Luke 22:39-44. 39Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.”
41He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
43An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.
44And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane right after he celebrated Holy Communion with his disciples, in the upper room, in Jerusalem. So, this happened on the evening of the day we call, “Maundy Thursday.” But remember. Jews don’t mark a day’s beginning and end the way we do. Genesis chapter one shows us how Jews reckon when a day begins and ends. “There was evening and there was morning, the first day. There was evening and there was morning, the second day. Evening, morning, third day. Evening, morning, fourth day.” Et cetera.
So, for Jews, a day starts and ends at sundown. So, from sundown on what we call, “Maundy Thursday,” to sundown on “Good Friday,” that was the one and the same day. On that one day, Jesus suffered, died, and was buried. But before Jesus did that…
Before a centurion pierced his side with a spear
Before agony made him cry out, Why have you forsaken me?
Before hammers pounded nails into his hands and feet on the +
Before the weight of his cross caused Jesus to stumble
Before Pontius Pilate condemned him
Before the Jewish mob screamed, Crucify him! Crucify him!
Roman soldiers thrashed him and mocked him
Before a crown of thorns pierced his head
Before King Herod ridiculed and rejected him
Before the Jews brought Jesus to Pilate the first time
Before the High Priest condemned him to death for blasphemy
Before Peter denied him
Before false witnesses accused him
Before the Sanhedrin held their illegal trial against him in the Garden of Gethsemane
Before the temple guard arrested him and abused him
Before all his disciples deserted him
Before Judas betrayed him with a kiss…
Before all that happened in that one day, in the tranquility of the garden, Jesus prayed. Jesus prayed passionately. Now, if you do something passionately, it means a power overwhelms you. That power pushes you toward a single goal. You pursue that goal with all your heart and strength. You focus your energy, thoughts, all your being on that one single goal.
When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, he was passionate. Our text says, being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. That is how Jesus prayed. This is what Jesus passionately prayed about. Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.
Christ passionately prayed about his passion. Passion means you endure suffering. It means you are passive. You don’t make things happen. Things happen to you. That’s what Jesus was praying about.
In effect, Jesus was saying to his heavenly Father, “I know what suffering awaits me. I understand the pain you have planned for me. I know the emotional agony my own people–my own disciples—will inflict on me. I know how the Romans will disfigure my body with their inhumane torture. l know the cross will heap pain and shame on my naked body. But, heavenly Father, your vengeance over human sin will cause my most brutal suffering. The hammer of your law will smash my heart and soul to pieces. Your white-hot anger against sin will burn me just as severely as the flames of hell.”
Yes, as true God, Jesus knew exactly what the next twenty or so hours would bring. That’s why he prays for that passion—that suffering—to disappear. Jesus prays, take this cup from me. As a true human it was normal, natural—it was instinctive to escape that immeasurable suffering. So, he prayed passionately for his heavenly Father to take that cup of suffering away. And from the human perspective Gethsemane was his last chance to avoid the suffering. Gethsemane was his last opportunity to run away and escape all that pain.
But what would that mean for you and me? What if Jesus refused to drink the cup of torture, execution, and punishment for our sins? Well, we know what would happen. We would have to drink God’s cup of wrath. We would suffer the naked brutality of God’s justice. We would suffer God’s vengeance. The hammer of God’s law would smash your heart and soul to pieces. God’s white-hot anger would burn you just as severely as the flames of hell.
That is why Jesus prayed so passionately. As Jesus prayed, he was emotionally torn in two. Jesus was a real human. He had real human emotions. So, on one hand, he did not want to suffer the agony set before him. But on the other hand, Jesus loved stubborn, stiff-necked, rebellious humanity. His love was so immense he did want any human to suffer the full strength of God’s fury and wrath in the burning sulfur of hell.
So, Jesus prayed to his heavenly Father, not my will, but yours be done. And we know what God’s will is. We know what God wants. Saint Peter tells us, [God] is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. Saint Paul tells us, God our Savior… wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. Jesus himself had told the Jews, my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
That is God’s will. That’s what God wants. He wants you to have eternal life in heaven. To get what he wanted, God paid a high price. To get the salvation God wants for you, Jesus paid a high price. Jesus paid with his pure, holy, innocent life. Jesus paid for your salvation passionately. Love for lost humanity overwhelmed Jesus. His love pushed him toward that single goal of purchasing and winning your life and salvation. Jesus pursued your salvation with all his heart and all his strength. Jesus focused his energy, his thoughts, all his being on that one single goal. When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, he was passionate about setting you free from sin and death. He was passionate about bringing you to eternal life in heaven.
Now, if you visit the Garden of Gethsemane today, it is a contrast to the rest of Jerusalem. The modern city of Jerusalem is hustling and bustling. Religious pilgrims—Christians, Jews, and Muslims—crowd the holy sites. People are pushy and get pushed. The markets in the old city teem with tourists. But the Garden of Gethsemane is different. The Franciscan monks, who own the Garden, limit the number of people who can enter at any one time. So, the Garden of Gethsemane is tranquil and quiet. It’s a place to meditate and pray in silence and peace.
Of course, you do not have to go to the Holy Land to find the peace and tranquility of the Garden of Gethsemane. No, all you have to do is look to Jesus in faith. When you see how Jesus began the day of his passion in passionate prayer, you will have peace. That peace will come when you understand the love of Jesus who prayed, not my will, but yours be done. And in the loving, self-sacrificing Christ you will find true peace for your soul, from sundown to sunset and for all eternity. Amen.