Mark 14:32-42 The Message
Gethsemane
32-34 They came to an area called Gethsemane. Jesus told his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him. He sank into a pit of suffocating darkness. He told them, “I feel bad enough right now to die. Stay here and keep vigil with me.”
35-36 Going a little ahead, he fell to the ground and prayed for a way out: “Papa, Father, you can—can’t you?—get me out of this. Take this cup away from me. But please, not what I want—what do you want?”
37-38 He came back and found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, you went to sleep on me? Can’t you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don’t enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don’t be naive. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.”
39-40 He then went back and prayed the same prayer. Returning, he again found them sound asleep. They simply couldn’t keep their eyes open, and they didn’t have a plausible excuse.
41-42 He came back a third time and said, “Are you going to sleep all night? No—you’ve slept long enough. Time’s up. The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of sinners. Get up. Let’s get going. My betrayer has arrived.”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
You have had a full meal, and it has been a long day of running errands. You had gotten up earlier than usual to get your children our of bed, dressed, washed up and ready for this first day, this most hectic, tiring, of the long long school year.
In fact, the past several days have been really challenging—emotionally and physically. It has been a long summer of traveling. You are worn out and tired.
Even in the cool night air, you can barely stay awake. You know you need to pay attention because Jesus has asked you to keep watch on the kids, your eyelids are getting heavier by the moment. Soon your head bobs, you are fast asleep.
You didn’t plan it that way. It is going to be a long year. Jesus nudges you awake and asks, “Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour?” Startled, you hear him say, “Watch and pray. . . .” You nod in agreement, feeling horrible that you haven’t managed to stay awake. He steps away, and the great heaviness settles in again.
Your eyelids close. Later he wakes you again, and you don’t know what to say.
Then a third time you are awakened—but now there is a large crowd coming, the trouble is just turning the corner. Eyes wide open, sleep vanishes. You look up at the one who asked you to pray, and he is in the hands of his enemies!
The longest most exhausting night of their lives had just passed them by, they let their guards down, let their Messiah down, they had failed, they ran away.
Though our lives today are much different from the disciples’, the need for our staying alert during those long exhausting nights which challenge our faith and those extra few critical moments of alertness, of praying without ceasing is not.
Our still sleeping, exhausted world is in greatest need of our attention, and the Lord is calling us to be awake, stand watch. It is encouraging to know Jesus is now seated at the right hand of the Father, praying for us (Romans 8:34), but today he still needs us to do the same for his world, for all God’s children in it.
The Spirit Is Always Willing, Flesh is Always Weak
Mark 14:37-42 Amplified Bible
37 And He came back and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Were you unable to keep watch for one hour? 38 Keep [actively] watching and praying so that you do not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the [a]body is weak.” 39 He went away again and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again He came back and found them sleeping, because their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know how to answer Him. 41 He came back a third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough [of that]! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Get up, let us go. Look, my betrayer is near!”
We rarely see those worst, weakest flaws in our character until we are tested.
Jesus asked his disciples to watch and pray with him, but they dozed off – not just once, not just twice but three times – each time after being awakened and reawakened by Jesus. By surrendering to a small temptation, these disciples lacked the high endurance of spiritual strength to fight off a much greater one.
The much spirited disciples gave in to the weakness of the tired flesh, and as a result they were not prepared to support Jesus during his trial and crucifixion.
Even now, we are tired, our flesh is our own weak-willed human nature without the power of God. Our natural capabilities fail in the midst of temptation, so we need a divine infusion of persistence and endurance from the Holy Spirit. With the Spirit, we have the ability to defeat any temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Throughout the Bible we learn that the Holy Spirit equips us for many tasks.
The Holy Spirit mightily empowers the community of believers in many ways.
As Mark shows, the Spirit of God leads Jesus’ followers into and through struggles and adversity. We do not have to be worried if we are in trying circumstances, because the Holy Spirit will give us words to speak that come from God himself, the inspiration to be alert, to know exactly when our mouth should become engaged in the sure, truest defense of the Gospel (Mark 13:11).
Mark 13:9-13 Amplified Bible
9 “But be on your guard; they will turn you over to courts, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand [as accused] before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them. 10 The gospel [that is, the good news regarding the way of salvation] must first be preached to all the [Gentile] nations. 11 When they take you and turn you over [to the court], do not worry beforehand about what to say, but say whatever is given to you [by God] in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit [who will speak through you]. 12 Brother will betray brother to [be put to] death, and a father [will hand over] his child; and children will rise up and take a stand against parents and have them put to death. 13 You will be hated by everyone because of [your association with] My name, but the one who [patiently perseveres empowered by the Holy Spirit and] endures to the end, he will be saved.
We live in the age of the Spirit today. We can each call upon the Holy Spirit to strengthen our spirits to resist any temptation. What a gift from our God who never stops giving himself for us. Ask, seek, and knock—call on the Lord!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 121 The Message
121 1-2 I look up to the mountains;
does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.
3-4 He won’t let you stumble,
your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel’s
Guardian will never doze or sleep.
5-6 God’s your Guardian,
right at your side to protect you—
Shielding you from sunstroke,
sheltering you from moonstroke.
7-8 God guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
he guards you now, he guards you always.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 