Mark 14: 32And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. 33And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; 34And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. 35And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. 37And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? 38Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. 39And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. 40And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. 41And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.42Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.
There was a place dear to the Lord everywhere he went. It was his place of prayer. He had no place to lay his head and call home, but he always chose a place of retreat to talk to his Father. The Bible mentions many places Jesus prayed during his travels. The disciples knew while Jesus was in Jerusalem his place of prayer was Gethsemane. There were many places chosen by others, but he chose the olive grove. The name means olive press. It would be a busy place during the day due to the orchards.
When Jesus left the upper room he felt the desire to pray. He knew Judas was making his final arrangements for the betrayal. He had nowhere to go. He left the comfort of the room and made his way in the chill of the night into Gethsemane. He felt the need. God help us to consider that prayer is a place, not just a moment with the Father.
I have my favorite places to pray. In the church here we have prayer rooms and the altar. Prayer is an actual place. Jesus chose Gethsemane, the place in its own way of beauty and solitude. He had confidence in it that he’d be able to pray. We must have confidence in prayer. We have the gift of it at our disposal, and we need to choose the place of it. Judas was kept at bay until Jesus could pray. He, with the Father’s help, wrestled as he bore the unthinkable. Our worst moments cannot compare to what Jesus bore. He didn’t go there to wrestle with God. It is better that we treat our place of prayer as a place to meet the Father, not argue with him. We can deal with what is in front of us because God waits there to help us. Jesus knew the Father would help him. This night was hard, but nothing is too hard for God. No matter what you have to deal with it can be faced and taken care of in your Gethsemane. We should have more confidence in our place of prayer than any other place.
The disciples went to sleep on Jesus, and he woke them three times. Others may fail, but God will not go to sleep on us in the garden. Jesus felt like he was about to die; here he hashed it out. If there was another way possible to deal with it, he asked that it happen. Yet he settled it when he said “not my will but thine be done.” He retreated farther than the disciples. He knew it had to be just him and the Father. People can give advice, but God has the answers. The strain of it was hard on him. As the olive oil was pressed out of the fruit during the day, Jesus was pressed that night. His sweat became as drops of blood. It was heavy, but he rose with victory and confidence knowing God’s will was best.
If we treat our prayer life like Jesus did, we’ll include the Father. We’ll let him help us. We can come out victorious. Jesus came out with determination to go through with it. The Father sent angels to comfort him. He’ll do the same for us. You’ve felt the strength of God touch you after prayer.
His enemies approached him. He met them unafraid because of Gethsemane. When he said “I am he” his enemies fell backward. He yielded himself into their hands. He endured the whipping post and the anguish of the cross. He bore it all because he first bore it to God in Gethsemane.
Our Gethsemane may never be as important as this one was, but we can come out just as Jesus did—able to bear it. We can have assurance that God does best. It will end in victory if we let the Lord handle it. With God in our life, we can’t lose for winning.
If Jesus needed Gethsemane, how much more do we need it. Never forget the place of prayer.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 