Mark 14:32-52 Sympathizing with Weaknesses
Good morning! We are returning to our study in the Gospel of Mark with chapter 14, verses 32-52, page 851 in the pew Bibles.
We are going to be dealing with a difficult topic this morning, at least one that has given the theologians great difficulty, and that it the humanity of Christ. It’s said that liberal scholars emphasize the humanity of Christ but have difficulty with His divinity and conservative scholars emphasize the divinity of Christ while having difficulty with His humanity.
In our text for this morning we are going to see the humanity of Christ on full display and just exactly how He deals with it.
So, let’s pray, and we’ll jump right into it.
Now when I speak of the humanity of Christ, don’t be confused into thinking that I am saying that He was just a regular person, He isn’t. Jesus, the eternally existent Son of God, put on flesh and dwelt among us. He has flesh like us, He was tempted like us, but He did not sin.
But He didn’t just appear to be human, He didn’t just look like a human, He is completely human, while still being completely God. As Saint Ambrose said, “[Jesus] took upon Himself, not the appearance, but the reality of incarnation.” His humanity doesn’t take anything away from His divinity, it adds to it.
Hebrews 4:14-16 says,
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
These three verses from Hebrews kind of unlock our text in Mark this morning. So let’s look at that.
32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” 45 And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. 46 And they laid hands on him and seized him. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.” 50 And they all left him and fled.
51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, 52 but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.
Here we have the striking of the Shepherd and the scattering of the sheep that we talked about last week. Jesus, quoting Zechariah 13:7 said, “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” Here we have that prophecy fulfilled just a few hours later.
The scholars agree, though the Scripture does not plainly say it, that the young man here was actually Mark, the human author of this Gospel. The Greek word translated, “young man,” means that he was somewhere between puberty and marrying age, not a little kid more likely a teenager. The linen cloth was a sleeping garment.
If this is truly the case, Judas most likely led the crowd first to the house where they celebrated Passover, which, based on this line of thinking was Mark’s family’s house, and finding that Jesus and His disciples had left that place he led them to the next closest place that he knew Jesus frequently spent time, the olive press of Gethsemane. Mark followed the crowd, perhaps to warn Jesus, we don’t know, but when they grabbed him he slipped out of his pajamas and fled.
I don’t want to spend any time on Judas and his betrayal so let’s rewind to verse 32.
32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.”
Gethsemane literally means “oil press.” This was a secluded enclosed garden with an olive orchard and a press for making olive oil, well known to Jesus and the disciples, and Judas.
I have been to this spot, though it looks much different now I’m sure. There are olive trees there that are over 1500 years old, it’s beautiful. At the entrance of the garden He told eight of the disciples to sit while He prayed further in.
33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled.
I’m not sure what the thinking was in the minds of the translators here, I’m sure they had good reason, but the word translated, “greatly distressed,” is the same word that is used for fright at a crack of thunder or terror at seeing a ghost.
Perhaps the thought of seeing Jesus afraid was unsettling to them. I know it’s unsettling to me, but that’s what the words mean. He was in anguish and He was afraid.
Don’t be confused, it is not sinful to be afraid. This was another temptation of Jesus by Satan. What does that fear motivate us to do, to trust the Father or turn away from Him? Jesus chose to trust Him.
34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.”
Perhaps you can identify with this thought. Jesus was distressed almost to the point of death. What He was facing was more than He could bear. He knew what was coming and He knew that He would have to face it alone. The hour that was coming meant the desertion of His friends and His Father.
But instead of allowing fear to drive Him to sin, instead it drove Him to the Father in prayer.
35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
I have a quote that you’re not going to like and I hesitate to share but I can’t ignore.
Alistair Begg said, “You’ve heard that there is power in prayer. There is no power in prayer, all the power is in God.”
Now before you run off saying that Heath told us not to pray… That’s not at all what I am saying, that’s not at all what Alistair Begg was saying. After all, here we have Jesus, our example, praying right here in our text!
But the power that Jesus received was not from the prayer itself but from the Father when Jesus submitted to His will. Submission to God’s will is the key to receiving power from God to accomplish His will.
Jesus sincerely prayed for the hour to pass from Him, that He would not have to drink the cup of God’s wrath for the sin of mankind and all the horrors that it entailed. He prayed, “Abba, Dad, Papa, all things are possible for you period. Remove this cup from me period.
I think that’s what our prayers often sound like, don’t you? Lord, I’m dealing with a thing, please make it stop. Father, I have pain, emotional, physical, whatever, make it stop. Amen.
But there’s no power in that prayer.
Jesus knew that the Father had a purpose for what He was about to go through, but that didn’t stop Him, in His humanity, from being afraid of it, or from wanting to avoid it. The difference is in the rest of Jesus’ prayer: “Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Not my wishes, but your wishes. Not my desires, but your desires.
How often do we close our prayers with, “Lord, thanks for hearing my prayers. Now please, don’t do as I’ve asked…”? Jesus prayed, “I don’t want to do this, I want you to stop this, but what I want doesn’t matter, what you want does.
This is a prayer of faith. This is trust in God.
37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
We often think that Jesus was talking about the disciples when He said, “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” Maybe He was, at least in part, after all, Peter had just said that even if he had to die with Jesus he would never deny him and then promptly fell asleep. But I think He was also talking about Himself. In His spirit He was willing to drink the cup of God’s wrath but in His flesh He was afraid and needed strength from the Father.
39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
Jesus prayed and asked the Father to remove the cup from Him and to let the hour pass, but in the end submitted to His will, and the hour came, He was betrayed by His friend, He was deserted by His followers, He was stricken by God.
But because He submitted to the will of the Father it was not Christ and righteousness that were captured in that hour, it was Satan and sin.
God’s great purpose, our redemption, was accomplished through Jesus’ submission.
Who knows what He will accomplish through ours!
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Amen
