Dread in the Garden of Gethsemane
What do you dread?
- The first day of school?
- Beginning a diet?
- Facing a new job?
- Speaking in front of a group?
No matter our circumstances, we all can plug in a memory that makes our palms sweat and our stomachs knot, where we’re forced to tiptoe through a tunnel laced with fear of the unknown.
Do you think Jesus felt dread on Thursday night following the Passover meal? Unlike us, He knew the future because He was God as well as man. As He entered the Garden of Gethsemane with His disciples, as was His custom, He encouraged them to pray that they not enter into temptation.
And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground ~ Luke 22:41-44, NASB.
Can you imagine drops of sweat turning into blood? I researched that condition and found that it’s indeed possible. Blood vessels clustered near the sweat glands can burst under extreme stress, producing bloody sweat. (To read more about drops of sweat turning into blood, follow this link.)
Luke, a physician, is the only apostle who includes this detail about Jesus. It lends understanding about the tremendous dread our Lord must have felt as He prepared to suffer and surrender His life for the sins of all mankind—past, present and future. God even sent an angel to minister strength to Him in that hour.
On this Maundy Thursday, let’s reverently give humble thanks to our precious Lord who willfully pressed through the dread of the coming Cross. There He would bear our sins, knowing He would face temporary separation from the Father—the price He willingly paid to redeem us at Calvary.
The precious blood of the Lamb sets us free from sin and death. My prayer is for all to find salvation in Jesus, God’s perfect Passover Lamb. These verses tell how:
…if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED” ~ Romans 10:9-13, NASB.
May God richly bless you this Easter season as together we worship our Lord and Saviour, Christ Jesus.
