This picture is from The Church of All Nations in Jerusalem next to the Garden of Gethsemane. It houses the rock where traditionally Jesus prayed just before He was arrested (Bottom of photo).
It is in the garden that the most gut wrenching prayer recorded in Scripture is found. It is written…
And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 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.”
The stress Jesus was under was so intense he sweat as though great drops of blood. He was so upset, so troubled, so anxious he was close to actually dying in the garden as He prayed.
The problem for Jesus was not figuring out God’s will… it was knowing it. Let that sink in. It was because Jesus knew God’s will that He was troubled so deeply. Maybe that’s one reason why God spares us from knowing the future… because it would be more than we could bear.
Jesus wasn’t afraid of the beatings… the crown of thorns… of being whipped… nor the indignity of the cross. What caused deep fear within Him was that He knew he would not only be abandoned by God, but that He would have to endure the full wrath of God toward sin.
Jesus prayed, “If it is Your will let this cup pass from me. Never the less, not my will be done but Yours.” Jesus submitted to God’s sovereignty at the cost of his life and fellowship with The Father. God’s will was more important than His own…
The reason He submitted to God’s sovereignty is because Jesus’ goal in life was to glorify God above all things. If that meant the cross… so be it. If that meant losing fellowship with God… so be it. Whatever it took for God to be glorified… so be it. “Nevertheless not my will be done but Yours.”
As with the rest of His life, Jesus submitted to His Father’s will. Through betrayal… arrest… denial… beatings… interrogation… and humiliation, Jesus submitted to His Father’s sovereignty. Why? Because that glorified God.
There are times when God’s will is anything but our own. There are times when what we want isn’t what will take place. However… God’s will is more important than ours… more important than our comfort… more important than our physical safety. We submit to God because He is God and as such is sovereign. Jesus didn’t suffer so that we wouldn’t suffer, but so that when we suffer we would be like Him.
To God Alone Be The Glory!