And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And 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. And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?
Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. And 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. Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand. Read Mark 14:32-42 KJV
Christ's sufferings began with the sorest of all, those in his soul. The enemies of God had set themselves in array against him. Never was sorrow like unto this for any person. Now he was about to be made a curse for us; the curses of the law were laid upon him as our Surety. He now would taste death, in all the bitterness of it. Can we ever entertain thoughts of sin lightly, when we see the painful sufferings that it brought about for our Lord? Shall sin sit light upon our souls, which sat so heavily upon the Lord Jesus Christ? Christ was in great agony for our sins and why are we not wailing, crying out to God and in agony for our sins? How we should look upon Him whom we have pierced, and mourn! It behooves us to be exceedingly sorrowful for our sin, because He was so, and never mock or laugh at sin. I repeat, do not take sin lightly or with a grain of salt!
Christ, as man, pleaded, that, if it were possible, his suffering might pass from him. Jesus did not use His divinity to go to the cross, He did this as a man. As Mediator, he submitted to the will of God, saying, Nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt.
See how the sinful weakness of Christ's disciples overpowers them, putting them to sleep and not being watchful? When we see trouble coming to the door, we should be ready for it. If we are not praying, we will not be able to discern when trouble is coming, therefore, we will not be able to combat it in the power and strength of God. We often look at the Redeemers sufferings in a half awake, half ready manner, instead of being fully alert and watchful, being ready for battle and ready to die with Christ if need be. ARE YOU NOT EVEN PREPARED TO WATCH WITH HIM FOR ONE HOUR?
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