Luke 22:39-42 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
During the last week
of the Passover Celebration, Jesus had visited the Mount of Olives each night
after a day of teaching the people in the temple. He did not change His routine
even though He was aware that Judas would be able to lead the temple guards
right to him (Luke 21:37; Luke 22:47-48).
Jesus cautioned and advised his disciples as to the need for them to pray, as did Jesus need to pray ahead of the most challenging situation He would have to face during His earthly ministry. The disciples would be facing some difficult trials and tribulations of their own, and they needed to go to God in prayer so they might not fall into the temptations that were to come. This Biblical example is an excellent lesson for us today; we will face temptations every day, and our prayers are our line of communication with the only one that can free us from the lure of Satan. Jesus used the illustration of the cup here, which would be an Old Testament representation of the judgment of God (Psalm 75:8; Isaiah 51:17; Jeremiah 25:15).
The cup did not stand for death; it represented the Judgment of
God on the sin of the world. Jesus did not fear death; when His work on the
Cross was complete, he just closed his eyes and surrendered himself to death.
Jesus took the cup of judgment for all people on the Cross so that we would not
have to bear it. It would not be too much of an overemphasis and embellishment
to say that all the evil of hell filled that cup.
One sinless man struggled with sin in a garden and lost that
impacted humans today. This night, another innocent man in a garden fought with
evil and won, which influenced countless millions' eternal destiny until this
very hour.
The Cross was the most inhumane and barbaric form of execution
that humanity has devised. However, Jesus was going to drink from the cup of
the Holy wrath of God for all sin. The obedient way Jesus willing and joyfully
went to the Cross redeemed the disobedience of Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden. We can know peace with God today because Jesus took the cup that should
have been ours to drink (Hebrews 12:2).
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