Matthew 26; Mark 14 – November 8

Matthew 26:37 says Jesus, “…took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed.” In verse 38 Jesus says, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.” Before one blow to His face had come, before the crown of thorns was pressed into His skull, before they whipped the skin off His back, and before they drove the nails into Him, the sorrow of Jesus was so great that it brought Him close to death. Here in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus would be prepared to walk out what He was being asked to do by His Father. It appears that Jesus began to feel the weight of the sin of the world upon Himself and He consecrated Himself to the will of the Father in that distress. When Jesus found His disciples sleeping, He said to them, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." He pleaded for them to do what He was doing: to pray. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, but we find strength in God through prayer to stand against all life’s temptations. Jesus had to continue to press during this exceedingly distressful time of prayer, but as He did, He found strength to willingly lay down His life. Glory to God! He is able to keep us from stumbling as seek Him in prayer.