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We can turn with me in your Bibles 
to Matthew chapter 26. We're working through Matthew's 
gospel narrative concerning the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ 
in these Lord's Supper meditations. We find ourselves in Gethsemane 
this evening. Matthew 26, 36 to 46. Basically, 
the structure is very simple. Jesus prays, according to verse 
39, and the disciples sleep, verses 40 and 41. Jesus prays 
a second time, verse 42, and the disciples sleep, verse 43. Jesus prays a third time, in 
verse 44, and the disciples sleep. And then Jesus announces once 
again His betrayal. It was at hand. And the next 
section shows where Judas and the soldiers come to arrest our 
Lord Jesus. So I'll begin reading in chapter 
26 at verse 36. Then Jesus came with them to 
a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, Sit here 
while I go and pray over there. And he took with him Peter and 
the two sons of Zebedee, and he began to be sorrowful and 
deeply distressed. Then he said to them, My soul 
is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch 
with me. 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. Then he came to the disciples 
and found them sleeping and said to Peter, What? Could you not 
watch with me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter 
into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, 
but the flesh is weak. Again, a second time he went 
away and prayed, saying, O my father, if this cup cannot pass 
away from me unless I drink it, your will be done. And he came 
and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. So 
he left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying 
the same words. Then he came to his disciples 
and said to them, Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, 
the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed 
into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, my 
betrayer is at hand. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank You for the written Word, and we thank You for the 
Spirit who gave it to us, also illumines our minds and hearts 
as we look to it, and we pray for His ministry now. Again, 
we ask that You would forgive us for our sin and transgression, 
all those things that darken our understanding, all those 
things that produce that fog in our minds and that lack of 
reception to the glory of Christ. We pray that you would dispel 
this. We pray that we would see afresh the glory of Christ, that 
we would appreciate His work as mediator on behalf of all 
those whom the Father had given Him. We thank you for this passage. Again, we ask that the Spirit 
would help us to navigate through it and to be encouraged and edified 
as a result. And we pray these things through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, as we come to this 
particular section, it is a very weighty and a very deep and a 
very heavy section that our Lord undergoes on behalf of His people. 
I want to look first at the Savior's first prayer in the Garden in 
verses 36 to 41, then we'll look at the Savior's second prayer 
in verses 42 and 43, His third prayer in verses 44 and 46, and 
then the Savior's announcement of the arrival of the hour. We'll 
spend the most of our time on that first section in verses 
36 to 41. And there, I want to consider 
the setting of the Savior's agony, secondly, the sorrow of the Savior, 
thirdly, the supplication of the Savior, and then finally, 
the sluggishness of the disciples. There is a marked contrast between 
our Lord and between the disciples set forth here for us. But with 
reference to the first point, the setting of the Savior's agony, 
notice in verse 36, Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane. 
Luke tells us in Luke chapter 22 at verse 39 that this was 
his casta. This wasn't foreign to him or 
his disciples. In fact, John 18.2 tells us that 
Judas knew the place, and as we see after this particular 
account concerning Gethsemane, Judas along with the soldiers 
arrived to arrest him. So this wasn't a one-off for 
our Lord. They often frequented this particular 
garden. They would often worship there. 
They would often pray there. They would often encourage one 
another in this particular setting. So he goes to Gethsemane and 
he takes the 11 disciples. Remember that Judas has been 
identified as the betrayer. Judas is no longer with them. 
So eight of the disciples, he leaves at the gate going into 
the garden, and then he takes these three other disciples, 
Peter, James, and John. These men accompanied the Lord 
Jesus Christ at the Mount of Transfiguration as well in Matthew 
chapter 17. So there they saw, as it were, 
him peel away his humanity to reveal His glory and His divinity 
and His majesty. So they saw that on the one hand 
in Matthew 17, and here in the garden, they're going to see 
the depths of His anguish, the depths of His sorrow, the depths 
of the pain that He is undergoing on behalf of His people. That 
brings us to consider, secondly, the sorrow of the Savior. In 
the first place, notice the internal distress in verse 37. And he 
took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and he began 
to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. This is consistent with what 
the prophet spoke concerning him. Isaiah 53, verse 3, he prophesied 
that Jesus would be a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. 
As well, the Psalms of David, specifically in Psalms 42 and 
43, indicate that it is consistent with the people of God when they 
are sorrowful, when they are filled with anguish, when they 
are under any excruciating sort of a severity in their lives, 
it is consistent with them to pray, to open up their hearts, 
and to pour out their burden to the Lord God Most High. The 
psalmist says, and Peter quotes, that we are to cast our burden 
on the Lord. In Psalm 42, 5 and 6, David says, 
Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within 
me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of 
His countenance. Oh my God, my soul is cast down 
within me. And as well, that is repeated 
in Psalm 43 at verse 5. So that's what's happening. He 
has this deep distress, he has this sorrow, and then he voices 
this according to verse 38. He said to them, my soul is exceedingly 
sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me. 
Now this sorrow is according to his humanity. According to 
divinity, there is no soul sorrow. There is only eternal blessedness. 
But according to his humanity, Jesus assumed our humanity with 
all of the essential properties that are consistent with our 
humanity, and yet without sin. He had all the common infirmities. 
He sorrowed. He hungered. He thirsted. All 
that makes man, man, Jesus experienced on behalf of His people. And 
so that's how we need to approach this particular passage, especially 
when He prays to the Father that if it is possible, let this cup 
pass from Me. He is speaking as the God-man 
with an emphasis on His humanity here. And when we consider the 
hour that is approaching, and we consider the cup that He must 
drink, this soul sorrow is consistent with true humanity. My soul is 
exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with 
me." He knew what he was facing. He knew the wrath of God that 
awaited him. He knew what was on the other 
side of this garden with reference to the arrest, the delivering 
up to the godless chief priests and elders, the ultimate delivering 
up to Pilate, and then being delivered up to the cross. And 
so Christ understanding that has this soul sorrow. Again, 
very consistent with true humanity. And so then he bids the disciples 
stay here and watch with me. And that brings us to the supplication 
of the Savior in verse 39. And there's something very important 
that we ought to observe in verse 39. He went a little farther 
and fell on his face. So he's by himself. Drop down 
to verse 45. Then he came to the disciples 
and said to them, Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, 
the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed 
into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, my 
betrayer is at hand. This is a solitary mission for 
the Lord Jesus. The disciples are going to desert 
Him, but irrespective of their desertion, Christ knows it's 
between Him and the Father. Christ knows that they cannot 
help Him. Christ knows that they will not 
help Him. So Christ is all alone, and that's 
why He continues a little bit farther, and there He falls on 
His face, and He prays to the Father. Now notice His petition. He doesn't say, Our Father, in 
verse 39. This prayer is unique to our 
Lord Christ. It bothers me and it bugs me 
when people take Gethsemane and make it a paradigm for Christian 
life experience. We're not in the Garden of Gethsemane. This was unique to the mediator. 
There is no moralistic imperative from this passage on go thou 
and do likewise. Christ is alone here. Christ 
is the only begotten Son of the Father. Praise, O my Father. This is a transaction between 
Him and the Father alone. This is not an Our Father prayer. 
This is not an inclusive prayer concerning the disciples. He 
addresses the Father not as Our Father, but He prays, O my Father. And then notice the petition. 
And I want to look at this petition under some general considerations 
and then specific considerations. Look at the text. This petition 
reveals the two wills of Christ. Remember that Christ is one person, 
two natures, divine and human. Well, each of those natures has 
a will. Christ has two wills, a will 
according to his divinity that he shares with the Father and 
the Spirit, but there is a will according to his humanity, and 
that is the light in which he is praying. This condemns what 
has been called in the history of the church monothelitism, 
which simply means one-will-ism. Christ is unique. He doesn't 
have one will. He has two wills, just as he 
has two natures in the hypostatic union. This heresy of monothelitism 
was condemned at the Council of Constantinople in the 600s. The Council of Chalcedon confessed 
the two natures of Jesus Christ in AD 451. Having reflected upon 
passages like these, having looked at the biblical data, those divines 
saw clearly that in the one person of Jesus there were two natures, 
divine and human. Well, here he is praying according 
to his humanity. He is offering up this supplication 
in light of those things that are facing Him on the other side 
of the garden. The petition is perfectly consistent 
with His humanity. Our confession says, Christ, 
in the work of mediation, acts according to both natures, by 
each nature doing that which is proper to itself. And with 
reference to this petition, when he says, if it is possible, let 
this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. 
This does not mean that Christ is unsure about what is and what 
isn't possible with his Father. It is rather similar to what 
theologians and commentators have referred to as the ignorant 
son. If you remember in the Olivet 
Discourse in Matthew 24 and then in Mark chapter 13, Christ says 
that no one knows the day and the hour, and he says not even 
the sun. Well, he is speaking there as 
or according to his humanity, not according to his divinity, 
because according to his divinity, he knows everything. But we would 
expect this if the hypostatic union is true. We would expect 
him to eat, we would expect him to drink, we would expect him 
to sleep, we would expect him to sorrow, we would expect him 
to bleed, we would expect him to suffer, and we would expect 
him to die if in fact he is true humanity. And that is what this 
passage underscores for us. It also highlights what Westminster 
Larger Catechism No. 39 underscores. It was requisite 
that the mediator should be man, that he might advance our nature, 
perform obedience to the law, suffer and make intercession 
for us in our nature, have a fellow feeling of our infirmities, that 
we might receive the adoption of sons and have comfort and 
access with boldness unto the throne of grace. So again, that's 
what's in view here. It is similar to his confessing 
that not even the sun knows the day or the hour. We don't look 
at that and say, well, he must not be God. No, we understand 
the two natures in the one person, that blessed doctrine of the 
hypostatic union, which is the mystery of godliness, according 
to the Apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 3, 16 and 17. So it's important 
that we understand this. It's important as well as we 
continue to move through the passion narrative. When Christ 
cries out, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? A lot 
of people mess that up because they don't understand that again, 
Christ is praying thus according to his humanity. Now, with reference 
to the petition, some specific observations. Notice what he 
says. Oh my father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from 
me. The cup refers to the wrath of 
God. You see it referred to that way 
in Psalm 11, you see it in Psalm 75, and you see it scattered 
throughout the prophets. In fact, in a condemnation of 
the nation of Babylon, God threatens to pour out His cup of wrath 
upon that godless, vile, wicked people. We see Jesus refer to 
this cup in His ministry, and especially go back to Matthew 
chapter 20. Matthew chapter 20, we see that cup, and there He 
understands it as the wrath of God. Matthew 20, the sons of Zebedee 
come, they're jockeying for position, and the Lord Jesus in verse 22 
answers and says, you do not know what you ask. Are you able 
to drink the cup that I am about to drink and be baptized with 
the baptism that I am baptized with? He is speaking of his impending 
death. The disciples wanted the crown, 
but they didn't want the cross. And Jesus indicates there's no 
crown without the cross first. He speaks of this baptism in 
Luke 12 50. He uses that language. It is 
metaphorical. He is overwhelmed with travail. 
He is overwhelmed with suffering and pain. And then he speaks 
of this cup, this cup of the wrath of God that he must drink. 
Notice what they say at the end of verse 22. We are able. So he said to them, you will 
indeed drink my cup and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized 
with. But to sit on my right hand and on my left is not mine 
to give. But it is for those for whom 
it is prepared by my father. The sons of Zebedee would meet 
their end in very difficult ways. James would lose his head under 
Herod in Acts chapter 12, and John would be exiled on the island 
of Patmos for the Word of God and for the testimony of our 
Lord Jesus Christ. Turn over to John 18.11, another 
use of this cup language. It's metaphorical for the wrath 
and fury of God Almighty. It is at the arrest of our Lord, 
and in verse 11, Jesus said to Peter, put your sword into the 
sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which my father has given 
me? So when we go back to Matthew 
chapter 26 and we understand what the cup is, it makes sense 
that the Savior, again, according to his humanity, would pray, 
oh my father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. He 
is not questioning what is and what is not possible with the 
Father. He is expressing something concerning His true humanity. 
He is facing the wrath and fury and judgment of God Almighty. 
And I think that we don't sufficiently ponder what it is to die apart 
from our Lord Jesus Christ. The reality is, is that God is 
holy. God is burning in holiness, and 
God has prepared a place not only for his people, but as well 
for those who are not his people. He also prepared it for the devil 
and his angels, and those who reject Jesus Christ, those who 
resist the gospel offer, those will ultimately enter into that 
place of perdition, that place of suffering, that place of torment. Scripture, New Testament, the 
Lord Jesus speaks more concerning hell than he does heaven. That 
doesn't mean that hell is more important, but perhaps Jesus 
understood something of the human psyche. Well, he obviously understood 
something of the human psyche because he was, in fact, the 
Lord Jesus. but he used that kind of language to basically 
exhort people to consider their pathway, to consider that broad 
road that leads to destruction, to consider that end when they 
would hurt here, depart from me for I never knew you. So he 
spoke often on hell, and as Jesus is now facing hell on the cross, 
it is absolutely positively consistent for him to express this kind 
of sorrow and this kind of petition, if it is possible, Father, let 
this cup of wrath pass from me." Again, it's not a question of 
what the father can and can't do or the son's ignorance concerning 
that, but rather the cup explains the Savior's soul's sorrow and 
exceeding distress. And then as well, some have seen 
and some have made the observation that Christ going to his death 
is different than, say, the martyrs who oftentimes rejoiced when 
they went to their death. Christ is not dying as a martyr. 
Christ is not dying as a martyr. Christ is dying as a substitutionary 
sacrifice. Christ is going to bear the wrath 
and fury of God Almighty for all those whom the Father had 
given Him. Martyrs don't do that. Martyrs die for Jesus. Martyrs 
manifest their faithfulness. Martyrs march to their grave 
or their death because they're doing it for the Lord Christ. 
But in this instance, the Lord Christ, unlike any other human 
that ever lived, or ever will live, he is going to drink the 
cup of the wrath and fury of God Almighty, not because he's 
a sinner, not because he's a criminal, not because he's a malefactor, 
but because you and I are. So there is a marked difference 
between Christ and martyrdom. The cup demonstrates substitutionary 
atonement. The cup is the result of Christ 
bearing the sins of his people. 2 Corinthians 5.21, God made 
him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the 
righteousness of God. The cup is the result of the 
execution of divine justice upon the Son of God for the sins of 
His people. And the cup is for Him to drink 
and for Him alone. Martyrs do not participate in 
this. Disciples do not participate in this. We don't help Jesus 
save His people from their sins. This was announced at the very 
outset of Matthew's Gospel. You shall call His name Jesus, 
for it is He who will save His people from their sins. He doesn't 
do it with a helper, He doesn't do it with any participation 
on behalf of others, but He does it Himself. So in His solitariness 
before the Father, He expresses this petition, which manifest 
or demonstrates His true humanity. If it is possible, let this cup 
of the wrath and fury of God Almighty pass from me." Notice 
the resolution on behalf of Christ to do all that the Father has 
called Him to do. Back to verse 39. "'O my Father, 
if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not 
as I will according to His humanity, but as You will.'" The acknowledgment 
of the primacy of the Father's will. When you look at the persons 
of the Godhead, Father, Son, and Spirit, they share, they 
have one will. There's not two, there's not 
three, there is one will, with reference to the Trinity. In 
the work of mediation, Christ has two natures, and hence two 
wills. So as mediator, he demonstrates 
here his resolve to do all that the Father had sent him. In our 
church, we love covenant theology. We love the major covenants that 
the Bible sets forth, not just the historical covenants, but 
the theological covenants, the covenant of redemption, the covenant 
of works, and the covenant of grace. This harkens back to the 
covenant of redemption, that pact between the Father, the 
Son, and the Spirit to save His people from their sin. The Father 
gives a people to the Son. The Son purposes to be the mediator, 
to be the surety, to pay their debts, to execute all the demands 
of God's law on their behalf, and then to die as a substitute 
and as a sacrifice in their stead. And Christ affirms His commitment 
to that. Christ affirms His willingness 
to do the will of the Father. Christ affirms that always. He 
says, with reference to eating in John chapter 4, my meat is 
to do the will of him who sent me. It was written in the Psalter, 
Psalm 40, behold, I delight to do your will. This is the active 
obedience of Jesus Christ, never shrinking back, never not going 
forward, never actually engaging in defection from the Father. 
He prays consistent with his humanity, but he's resolved consistent 
with his humanity to fulfill the obligations placed upon him 
as the covenant mediator. And we should stop here and marvel 
and wonder that this occurred on behalf of people like you 
and I. We are not deserving. We are guilty, vile, and helpless. We are rightly under the condemnation 
of God Most High. We rightly deserved His wrath 
and curse, both in this life and that which is to come. But 
because of Christ, and because of His resolve, and because He 
goes forward, we have forgiveness, and we have received a righteousness 
that avails with the Father. We ought to praise God for the 
resolution of our Christ to do all that the Father had called 
upon Him to do. As I said, Psalm 40, verse 8, 
I delight to do your will, O my God, and your law is within my 
heart. Turn back to Matthew chapter 
3. This is the way we ought to understand this interchange with 
the Baptist. Matthew chapter 3 at verse 13. 
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized 
by him. And John tried to prevent him 
saying, I need to be baptized by you. And are you coming to 
me? But Jesus answered and said to him, permit it to be so now, 
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. That is crucial not only in Matthew's 
gospel, but in the entirety of the mission of the Savior. We 
mustn't ever dissect or separate the work of the mediator. We 
need not only his death for the forgiveness of our sins, we not 
only need the resurrection for the vindication of the Son of 
God with power, but we also need the life We need a righteousness 
that avails with God. If we're only forgiven of our 
sin, then it is as it were that we're back at the Garden of Eden. 
We're back at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We're 
back in a probationary period. We're back to the place where 
we now have to confirm a positive righteousness in order to be 
accepted by God. But see, that's not good news. 
That's not gospel, because we ain't got it in us. There is 
not a one of us who could, with faith plus words, find our way 
back to God. If it isn't grace alone, through 
faith alone, in Christ Jesus alone, then we are damned for 
eternity. We need the life of Christ. We 
need the perfect obedience of Christ. We need the imputation 
of His righteousness received by faith alone. We need the twin 
aspects that we see in the prophet Zechariah. You can turn there, 
Zechariah chapter 3. Zechariah chapter 3, a glorious 
illustration of the doctrine of justification. Zechariah 3.1, 
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest, standing before 
the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to 
oppose him. And the Lord said to Satan, The Lord rebuke you, 
Satan. The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem 
rebuke you. Is this not a bran plucked from 
the fire? realize this is a pretty enigmatic passage of scripture. 
I just want to sort of give you the background. Joshua here is 
not Joshua the son of Nun, military commander and conqueror of Canaan. 
This is Joshua the high priest after the exile. Haggai, Zechariah, 
and Malachi are post-exilic prophets. That means after the Babylonian 
captivity that occurred in 586 BC. So these are the prophets 
that go back to Judah, and they are the ones that encourage the 
people of God as they rebuild the temple, as they rebuild the 
city of Jerusalem. And so Zechariah indicates that 
there is this Joshua the high priest standing before the angel 
of the Lord, and Satan is standing right there to accuse him. It's 
what he's referred to in Revelation chapter 12 as well. He is an 
accuser of the brethren. It's almost like he cannot wait 
to tell the Lord God Most High how wicked Joshua the high priest 
is. And by virtue of the fact that 
Joshua is the high priest, he's not only standing there for himself, 
but he's a public person. He is standing there as a representative 
of the nation of Israel as a whole. So Satan is there ready to accuse 
these people of their wickedness, of their rebellion, of their 
sinfulness. So that's sort of the scene. 
But before Satan can open his mouth, verse 2, the Lord said 
to Satan, the Lord rebuke you, Satan, the Lord who has chosen 
Jerusalem rebuke you. Is this not a brand plucked from 
the fire? So before the devil says anything, 
the Lord already knows. And the Lord shuts him down. 
The Lord understands the condition of Israel. The Lord understands 
the condition of his people. And the Lord is the one who fixes 
it. The Lord is the one who mends it. The Lord is the one who rectifies 
it. The Lord is the one who redeems 
them. Now, verse three, Joshua was 
clothed with filthy garments and was standing before the angel. 
For those of you who have heard the exposition on this passage, 
you'll know filthiness here is not a little speck on his shirt. 
Filthiness in other contexts in the Old Testament refers to 
feces, and it refers to vomit. So Joshua, the high priest representing 
Israel, is full of sin, full of wickedness, full of filth, 
full of evil. So the devil doesn't even have 
to say anything. God sees it, God knows it, and 
now God remedies it. Notice in verse 4, Then he answered 
and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, Take away 
the filthy garments from him. Beautiful. What do we have in 
justification? We receive the forgiveness of 
sins. Get rid of those filthy garments. And to him he said, See, I have 
removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich 
robes. So it's not just the stripping 
away of the filthy garment, but it's the putting on of the righteous 
garment. It's not just the forgiveness 
of sins that we need, but it's also a positive imputation of 
righteousness that will avail with the Father when we stand 
before Him on that day. Sacrifice is good as far as God 
is concerned, but to obey is better. Remember in 1 Samuel 
15, the indictment, of Saul, the king of Israel, who failed, 
who rejected, who resisted the very command of God to kill the 
Amalekites and Agag with that. He says that rebellion is as 
the sin of witchcraft. It is better to obey than to 
sacrifice. Brethren, we need a righteousness. 
We need that garment. We need to be clothed in the 
righteous robes of another, and that's the beauty of the Christian 
gospel. Luther spoke of it as the great 
exchange. Our sins heaped upon the Savior, 
and the Savior punished in our place. His righteousness then 
heaped upon us so that we can stand before God clothed in that 
righteousness of another. It is most glorious, and that's 
why gospel is gospel. That's why it is good news. If 
it was up to us to construct this garment, if it was up to 
us to make ourselves pure, perfect, or holy, we would never do so. 
Even as believers, we have enough remaining corruption in us to 
damn us for an eternity of eternities. very merciful in terms of God 
on behalf of His people, sending the Son of His love, who resolved 
to do what the Father had said. So, back to our text. After the 
supplication of the Savior, we look at, fourthly, under this 
head, the sluggishness of the disciples in verses 40 and 41. 
Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping." The 
utter contrast between Christ and the disciples. As well, the 
utter contrast between the disciples here and now, and what the disciples 
had said before. We just read concerning the sons 
of Zebedee. We just read that they said, 
we are able to drink the cup and to undergo this baptism in 
2022. Peter in 2635, in fact, you can 
look there. It's just a few verses ahead. 
Peter said to him, even if I have to die with you, I will not deny 
you. So these men were filled with 
a fervor and an earnestness and a zeal and a desire to die with 
the Lord if necessary, and here they could not watch and pray 
with Him. It really is indicative that 
the best of men are men at best. And if these men fell prey to 
that, we really ought to take heed, because we're not of the 
caliber of Peter, James, and John. So we ought to watch and 
pray even more so with reference to the various temptations that 
come our way. And so notice that he rebukes 
Peter. Then he came to the disciples 
and found them sleeping and said to Peter, the specific address 
to him, C. H. Spurgeon said, he who had 
made the loudest protestations of devotion deserved to be the 
most blamed for his unfaithfulness. I don't know if that's altogether 
accurate, but I think the sentiment is on the right path. Peter was 
the one. I will die with you. I will do 
whatever it is. And here Christ comes with reference 
to his rebuke, and he says to Peter, what? Could you not watch 
with me one hour? What's the implication? You should 
have been able to watch with me for one hour. He's not asking 
them to pray for 15 days. He's not asking them to fast 
on a mountaintop for 40 days and 40 nights. You couldn't watch 
with me for one hour? I'm in the sole distress of my 
life. My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, 
even unto death, and you couldn't watch with me for that one hour? 
The question assumes that the disciples ought to have been 
able to watch for one hour. Now, after the rebuke, he then 
exhorts them in verse 41, watch and pray, lest you enter into 
temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, 
but the flesh is weak. The exhortation is directed to 
the disciples, ultimately for the disciples, to strengthen 
them, to stabilize them, to steal them, to gird them up, so that 
they will not depart, so that they will not defect. See, even 
at this point, Christ is preparing these men for service. Christ 
is preparing these men for ministry in the Roman Empire. Christ is 
going to die, Christ is going to be raised, and Christ is going 
to ascend on high. He's going to lead captivity 
captive, and He's going to give gifts to men. He's going to tell 
these disciples to go, therefore, and make disciples of all the 
nations, to baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the 
Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and to teach them to observe 
all things that He had commanded. So even at this point, He is 
telling them to watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. It is a reality facing the people 
of God. And again, brethren, if these 
men were subject to failure at this point, then what are we? 
We need to take heed lest we fall. This wasn't a 1st century 
Peter, James, and John problem. This is a 21st century all of 
us problem. Watch and pray. We need to take 
heed to this so that we don't enter into temptation. And then 
notice His acknowledgment. This is again the grace of our 
Lord Jesus. The end of verse 41. The spirit 
indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Our Lord knows us, doesn't 
He? I think the backdrop is Psalm 
103, where it says that Yahweh pities His children. He knows 
their frame. He knows that they are but dust. 
Brethren, at the very best, our Lord, in His mercy and in His 
grace, continually showers us with the benefits of redemption. 
We are people that are given to weakness. The spirit may be 
willing, but the flesh is weak. We saw that last week in the 
reading, in Romans chapter 7. The good that I wish to do, I 
don't do. The evil I don't want to do, I find myself doing. The 
parallel in Galatians 5.17, the spirit lusts against the flesh, 
the flesh against the spirit. These two are, they're contrary 
to one another so that you don't do the things that you want. 
Our Lord Jesus doesn't scowl at them. He doesn't shout them 
down. He chides them. He reproves them. He exhorts 
them to be sure, but he acknowledges their frame and realizes that 
they are but dust. Our Lord Christ is not only resolved 
in serving, honoring, and obeying His Father, but in blessing His 
people profusely and consistently and conspicuously by His grace 
and for His glory. Now look at the next major heading, 
secondly, 42 and 43, the supplication of the Savior. Verse 42, again 
a second time, he went away and prayed, saying, O my father, 
if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it, your 
will be done. The parallel in Luke's gospel, 
Luke 22, 24, and being in agony, he prayed more earnestly. Then 
his sweat became like great drops of blood, falling down to the 
ground. The sorrow and the distress and 
the stress of the situation is weighing upon him. Please think 
of this according to his humanity. Our humanity is oftentimes stressed 
and weighed down and perplexed when we face things a whole lot 
less than drinking the cup of God's wrath. And so when we appreciate 
what the Savior is going through here, it makes perfect sense. 
But with reference to this particular prayer, he doesn't pray, if it 
is possible, let this cup pass. He's resolved. He's going to 
drink the cup. He is going to engage in that 
wrath bearing on behalf of his people. Oh my father, if this 
cup cannot pass away from me, unless I drink it, your will 
be done. So the supplication here, the 
petition here, is basically an expression of his resolve to 
do and obey the will of his father. And then that brings us again 
to the sluggishness of the disciples in verse 43. As I said, with 
reference to the Savior, there's no moralistic principles in this 
chapter or in this section concerning how we deal with our Gethsemanes. 
We will, because of the grace of God, never have a Gethsemane. We will, because of redemption 
by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, never face the prospect 
of drinking the cup of God's wrath. That is a good thing. If we were in a black church, 
I'd say, can I get an amen? The reality is, is that we will 
never, ever have to drink the cup of God's wrath, because Christ 
has done so. The moralistic principle in here 
is the disciples held up to us so that we can examine our own 
hearts to see what manner of men and women we are. Would we 
be the types that would continuously sleep when Jesus tells us to 
watch and pray? The temptation probably arises 
in us to say, oh no, I would have stayed awake. Oh no, I would 
have watched and prayed. Oh no, I would have been doing 
right what he called me to do. Brethren, watch and pray for 
an hour tonight after church, and let's see how that goes. 
Watch and pray tomorrow for an hour, and let's see how that 
goes. Brethren, we are weak. These disciples were weak. And 
as we've often had cause to reflect, it's not Peter, James, and John 
that are the hero in the narrative. It is the Lord Jesus Christ. 
There is one hero from Genesis to Revelation, and that is the 
skull-crushing seed of the woman. So the Lord then does again see 
them sleeping. He came and found them asleep 
again, for their eyes were heavy. This indicates the spirit was 
still willing, but the flesh was still weak. The sluggishness 
of the disciples is unfortunately a persistent problem. The failure 
to take seriously His exhortation to watchfulness in prayer. They've 
already went through this. He's already given them the remedy. 
He's already given them the exhortation. If it's problematic for us to 
sleep, not always. Jesus is very kind and He gives 
His beloved sleep. This should never be seen as 
an affront with reference to sleep. God's not condemning sleep 
in this passage. But in this instance, when the 
Lord Jesus has his disciples present, he calls on them to 
watch and pray. They disregard completely that 
exhortation. It's like they don't even process 
it. It's like they don't even hear it. It's like it doesn't 
even resonate. affect them one way or another, 
and they continue to engage in this activity that is contrary 
to the will of our Lord Jesus at this point. And that brings 
us to the Savior's third prayer in the garden in verses 44 and 
45. So He left them, went away again, 
and prayed the third time. That third time, the fact that 
he prays thus, underscores the gravity of the situation. Paul 
the Apostle, when he had that thorn in the flesh, says that 
he prayed three times for the Lord to take it away. With reference 
to Paul and with reference to Christ, it's not just, Lord take 
it away, Lord take it away, Lord take it away. There's an earnestness, 
there's an outpouring of the soul, there is a casting the 
burden upon the Lord God Almighty, and that is precisely what Christ 
does here. He left them, went away again, and prayed the third 
time, saying the same words. And that brings us to the sluggishness 
of the disciples. 45a. Then he came to his disciples 
and said to them, Are you still sleeping and resting? Now, this 
is a bit of an interpretative call. The New King James poses 
it here as a bit of an exasperated question. Are you still sleeping 
and resting? The King James has it as a bit 
of an exhortation. The King James says, sleep on 
now and take your rest, i.e. there's a lot that's going to 
happen and you need to be prepared for that. I think I would side 
with the exasperated question or perhaps even more of an ironic 
comment on the part of our Lord Jesus Christ versus an encouragement 
for them to sleep more based on the events that are coming. 
And so Christ sees this third response. He sees this third 
time of sleep on their part, and he is exasperated. Again, 
according to his humanity, because divinity isn't exasperated, because 
that would argue some sort of change, some sort of passion, 
some sort of movement from one state to another. But Christ 
says, are you still sleeping and resting? And then he announces, 
he indicates with reference to the hour and the betrayal. He 
says, Behold, the hour is at hand. The hour indicates the 
death for sinners. That word cup, we saw that in 
Matthew's gospel. You can go through the gospel 
narratives and see the hour. Christ speaks concerning that. 
It's the hour of his death, wherein he will suffer the wrath and 
fury of God on behalf of his people. So he says, Behold, the 
hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into 
the hands of sinners. He announced this on several 
occasions to his disciples. He starts in Matthew 16, he repeats 
it in Matthew 17, he says it again in Matthew chapter 20, 
and then again in chapter 26. He tells the disciples that he 
must go to Jerusalem. He must be arrested, he must 
be tried at the hands of wicked men, he must be crucified, and 
he must be raised again. Well, now the hour is at hand. This is the time, this is when 
it's all going to come to fruition. This is when the covenant mediator 
is going to execute all of the demand of the father with reference 
to suffering in behalf of his people. So he rallies them up 
and notice, rise, he says in verse 46, let us be going, see 
my betrayer is at hand. The terror of the cup did not 
dissuade the Lord Jesus from going forward. The sluggishness 
of the disciples did not dissuade the Lord Jesus from keeping them 
with him. He says, arise, let us be going. He doesn't say, you wretched 
ones stay here. I'll try the other eight. Maybe 
they can stay away. No, Peter, James and John with 
the other eight disciples, you come along with me. Unfortunately, 
they will depart from Him. They will, again, underscore 
the reality that this is a solitary effort on the part of the Savior 
to save His people from their sins. But the reality is, the 
graciousness of Christ is seen in His invitation to the disciples. 
In other words, though their flesh was weak, Though their 
spirit was willing, Christ does not cut them off. He says, let 
us be going collectively in the plural form, but see, my betrayer 
is at hand. It isn't them that's being betrayed. 
It isn't them that's going to be delivered up. It isn't them 
that is going to drink the cup of God's wrath and fury and curse 
and judgment. So with reference to this passage, 
in summary, the Lord prays, the disciples sleep. The Lord prays, 
the disciples sleep. The Lord prays, and the disciples 
sleep. At the 11th hour, at the time 
when the Lord Jesus Christ was entering in to that divine transaction 
wherein Yahweh was pleased to bruise Him, according to Isaiah 
53, verse 10, Christ had no assistance, no earthly help. In fact, the 
disciples will be with Him for a bit, and then they will depart 
from Him. Simon Peter will deny him to 
a servant girl. But even in that, Christ doesn't 
cut him off. Even in that, Christ restores 
him. Even in that, Peter rises up 
on the day of Pentecost as the preacher of Jesus Christ and 
him crucified. It really is an excellent situation 
concerning our Savior and his resolve to go to these lengths 
for us men and for our salvation. In terms of some practical observations, 
we ought never underestimate, we ought never undervalue the 
true humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Fathers said, many 
of them, probably one specifically, whatever is not assumed is not 
redeemed. Whatever is not assumed is not 
redeemed. It was absolutely crucial and 
imperative that Christ be made like us. He does not give aid 
to angels, according to Hebrews chapter 2, but he takes on the 
seed of Abraham. He identifies with those whom 
He redeems. And if He does not assume our 
humanity, He does not redeem our humanity. Again, all the 
essential properties and the common infirmities without sin. Christ assumed everything that 
is true of us, yet without sin. It is a most blessed aspect of 
our religion that God, the second person, God, the second person 
of the Trinity, comes into this world, veiled in flesh, the Godhead 
see, hail the incarnate deity. The Lord Jesus Christ did that 
in order to save us from our sins. We see, secondly, the obedience 
of the Son. Turn to Hebrews chapter 5, where 
the apostle comments on this. Hebrews chapter 5. setting forth the supremacy of 
the high priesthood of Jesus Christ, in contrast to the Levites, 
in contrast to the Aaronic priesthood. Notice in 5.5 in the book of 
Hebrews, so also Christ did not glorify himself to become high 
priest, but it was he who said to him, you are my son, today 
I have begotten you. As he also says in another place, 
you are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek. 
who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers 
and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to him, who was 
able to save him from death, and was hurt because of his godly 
fear. Though he was a son, yet he learned 
obedience by the things which he suffered. The Lord Christ, 
in His work on behalf of sinners, engaged in obedience, and that 
obedience through suffering. In verse 9, And having been perfected, 
He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 
called by God as High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek, 
of whom we have much to say and hard to explain, since you have 
become dull of hearing. So Christ is perfected. According to his humanity, he 
learns obedience through suffering. And then notice in verse 9, he 
became the author of eternal salvation. You perhaps have met 
those people who think that you can lose your salvation. Well, 
it's not an eternal salvation then. That little phrase indicates 
there is no losing of salvation for those whom the Father gave 
to the Son and those for whom the Son died and rose again. There is no way that Christ loses 
his elect. All that the Father gives me 
will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will certainly 
not cast out. Not at the beginning, not at 
the end, and not in the wretched middle when we aren't doing the 
things that we're supposed to do. MacArthur has well said, 
if we can lose our salvation, we would. The reality is that 
Christ has perfected, Christ has brought to fruition this 
eternal salvation for His people. Third, we ought to appreciate 
in this passage or marvel at the sufferings of Christ. Again, 
not in some sick, Romanistic, passion play sort of way, but 
we ought to appreciate what the Savior went through on our behalf. Brethren, this is excruciating. He knew what was facing him. 
Do you realize that at times the worry heading up to something 
is actually worse than the something itself? You may be puzzled and 
may be looking at me. I'm a worryer, you know, chief 
of worries. I've got this Roman Catholic 
background. I've got the guilt. I, you know, 
had a mother that instilled a lot of guilt in me, a lot of worrisome 
and a lot of anxiety. And I have found that when I 
worry about something and then something actually happens, I 
realize, boy, that was a lot of spent worry on something that 
wasn't that big of a deal. And hopefully I'm getting a little 
better as I get older, but it's still there. Brethren, he understood 
what was facing him on the other side of this garden. He understood 
what the wrath and fury of God is. I can see it in Scripture. 
We can exegete the passages. We can, at a textual level, understand. that hell is a place of separation 
from God. All of the goodness of God, God 
is not separate, it's God that is ultimately the one who is 
making hell hell. It is a deprivation of any good 
from God, however, there is a punishment of loss, no God, no goodness 
of God, and there is a punishment of sin. So I understand that 
in an intellectual way, but not experientially. I certainly don't 
know what hell looks like. I certainly don't want to know 
what hell looks like, and by God's grace, we don't have to 
know what hell looks like, because Jesus paid it all. Jesus saved 
us from our sins. But Christ knew, Christ understood, 
Christ recognized, and that's why, according to verse 38, then 
he said to them, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death, stay 
here and watch with me. Or why in Luke 22, 44, and being 
in agony, he prayed more earnestly. Then his sweat became like great 
drops of blood falling down to the ground. He knew that because 
he understood what was on the other side of the garden of Gethsemane. This Christ went through these 
things for us men and for our salvation. We ought to rejoice 
in it. Again, not in some, you know, 
Roman Catholic, you know, fascination with the blood and the gore and 
all of the particulars involved, but we should have some understanding 
of what is involved or was involved in the crucifixion of our Savior 
on our behalf. And there was a great depth of 
suffering, not just on the cross, but prior to the cross in terms 
of His humanity facing the wrath and fury of God Almighty. And 
finally, this brings us to consider the gospel as a whole. This is 
good news. One stood in our place to do 
what we could never do. One lived in light of God's law, 
always obeying faithfully, executing every jot and tittle of it. The 
two chief commandments, love to God with all your heart, soul, 
mind, and strength, and love to neighbor as yourself. Brethren, 
we don't do that even as believers. If you are saying in your heart 
and mind, well, I do, I'm going to challenge you and say, you 
probably don't. Certainly, as unbelievers, we 
hate God and we hate others. But with reference to our salvation, 
remaining corruption, do we wake up in the morning and the first 
thing we express our love to God and we look for ways to express 
our love to others? No, that's just not us. We need 
that, though, because the demand of God is not do your best. The demand of God is not grating 
on a curve. The demand of God, with reference 
to the law, is perpetual, exact, entire obedience to every jot 
and tittle, and Christ rendered that. Brethren, never underestimate 
the glory of the active obedience of Jesus Christ. You've heard 
of that theologian, J. Gresham Machen. He was on his 
dying bed, and he sent a telegraph, and he says to the person on 
the receiving end, I am so thankful for the active obedience of Christ. 
No hope without it. He understood the implications. We need the forgiveness of sin 
to be sure, but if that forgiveness is not accompanied by that imputation 
of righteousness, then we're back at the garden. We're back 
at a position of probation, and that's why Romanism. That's why 
New Perspective on Paul. That's why federal vision comes 
up short, because it's faith in Christ plus our faithfulness 
to Christ that is ultimately received by God as the ground 
of our justification. If that's the case, we're all 
damned. Our confession is right. We receive 
the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. That is our sole 
righteousness alone. It's not what we bring to the 
table, it's not what we supplement His work with, but it's all of 
Christ with reference to our salvation. And in that, the people 
of God rejoice. And if you're not the people 
of God, if you are not a believer in Jesus Christ, look at the 
lengths to which He went to save sinners from their sins. I mentioned 
this this morning. We have taken the freeness of 
the gospel. We have taken the graciousness 
of God. We have taken the benevolence 
of God, and we have turned it on its head. We have said that 
God is narrow. God is small-minded with reference 
to salvation. There's only going to be a handful 
of people that make it into heaven. That's not what the Bible says. 
In Revelation 5 and 7, the seer sees a great multitude that no 
man can number from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. I 
would say to you, if you're not in Christ tonight, consider what 
Christ went through to save sinners from their sins. This is not 
a begrudging Savior. This is not a miserly Savior. The Savior is not Ebenezer Scrooge. The Savior is not small-minded 
or limited in terms of who it is He's come to save. We see 
Him in His earthly ministry, saving, saving, saving, saving, 
calling sinners unto Himself. What's changed, brethren? Why 
in the 21st century are we afraid to preach Christ and Him crucified? Why are we afraid to tell sinners 
to believe on Him and be saved? Why are we afraid to imitate 
Paul and Silas in that Philippian jail, or that jail in Philippi, 
when that Philippian jailer says, sirs, what must I do to be saved? 
Notice what the apostle doesn't say. Well, you go think about 
it. You go prepare yourself. You 
go add a few words to your life. You go engage in moral reform. 
You make yourself more commendable to God. No. Believe on the Lord 
Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. That is the response to 
the gospel of Christ our Lord. If you are not a believer, believe. If you are not a looker, look. 
If you are not one who has come, by God's grace, come. Believe 
on Him, and the Bible says you will be saved. Let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for 
what Christ went through on our behalf. We thank you for the 
sufferings in Gethsemane, for the sufferings on the cross, 
and we thank you for that resurrection from the dead. The tomb couldn't 
contain him. We see his glory, we see his 
majesty, we see his excellence, we see his efficacy in saving 
sinners to the uttermost. And I pray that you would encourage 
each of our hearts as we consider Him, as we eat this bread, as 
we drink this cup, let us meditate upon what Jesus went through 
on our behalf as a sign of His love, an expression of His love 
to us. And for those who do not know 
Him, I pray that by Your grace they would look, they would believe, 
they would understand that everything that the Bible says is true and 
the principal acts of saving faith have respect to Christ 
in his life, in his death, and in his resurrection. God, be 
merciful and save sinners for your glory and for your honor 
and for your praise. And we ask this in the name of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.