Drinking The Cup

Well, good morning, church.

We're picking back up in our sermon series with the Gospel of Luke today.

So would you turn with me to Luke chapter 22, verses 39 through 53.

Luke 22:39–53

If you're looking for a good Bible app on your phone, ESV has a good one.

There are lots of others, I'm sure, but I'll be reading from the ESV this morning.

As we come to our passage in Luke 22, verses 39 through 53, let me pray for us.

Luke 22:39–53

Our Father, hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Father, these are the words that your Son taught us to pray,

and what good and bolstering and strengthening words they are.

So, Lord, we pray for this moment as we come to your word,

as we gather around your scriptures together,

that your kingdom would come,

and our eyes would be opened,

and our hearts would come alive again to behold you in your word.

Give us fresh insight and fresh vision into who you are, Lord Jesus,

that our hearts may be encouraged and strengthened in faith and hope and love in these days.

We ask this, Father, in the name of Jesus, our great high priest,

and in the power of your Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Well, let me read Luke 22, 39 through 53 for us.

And he, that is Jesus, came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives.

And the disciples followed him.

And when he came to the place, he said to them,

Pray that you may not enter into temptation.

And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw and knelt down and prayed, saying,

Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me.

Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done.

And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.

And being in agony, he prayed more earnestly,

and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground.

And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow.

And he said to them,

Why are you sleeping?

Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.

While he was still speaking, there came a crowd.

And the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them.

He drew near to Jesus to kiss him.

But Jesus said to him,

Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?

And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said,

Lord, shall we strike with the sword?

And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

But Jesus said, no more of this.

And he touched his ear and healed him.

Then Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come out against him,

have you come out as against a robber with swords and clubs?

When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me.

But this is your hour and the power of darkness.

Well, the disciples were about to face the biggest test of their lives.

Their friend, their teacher, the one they hoped would be king,

Jesus was about to be arrested and put to death.

And this moment on the Mount of Olives in a place that Matthew and Mark call Gethsemane

and that John calls a garden, this would be perhaps the greatest test of the disciples' lives.

Would they stand by their friend, their teacher, or would they fall away?

And at a deeper level, when the story they thought they were living in was dramatically rewritten according to God's plan,

what would they do?

You see, the disciples had what we might call a life story in mind.

It went something like this.

The Messiah was here and he would triumph and we would share in his glory.

But that was not exactly the story God had in mind.

God's story, which Jesus had just been telling them moments before at their Passover meal in the upper room at the beginning of Luke 22,

God's story involved something much deeper and more costly.

You see, the way to glory would not be through triumph, but through suffering.

So how would they fare in the face of this test when the deep story of their lives was being rewritten?

I think many of us these days can feel like those disciples facing a great test, a great trial.

As the effects of the pandemic continue to grow in the weeks ahead, that trial is likely going to increase.

None of us thought that the story God had for us would include the worldwide spread of a virus,

the loss of work and economic security, and perhaps, before it's all said and done,

maybe each of us losing someone we know, maybe even someone we love.

Luke takes us with the disciples to the Mount of Olives in this moment of trial.

And what do we see there that might help us in our moment of trial?

Well, there we see Jesus.

Jesus facing a trial greater than any of us can imagine.

Consider first Jesus and his agony in prayer.

Jesus' agony in prayer.

Luke tells us in verse 44,

being in agony, Jesus prayed more earnestly,

and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground.

Now, only Luke gives us this last detail about Jesus' sweat falling like blood,

and perhaps what Luke is describing here is an actual instance of a very rare medical condition

where under extreme distress the blood vessels of the skin break open.

Or perhaps Luke is speaking figuratively that the sweat is like great drops of blood

because of its intensity.

But either way, as the first part of the verse says,

the point Luke wants us to see is that Jesus is in true agony.

In his fully human nature, Christ undergoes in this moment great striving,

great suffering, great agony.

But why?

You know, Luke, more than any other gospel writer,

has shown us that Jesus was constantly at prayer.

At key moments of Jesus' life especially,

Jesus is seen in the gospel of Luke praying.

Like before his baptism, or before choosing the twelve,

or prior to asking the disciples for a confession of faith.

Even prior to the transfiguration.

But none of those prior moments of prayer were quite like this one

on the Mount of Olives in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Here, Luke tells us there's agony.

Why?

Well, verse 42 shows us,

In this moment of prayer,

Jesus was beholding, he was seeing,

he was viewing, like never before,

the cup he was about to drink.

Look at that verse again.

Father, if you are willing,

remove this cup from me.

This metaphorical cup brought so much terror

to the human heart of Jesus

that in his human will,

he wrestled with the Father,

asking if there might be some other way

to do what he had come to do.

Now, at this moment,

we step into

one of the deep mysteries

of the incarnation.

Jesus Christ, we see as the Gospels unfold,

is both God and man.

He's one person with two natures,

a divine nature and a human nature.

And this means that Jesus has both

a divine will and a human will.

One writer put it this way.

He said,

With respect to Jesus' divine nature,

being fully God,

he had no other will than that of the Father.

Yet with respect to his human nature,

being fully human,

Jesus himself

made a clear and careful distinction

between his will

and the Father's will.

If he did the Father's will,

the writer goes on to say,

this was because he chose to do it,

not necessarily because it always came easily

or automatically.

Jesus, with his fully human will,

is here wrestling

with the choice before him

to take the cup.

What then is this cup

that filled Jesus and his human will

with such agony?

Well, it's clear from the context of Luke

that the cup that Jesus speaks of

is the cross.

On the way to Jerusalem,

he told his disciples,

more than once,

that he would be betrayed

and handed over to be crucified.

And in the upper room,

he had just taken,

maybe even a half an hour

before this scene,

he had just taken the bread and the cup,

symbols of that first Passover in Exodus.

And Jesus said to his disciples,

this bread that we use

to celebrate the Passover,

it's really about my body

being broken for you.

And this cup that we use

to celebrate the Passover

is really about my bloodshed for you,

Jesus had just told them.

But why did the cross

fill Jesus with such dread,

such agony?

Think with me of other great figures

who've faced an untimely death.

Socrates famously faced death

with great composure.

Thousands of martyrs,

Christian and non-Christian alike,

have faced the prospect

of even gruesome deaths

with cool minds

and calm hearts.

But here we see Jesus

contemplating his death

and he is in horror.

What explains that difference?

Well, it's because the death

that Jesus was about to undergo

was like no other death

before or after.

You see, when Jesus speaks

of the cup,

we have to hear that metaphor

within the thought world

of first century Judaism.

We have to hear it, that is,

as the Old Testament uses it.

And again and again,

this is what we hear.

Take Isaiah,

the prophet Isaiah,

Isaiah 51:17

chapter 51, verse 17.

Isaiah says,

Wake yourself, wake yourself,

stand up, O Jerusalem,

you who have drunk

from the hand of the Lord

the cup of his wrath,

who have drunk to the dregs

the bowl,

the cup of staggering.

Or listen to Jeremiah 25, 15.

Thus says the Lord,

the God of Israel,

take from my hand

the cup of the wine of wrath

and make all the nations

to whom I send you drink it.

Again, Jeremiah 49, 12.

For thus says the Lord,

if those who did not deserve

to drink the cup must drink it,

will you go unpunished?

You shall not go unpunished,

but you must drink.

One more example from Habakkuk 2, 6.

You will have your fill of shame

instead of glory.

Drink yourself

and show your sinfulness.

The cup in the Lord's right hand

will come around to you

and utter shame

will come upon your glory.

So what is it the prophets are saying?

How are they using this metaphor

of the cup?

Well, the cup is clearly a metaphor

for God's judgment

and wrath against human sin.

What brings agony and terror

to the human heart of Jesus

is not merely the immense physical pain

that lies ahead,

but the thought of undergoing

the full and fierce wrath of God.

On the cross,

Jesus would bear the full weight

of God's right and good anger

at all the evil, injustice,

and sin of the world.

It's like a great tarp.

Imagine a great tarp

holding back the rain

for generations and generations,

and it's bowing under the weight,

and at the cross,

that tarp would tear,

and the flood would come pouring down.

And in the garden,

Jesus is given a full view

of what was to come.

He sees the cup

that he must drink,

and in agony he prays,

Father, if you are willing,

remove this cup from me.

But note the next line

of Jesus' prayer.

Nevertheless,

not my will,

but yours be done.

Do you see what's happening

in this moment

in the Garden of Gethsemane?

The human will of Jesus

reckoning fully

with what it will cost him

to obey his Father's will

and go to the cross

for our salvation.

Jesus,

in full knowledge

of what's ahead,

even to the point

of sweating blood,

chooses the Father's will.

And then his agony

in prayer

in verses 39 through 46

becomes his willingness

to face betrayal

in verses 47 through 53.

This is the second paragraph

of our text.

We see Jesus in agony

in prayer,

and then we see him

willingly,

in willingness,

going out to face

his betrayal

in the next paragraph.

This is the second thing

Luke wants us to see

in this episode.

Having seen the cup

in prayer,

Jesus now takes the cup.

He meets his betrayer,

Judas,

and in compassion

he says to Judas,

would you betray me

with a kiss, Judas?

And when his disciples

rouse from their sleep

and start slashing

with their swords,

he says,

no more of this

and heals

the servant

of the high priest.

And when the crowd

closes in to arrest him,

he confronts them

with the reality

of their dark deed.

This is your hour,

he says,

but it's the power

of darkness.

And so the passion

of Jesus begins.

It begins in the pain

of betrayal

and in the shame

of arrest.

Now friends,

what are we to make

of this?

What are we to make

of Christ's agony

in prayer

and his willingness

to face betrayal

and the way

these two things

are intimately locked

in the passion story?

What are we to make

of the fact

that Jesus sees the cup

in all of its horror

and then willingly

steps forth

to take it?

Well,

what we are meant

to see here

at the very least

is the wonderful

strength

of the love

of Christ

for sinners.

Paul writes

in Romans 5,

now most people,

Paul says,

would not be willing

to die

even for an upright person,

though someone

might perhaps

be willing to die

for a person

who's especially

good,

but God showed

his great love

for us in this,

that while we were

still sinners,

Christ died for us.

Do you see

the love of Christ

for you

in the Garden

of Gethsemane?

As Christ kneels

in agony,

sweat falling

to the ground,

do you see Christ

choosing that cup

for you?

The Father

sent his Son,

do you see the Son

choosing the Father's

will for you?

Do you see the Son

exercising in time

this eternal plan

of redemption

when God set his heart

on you

in love,

choosing you,

and then agreeing

to pay the full cost

for your sin,

to bear the exclusion

and the death

and the wrath

that you're in my sins

rightfully deserved?

Do you see that Jesus

faced the biggest trial

of his life

in this moment,

there,

bowing before the Father,

his betrayer

already at hand

making his way

right at this moment.

Don't you see Jesus,

Jesus,

the rightful King

of Heaven,

could have called down

armies of angels

to defend him,

to judge his enemies,

and he could have

walked away

from the cup

and all its horror

in complete freedom

and justice.

But instead,

our King

chooses

the will of his Father.

He chooses

instead to receive

heavenly,

angelic help

not to destroy

his enemies

but to aid his prayer

as he chooses

willingly to die

for them.

You note how Luke

says the angels

are present in this scene.

They're there

supporting Jesus

in his prayer

as he takes the cup.

The greatest trial

of Jesus' life

and for you

and for me,

he takes the cup.

He takes the cup

out of your hands.

He takes the cup

of judgment

that your sins deserve

and in exchange

he hands us

the cup

of salvation

purchased in full

at the cross.

And if you've seen,

if you and I

have seen

and received

the love

of Christ

for us

as sinners,

then here's

what's true.

If we've seen

and received

what Christ

has done

for us,

here's what's true.

that no cup

you are asked

to drink

in this life

can destroy you.

Because Jesus

drank the cup

of God's wrath

for me,

any cup

that my heavenly

father places

before me

must ultimately

be for my

good.

You know,

the cup of our life,

think about your life

as a cup

that you have to drink.

What is it?

It's mixed

with many joys

and it is mixed

with many sorrows.

But because of

what Jesus has done,

that cup

in Christ

is the cup

of our salvation.

Because there

is now

no condemnation

for those

who are in

Christ Jesus.

The cup

of condemnation

has been drunk

to the dregs

down to the very bottom

and all that's left

for you and me

is the cup

of God's salvation.

You know,

our cup

might be mixed

with a lot of sorrow.

Jesus

faced

betrayal.

And so

at times

may we.

Jesus

had friends

who misunderstood

him

and in his

moment of most need

they put him

in greater danger.

Two guys

with swords

was not going

to stop

this whole band

coming into the garden.

The only thing

it was going to do

was make Jesus

look even more guilty.

Here were his friends

misunderstanding him,

putting him

in even greater danger.

Friends,

there may be times

when we have friends

who deeply

misunderstand us.

Jesus

faced betrayal,

so may we.

Jesus

had friends

misunderstand him,

so may we.

Jesus

faced

an untimely

death

in the prime

of his life.

And the reality

is,

friends,

so may

we.

Who knows

what trials

the coming weeks

or the coming months

may bring.

But knowing

what Jesus

has done for us,

knowing the love

of God

for us,

we too

can pray.

Father,

if possible,

let this cup

pass.

Nevertheless,

thy will

be done.

Because the

Father's cup

for us,

because of what

Christ has done

is the cup

of his salvation.

And is this not

what the disciples,

what Jesus tells

to his disciples here?

What is his word

to them as they

enter into the

Mount of Olives,

into the garden?

Pray.

So let us

end this morning

where our passage

begins.

Jesus tells us,

pray that you

may not

enter into

temptation.

Temptation,

that word can mean

test or trial

as well.

And what does it

mean to enter

into temptation?

Well,

it means to give

in.

It means to fall

prey to it.

So how do we

not fall prey

to temptation?

How do we not

give in

when trial comes?

How do we not

give in to despair?

How do we not

give in to anger

and bitterness?

How do we not

give in to unbelief?

Jesus says,

pray.

You know,

one of the things

I've observed

in the last week

is that as many

of us have been

forced to work

from home

and distance

ourselves from

one another,

is that all

that frantic energy

that we usually

spend in the world

out there

is now just

being channeled

into our lives

at home.

Facebook posts

are going crazy

with like 400 ways

to homeschool

your kids.

There are now

700 new home

projects you can

do and get done

with all that

time you have

on your hands

now that you're

working from home.

You know,

we're just taking

all that energy

and just redirecting

it and plowing it

into our home lives.

You know,

but perhaps

one of the things

that we're meant

to learn

in this season

isn't how

to redirect

all of our

frantic energy

into other things.

Maybe we're

meant to learn

simply

how to wait.

To wait

on God

as the psalmists

tell us

over and over

again

and to pray.

Of course,

we shouldn't be

against finding

creative ways

to connect

and care

for one another.

You know,

we should be

very happy

to find new

and meaningful

things to do

with our time

now that our

lives are changing.

But,

this is a season

when we should

also be learning

to slow down,

to wait,

and to pray.

To pray

as Jesus invites

us here,

to pray,

Father.

Jesus invites

us to pray,

Father.

You know,

this is a moment

when all of us

should be looking

to God again.

To acknowledge

our complete

dependence

on God again

and to rediscover

that because of

Jesus'

finished work,

we too

can call God

Abba,

Father.

So,

could we

slow down

and pray

in this season

and remember

who God

truly is

for us

in Jesus?

Jesus.

Now,

I understand

some of us

have had

very absent

fathers.

Some of us

have had

maybe even

pretty terrible

fathers.

But,

that's not

who God

is.

To know God

as Father

is to know

God as

intimate

and trustworthy,

as strong

and gentle,

as holy

and good.

when we pray,

Father,

we celebrate

the fact

that because

Jesus has

taken away

our sin,

we are now

beloved daughters

and sons of God

no matter what

circumstances may

bring.

And then

Jesus invites

us to pray,

Father,

if you're

willing,

remove this

cup from me.

Now,

we saw

that for Jesus

the cup

was a very

specific

thing,

a very

specific

and unique

part of

his mission.

He was the

only one

who could

take up

the cup

of God's

wrath

and drain

it for us

because only

he was

fully God

and fully

human

to do

that work

for us.

But,

by analogy,

we now

take up

that prayer

for whatever

cup

lays before

us.

And we

can pray,

Father,

if you're

willing,

remove

this cup

of sorrow

from me.

You see,

it's not

wrong to

pray for

different

circumstances.

We can

cast all

our cares

on God

because he

cares for

us.

We should

be honest

with God

in our

desires,

our fears,

our concerns.

And so,

we pray

like we did

earlier in the

service.

We pray

for God

to end

the spread

of the

virus.

we pray

for God

to protect

the most

vulnerable,

especially

from not

just the

disease,

but from

the effects

of our

economy

shutting

down.

We pray

for God

to keep

our family

members safe.

And we pray

for God

to keep

our medical

workers safe

and the

people working

in the

grocery stores

so we can

continue to

get food.

We continue

to pray.

And you

see,

God is

honored when

we pray

like this.

When we

make these

requests to

God,

Father,

if you're

willing,

remove this

cup from

us.

When we

make those

kinds of

requests to

God,

on the one

hand,

we glorify

God for

his power.

We're

acknowledging

that God

is almighty

and he can

actually do

something about

it.

And at the

same time,

when we pray

those prayers,

we glorify

God for

his goodness.

We

acknowledge

that God

is loving

and like a

good human

parent,

God gives

good gifts

to his

children.

So in

taking all

of our

needs and

our concerns

to God

and wrestling

with God

in prayer,

we're actually

exalting God's

power,

we're exalting

his goodness.

So we

pray,

Father,

if you're

willing,

remove this

cup from

us.

But lastly,

Jesus invites

us to pray,

nevertheless,

not my

will,

but yours

be done.

Now,

I imagine

that if I

gave us all

a little

theology quiz,

we would

all get

straight A's,

you know,

if we sort

of pumped

out onto

the Facebook

feed two

questions,

true or

false?

God is

wiser than

we are.

True or

false?

God is

more loving

and good

than we

are.

Suddenly,

they would

all start

ringing back,

ping, ping, ping,

ping, ping, ping,

ping, and we'd

all get 100%,

true and

true.

God is

wiser than

we are.

God is

more loving

and good

than we

are.

Great,

we've all

passed the

test,

but when

trials come,

we often

realize that

head knowledge

of God

is not

heart knowledge

of God.

When trials

come,

the wisdom

of God

and the love

of God

start to

come under

question,

don't they?

God

now,

of course,

we may

never know

why God

allows the

circumstances

in our lives,

the trials,

the tragedies,

but here's

what we do

know.

Look again

with me

at the

garden.

There you

see God

the Father

giving up

his only

son for

you,

and there

we see

God the

Son

willingly

drinking

the cup

for us.

You see,

whatever

God may

decree,

it cannot

be because

he doesn't

love us.

At the

cross,

in a

wisdom

that shames

the wise

of this

world,

God

proved

his love

without

reserve

so that

we can

trust

his love

without

hesitation

even when

times

are hard.

And so

we too

can pray,

nevertheless,

not my

will,

but yours

be done.

And notice

what courage

and what

compassion

that prayer

gives to

Jesus.

Praying the

prayer,

Father,

your will

be done.

Jesus then

moves from

agony to

courage and

compassion.

He meets

his betrayer

and offers him

one last chance

to change his

mind.

He heals

the servant

of his

enemy and

tells the

disciples to

put their

swords away.

He addresses

those who

would arrest

him with

the challenging

light of

truth.

How will

we face

our trials

with such

courage and

compassion?

When we

in prayer,

when we've

wrestled,

and when we've

said with

Christ,

not my

will,

but yours

be done,

then we

can step

forth with

the same

courage and

the same

compassion of

Jesus.

And so

then,

friends,

like the

disciples,

we may be

facing the

biggest trial

of our

lives,

but like

the disciples,

we too

have a

Savior in

the Lord

Jesus,

who intercedes

for us,

who prays for

us,

who's standing

even now,

risen,

glorified at

the right

hand of the

Father,

so that we

might come

to the

Father in

his name,

and so that

we might pray

with confidence

to God as

our Father.

Father,

if you're

willing,

remove this

cup,

nevertheless,

not my

will,

but yours

be done.

And having

that kind

of confidence

in Jesus,

we too

can face

the trials

of our

time with

courage and

with compassion.

Let's pray

together.

Lord Jesus,

we confess

that oftentimes

we can

feel the

same

sort of

agony in

such a

smaller degree,

Lord,

we acknowledge,

but we

too can

feel like

we're

wrestling and

striving in

prayer.

But we

thank you,

Jesus,

that you've

sent the

Holy Spirit

to be our

helper.

we pray

that you

would

strengthen

all of

us

to be

able to

pray and

slow down

in these

moments,

to remember

that you're

our Father,

to remember

that you're

good and

loving and

that your

plans are

good and

wise.

Lord,

help us

as the

church to

move

forth in

the confidence

that this

prayer provides.

Lord Jesus,

that your

finished work

provides so

that we

might be

light and

salt in

these needful

times.

We pray all

this in the

name of

Jesus.

Amen.

Well,

friends,

in response

to sharing

and looking at

God's word

together,

let's continue

to sing

together.