The Cup

My text today is from Luke chapter 22 verses 39 to 46 and he came out and went as was his custom to the Mount of olives and the disciples followed him when he came to the place he said to them, pray that you may not enter into temptation. And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw and knelt down and prayed saying father if you're willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done. And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him and being in agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground and when he rose from prayer he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow and he said to them, why are you sleeping rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation is good or Lord in prayer.

Heavenly father, we are living through a season that has the whole world shook with fear.

We are concerned for those who have the disease and those who might get it. We grieve with those who have lost loved ones. The father you are sovereign's did not catch you by surprise. How we view it. What you this due to our hearts, Lord, in situations of uncertainty in situations where we come face-to-face with the frailty of life is your message not repentance. In Luke 13 when the people asked Jesus about the tower that fell on people and kill them. Jesus didn't tell them to try to come up with theories of why fell on those people. But he said, except ye repent you will all likewise perish. Father, if ever, the church needed discipline. It is now, if ever, pastors needed personal repentance is now, if ever I need to realize how we can depend on Christ.

I really AM it is now open her eyes. Jesus, as we look at the cup this morning.

May we be driven to pray. May we take the example of Jesus, and pray like we never prayed before. We love you Lord help us give us courage give us God's give us a bulldog stick to witness 40 is the precious and holy name of Jesus that we pray. Amen. To the east of the city of Jerusalem is a little mountain that mountain is called the Mount of olives is about 300 feet taller than the Jerusalem. It's about a mile in length on the western slope of that mountain there is a little garden that gardens call the garden of Gethsemane in that garden. There are a plethora of olive trees, the olive wood from olive trees on the hardest wood in the world and the olive tree has a long lifespan, much like a California redwood. These trees are are I have been growing for a long time.

Eight of those trees are in the garden of Gethsemane, were they are standing. When the Lord Jesus was praying in the garden and they're not just standing there today but they're still producing olives in Jesus day, there was olive press in the middle of that garden and the bottom of that press was a large flat stone was a big hole in the middle.

In the center and then they cut reaches about 1/2 inch apart. That the ridges started very shallow. They got deeper and deeper and deeper as they went to the center dam to the whole and then they would take a bottle and put it up under the whole then they would cover that entire bottom stone with with olives and then they would take a heavy heavy top stone and they would lower it down on the olives with a rope and it would come down on that bottom stone and crush all of the olives in the olive oil would flow down those little ridges down into the bottle of the garden of Gethsemane.

The word Gethsemane means olive press or crushed and this was the place where Jesus wrestled in anguish in prayer. This was the place where Jesus is heart was crushed with sorrow. This was a spot where Jesus prayed often. It was a spot that he went to he loved.

It is was up a place that was quiet. It was a place that was beautiful in a place. It was very private. In verse one. The Scripture tells us that it was his custom to go there to pray. Now when you went to the garden of Gethsemane. You'd have to crossover little brook that Brooke was called the Kidron Brook during the Passover season, there were so many Passover lambs that were killed that the blood flowed down into the Kidron blue brook and became just crimson red. Surely as Jesus stepped over that Brooke at this time in the Passover season as he stepped over it and looked down at the blood he remembered and was reminded that soon it would not be the blood of Passover lambs that would be flowing but it would be his own blood, that would be flowing down the cross of Calvary. Read article a while back where atheist was questioning the manhood of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus asked his father that if it were possible, let this cup pass from him. He stated that Jesus was wavering in the face of death. And then he went on to list other people who did not waver in the face of the place of death. Men like gladiators who went into the to the Coliseum and they knew that it was really a fight to victory or death and people like soldiers who were terribly outnumbered by another army and yet they marched right to that army, knowing that there was very little hope he said these guys showed more toughness than Jesus. That's a good illustration right they are of why atheist all to keep their mouth shut was not physical death that Jesus was dreading it was something much deeper, much darker than that. It was the wrath of his father. The wrath of God the father that was good to be poured out upon him like it had never been poured out on any man or ever would it be poured out on any man. If you doubt the courage or the resolve was a toughness of Christ, then you need to get ready for hopefully the Scriptures will eat your heart and they will feel your soul's confidence that there is never been a braver, more courageous, more loving person than the Lord Jesus Christ himself and what he did he did for the glory of God, and he did for us. What I want to do this morning is to focus in on Gethsemane's cup. The cup of course is a metaphor.

A picture of the torment that Jesus would have to go through the cut means to experience something in its fullness.

Three points I want to share with you this morning .1 the content of the cup. Verse 39 to 42 and he came out and went and was his custom to the Mount of olives and the disciples followed him and when he came to the place he said to them, pray that you may not enter into temptation.

And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw and knelt down and prayed saying father if you're willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done. Picture this same Jesus and the disciples walk up to the Mount of olives in the Gospel of Matthew. We have a much fuller account and we are told that the disciples and Jesus walked to the edge of the garden did Jesus stop them, told the disciples to wait there and then he took three of them, Peter, James and John. The inner circle and he walked on a little further and then he stopped them and he said you stay here, you pray that you enter not into temptation, Jesus went all up on ahead. Several of several more feet but a stone's throw, the Scripture says he got on his face before his father down in the dirt prostrate before his father and he began to cry out to the Lord. Father, if you're willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.

Look at verse 44 and being in agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

No one on the face of the earth has ever pray with this kind of agony. The Greek word for agony is a dome and has to do with a an Olympic wrestling match where were the two musclebound men would stand before each other.

They grab each other around the neck and every ounce of their billion was straining at air every fiber of their body. Every tendon, every muscle was straining. They had one thing on their mind and one thing alone, and that was to defeat the enemy but so it was with Jesus in agony as he prayed in Gethsemane.

The capillaries in his four head burst and they begin to just sweat and blood begin to roll down his face and he was, not just kneeling, he was not just standing in prayer, but he was down on his face. Prostrate before his father as he did that he is face in Bearden and the payer was just covered matted with mud and blood and sweat and he's asking his father if it's possible to let this cup pass from me now my question is this what is in that cup what's in that cup. What was so vile and filthy that the very son of God shrank back in fear and dread was a physical death by crucifixion note crucifixion was unbelievably horrible when they took the spikes and nail through the hands and the feet.

It was horrible, terrible pain when the wind because of the loss of blood. It would be great.

Dehydration that was terribly painful. And then because of the position of the cross. It was very hard to breathe. That too was very very painful. This is one of the most excruciating deaths that Hale ever conceived but yet there were others who died this way and some of them even went to their went to the crucifixion with joy as martyrs member Peter Peterson told that Roman soldiers when you crucify me, crucify me upside down from not worthy to be crucified like Jesus. Remember Peter saying today's executioners that very thing. So know the cup is not the physical suffering that Jesus would have to endure on the cross will could it be an extraordinary attack by Satan note was not that Jesus defeated Satan in the wilderness, and although Satan hounded Jesus all the way to the cross. Satan was not Jesus fear and dread. What about the betrayal of Judas or the denials of Peter or the failure of the disciples know those were disappointments, but it was not the fear. So what was what was in that cup. The pollution of sin was in that cup, you must remember that Jesus had never sinned. Hebrews 415 tells us that Jesus was tempted in all points even as we are, but yet was without sin. In second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21 Paul said, for God made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin that we might become the righteousness of God in him. You know what was in that cup sin was in that cup who sin the seal of every child of God who would ever live from the time of Adam until the time at that last person would come to Christ before Jesus would return to this earth. The seal of the ages was in that cup. My sin was in that cup. Your sin was in that cup not part of RCN, but all of RCN every vile thought every wicked deed every hurtful hateful thing.

Every sin of every child of God, who will ever live is in that cup all the sins of the past all the sins of the present all the sins of the future were distilled, placed in that cup and given to Jesus to drink it put right in their but sodomy and that cup, but pornography and that cup but child abuse and that cup good spousal abuse and that cup, but blasphemy and that cup abortion and that cup, but witchcraft and that cup but political corruption in that cup, put line in that cup put all the field that we have ever done into that cup. Here Jesus drink it, drink it, drink it, it's not enough for Jesus, just a bear RCN Jesus must become RCN Adrian Rogers have some great comments on this.

Listen carefully you may not understand what sin is. But I can tell you, Jesus knew what sin is Jesus. It seems sand turn angels to demons and mentor beast. Sin is a clenched fist in the face of God and Jesus knew when he drank that cup he would be numbered with the transgressors and him. His name is holy, who is the complete other, the antithesis of sin would become sin.

So the pollution of sin was in that cup.

That was not all that was in that cup. Also in that cup was the punishment of sin. Jesus knew that when he would hang on the cross he would receive the punishment for all of the sin of all of the people of God for all time. Romans 832 says that God spared not his own son Isaiah chapter 53. In verse 20 says it please the Lord to bruise him. Jesus suffered our hail for us. You remember when Jesus was hanging from the cross he cried out from the cross, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me me ask you something. Did did God the father really forsake Jesus Christ I tell you yes forward. Jesus was all that cross for three of the six hours that he was on that cross.

He became sin for us, he became CNN and God the father who is too holy to even look up and see in had to turn his back on Jesus and for the first time in all of eternity. Fellowship was broken between God the father and God the son once again listen to the comments of Adrian Rogers at the cross, the sins of the world were distilled and the eternities were compressed and Jesus be an infinite bore in a finite period of time. What we be in finite would bear an infinite period of time. I'm telling you that Jesus Christ suffered an eternity of hail on the cross, the price that Jesus paid only the damned inhale can begin to know, but they'll never know because they're only paying their sin be paid all of the sin of all God's people were all times, and friends at that doesn't move your heart, your heart is harder than a rock. No wonder Jesus said, father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me .2 is the consumption of the cup. Luke 22 verse 43, 346. There appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him and being in agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground and when he rose from prayer he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow and he said to them, are you sleeping rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.

The Lord Jesus Christ drank it, drank it to the bitter dregs, not some of it not. Most of it, but all of it. Did Jesus shrink back from the cup.

Yes, he certainly did that make you think less loving, not me. It makes me think more of why because here the reluctance makes me know. Jesus is reluctance makes me know and understand that this was not a charade.

This was real. If you don't understand why shrank back, then you don't realize what was in that cup in his holiness and humility. Seeing that vileness in that and it filled the sin.

He said this. Oh God, isn't there some other way in silence from heaven said there is no other way. We don't get this because we got used to the dark sin don't offend us like it should.

Our consciences are callused our heart is so hardened that we can laugh at immorality.

We can condone homosexuality. We can gaze it pornography and say so what Jesus right back trying back from the cup because he couldn't say. So what in my former church. I was officiate in wedding service the night before the wedding.

They had we had the rehearsal after the rehearsal was over we went to a fine restaurant to eat. They set me in the table with the grandfather of the bride.

I started talking to this elderly gentleman and came to realize very quickly that this man was sold out to Christ after we were there for just a little bit. A waiter came by, had a bottle of champagne in his hand and he asked us if we wanted any.

I said no I like to have some water in and the elderly gentleman said please I like to have some tea, but not the champagne and then he whispered in my ear.

He said my dad was an alcoholic.

He said that his alcoholism caused our family unbelievable problems and so many times it just utter heartache. He said so when he was 12 years old.

He said that he made up of valve to the Lord that he would never touch alcohol it would never be a part of his life that he would never drink it. He said Doug hey 782 years old male and said I kept that vile for 70 years.

He said I'm not one of those who believe that drinking a beer will send you to hail, but he said all my associations alcohol is been bad. He said I don't try to force my convictions on others. But alcohol is off limits to me while we were sitting there talking one of the groomsmen came up behind them and took little bottle of liquor and poured liquor into his tea cup. I didn't seem and they the grandfather didn't seem either.

Then the grandfather reached over and he took the company took a big swig of it in his eyes started water need not throw it down and Andy said what is that and I reached over and I took it and I smelled it said that suburban somebodies tree achieve. We looked over the groom's groomsmen's table and they were just howling with laughter and one of the groomsmen pointed at him and say hey grandpa, you're not a virgin any longer was that first drink there've been times in my life when I would've liked to have not been a preacher for about 10 minutes. That was one of those times and I would've loved to just go over and pop that guy right in the nose. I didn't but I wanted to. I looked over there to grandfather and the grandfathers was not mad and he was not lashing out, but there was just a sadness in his countenance. I walked over to him. I put my arm around his shoulder, and I said look, see it, you didn't break your vile you didn't break your bag you were tricked, and God knows that he said you know, I know that, but it still just makes me say I walked out of that building. Thinking to myself, that's the attitude that we all ought to have toward all sin we ought to hate it. We we ought to see it is something that hurts the heart of our Savior. Do your kids since that that you are offended by sin did they sense that your kids and spouse think that you hate what Jesus hates Jesus is presented with Gethsemane's cup Willie drink it or not. In the Gospel of Matthew that prayer of Jesus is prayed three times. Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. It was not the father's will to let it pass and you know Jesus didn't have to head to have to drink it didn't have to didn't have to die. He had a choice. Jesus said, no man takes my life relay I'll lay my life down. Jesus was the only man who ever lived who chose to die. The Bible says the wages of sin is death. Jesus had no sin. He didn't have to die. Now you may say, well, a man who commit suicide is choosing to die. No, you just using the hollow center, but he's going to die. The Scripture says in Hebrews 927 fruit is appointed in a man once to die, and after that the judgment so what did Jesus say to God the father. Nevertheless, not my will but thine be done. But that's not what Satan said in Isaiah chapter 14, when we read the story of Satan trying to usurp the throne of Almighty God. What he was saying was this not your will. God but my will be John when Adam in the garden of Eden took the forbidden fruit and ate of the forbidden fruit. He was saying, not your will.

God but mine be done, but Jesus Christ in the garden of Gethsemane, said to his father, not my will but yours be done. And he was ready to pay the price for our redemption.

Jesus willingly, voluntarily, vicariously and victoriously said not my will but yours be done.

If Jesus had said no we would've all suffered in hail forever and ever and ever. The Old Testament saints would've been taken out of Abraham's bosom and they would be placed into hail, but praise God. Jesus said, not my will but yours be done to listen to me carefully, God will never overlook sin. He cannot his holiness will not allow it. No sin can go unpunished. If God were to let one sin go father and God would not be holy if you were to go out on the streets of Charlotte today and you would ask people what is the greatest attribute of God.

Probably 90% of the people would say to you the greatest attribute of God's love that I would have you to know that they would be wrong. The greatest attribute of God's holiness.

All of his other attributes flowed out of his holiness. When the seraphim were encircling the throne of God in Isaiah chapter 6. What were they saying in releasing and mercy mercy mercy known releasing and love love love no, they were singing holy, holy, holy. But God's love. Also, so how can a loving God punish RCN and still love and accept us the answer is in Gethsemane's cup and that cup is a picture of Jesus suffering are hail on the cross.

Thirdly, there's a cup of communion just a few hours before this moment in Gethsemane Jesus was instituting the Lord's supper had the disciples in the upper room and he took the cup in his hand and held up what we call the cup of redemption in Luke chapter 22 in verse 20 it says this and likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, this cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood thoughts we have the privilege of drinking from the cup of communion because Jesus drank all of the cup of Gethsemane. I would submit you today that the agony that Jesus experienced in Gethsemane was the real war. The nails went into his hands at Calvary's cross with those nails went through his heart it Gethsemane. The victory was one in Gethsemane in prayer. But the victory was pay for at Calvary has a said before the word agony is it is a word that is used to describe Jesus's battle in Gethsemane in prayer. It means wrestling match. So who is Jesus wrestling was a wrestling God the father know he loved God the father was his greatest desire to please God the father and everything that he did. It was, not God the father that he was wrestling so was it Satan know he had already conquered Satan is not him who was it Jesus was wrestling with himself. His holy humanity was wrestling with his divine love. Praise God's love one I want you to picture me if you can please pray and more intensely than any person is ever prayed or any person ever will pray I know I've been in the waiting rooms with parents who have a child that some operating table. The doctors told him we don't know whether the child will make it or not it's a life-and-death operation and said that I would be with the family and the and in the parents would be praying in their hands would be shaking in their lips would be quivering tears would be rolling down their cheeks and be crying out to God for help. Very, very intense prayer. Remember being in the living room sitting down. There was a man in this living room that had been unfaithful to his wife and this man was laying down in a fetal position and he was weeping, crying and crying out to God and to his wife to forgiving those were intense prayers, but let me tell you they don't come close to the intense nest of the praying that Jesus was doing in Gethsemane.

The capillaries in his four head and burst and blood was rolling down his face. Sweat was rolling down his face and he was not kneeling and he was not standing but he was prostrate before the Lord with his face down with his face down in the dirt. The Scripture tells us that an Datsun Angel to minister to Jesus wanted that Angel have to come.

I believe that Angel had to come to keep Jesus from dying in the garden of Gethsemane to assure that Jesus would go to the cross. He did that for us.

He drank a cup of Gethsemane that we might drink the cup of communion by the cup of communion.

I don't just mean partaking of the Lord's supper that's included of course I make something much, much broader. I mean having a fellowship with the real living God's word speaking to our mind. He is here is peace flowing through our soul's joy is joy filling our heart I believe agony Gethsemane could have killed Jesus but God would not allow it to happen. Jesus rose up from his prayer, he walked over to Peter, James and John. His clothes were or so from the sweating that he had done. Imagine, he looked like he been out in a downpour of rain's hair's face or in theater, just matted with mud blood and in sweat walks over the disciples, one of these mighty disciples doing the gone sound asleep sound asleep and Jesus said why are you sleeping while you sleeping rising. Pray that she might not enter into temptation when their prayer lives were a complete failure. What is Jesus telling them to do. He is saying to them, pray, pray anyway what should we do and where the complete loss of what to do. Take example from God's people through history. I think of Job, Job would lost his children who had lost his hail to lost his prosperity and he cries out to the Lord. He said the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord when head Hannah was desolate with no children. She pray for help. When Hezekiah was being attacked by the Assyrians in an and the whole city of Jerusalem was surrounded, he took his prayers and he lay them out before the Lord prostrate before God and he prayed for help.

The next day hundred 85,000 soldiers, a Syrian soldiers had been killed by an angel. When Jehoshaphat had three enemy armies that were approaching and coming to destroy Judah. Jehoshaphat cried out to the Lord and he said we don't have any power and we don't have any mind. And we don't know what to do, but our eyes are on you. So it is with us folks. Is anyone ashamed is anyone afraid.

Is anyone confused. Is anyone discouraged or desperate. Is anyone striving, and loneliness. What you do pray praying when you don't know what to do. You don't know where to go pray Dr. James Montgomery voice is one of my my spiritual heroes, Cindy and I went to a Bible conference that he was a keynote speaker back in February 2000. We left spiritually invigorated and pumped up about his biblical preaching too much later, he was diagnosed with liver cancer. He received the news on Good Friday. So on that next Sunday which was Easter Sunday he was going to give his resignation message to the church that had lovely pastor for over 30 years to Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

This was his Gethsemane. I will read you. His message to his church and I hope to God that I will be able to die like James Boyce did this is what he said to his church, you been praying certainly not been assured of that by many people. A relevant question, I guess when you pray, is what should you pray for a miracle.

Above all, I would say pray for the glory of God. If you think of God glorifying himself in history and you say where in all of history has God must glorified himself. He did it at the cross of Jesus Christ and it wasn't by delivering Jesus from the cross that we could have. Jesus said, don't you think I could call down from my father. 12 legions of angels from our defense, but he didn't do that. And yet that's where God is most glorified. If I roof to reflect on what goes on theologically here. There are two things I would stress one is the sovereignty of God. That's not novel. We talked about the sovereignty of God here forever. God is in charge when things like this come into our lives, they are not accidental. It's not as if God somehow forgot what was going on. Something slip by. God does everything according to his will. We've always said that but what I been impressed with mostly is something in addition to that is possible in it to conceive as God of God is sovereign and yet in different gods in charge, but he doesn't care. But it's not that God is not only the one who's in charge. God is also good. Everything he does is good. If God does something in your life would you change it if you change it make it worse. It wouldn't be so good. So that's the way one accepted and move forward. And who knows what God will do. Jesus drank Gethsemane's cup that we might die like James Boyce. Jesus drank Gethsemane's cup so that we might drink the cup of redemption. Praise God this pray heavenly father we thank you for this precious passage of Scripture that teaches us of the agony that Jesus went through as he was preparing getting ready to go to the cross, father, that agony is something beyond anything that we can even begin to imagine and help us Lord, that we might be ever thankful for what Jesus did, I thank you Lord that you did not give him the privilege of going another route, but Lord you held him to the cross and it was tough and it was hard but once his agony. Gethsemane was over the cross was before, during, and nothing inhaler on earth could stopping. We thank you for that. Resolve. We thank you for his courage. We thank you for Jesus is love to guide us and direct us Lord in this life. Pray heavenly father is we continue to minister in a very strange and weird time in our history that you would give us guidance and direction bring people into our past that we might witness and father, may we witness of what Jesus did for us that other people might know him and loving and other people might be same for all of eternity.

Help us Lord in all that we do. We love you Jesus, thank you for loving us and it's in your holy and precious thing we pray. Amen