“And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if you are 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.” – Luke 22:41-44
Today is Maundy Thursday, which remembers the day before the crucifixion of Jesus. The English word Maundy appears to derive from the same word as “mandate”, and refers to Jesus giving us His new commandment to love one another (John 13:34). On Maundy Thursday, Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, they ate the Last Supper together, Jesus taught and prayed for His disciples then and now, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray amongst the olive trees, Jesus was betrayed and arrested, Jesus was denied by Peter, and Jesus was tried illegally and held overnight at the house of Caiaphas.
The most poignant time of that day is perhaps the one described in these verses when Jesus knelt among the olive trees and prayed for God to take this cup away from Him. “This cup” is the cup of suffering He will soon experience: arrest, beating, mocking, scourging, and agonizing crucifixion. “This cup” is the cup of God’s wrath, stored up for all of our sin and poured out on Jesus as He hung on the cross to pay for all the wrong that we’ve ever done.
Jesus knew what lay ahead. He did not desire it, but He embraced God’s will and eternal plan to bring salvation through His suffering death on a cross. Though He prayed for another way, He embraced that God’s will led inexorably to the cross. The gravity of what lay ahead was so great his sweat became like drops of blood and an angel was sent to strengthen Him in time of prayer. Here in the Garden we see the enormous burden of what it cost for God to forgive our sins through Jesus Christ!