Worship - Sunday at 10:30AM
Bible Study - Wednesday at 6:30PM
2002-02-04 Communion Dedication - Baldwin Christian Church
STRENGTH OF PRAYER
Matthew 26:36-46
36. Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
37. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38. Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
40. And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
41. Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
42. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
43. And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.
44. And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.
45. Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
46. Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.
After the Last Supper, back in the upper room, in verse 35, Peter told Jesus, "Even if I have to die with you, I will not deny you", and all the disciples said the same thing, made the same vow. Jesus had just told them that they would be weak and scatter this night. Where did they find the strength to vow allegiance unto death? What was the source of their power to make this boast?
Skip forward to the Garden of Gethsemane in verse 36, and the prayer of Jesus. He said that His soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. Luke says Jesus prayed in agony, sweating as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground. Jesus fell on His face in prayer, but there was no voice from heaven. Again He prayed for deliverance, but the answer did not come. By the third time, the answer was clear to Jesus. He must drink this cup.
Did Jesus run off and tell everybody that God wasn't answering His prayers? No, He placed His trust in God by saying, "not as I will, but as thou wilt". He found His strength in God, not in Himself.
In Psalm 27, it says, The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? and Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Sometimes it doesn't seem like God answers our prayers, but truth be told, we don't like His answers. They don't meet our requirements for acceptable answers to prayer. We refuse to pray as Jesus did, "If this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done". We aren't willing to say, Lord, if this is what you want for me in my life, I will do it; here I am, Lord. Our prayers let God know the only answer we will accept from Him is deliverance from trouble.
Poor old Peter always gets singled out, but all the disciples vowed they would not leave Jesus when the going got rough. Where did they find the strength, the courage to say something like that? They could not back up their words with actions because their strength and courage was their own. Jesus backed up His words, all the way to His death, because He looked to His Father for strength and courage.
Jesus knew the answer to His earnest prayer. The answer was, Yes, you must drink this cup of wrath. Let's examine the foolish pride in our hearts. Let's see how much strength and courage we have outside of Him, and let's thank Him for drinking that cup.