Before we come back to Luke’s account, I want us to get into the mind and heart of Jesus in the only way we can, by looking at the inspired accounts by Matthew (26:37-38) and Mark (14:33-34).
Jesus was “very distressed.” This verb means to be “astonished, alarmed, or afraid.” Why was Jesus “alarmed” or “afraid”? Secondly, Mark says Jesus was “troubled.” This verb means to be “anxious, distressed, or in anguish.” Why was Jesus “anxious”? Jesus says His soul was “deeply grieved to the point of death.” The verb translated “deeply grieved” is an intensified form of the verb to “grieve.” But why? Why was Jesus so deeply sad and grieving?
Jesus knew that He would be raised from the dead, didn’t He? Psalm 16 predicted the resurrection of the Messiah. Jesus, Himself, predicted His own resurrection in Luke 9:22. In Matthew and Mark’s accounts, Jesus predicted His resurrection on at least two other occasions besides that one. So, I do not think it was the fear of death itself that troubled Jesus so much.
I think it was the fear of sin. I think it was the fear of being tempted, through all the events that would happen – I suggest that is what made Jesus afraid, anxious, and distressed. In Luke 22, Jesus refers to temptation in verses 40 and 46. I suggest His prayer (in vss 41-44) have to do with His own temptation.
Jesus knew (Isaiah had prophesied in Isaiah 53:7-10) that it was the Father’s expectations that Jesus would be sinless. Jesus knew that He had to be sinless, He had to live sinlessly and He had to die sinlessly in order to fulfill the Father’s plan. Imagine that huge, weighty expectation that would rest on the shoulders of Jesus. That, it seems to me, is what weighed on the shoulders of Jesus so that He was anxious about the next few hours.
Jesus has predicted the scattering of His apostles (Matt. 26:31-32). Jesus has predicted the denials of Peter (Luke 22:33-34). Jesus has lost Judas to the influence of Satan (Luke 22:3). Jesus had, no doubt, seen many men, from the cross, curse God under the excruciating pain. It seems to me that His prayer dealt with staying faithful to God’s plan despite the pain, humiliation, and rejection by God He was about to experience.
Let’s look back at Luke’s account – 22:41-44. Here we have the content of Jesus’ prayer. “Remove this cup from Me.” The “cup” was used by the prophets several times to refer to God’s wrath (Psa 11:6; Isa. 51:17; Eze. 23:33). This cup, the cup of “suffering,” is the cup of the wrath of God that Jesus would experience when He goes to the cross and experiences all the pain and humiliation that is coming. But Jesus does not want to do that. He does not want to experience that.
But, He wants to honor and obey the Father more. “Not My will, but Yours be done.” That summarizes and epitomizes the attitude that Jesus had throughout His entire life. We ought to be so thankful that Jesus walked so closely with the Father that despite His fear of sin and death, He followed through with the Father’s plan so Jesus could bring salvation to you and me.
God the Father responded to Jesus’ prayer, not in the way that Jesus had asked. The Father did not take away the cup of suffering from Jesus. But He did give Jesus some strength to endure what He was going to suffer. The Father sent a messenger from heaven to strengthen Jesus but “being in agony,” Jesus prayed even more fervently. If He were to sin, the whole plan of God would come crashing down from all eternity. He knew the Father’s expectations. He knew what was on the line. He had lived faithfully up to that point. How could He give up faith right there at the end, in the last few hours of His life on earth?
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So Jesus prayed so fervently that His sweat became like drops of blood falling down to the ground. The condition is rare but it can happen; it is called hematidrosis. It’s when someone is under considerable stress that blood capillaries can burst and blood becomes mixed with sweat. According to a recent article in Reason and Revelation (July 2017, pg 83), there have been 76 cases in the late 20th century and the most common reason was “acute fear” and “intense mental contemplation.” The blood loss is minimal but we get a maximum view of the fear of Jesus Christ in the last few hours of His life before the crucifixion.
We get such a deep and broad picture of the love of Christ for us and the love of the Father for us when we understand Jesus’ heart and mind in the garden of Gethsemane.
THE WEAKNESS OF THE FLESH – 22:45-46:
Jesus came to His disciples and saw that they were simply too weak, spiritually, to endure the night of prayer on His behalf. The sorrow that they felt, mixed with ignorance as it was, overwhelmed them to the point that they simply could not stay awake and pray.
According to Matthew and Mark’s account, Jesus says those famous words, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
The flesh of Jesus was strong. His spirit was strong. “Not My will but Yours be done.” Thank God that Jesus walked so closely with the Father that He was willing to pray not to fall into temptation. His disciples became fearful and fled. Perhaps Jesus was anxious that He might do the same thing.
Yes, the flesh is weak. Jesus knows that. Jesus experienced that. But Jesus was able to deny the “lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” so that He could stand as the holy and blameless sacrifice for our sins. Thank God for His indescribable gift!
Do not despise the grace of God. Pray for strength to say “no” to temptation. But praise God that Jesus did say “no” to temptation!
–Paul Holland
