The promised Messiah, Jesus, would be a substitute sacrifice just as the ram was a substitute for Abraham's son. Do you remember what John the Baptist said about Jesus? While John was in the Jordan River baptizing repentant sinners, he saw Jesus approaching the riverbank. Immediately, he pointed at Jesus and cried out to the people,
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.”27
Jesus was deeply grieved because his destiny as the Lamb to be slaughtered was about to become a reality. But let us not forget that it wasn’t a fear of death that made him sorrowful. There was something else that made him sorrowful.
The purpose of the lamb sacrifice in Jesus’ day was slightly different than the cutting of our holiday sacrifices or special gift sacrifices that we make today. Similar to us, they would always choose a perfect lamb, without spot or blemish. Surely Jesus t this symbol as a sinless man, unlike the other prophets who were sinful and unsuitable for this mission. However there is a major difference between the sacrifices of today and those of biblical times; specifically, in regard to what happens before the animal is actually cut. The biblical model of sacrifice requires the person making the sacrifice to lay their hands on the head of the lamb and confess their sins. It was a transfer of sin through confession. Symbolically, the lamb paid the penalty of death for the sinner’s sin.
That night as Jesus was approaching the climax of his role as the Lamb of God, sin was being laid on him. Whose sins? Do you re- member what John the Baptist said in John chapter 1 verse 29:
“Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Jesus was taking upon himself the whole world’s sin. That means the sin of every human being, including ours!
The angel Gabriel also said that Jesus would rescue the whole world; it was his purpose. Prior to Jesus’ birth he said,
“His name will be Jesus for he will save men from their sins.”28
Now, after hundreds of years, the moment that all the prophets had spoken of and waited for was about to begin in the olive garden called Gethsemane. Can you begin to see why Jesus was in extreme anguish? He was the Lamb of God, and the sins of the whole world were being transferred to him. No it wasn’t a fear of death that made him sorrowful, but the immense sadness of a holy man accepting his duty on behalf of a sinful world! In fact, taking on humanity’s sin would separate Jesus from God and require God the Father to turn His holy face away from Jesus. That had to be sad!
Let’s see what happened next in Matthew chapter 26 verses 42-45:
42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. 43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. 44 And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
To help us better understand the harshness of this cup at the center of Jesus’ prayer, let’s read a verse from the New Testament book of Revelation which describes the judgment of the wicked in the last day. Revelation chapter 14 verse 10:
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
No wonder Jesus was in anguish. He was to drink the punishment of the wicked! Jesus was receiving the sins of the whole world, and taking their judgment upon himself. Just as the ram took the death that Abraham’s son should have gotten, now Jesus was going to die and pay the penalty for the sins that we committed.
The prophet Isaiah proclaimed this very truth in chapter 53 verses 10 and 11:
10 “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin.... 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
How could it please the LORD to bruise the Messiah and put him to grief? Because God wanted to put an end to sin, thereby ensuring the salvation of those who believed in the provision that He set forth. It was His will that Jesus’ death pay the penalty for humanity’s sin. Therefore, fulfilling the righteous requirements of God’s law.
Did you notice the word "travail" in verse 11? Oh! Dear friends, when the spotless Lamb of God found himself in the place of the guilty, a place he had voluntarily accepted in order to save the world, what must his soul have felt? How shocked his perfect nature must have been when in such close association with iniquity?
The transfer of sin had begun. Jesus felt its poison and was in anguish. He begged God,
"If there be a different way, let it be."
Yet he submitted to the will of God. The cup of God’s wrath was about to spillover. The events of the next day fulfilled the prophet Isaiah’s words:
“The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”29
Now Jesus stood as the sin-bearer, the substitute accepted by Divine justice to bear the wrath we should receive. At that hour, heaven looked on him as standing in the sinner's stead and treated him, as sinful mankind had fully deserved to be treated.
Now let’s read the description of the same event in Luke chapter 22 verses 39-44:
39 And going out, according to His custom, He went to the Mount of Olives. And His disciples also followed Him. 40 And when He was at the place, He said to them, Pray that you do not enter into temptation. 41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw. And He kneeled down and prayed, 42 saying, Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done. 43 And an angel appeared to Him from Heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly. And His sweat was as it were great drops of blood fall- ing down to the ground.
Jesus didn’t have the normal comforts of life to cheer him. The night was cold. His best friends were sleeping. But our compassionate God saw Jesus’ need and faithfully sent an angel to strengthen him. The angel did not remove him from the ghters ring, but only gave
him encouragement. This was the frontline in the great war between God and Satan. God had appointed but one Messiah, born of a virgin, the seed of Abraham. He was to champion the mission to “take away the sins of the world.” It was Jesus who had fought demons and won, and who had brought the dead from the grave. It was Jesus who had combated Satan’s dirty work of disease by healing the sick and restoring joy. Satan had lost every battle. But now Satan saw these hours as his nal chance in the war. It was one critical moment in which all would either be lost or won in the struggle for the soul of humanity. And so Satan assaulted the Messiah with every devilish weapon of discouragement his army of demons could muster.
Satan, the serpent of Eden, tempted Jesus with strong lies and delu- sions. He stood against Jesus, working to discourage him and tempt him to abandon his mission of dying as the Lamb of God. Again Jesus asked God if there was another way, but there was no other solution. The agony Jesus felt was beyond our comprehension as he was molested by the powers of evil who attempted to confuse his sense of duty. Perhaps Satan spoke to Jesus in this way,
“Art thou really called to bear the sin of man? Look at thy weak- ness! You are sweating, even now, great drops of blood; surely you are not he whom the Father hath ordained to be mighty to save; or if you are, what will you win by it? See what poor dirty ungrateful people you are giving your life for? Your best friends are asleep around you even now. Judas has sold you for the price of a common slave.”
Over thousands of years, the devil had mastered the art of tempting others. He succeeded in Eden and was now trying to tempt the world's Savior with thoughts as dangerous as hot coals. Jesus prayed more earnestly.
While Jesus was in prayer in that place of the olive press, the emotional weight he experienced was as if he were being crushed be- tween two great millstones, the upper millstone of God’s wrath against human sinfulness and the lower millstone of hellish malice.
Surely the most terrible bitterness was this: soon his Heavenly Father would begin to withdraw His presence from him. That divine eclipse of the soul would continue until it was completed at the end of the next day.
Why must God’s wrath come on him? Why did God punish Jesus so? Jesus had done no wrong. He had done nothing to deserve God’s judgment. This is true. But it is essential to understand that his perfect innocence is what gave his voluntary substitution the power to justify us!
You see, no one can enter heaven because of his own good deeds. Unfortunately goodness doesn’t cancel badness, no more than in- surance money can buy back the life of a loved one killed in an accident. If it would, Ayşe would have bought back her husband after he fell from the building.
Insurance money doesn’t buy life and good deeds don’t buy eternal life. To do so would be bribing God to break his own law. The Law of God demands retribution for sin. Even God keeps His own laws. If He didn’t, God would be a lawbreaker. The “mercy” many are hoping for, is really asking God to become a lawbreaker. God doesn’t bend rules. However, in his infinite wisdom he created a solution for sin through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the only perfect human to have ever walked on this earth.
There is just one penalty for violating God’s law: eternal death. It doesn’t matter how big a sin you commit. The penalty for lying is the same as the penalty for murder. The price of all lawbreaking in the Kingdom of Heaven is reasonable because it is the only way heaven can remain pure and our universe can nally become pure. In a very real sense Jesus was buying our entrance into heaven. In the Garden of Gethsemane, it was as if he were becoming all the sinners in the world, and as if He had committed our sins. The entirety of sin was laid on him, and thus so too was its penalty. Therefore, he was about to experience its wrath by taking upon himself guilt that rightfully belonged to us.
Jesus, heavy with grief, returned three times to check on his friends only to find them sleeping each time. But Jesus still loved them. Each time Jesus returned to his prayer and asked God in heaven to,
“Let this cup be taken from me.”
Three times the “cup” was put back to his lips. But Jesus still loved God. He had endured the bitter taunt of Satan and the sarcastic mockery of demons. Yet, his love for all of us drove him to press through this dark night. Finally, he stood up strong, prepared to ac- cept the will of God. The man who had calmed the sea would march through the coming hours of vicious cruelty and torture with an unbelievable calm. Let’s see how Jesus entered those gates of trial as recorded in Luke chapter 22 verses 45-53:
45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. 47 And while he yet spoke, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. 48 But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss? When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword? 50 And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear. 51 And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him. 52 Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves? 53 When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.
Ayşe turned from the bridge and rejected suicide because of overwhelming love for her children. It wasn’t the easy road. Should Ayşe lose her home and be poor so that she can be with her children, or should she keep her home, live a life she hated, and be apart from her children? She wrestled with her options and knew that she couldn’t keep the house and be with her kids. After hours of crying she made a determination in her mind. She would try to sell her house. She would take back her children and raise them herself. She would move to Erzurum for a more affordable life, even if she had to work for a fraction of her salary. Harder times still lay ahead for Ayşe, but she had done what was right. She would be a woman of dignity.
She got up from the oor where her depression had thrown her and laid down on her bed to catch a moment's sleep. Sleep? Yes, the thought surprised her. A glimmer of a smile spread across her face. She realized she had peace! She could even think of sleep! She gazed longingly upon her children’s pictures on the wall.
“How are you my children?” she whispered. “I will be with you soon. We will live together. You will be mine, and I will be yours. I will love you forever.”
Jesus wanted to avoid the agony of complete separation from God. He also wanted to please God in heaven and save the world. He could not do both. As Ayşe chose to suffer the loss of her home and a large salary in order to be with her children, Jesus chose to bear the sins of the world to save us. He entered the garden dreading separation from God, but He walked out of the garden with a calm power. He had struggled mentally and emotionally at a level we cannot imagine, but emerged with his determination sharpened and ready for the gruesome road ahead.
Still a man of peace, he healed the man’s ear and told Peter to put back his sword because the battle Jesus would win would be won by love and gentleness to the very end.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”30
Discussion Questions
1. When doing the right thing involves personal suffering, how can we nd strength to face it? How did Jesus nd strength?
2. How was a lamb sacri ce related to the forgiveness of sins?
3. What was the “cup” that Jesus was to drink? What compelled him to "drink" it?
4. What hope do you nd from this lesson?
27 John 1:29
28 Matthew 1:21
29 Isaiah 53:6
30 John 15:13
Ayşe despised the life she was living. After working all night, she boarded a bus. Although she had never ridden it before, she knew exactly where it was headed and she had a plan. It was 6:15 in the morning. She peered out across the Bosporus. It was rainy and cold. The bus’ foggy windows obscured her view and reminded her of the dull, gray reality that she wished was just a dream she could wake from. She had two small children, which she had not seen for over a month. It was no life for a mother, and certainly not the life she hoped for her children.
The children stayed with a hired “aunt” nearly 80 kilometers away. It was the only arrangement she could nd in which the children
would receive proper care and nourishment. Ayşe earned enough money. Money wasn't her problem. It was that Ayşe was a night maid at a bar. From this work she earned over four times what a normal factory worker could earn on a day shift. But money wasn’t everything; the job was taking its toll on her body and spirit. Her life hadn't begun this way, and now she was tempted to end it all. She dreamed of a different life where she could kiss her children every day and live without shame. But year after year that life hadn’t come.
Ayşe's husband had died almost five years earlier in a freak accident when he fell to his death while building an apartment complex. He didn’t die instantly, and medical attempts to save his life quickly consumed their small savings and wedding gold. They had begun to buy an apartment together on credit, and it was the only thing that gave her hope. She decided that she had to hang on to it at any cost. In another six years of working at the bar, she could have the house paid for. But, could she survive six more years? Why not get another job? Why not clean houses? Why not work in a cafe? The answer was simple; an ordinary job would provide her with barely enough to live on, and certainly no money to put toward a house. And then what would become of her children while she worked? If they went to daycare, she wouldn’t have any money left after paying the bills to even live.
The city bus stopped and Ayşe got off. She spoke to herself as she walked,
“God forgive me for this work! And forgive me for killing myself. I have to do it.”
She didn't want to live such a shameful life anymore. Men would often squeeze her and touch her in ways that at first she didn't like. Now after five years of being without a husband, she found herself actually desiring their touch. This is why she wanted to commit suicide. She despised the woman she had become. For this reason she thought, God would forgive her – she would die for an honest motive.
She walked sleepily, tearfully, but steadily toward the bridge. It was fitting that she should die on a bridge, at the midway point between two locations. She was neither here or there, living in suspended animation, a fitting symbol of her life, which was interrupted by her husband’s tragedy. She would join her husband who had only lived half a life.
The rush of morning traffic had begun. Her plan was to leap off the bridge in front of a passing truck and end her life. As she looked down and watched the passing cars, her dark thoughts of death were soon ooded with memories of her beloved children. She remembered their births, their touch on her breast, their trust, their first steps, and their embrace. She watched the trucks pass by and prepared to leap in front of the right one. She shuffled her feet and loosened her grip on the rail. Death was only a step away.
As she closed her eyes to make the leap, suddenly a wave of determination swept over her.
“I must work to save my children! I must go on.”
Like a flash of lightning, an image of her children receiving the news of her suicide ashed across her mind.
“No!” she shouted.
Arriving home, she laid down on the oor. A stream of tears ran down the side of her face and lled her ears. She lay in silence. The tears wouldn’t stop. She was hurting inside. She could almost feel her boys’ soft cheeks and feel their tiny fingers in hers. It had been five weeks since she had seen them.
“Oh, God, help me!” she prayed. “Help me, what should I do?
Ayşe's love for her children made her willing to do anything for them. She found herself at a crossroads between her values to be a
woman of dignity and to be a mother who provided for her children. She was carrying a load of guilt and a burden of sinfulness.
In this lesson, we will see that Jesus also suffered tremendous emotional stress. He had been telling his disciples for nearly a year that he would be tortured and hung on a cross. He predicted that one of them would betray him. Now, the hour had come. Judas had left the upper room where they were eating and gone to the high priests. For a bag full of silver coins, he would betray the master he had followed for nearly three years by taking them to Jesus. Jesus knew that only a few hours remained until they would come and arrest him like a criminal. With foreknowledge of impending danger, Jesus knew he was in desperate need for prayer.
With his dearest students, Jesus stepped out into the night air and walked to his secret place of prayer in a nearby olive grove. Al- though both Matthew and Luke give us a description of the event, they each provide unique details that give us further insight as to what Jesus experienced. Let’s start by reading Matthew chapter 26 verses 30-39:
30 “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the ock will be scattered. 32 But after I have been raised, I will go before you into Galilee. 33 Peter answered and said to Him, Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble. 34 Jesus said to him, Truly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times. 35 Peter said to Him, Even if I have to die with You, I will not at all deny You! And so said all the disciples. 36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Geth- semane, and said to the disciples, Sit here while I go and pray over there. 37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and in extreme anguish. 38 And He said to them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. Stay here and watch with Me. 39 And 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.
Why was Jesus in “extreme anguish”? It is helpful for us to notice what he does not say. He doesn’t say that he is exceedingly afraid, nor does he say he is exceedingly worried. Rather, he says he is exceedingly sorrowful. In spite of being just a few hours away, Jesus wasn’t afraid of death or torture. He knew his mission and purpose. He was sad! What could make Jesus so sad?
Jesus gives us a clue to the root of his anguish when he prayed,
“Let this cup pass from me.”
What “cup” was he referring to? It was none other than the Messiah’s cup of fate. Jesus knew his fate was changeable and that he had a choice. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought his request to God. This begs the question: what was the Messiah going to do that would cause Jesus to be sorrowful? Let us review what the prophets wrote regarding the Messiah.
Do you remember reading about Abraham taking his son Isaac, to the mountain as a sacrifice? The boy did not feel the sting of the blade, but he was willing to. Ultimately, they sacri ced a ram in his place, a substitute for the boy. However, even after God provided a ram, Abraham had named the place, "God will provide." This was Abraham foretelling the arrival of a future substitute. God promised Abraham that in his seed the entire world would be blessed. The sacrifice of Abraham's son was not only a test of obedience, it was an acted out prophecy pointing to the mission of the Messiah.
Almost 700 years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah described what would happen to the Messiah. Let’s read his words in Isaiah chapter 53 verse 7:
7 “He was oppressed, and he was af icted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”
Then, almost 100 years later, the prophet Daniel gave additional information about the Messiah. Let’s read what he wrote in Daniel chapter 9 verse 26:
26 And the anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing.
Between Abraham and Jesus, there is a bridge of time stretching for 2000 years. In that span of time, literally millions of sheep were slaughtered in faith as symbols of the coming Messiah. After 2000 years, the day finally came for the promised seed of Abraham to fulfill his mission and bless the whole world. The promised Messiah, Jesus, would be a substitute sacrifice just as the ram was a substitute for Abraham's son. Do you remember what John the Baptist said about Jesus? While John was in the Jordan River baptizing repentant sinners, he saw Jesus approaching the riverbank. Immediately, he pointed at Jesus and cried out to the people,
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.”27
Jesus was deeply grieved because his destiny as the Lamb to be slaughtered was about to become a reality. But let us not forget that it wasn’t a fear of death that made him sorrowful. There was something else that made him sorrowful.
The purpose of the lamb sacrifice in Jesus’ day was slightly different than the cutting of our holiday sacrifices or special gift sacrifices that we make today. Similar to us, they would always choose a perfect lamb, without spot or blemish. Surely Jesus t this symbol as a sinless man, unlike the other prophets who were sinful and unsuitable for this mission. However there is a major difference between the sacrifices of today and those of biblical times; specifically, in regard to what happens before the animal is actually cut. The biblical model of sacrifice requires the person making the sacrifice to lay their hands on the head of the lamb and confess their sins. It was a transfer of sin through confession. Symbolically, the lamb paid the penalty of death for the sinner’s sin.
That night as Jesus was approaching the climax of his role as the Lamb of God, sin was being laid on him. Whose sins? Do you re- member what John the Baptist said in John chapter 1 verse 29:
“Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Jesus was taking upon himself the whole world’s sin. That means the sin of every human being, including ours!
The angel Gabriel also said that Jesus would rescue the whole world; it was his purpose. Prior to Jesus’ birth he said,
“His name will be Jesus for he will save men from their sins.”28
Now, after hundreds of years, the moment that all the prophets had spoken of and waited for was about to begin in the olive garden called Gethsemane. Can you begin to see why Jesus was in extreme anguish? He was the Lamb of God, and the sins of the whole world were being transferred to him. No it wasn’t a fear of death that made him sorrowful, but the immense sadness of a holy man accepting his duty on behalf of a sinful world! In fact, taking on humanity’s sin would separate Jesus from God and require God the Father to turn His holy face away from Jesus. That had to be sad!
Let’s see what happened next in Matthew chapter 26 verses 42-45:
42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. 43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. 44 And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
To help us better understand the harshness of this cup at the center of Jesus’ prayer, let’s read a verse from the New Testament book of Revelation which describes the judgment of the wicked in the last day. Revelation chapter 14 verse 10:
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
No wonder Jesus was in anguish. He was to drink the punishment of the wicked! Jesus was receiving the sins of the whole world, and taking their judgment upon himself. Just as the ram took the death that Abraham’s son should have gotten, now Jesus was going to die and pay the penalty for the sins that we committed.
The prophet Isaiah proclaimed this very truth in chapter 53 verses 10 and 11:
10 “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin.... 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
How could it please the LORD to bruise the Messiah and put him to grief? Because God wanted to put an end to sin, thereby ensuring the salvation of those who believed in the provision that He set forth. It was His will that Jesus’ death pay the penalty for humanity’s sin. Therefore, fulfilling the righteous requirements of God’s law.
Did you notice the word "travail" in verse 11? Oh! Dear friends, when the spotless Lamb of God found himself in the place of the guilty, a place he had voluntarily accepted in order to save the world, what must his soul have felt? How shocked his perfect nature must have been when in such close association with iniquity?
The transfer of sin had begun. Jesus felt its poison and was in anguish. He begged God,
"If there be a different way, let it be."
Yet he submitted to the will of God. The cup of God’s wrath was about to spillover. The events of the next day fulfilled the prophet Isaiah’s words:
“The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”29
Now Jesus stood as the sin-bearer, the substitute accepted by Divine justice to bear the wrath we should receive. At that hour, heaven looked on him as standing in the sinner's stead and treated him, as sinful mankind had fully deserved to be treated.
Now let’s read the description of the same event in Luke chapter 22 verses 39-44:
39 And going out, according to His custom, He went to the Mount of Olives. And His disciples also followed Him. 40 And when He was at the place, He said to them, Pray that you do not enter into temptation. 41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw. And He kneeled down and prayed, 42 saying, Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done. 43 And an angel appeared to Him from Heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly. And His sweat was as it were great drops of blood fall- ing down to the ground.
Jesus didn’t have the normal comforts of life to cheer him. The night was cold. His best friends were sleeping. But our compassionate God saw Jesus’ need and faithfully sent an angel to strengthen him. The angel did not remove him from the ghters ring, but only gave
him encouragement. This was the frontline in the great war between God and Satan. God had appointed but one Messiah, born of a virgin, the seed of Abraham. He was to champion the mission to “take away the sins of the world.” It was Jesus who had fought demons and won, and who had brought the dead from the grave. It was Jesus who had combated Satan’s dirty work of disease by healing the sick and restoring joy. Satan had lost every battle. But now Satan saw these hours as his nal chance in the war. It was one critical moment in which all would either be lost or won in the struggle for the soul of humanity. And so Satan assaulted the Messiah with every devilish weapon of discouragement his army of demons could muster.
Satan, the serpent of Eden, tempted Jesus with strong lies and delu- sions. He stood against Jesus, working to discourage him and tempt him to abandon his mission of dying as the Lamb of God. Again Jesus asked God if there was another way, but there was no other solution. The agony Jesus felt was beyond our comprehension as he was molested by the powers of evil who attempted to confuse his sense of duty. Perhaps Satan spoke to Jesus in this way,
“Art thou really called to bear the sin of man? Look at thy weak- ness! You are sweating, even now, great drops of blood; surely you are not he whom the Father hath ordained to be mighty to save; or if you are, what will you win by it? See what poor dirty ungrateful people you are giving your life for? Your best friends are asleep around you even now. Judas has sold you for the price of a common slave.”
Over thousands of years, the devil had mastered the art of tempting others. He succeeded in Eden and was now trying to tempt the world's Savior with thoughts as dangerous as hot coals. Jesus prayed more earnestly.
While Jesus was in prayer in that place of the olive press, the emotional weight he experienced was as if he were being crushed be- tween two great millstones, the upper millstone of God’s wrath against human sinfulness and the lower millstone of hellish malice.
Surely the most terrible bitterness was this: soon his Heavenly Father would begin to withdraw His presence from him. That divine eclipse of the soul would continue until it was completed at the end of the next day.
Why must God’s wrath come on him? Why did God punish Jesus so? Jesus had done no wrong. He had done nothing to deserve God’s judgment. This is true. But it is essential to understand that his perfect innocence is what gave his voluntary substitution the power to justify us!
You see, no one can enter heaven because of his own good deeds. Unfortunately goodness doesn’t cancel badness, no more than in- surance money can buy back the life of a loved one killed in an accident. If it would, Ayşe would have bought back her husband after he fell from the building.
Insurance money doesn’t buy life and good deeds don’t buy eternal life. To do so would be bribing God to break his own law. The Law of God demands retribution for sin. Even God keeps His own laws. If He didn’t, God would be a lawbreaker. The “mercy” many are hoping for, is really asking God to become a lawbreaker. God doesn’t bend rules. However, in his infinite wisdom he created a solution for sin through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the only perfect human to have ever walked on this earth.
There is just one penalty for violating God’s law: eternal death. It doesn’t matter how big a sin you commit. The penalty for lying is the same as the penalty for murder. The price of all lawbreaking in the Kingdom of Heaven is reasonable because it is the only way heaven can remain pure and our universe can nally become pure. In a very real sense Jesus was buying our entrance into heaven. In the Garden of Gethsemane, it was as if he were becoming all the sinners in the world, and as if He had committed our sins. The entirety of sin was laid on him, and thus so too was its penalty. Therefore, he was about to experience its wrath by taking upon himself guilt that rightfully belonged to us.
Jesus, heavy with grief, returned three times to check on his friends only to find them sleeping each time. But Jesus still loved them. Each time Jesus returned to his prayer and asked God in heaven to,
“Let this cup be taken from me.”
Three times the “cup” was put back to his lips. But Jesus still loved God. He had endured the bitter taunt of Satan and the sarcastic mockery of demons. Yet, his love for all of us drove him to press through this dark night. Finally, he stood up strong, prepared to ac- cept the will of God. The man who had calmed the sea would march through the coming hours of vicious cruelty and torture with an unbelievable calm. Let’s see how Jesus entered those gates of trial as recorded in Luke chapter 22 verses 45-53:
45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. 47 And while he yet spoke, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. 48 But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss? When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword? 50 And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear. 51 And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him. 52 Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves? 53 When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.
Ayşe turned from the bridge and rejected suicide because of overwhelming love for her children. It wasn’t the easy road. Should Ayşe lose her home and be poor so that she can be with her children, or should she keep her home, live a life she hated, and be apart from her children? She wrestled with her options and knew that she couldn’t keep the house and be with her kids. After hours of crying she made a determination in her mind. She would try to sell her house. She would take back her children and raise them herself. She would move to Erzurum for a more affordable life, even if she had to work for a fraction of her salary. Harder times still lay ahead for Ayşe, but she had done what was right. She would be a woman of dignity.
She got up from the oor where her depression had thrown her and laid down on her bed to catch a moment's sleep. Sleep? Yes, the thought surprised her. A glimmer of a smile spread across her face. She realized she had peace! She could even think of sleep! She gazed longingly upon her children’s pictures on the wall.
“How are you my children?” she whispered. “I will be with you soon. We will live together. You will be mine, and I will be yours. I will love you forever.”
Jesus wanted to avoid the agony of complete separation from God. He also wanted to please God in heaven and save the world. He could not do both. As Ayşe chose to suffer the loss of her home and a large salary in order to be with her children, Jesus chose to bear the sins of the world to save us. He entered the garden dreading separation from God, but He walked out of the garden with a calm power. He had struggled mentally and emotionally at a level we cannot imagine, but emerged with his determination sharpened and ready for the gruesome road ahead.
Still a man of peace, he healed the man’s ear and told Peter to put back his sword because the battle Jesus would win would be won by love and gentleness to the very end.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”30
Discussion Questions
1. When doing the right thing involves personal suffering, how can we nd strength to face it? How did Jesus nd strength?
2. How was a lamb sacri ce related to the forgiveness of sins?
3. What was the “cup” that Jesus was to drink? What compelled him to "drink" it?
4. What hope do you nd from this lesson?
27 John 1:29
28 Matthew 1:21
29 Isaiah 53:6
30 John 15:13