He chose to drink the cup

I'll be reading from Matthew chapter 26, verses 30 to 56.

Matthew 26:30–56

!

Jesus said to them,

You will all fall away because of me this night.

For it is written,

I will strike the shepherd and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.

But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.

Peter answered him,

Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.

Jesus said to him,

Truly I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows,

you will deny me three times.

Peter said to him,

Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you.

And all the disciples said the same.

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane.

And he said to his disciples,

Sit here while I go over there and pray.

And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee,

he began to be sorrowful and troubled.

And then he said to them,

My soul is very sorrowful even to death.

Remain here and watch with me.

And going a little farther, he fell on his face and prayed, saying,

My father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.

Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.

And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping.

And he said to Peter,

So could you not watch with me one hour?

Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.

The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak.

Again for the second time he went away and prayed,

My father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it,

your will be done.

And again he came and found them sleeping,

for their eyes were very heavy.

So leaving them again,

he went away and prayed for the third time,

saying the same words again.

And then he came to the disciples and said to them,

Sleep and take your rest later on.

See, the hour is at hand,

and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

Rise, let us be going.

See, my betrayer is at hand.

And while he was still speaking,

Judas came, one of the twelve,

and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs

from the chief priests and the elders of the people.

Now the betrayer had given them a sign,

saying,

The one I will kiss is the man.

Seize him.

And he came up to Jesus at once and said,

Greetings, Rabbi.

And he kissed him.

Jesus said to him,

Friend, do what you came to do.

Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus

and seized him.

And behold,

one of those who were with Jesus

stretched out his hand

and drew his sword

and struck the servant of the high priest

and cut off his ear.

And then Jesus said to him,

Put your sword back into its place,

for all who take the sword

will perish by the sword.

Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father

and he will at once

send me more than twelve legions of angels?

But how then should the scriptures be fulfilled

that it must be so?

At that hour,

Jesus said to the crowds,

Have you come out

as against a robber

with swords and clubs to capture me?

Day after day,

I sat in the temple teaching

and you did not seize me.

But all this has taken place

that the scriptures of the prophets

might be fulfilled.

And then all the disciples left him

and fled.

Well, good morning, everyone.

Well, it's good to see no one's in the first two rows.

I can speak and spit as loud as I want,

but it's probably a good thing.

Our families had a cold earlier in the week.

Will you pray with me as we come to God's word?

Let's pray.

Father, we always need your help

to even want to listen to your word

and to understand,

to believe, to obey.

Father, I pray that you give us a bigger view

of your son

through your word to us this morning

and a bigger view of your grace

so that our lives might

trust you and obey you more.

And I pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, unanswered prayer.

Unanswered prayer can trouble many of us

in our faith, can't it?

Or seemingly unanswered.

Even when we pray for good things,

godly things,

we feel desperate,

but we feel like there's no hope,

that there's no help.

When what's happening in your life

and what God has asked you to do

just feels impossible.

When things get worse

rather than better.

Whether it's

he's asking you to let go

of something precious

in your life

so that you might

love him first

or

it's just some

extremely hard,

painful times

or an extremely difficult

act of obedience.

When we feel like we get

unanswered prayer,

it can really rock us.

Is God with me or not?

And I think over time

we can

go

two bad directions.

One is we just stop

wrestling with God at all.

We stop praying

because we don't think

he's answering.

Another direction is

we pray

but we're afraid.

We know God is sovereign

but we're praying in a way

where we're like

I'm afraid of your will.

I'm not sure

I trust your good.

Now,

please hear me right.

I believe James 5

that says

the prayer of a righteous man

or woman

is powerful

and effective.

But there is no one

more righteous

than Christ

and in our passage today

the Father answered

no.

No.

The Father said no.

It is the greatest

no

anyone

has ever received

to a prayer.

I've received

no's

and I'm glad

he said no

to a lot of things

actually

but

this is

a big no.

But in it

we see

more clearly

what's in the heart

of Christ.

We see the depths

of Christ's heart

here in Gethsemane.

So we're

just outside Jerusalem

we're on the

Mount of Olives

in the garden

of Gethsemane.

Jesus has taken

his closest friends

Peter,

James and John

to pray.

They've just shared

the Passover.

He knows

he's the true lamb.

He knows that.

what we looked

at last

he knows

he's the

substitute

that

his people

will shelter

under his blood

shelter from

God's wrath.

He knows

his death

is going to

set his people

free from the

power of sin

and Satan.

He knows

his blood

is going to

create

the eternal

covenant

community

of fellowship

with God.

He knows

that.

His death

has been on

his mind

the entire

gospels.

It's always

at the forefront

of his mind.

He knows

it's the

primary

objective

of his

coming

into the

world.

He knows

it's been

leading to

this moment.

His entire

life

something really

amazing about

the person

of Christ

is he's

so in

control.

His entire

ministry

he's in

control

of his

person

of the

situation

but look

at him

here in

Gethsemane.

he is

not a

fanatic.

He's

not a

suicide

bomber

who's

longing

for

martyrdom.

He's

not.

He's

not a

stoic

just

calmly

accepting

his fate.

He's

a mess.

He's

a mess.

You

can't

get

stronger

language

in

verse

38.

my

soul

not

just

sorrowful

but

exceedingly

very

sorrowful

even

to

death.

I

feel

like

I'm

going

to

die

right

here.

And

he

falls

on

his

face.

He's

in

the

dust.

And

Luke's

gospel

tells us

the fear

is so

strong.

Blood

is

forced

through

his

pores

And

it's

clotting.

In

the

cold

night

air

he's

sweating

drops

of

blood.

He

is

a

mess.

Many

of

his

followers

have

faced

death

more

courageously.

When

M and

I

visited

Oxford

we

went

to see

the

martyr's

memorial

where

there's

an

X

on

Broad

Street

in

Oxford.

People

just

happily

going

about

their

day

and

in

the

middle

of

this

public

place

is

this

X

where

they

burnt

at

the

stake.

In

1555

Nicholas

Ridley

and

Hugh

Latimer

because

they

supported

the

English

Reformation

the

truths

we

hold

so

dear.

They

were

burnt

at

the

stake.

And

apparently

Hugh

Latimer

he's

famous

for

people

hearing

him

say

when

the

flames

were

coming

up

be

of

good

cheer

Master

Ridley

and

play

the

man

for

we

shall

this

day

by

God's

grace

light

such

a

candle

in

England

as

I

trust

shall

never

be

put

out.

So

what's

going on

here

with

Jesus

if

his

followers

can

face

death

like

that

can't

he

play

the

man

what

can

make

the

divine

son

of

God

have

such

darkness

of

soul

Mel Gibson's

movie

The Passion

I'm

not

raising

it

necessarily

to

recommend

it

it

emphasizes

the

brutality

and

the

physical

pain

of

his

beatings

in

the

cross

like

that

there's

no

mistaking

how he

directed

the

emphasis

there

it's

it's

gore

in

the

gospels

you see

Peter

bitterly

weeping

after he

denies

Christ

he's in

mental

anguish

you see

Judas

full of

remorse

he's in

mental

anguish

but

the

gospels

don't

emphasize

Jesus'

physical

pain

or his

mental

pain

at the

cross

it's

just

very

matter

of

fact

and

they

crucified

him

it's

not

the

physical

pain

or

mental

pain

I'm

not

doubting

there

was

great

physical

and

mental

pain

but

it's

Jesus'

prayer

that

tells

us

what's

going

on

the

cup

verse

39

my

father

if it

be

possible

let

this

cup

pass

from

me

nevertheless

not as

I will

but as

you

will

the

prophets

describe

this

cup

Isaiah

51

17

after

the

Babylonian

destruction

of 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

Jeremiah

25

15

take

from

my

hand

this

cup

of

the

wine

of

wrath

and

make

all

the

nations

to

whom

I

send

you

drink

it

they

shall

drink

and

stagger

and

be

crazed

because

of

the

sword

that

I

am

sending

among

them

it's

the

cup

of

his

wrath

the

father

doesn't

have

a

bad

temper

his

wrath

is

his

considered

righteous

judicial

anger

at

evil

now

many

have

a

problem

with

the

idea

of

God

having

wrath

let

me

let me

quote

from

someone

who

has

experienced

much

more

hardship

than

I

have

in

my

life

hopefully

I get

his

name

right

Miroslav

Volf

he's

a

theologian

he lived

in

during

the

time

of

the

war

in

former

Yugoslavia

and he

writes

this

according

to

some

estimates

200,000

people

were

killed

and

over

3 million

were

displaced

my

villages

and

cities

were

destroyed

my

people

shelled

day

in

and

day

out

some

of

them

brutalized

beyond

imagination

and I

could

not

imagine

God

not

being

angry

how

did

God

react

to

the

carnage

by

doting

on the

perpetrators

in a

grandfatherly

fashion

by

refusing

to

condemn

the

blood

bath

but

instead

affirming

the

perpetrator's

basic

goodness

wasn't

God

fiercely

angry

with

them

though

I

used

to

complain

about

the

indecency

of the

idea

of

God's

wrath

I

came

to

think

that

I

would

have

to

rebel

against

a

God

who

wasn't

wrathful

at

the

sight

of

the

world's

evil

God

isn't

wrathful

in

spite

of

being

love

God

is

wrathful

because

God

is

love

because

God

is

love

it's

at

the

cross

Jesus

took

the

wrath

of

God

but

it's

here

in

Gethsemane

that he

seems

to be

given

this

special

view

of it

he's

given

this

foretaste

of it

he's

beginning

to

taste

the

abandonment

the

anger

the

father

as it

were

set

this

cup

down

before

him

and

says

will

you

drink

it

Jonathan

Edwards

he

preached

on this

passage

in

1757

he

says

this

God

brought

him

to

the

mouth

of

the

furnace

that

he

might

look

into

it

and

stand

to

view

its

raging

flames

and

see

the

glowings

of

its

heat

that

he

might

know

where

he

was

going

and

what

he

was

about

to

suffer

here

in

Gethsemane

he

is

standing

at

the

mouth

of

the

flames

and

the

father

set

this

cup

before

him

will

you

drink

it

no

human

being

has

ever

faced

a

death

like

this

so

his

first

prayer

my

father

if

it

be

possible

let

this

cup

pass

from

me

he's

asking

is there

no

other

way

is there

no

other

way

when

I was

a

scripture

teacher

at a

high

school

I was

called

a

bigot

by one

of the

students

and

I've

never

been

called

big

anything

so

I had

to look

up

what it

meant

I don't

know if

that was

your

class

Sean

was it

isn't

it so

unreasonable

of us

Christians

it's so

prejudiced

that you

we look

on the

rest of

the world

sincerely

searching

for God

through

other

beliefs

and we

say

they're

going to

go to

hell

because

they're

not

believing

in

you're

the

only

way

Jesus

is

praying

is

there

another

way

I

don't

want

to

drink

this

many

believers

and

churches

down

play

and

just

let's

just

be a

bit

quiet

about

this

idea

of

God's

anger

if

you

just

say

God

loves

everyone

what

does

it

cost

God

to

love

you

nothing

nothing

but

here

in

Gethsemane

we see

the cost

we see

the great

love of

God

when you

factor in

the wrath

of God

he's

praying

is there

no other

way

surely

God's

almighty

wisdom

and

power

he

can

think

of

a

way

that

mankind

can

be

saved

from

hell

and

brought

into

heaven

at the

same

time

save

his

son

Gethsemane

says

there's

no

other

way

unless

Jesus

standing

at the

mouth

of this

furnace

chooses

to drink

the cup

in your

place

in my

place

why

did

the

father

have

his

son

experience

this

now

in

this

garden

I

think

we

see

the

greatness

of

his

choice

for

you

for

me

the

greatness

of

his

choice

he's

outside

he's

in Jerusalem

he's not

in Jerusalem

sorry

he's

outside

in the

open

air

there's

no

walls

keeping

him

he's

in the

dark

his

disciples

are

asleep

Judas

isn't

here

yet

the

crowds

are

not

here

yet

he

can

run

he

can

slip

away

and

it's

in

this

moment

the

father

gives

him

this

foretaste

of

hell

he

could

just

run

away

he

knows

he's

about

to

face

the

hatred

of

mankind

he

knows

he's

minutes

away

from

Judas

and

the

representatives

of

the

chief

priests

and

of

the

people

coming

and

hating

him

without

cause

simply

for

Jesus

saying

he

alone

can

reveal

the

true

God

to

you

he

alone

can

reconcile

you

to

God

the

world

such

injustice

none

of

us

have

experienced

injustice

like

that

he's

about

to

experience

the

hatred

of

the

world

he

came

to

save

but

he

chose

to

drink

the

cup

he's

got

all

the

power

to

change

this

situation

Peter

uses

his

sword

no

doubt

aiming

for

the

head

but

misses

and

gets

the

ear

and

Jesus

rebukes

him

at

once

Peter

isn't

protecting

Jesus

Jesus

is

protecting

Peter

from

his

unfaithfulness

he

has

all

the

power

of

heaven

to

change

this

situation

in

the

Roman

army

apparently

a legion

of

soldiers

is

about

6,000

soldiers

do

you

think

that

I

cannot

appeal

to

my

father

and

he

will

at

once

send

me

more

than

12

legions

of

angels

one

angel

would

be

enough

heaven

will

be

emptied

of

its

armies

if

I

just

call

them

in

an

instant

he's

got

all

the

power

to

change

this

situation

but

he

picks

up

the

cup

perhaps

even

more

painful

than

the

injustice

and

cruelty

of

enemies

is

when

your

friends

aren't

there

for

you

when

you

need

them

the

most

that

is

some

of

you

experience

that

deeper

than

I

have

that's

deep

pain

and

here

we

have

it

his

three

closest

friends

seeing

him

in

such

agony

to

stay

here

and

pray

he's

facing

hell

and

they're

so

uncaring

literally

facing

hell

and

they're

so

uncaring

and

ungrateful

and

so

weak

and

unable

to

stand

with

him

I

can't

watch

for

one

hour

after

such

boasts

though

they all

fall

away

I

will

never

fall

away

even

if

I

must

die

with

you

I

will

not

deny

you

and

all

the

disciples

said

the

same

and

the

disciples

left

him

and

fled

abandon

him

and

Jonathan

Edwards

again

he

imagines

what

Christ

could

have

said

to

himself

in

that

moment

why

should

I

yield

myself

to

be

thus

crushed

by

the

weight

of

divine

wrath

for

them

who

have

no

love

to

me

and

to

my

enemies

shall

I

be

the

richer

for

having

saved

a

number

of

miserable

haters

of

God

and

me

who

deserve

to

have

divine

justice

glorified

in

their

destruction

do

you

see

how

great

his

choice

is

the

father

sets

his

cup

before

him

he

is

free

to

run

away

in

the

dark

he

knows

the

world

is

going

to

pour

out

their

hatred

on

him

in

a

moment

he

has

all

heaven's

power

at

his

disposal

his

friends

are

so

ungrateful

and

unfaithful

abandoning

him

and

he

picks

up

the

cup

he

chooses

!

the

cup

when

he

prays

for

the

second

and

third

time

I

think

his

prayer

is

shifting

!

the

first

prayer

is

there

no

other

way

second

prayer

is

your

will

be

done

he's

praying

for

help

in

his

human

weakness

that

he

might

not

fail

your

will

be

done

he's

praying

that

his

suffering

achieves

all

God's

will

all

his

purposes

for

his

death

the

glory

of

God

and

his

grace

the

eternal

redemption

of

us

and

our

happiness

forever

the

redemption

of

all

creation

may

your

will

be

done

in

this

now

when

he

prays

for the

second

and

third

time

your

will

be

done

I

don't

think

this

is

him

his

will

being

crushed

and

forced

by

the

father's

will

I

think

it's

an