A Lesson on Love – A Submitting Heart
In Mark 14, Peter, James and John are taken by the Saviour to witness a scene different from the two previous occasions we have examined. It is not a house filled with joy, where they saw the power of the saving Servant and learned a lesson about faith. Nor is it a high mountain filled with majesty, where they observed the glory of the sovereign Servant and learned a lesson about hope. Instead, it is a garden filled with sorrow, where they saw the obedience of the suffering Servant and learned a lesson about love.
Departure to the Place
The Lord Jesus had been gathered in the upper room with the twelve disciples, keeping the Passover, and after Judas went out into the darkness of the night to betray the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper (1Co 11:23-25). And after sharing as much teaching as the eleven could bear, He left with them, after “they had sung a hymn.”1
They walked outside the city, crossed the brook Kidron, and arrived at the Mount of Olives. As they walked, the Saviour spoke to them about how they would be offended, fulfilling Zechariah 13:7. The Saviour was preparing the disciples for what was to come, reassuring them of His resurrection and that He would see them again. However, they did not receive His words easily. Peter spoke first, but then Mark tells us, “Likewise also said they all” (Mar 14:31).
Designation of the Place
Mark then tells us that “they came to a place which was named Gethsemane” (“place of olive presses,” Newberry) – a fitting name for a place where olives would have been crushed to produce olive oil. Yet more significantly, this was where the Lord Jesus felt the weight of a cup His Father had given Him to drink.
Having entered the place, He told eight of the disciples to sit while He took Peter, James and John and went a little further. Being “sore amazed, and … very heavy” (v33), He said to them, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch” (v34). The Lord Jesus wanted these three men to be alert so they could witness what was about to happen. He desired them to see, hear and understand the gravity of what He was about to endure.
Dependence at the Place
Moving “forward a little” (v35) from the three, He fell on the ground and prayed. While Hebrews 5:7 may not be confined to this occasion, since the writer mentions “the days of his flesh” we can’t help but see that it was true in Gethsemane. The writer tells us that “he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears.”
He never wavered in His trust, for He said, “Abba,2 Father,” an expression that conveyed His intimacy, affection and utter reliance on His Father. He never wavered in truth, for He added, “all things are possible unto thee” (v36).
Distress in the Place
But what was the Saviour considering? What caused Him to be “sorrowful unto death”? The answer is stated: Mark mentions “the hour” (v35), and specifically, the Saviour prayed, “Take away this cup from me” (v36). The phrase “the hour” refers to the season of the suffering, while “the cup” represents the substance of the suffering. The OT often depicts God’s wrath as a cup that He would pour out, which others would consume (Isa 51:17; Jer 25:15). The distress in Gethsemane was not about contemplating a cup that God would give to those who deserved it, but rather that this cup would be given to One who never deserved it. When we remember that this is the impeccable Servant of Jehovah, whom the Scriptures clearly describe as He “who did no sin” (1Pe 2:22), “who knew no sin” (2Co 5:21), and in whom “is no sin” (1Jn 3:5), we begin to appreciate why this sinless One is “sore amazed, and … very heavy.” He was contemplating “this cup” from which He would drink on Golgotha’s tree.
Devotion from the Place
Yet, observe what the Lord Jesus said next: “nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mar 14:36). From such a heart of unwavering dependence came these precious words of unquestionable devotion. When He first came from glory, His words were, “I delight to do thy will” (Psa 40:8). Now, in His darkest hour of sorrow, He still speaks: “Not my will, but thine, be done” (Luk 22:42). Isn’t this how He taught His disciples to pray? “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Mat 6:10). He subjected Himself to His Father’s will, demonstrating pure devotion.
O wondrous sight that meets our gaze
The Son of God, in sore amaze,
Lies prostrate in Gethsemane
And weeps and sweats in agony!
Submissive to His Father’s will
He shows His deep devotion still.3
After uttering such words of unparalleled devotion, the Saviour returned to the three disciples, and on the three occasions He came to them He found them sleeping. Sadly, they failed to “watch … and pray” (v38), and, as a result, when the time of great testing arrived – when the Saviour was arrested – they “all forsook him, and fled” (v50).
We believe that this event in Gethsemane left a lasting impression on these three men. Although they did not understand the lesson at the time, upon later reflection they undoubtedly appreciated the love demonstrated by the Saviour there and desired to reflect that love in their lives.
Of these three privileged men, it is John who expresses the truth of love in his writings. While he doesn’t explicitly mention the garden experience in his epistles, he does focus on the love that characterized the Saviour. Writing in 1 John 2:5-6, he states, “But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” That is how the Lord Jesus walked, in obedience and in love to His Father. And it should be the same for us; out of love for the One who has loved us, we keep His word, obey His will, and strive to reflect Christlikeness in our lives.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV unless otherwise noted.
2 Mark gives us eight Aramaic expressions throughout his Gospel: “Boanerges” (3:17), “Talitha cumi” (5:41), “Corban” (7:11), “Ephphatha” (7:34), “Bartimaeus” (10:46), “Abba” (14:36), “Golgotha” (15:22), and “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani” (15:34).
3 Alexander Munro
