This morning as we continue our message series on “Retracing the Steps of Jesus,” we are leaving the region of Galilee where Jesus carried out the majority of his earthly ministry and we are going to examine some observations that we can make from an area just outside of Jerusalem called the Mount of Olives.
We are introduced to the Mount of Olives in the NT portion of the Bible in Matthew’s gospel:
As Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead. “Go into the village over there,” he said. “As soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey tied there, with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them to me. Matthew 21:1-2 NLT
What I didn’t realize fully until going to Israel was that this Mountain ridge outside of Jerusalem is covered with Olive Trees and that is why it is called the Mount of Olives. This is the location of the villages of Bethany (the home of Jesus good friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus). And in this previous passage that we just read it was also the location of the town Bethphage.
This was also the beginning point of his triumphal entry into Jesus at the beginning of his last week prior to his death on the cross. It was here that he got on a donkey and rode into Jerusalem. As our group of pilgrims, were walking down the Mount of Olives, we saw a donkey on the road, little did I realize that this photo would cost me a $1 and so I wanted to make sure that I got my dollars worth this morning. (See Pictures Below)
From the Mount of Olives, you can see the Kidron Valley that separates the Mount of Olives from Mount Zion the location of the city of Jerusalem and yet while in the Mount of Olives you find yourselves in a peaceful serene atmosphere nestled in the midst of the groves of olive trees. No wonder that while Jesus was in Jerusalem, he would spend his evenings with friends in this peaceful setting. (Show Pictures)
This morning we are going to learn from Jesus as he frequently visited the Mount of Olives and treated it as his place of prayer, and in fact we have recorded in the Bible one of his most famous prayers that was prayed in this place. This morning, we want to ask ourselves five practical life application questions as we examine Jesus’ prayer as he felt extremely burdened by the task that lay ahead for him. So our first question this morning is …
1. What causes your heart to be worried and burdened?
Let’s read in the Bible from Matthew 26:36, about what burdened Jesus …
Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, “Sit here while I go over there to pray.” He took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Matthew 26:36-38 NLT
First of all it is important for us to notice that the specific olive grove Jesus prayed was called Gethsemane. The word Gethsemane means - “oil press”. I learned during my pilgrimage to Israel that the way Olive Oil was extracted from the Olives was in an Olive press. This is what an olive press looked like … (Show Pictures). The farmer would place the Olives in the press and then place a series of weights on top of the olives. In fact they would give the first oil that was extracted from the olives by the first weight was given to the priest. The oil extracted by the second heavier weight would be used for food and cooking. The oil extracted by the third yet heavier weight would be used for lamp oil. And the oil extracted by the final heaviest weight would be used to make soap, so that nothing would be wasted.
Interestingly enough Jesus describes the burden that he felt in his heart for the human race prior to going to the cross as a crushing wine press weight. Understandably so, Jesus said … “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death.” It is important to note that Jesus was a willing participant in His sacrificial death on the cross, and yet that does not mean it was an easy task or decision. It was an act of sacrificial love, with great cost and since Jesus, the Son of God, became human or flesh, then he had to struggle with his human desires of self-preservation. And yet the good news is that his love for us overcame his human desire to avoid pain and death.
What is it in your life that leads you to fill like you are being crushed under the weight of the world? Is it the burden of caring for other people as Jesus carried? Is it worries that you are facing at work? Is it the burden of taking care of elderly parents? Is it worries about your marriage? Is it worries about your children? Is it the burden of debt that you feel from past poor financial decisions? Is it worries about your family’s financial situation? What is it that causes you to feel burdened and worried?
And maybe an even more important question: How do you handle the burdens of this life? Do you look for the answer within yourself? Do you look for comfort from a bottle or overeating or some addiction? Or do you follow Jesus example of turning to His Father in Heaven to find comfort, relief, and direction? Let’s look at how Jesus relied on the Father during times of prayer and let’s look at the specific question:
2. How did Jesus pray?
He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Matthew 26:39 NLT
What did you notice? First of all Jesus approached His Father in a personal (“My Father”), and yet reverent way. He bowed with his face to the ground … can you picture it?
When is the last time you got down on your knees and put your face on the floor or ground and prayed to the One who can really lift you up and remove the burdens of life?
It is good to have time that we kneel before God in prayer … and yet more important than our bodily posture is the posture of our heart.
The story is told of a little boy, who got in trouble with his parents and the little boy had to sit in a time-out chair in the corner of the room. The defiant little boy told his parents, I might be sitting down on the outside, but I am standing up on the inside!
Possibly more important than us kneeling on the outside is that we are kneeling on the inside with our face to the ground before God our Father!
The Hebrew writer recorded Jesus attitude in prayer as:
During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Hebrews 5:7 NIV
When is the last time you bowed and cried out to the One who can deliver you from the burdens and worries of your life and truly prayed for deliverance? Jesus was heard because of his reverent submission. Does that describe your approach to His Father and Our Father in Heaven?
Another important application for us on this question … is that Jesus took his closest friends to pray with him. During this intense time in Jesus’ life, he takes some close friends aside to pray with them. Not only do we need to approach the LORD with reverent submission, but there is great power available through turning to close friends of faith during intense times of our lives. If Jesus needed others around him in prayer … How much more so us!
When is the last time you confided in a friend some challenges you are facing (some burdens and worries) and ask someone else to pray for you? There is tremendous power found in prayer and for many of us we have not tapped into the source of strength and comfort available through asking others to pray for us!
In fact, this morning, I would like to ask for your prayers on a couple of matters: First … please pray that the LORD will give me the wisdom I need to be a godly leader of the Southwest Church helping us become a church of major impact reaching out to this community and surrounding communities. Specifically, for this fall, please pray for us to wisely choose our church wide message focus and small group material for this upcoming fall.
Also, please join me in praying that we will not simply (only) have love, serve, share as our purpose statement, but that will be consistently demonstrating what it means to be a church that is committed to love, serve, and share!! In fact, we welcome your prayers as we are seeking a new church logo that we will plan on unveiling as we get closer to the opening of our new Worship and Community Center. We plan to incorporate those three words (love, serve, share) into our logo and yet we want to make sure that we don’t simply have these words on our bulletin and on a logo, but that we are living it out in our lives individually and collectively!!!
This brings us to our next life application question surfaced from this text …
3. Why is it important that you consistently pray?
Then he returned to the disciples and found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!” Matthew 26:40-41 NLT
Jesus tells us the answer … it is because although our spirit is willing, in and of ourselves we are weak! Now let me pause there for a minute: Some of us have to be honest that at times we struggle with having “willing hearts” or “willing spirits.” But here is good news we can also pray for a heart that is willing to obey God as well! King David of Israel was described as a man after God’s own heart, but on one occasion he prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. … Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.” Psalm 51:10, 12 NLT
If you are seeking God for the first time or for the first time in a long time and you are having trouble getting your heart into this whole God thing … maybe a beginning point for you, is to take the “David Challenge” and to simply pray … ”LORD, Give me a Willing Heart!” “LORD, make me willing to obey you!”
And for those of you who are seeking after God’s lead in your life, and yet you like these early friends of Jesus find yourself willing and yet at times incredibly weak, then recognize that there is a direct correlation between the amount of time you spend praying to God and your ability to say “No” to temptation! What is that temptation in your life that keeps tripping you up? Have you specifically asked the LORD’s help to “deliver you from that temptation?” Remember Jesus taught us to pray: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Matthew 6:13 NIV
How much have you been praying for God’s deliverance in that area of weakness in your life? It is amazing to me how there is a direct correlation between the amount of time that I spend praying for strength in the face of temptation and deliverance and the victories that I experience.
Why is it important that you & I consistently pray? … So we can tap into God’s strength!
Our fourth life application question this morning is …
4. What are you doing when you should be praying?
Let’s read about what Jesus’ friends were doing while he was having this intense time of prayer:
Then Jesus left them a second time and prayed, “My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open.
So he went to pray a third time, saying the same things again. Then he came to the disciples and said, “Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But look—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!” Matthew 26:42-46 NLT
For these guys, Peter, James, and John, they were sleeping when they should have been praying with Jesus!! Maybe for some of us we have been sleeping when we should be praying. Possibly, we are sleeping up to the very last possible moment prior to going to school or work and we are walking into our work day trusting in our own strength, as opposed to being clothed with God’s power as the result of spending some time in the morning getting our hearts focused in God’s word and strengthened by a time of prayer.
What else can we be filling up our time with that is robbing us from strength found in prayer? Possibly watching TV shows, sporting events, spending time on line playing games or on facebook. Now am I saying that those things are wrong? NO … not in and of themselves, but if we call ourselves follower of Jesus and yet we find ourselves spending hours every evening watching television or spending hours on line, but we don’t have time to spend 15 minutes in prayer with the giver and sustainer of life, then something is wrong about our priorities.
What are you doing when you should be praying?
And finally let’s learn from this passage …
5. What is the result of not praying?
Jesus said, “My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for.”
Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him. But one of the men with Jesus pulled out his sword and struck the high priest’s slave, slashing off his ear.
“Put away your sword,” Jesus told him. “Those who use the sword will die by the sword. Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly? But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled that describe what must happen now?” Matthew 26:50-54 NLT
Following Jesus time in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is prayed up and ready to face the incredible challenges ahead. Peter, on the other hand, who was snoozing when he should have been praying, resorts to pulling out a sword and trying to use a physical weapon to fight a spiritual battle. I like what the Apostle Paul later wrote in the Bible:
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 NIV
As you go through your day, are you tapping into divine power or are you simply fighting with the weapons of this world?
My concern is that there are many powerless, defeated, burnt-out Christians, because they are failing to tap into the divine power that is available to the follower of Christ. Are you willing to put the effort to develop a prayer life as we get serious as a church what it means to follow Jesus?!
In closing, I want to share with you something that is one of my souvenirs from my time in Israel. This is a rock that I found on the Mount of Olives in the Garden of Gethsemane.
We had about 30 minutes to read, pray, and meditate on the significance of this place.
After reading through this prayer in Matthew 26 (and Mark 14 & Luke 19), I found the tree that I thought would have looked like the one that Jesus possibly knelt in prayer in this same garden. I knelt and prayed that the Lord would have his way in my life and that I would totally surrender to the LORD’s Will in my life. And I prayed “Not my will, but your will be done!”
After getting up from my time in prayer, I realized that I had my head resting on a little rock that was beside this tree. So I put in my pocket as a reminder of my meaningful time of surrender to the LORD’s Will. (Hold up rock and show the picture of rock near tree).
Have you surrendered to the LORD’s lead in your life? Today, Rick Stump is going to surrender his life to the Lordship of Christ by being obedient in baptism. Have you made that initial decision to follow Jesus and to surrender to his leadership in your life?
If not, then you are welcome to join Rick in his decision and be baptized today as well? If you have already made that decision, and yet you have fallen into the trap of trying to grow as a Christian by relying on your own power, if that true is of you, then possibly today is the day for you to truly bow on the inside and recognize your need to tap into the divine power that is only available in Christ!! Possibly for some of you today will be a breakthrough by either coming forward during this final song to ask for prayers and/or write down your prayer need on the communication card and pass it in during this song.
Let’s Pray!
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