Winning Spiritual Battles
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2015 · 17 May 2015
Isaiah 53 describes the suffering of Jesus Christ. It uses words like this, despised, rejected, esteemed not, stricken, smitten, afflicted, wounded, bruised, scourged, oppressed, slaughtered, imprisoned, judged, and cut off or killed. Sin, disease, unbelief, doubt, disobedience and rejection were all around him all through his ministry. But no sorrow previously felt can match the pain of this last week, and as we enter into an understanding of the sufferings of Christ we have to begin in the Garden of Gethsemane and so turn to Matthew 26 again.
Before Jesus came to the cross, He came to the garden, and we get a better understanding of his suffering on the cross by understanding his suffering in the garden. When we understand his suffering in the garden we get a deep insight into how painful the cross would be. We get a great insight into how greatly He loved the father, how devoted He was to the father's will, how greatly He and the father loved sinners. And we also learn from Him how to face the biggest temptation ourselves and triumph as He did.
Here as he faces the cross we find him at the deepest point of sorrow in his life to this point. This is sacred ground. It is also very personal. The disciples weren't even there, although they were nearby. We wouldn't know anything about this if Jesus hadn't given it to the writers of the gospel record. Here is a profound look at Jesus' humanity. We say much about his deity but not much about his humanity. Here are the deepest most profound insights into the humanity of Jesus given anywhere.
Here we see him, who in all points is tempted like as we are yet without sin. Here we see him being equipped to be a merciful high priest who can be touched with the feelings of our infirmities. Here we see him as man, suffering the agony of temptation, and yet triumphant in his trust in God. He shows us here how to battle Satan and trust God at the same time. So in Matthew 26 we will do our best to look deeply into the heart of our savior.
Verse 36-40, "Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.38 Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. 40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour?”
Verse 41- 46, “41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. 45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on.[e] See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
The lesson from Jesus was a very direct lesson. They were going to see how he faced temptation, how he dealt with it, and so he took them into this his darkest hour. Now we have focused our thoughts on several important words. The first word is sorrow which we discussed last week. As they start up the slope of the Mount of Olives, all of the sudden the anticipation of Calvary begins to weigh heavy upon the Lord. And it says in verse 37, "And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.”
Our Lord’s soul is totally repulsed by the thought of dying on the cross and it isn't because he hates the thought of physical pain. It is because he hates the thought of the wrath of God being poured on him. The alienation and separation from one to whom he is eternally linked as God of very God, the thought of having his absolute sinless being scarred by the wrath of God as he bears the punishment for all believers. There is a severe loneliness that comes over him.
Think about all the things that made him grieve. The defection of Judas, the desertion of the 11 disciples, the denial by Peter, and then the rejection of the nation Israel. Here is Israel's Messiah who came to redeem his people instead by them is rejected and murdered. And then he could be depressed by the injustice of men, to be cheated by petty courts and bribed judges and witnesses and men whose lies deny him justice.
Think about the cursing and the mocking, and the depression of suffering. Here is the eternal companion of God, the Father, and the Holy Spirit who will now feel the accumulated pain of the wrath of God from all the sins of all time. Think of the punishment of God expressed on the cross by the words, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus Christ is here experiencing the pain he anticipates on the cross, and this alone is suffering enough.
The agony is such that in verse 38 He said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” It means He was overwhelmed with sorrow, and surrounded by sadness, and engulfed with distress. How serious is it? Enough to kill Him. Now on the cross He didn't die from the nails. He didn't die from the crown of thorns on his head. He didn't die from the lashing on his back. He didn't die from the spear in his side, no He was already dead.
What did he die from? He didn't die from long hours of asphyxiation although that is the way crucified victims eventually died. He died very fast for a crucified victim. He died of an exploded heart because of the stress, of the agony of the cross. The anguish even here before he gets to the cross is severe enough to threaten his life. Sorrow grips the scene and that leads to a second word, supplication. Verse 39 says, “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
And now He is alone. His grief grows. Jesus is simply saying is there any other way? Does it have to be this? He's not asking to avoid the redemptive work. He is just asking if there is another way to accomplish it. If it is possible doesn't mean in the sense of power, but if it is possible in the sense of the plan is there any other way. If there is let this cup pass from me. But Jesus in Matthew 20:19 said that He would be delivered to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified.”
In John 12:27 Jesus said, “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.” God am I asking you to deliver me from this hour of redemption? No, this is why I came, but is there any other way to do it? And then his wonderful response, "not as I will, but as You will." There's the commitment to do the Father's will. Complete and perfect obedience. At this point Luke 22:44 tells us He began to sweat great drops of blood.
Unbelievable anguish. Luke immediately says in verse 43, "And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.” God had to intervene at that moment to keep him alive, the agony was so profound. And so Jesus prayed and after this prayer he returned to the three disciples. Matthew 26:40-41 says, “And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
So verse 42-43 says, “Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.” Now Jesus is more resolved. His first prayer was let it pass, his second one was if it cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done. It is hard to imagine what the pain of the actual sin bearing might be when this pain seems so far beyond comprehension and the pain of the cross was much more.
So verse 44 says, “So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.” Sometimes people will ask me how many times do you need to pray. Doesn't God hear you the first time? Of course He does. The issue here is not whether God hears you. The issue here is the passion of the heart. He in the midst of the battle of temptation. He does not want to feel the full fury of the wrath of God poured out upon him.
What was his spiritual battle like? Hebrews 5:7-10 tells us, “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although He was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10 being designated by God a high priest.”
Here you see His profound love for the father and willingness to do His will. You see His profound love for unworthy sinners as He anticipates what He will suffer. There is unrelenting agony together with the resolution to keep the will of God the Father. Waves of Satanic attack. Remember in the first temptation Satan came to him three times. This seems to bear the same mark, three times again.
From sorrow to supplication, and now to the third word that helps us see into this tremendous occasion, it is the word sleep. It characterizes not Jesus this time, but His disciples. Verse 40, “And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And He said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with Me one hour?” It is natural to sleep after midnight especially after a very busy week. Compounded by a huge Passover meal and then a long walk up a hill. Luke adds something more about their sleep. Luke 22:45 adds, "They were asleep for sorrow." They cried themselves to sleep.
Verse 40, “And He said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with Me one hour?” Verse 43-44, "After the second time of prayer he came back and found them sleeping for their eyes were heavy. 44 So he went back and prayed again saying the same thing." Verse 45, “Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on.” At the crisis moment in life, are you sleeping?
Jesus says, “Stay awake, this is crisis time, Satan is active, demons are active.” Never have they been more active than they are right now as we get close to the redemptive work of the cross. All hell is geared up, you better be awake. You cannot be indifferent to My struggle, indifferent to your own struggle, the impending defection. But they were, in their sorrow and self-pity, they just collapsed.
In all spiritual battles the victory goes to the vigilant, not the sleepers. How many times does Jesus say, "Wake up." We have to know what is going on around us. We have to understand the times and the seasons and the movements of the enemy and the important issues. Keep your eyes open. We cannot be unprepared for the crafty schemes of Satan. But the disciples were. They should have been praying, but they were sleeping and when temptation came, they fell. They weren't ready.
Sorrow, supplication, sleep, and then a final triumphant word, strength takes us to the conclusion. They were weak, but Jesus was strong. Verse 45, “Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.” It is happening right now. And we know Jesus has defeated the hosts of hell; He stands covered with bloody sweat on His face and dripped over His clothing. He is courageously ready to face the cross. The last temptation is over.
The cup was in his hands. He had drunk it and there was no trembling. The son of man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners, He could see at that very moment through the olive trees the torches in the hands of the crowd that were coming led by Judas. The son of man has committed himself to the father's will. He has come through the last temptation with strength and in verse 46 He says, "Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
Jesus is saying, "Let us go meet them. The hour of redemption has come.” Do you remember when He met them in John 18:4-5 He said, "Whom do you seek?" 5 And they said, "Jesus of Nazareth." And He said, "I am He." Matthew 26: 47-49, “While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. 48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” 49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed Him. ”
That infamous kiss. Jesus saw it coming and walked right toward it. What is the key to this? What are we learning here? We want to see the power of Christ over Satan. We want to see the power of his love for the father over his own fears. We want to see the greatness of his love for sinners. But there is a lesson for us here that is basic and profound. We saw how He dealt with temptation so we can deal with it too.
Jesus said it to the disciples in verse 41, and He says it to us too, "Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." What was Jesus doing up there when he was battling temptation? He was praying. Alert, awake, understanding what was going on and praying with all the passion of his great heart.
Do you want to be victorious over the devil? You want to be triumphant in your Christian life? The Lord has taught you this great lesson. In the private intimate moments of his own struggle with Satan in the wilderness He showed you need the word of God in your life because if you will have those principals engrained in you it will lead you toward righteousness.
Secondly, even though you have good intentions, your spirit may be willing, but your flesh is miserably weak. You cannot stand on good intentions. You cannot stand on your own self of confidence. Throw yourself before God and cry out for deliverance from the strength of temptation. We are not Jesus Christ, so pray always. Let us pray now.