Luke 22:39-46 (NLT)
Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. There he told them, “Pray that you will not be overcome by temptation.” He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine.” Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood. At last he stood up again and returned to the disciples, only to find them asleep, exhausted from grief. “Why are you sleeping?” he asked. “Get up and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you.”
A Theme to Remember:
This prayer reveals the magnitude of the suffering Christ endured on the cross. The foreknowledge of what awaited Him – the cruelty of Roman torture, the agony of crucifixion, the abandonment of the Father as He bore our sins – was enough to draw beads of blood from His brow. Yet, despite His anguish, He returns to the disciples and encourages them to pray and prepare for what lay ahead. In this magnificent scene we witness that Jesus is not only our eternal Redeemer, He is also our ever patient Teacher and our ever abiding Shepherd.
Words to Remember:
Always remember the great danger it is for anyone to enter into temptation. We need a moral sensitivity to the weakness and corruption within us. We need to guard against the reality and guile of Satan. We need to recognize the evil of sin and the power of temptation to work against us. If we remain careless and cold, we shall never escape its entanglements.
–John Owen