| International Sunday School Lessons |
Lesson for March 10, 1940
Gethsemane
Triumph Through Surrender
Matthew 26:36-46
GOLDEN TEXT: “Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”—Matthew 26:39
THE MASTER’S Gethsemane experience seemed to reveal to Him the ignominious phase of His earthly ministry more vividly than He previously had realized it. From the time of His baptism at Jordan, when the heavens were opened to Him, and He was impelled by the Spirit to retire into the wilderness for meditation and study, He had known that He was to die for the sins of the people. To this fact He had been reconciled from the first, knowing definitely that it was the Father’s will for Him; and in the Father’s will He delighted.
But in Gethsemane He sensed more clearly what was to he involved in the drinking of “this cup,” and here it was that in earnest, humble prayer He unburdened His heart to the Father asking that “if it be possible” the burden might, to some extent, be made lighter.
But, that the Master did not, for a moment, waver in His determination to carry out the divine will no matter what the cost might be, is indicated in His words, “nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.” To His consecrated heart there was only one thing possible and that was the doing of His Father’s will. It was simply that there was a slight uncertainty in His mind as to all the might be involved in His course of full obedience.
In this connection it is well to observe that had Jesus been God Himself the entire Gethsemane experience would be made to appear as a sham, a hypocritical farce. It is only as we accept without reservation the clearly established Scriptural fact that Jesus was the Son of God, and not God Himself, that this and other experiences during His earthly career are understandable.
While Jesus was perfect—“holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners”—He did not possess full knowledge of the divine will and plan until after His death and resurrection. Then He said, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” (Heb. 7:26; Matt. 28:18) But before this, the Master did not possess full power and knowledge. He explained to His disciples, for example, that He did not at that time know the time of His second advent. This knowledge was still sealed up in the mind of His Father.
So we are not surprised to find the Master praying in such a way as to indicate that He was not sure of the exact nature of the experiences to be exacted of Him by the divine will. He knew that there must be no drawing back; and He knew, furthermore, that the Father’s sustaining grace would bear Him up and onward to victory no matter how crushing might be the blows that would fall upon Him. But, not being sure that what He saw coming was the divine will, He laid the whole matter before the Father, seeking direction and help.
The experiences of the past few days had made it clear to Jesus that even His own disciples could not be relied upon to stand with Him. Already He knew of the mission which Judas was even then carrying out. While Jesus knew that He was to die as man’s Redeemer, He perhaps wondered if it were also necessary that He be betrayed by one of His own disciples. True, this had been foretold in the prophecies, and Jesus had agreed to do all that was written of Him “in the volume of the book”; but in this hour of trial He sought divine confirmation and help that He might meet the tests with the fortitude that springs out of a clear and certain vision of the path of duty that lies ahead.
The prophet had also said concerning Jesus that He would be “despised and rejected of men,” but it may he that not until the experiences which culminated in Gethsemane did Jesus realize so fully the extent to which He was to be “despised.” He had been law-abiding, had injured no one in word or in deed. He had given freely of His strength in teaching and healing the people. He had done good unto all men as He had opportunity, and had endeavored specially to minister to His disciples. But now He was about to be despised and deserted; yea, to be accused and put to death as a malefactor. No wonder that for the moment He said, “If it be possible, let this cup pass from Me.”
In Hebrews 5:7 the apostle explains concerning Jesus’ Gethsemane experience that “He offered up strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save Him from death, and was heard in that He feared.” Evidently Jesus did not fear the death that He was to die as man’s Redeemer, for the Father did not save Him from this death. The thought is that Jesus, in addition to the other tests that weighed down upon Him in Gethsemane was somewhat troubled with the thought that perhaps He had not been wholly faithful to the Father, hence would die eternally. Possibly the fleeting thought expressed in His prayer—“let this cup pass from Me”—caused the Master to “fear” that He had been in a measure unfaithful.
But oh, how gloriously did Jesus finally triumph in Gethsemane! And truly, as the heading of our lesson indicates, it was a triumph through surrender—the surrendering of His own will in order that His Father’s will might take full possession of the issues of His life. And when He had thus triumphed, the angels ministered unto Him. It mattered not then that His own disciples did not watch with Him, nor that Judas was leading a mob to arrest Him. In fact, nothing mattered except the carrying out of the divine will.
Now Jesus realized fully, if He had not done so before, that He was to be led as “a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb,” He was to open not His mouth. (Isa. 53:7) Realizing this to be the divine will for Him He surrendered to it, and in surrender, found victory.
QUESTIONS:
What is there in Jesus’ Gethsemane experience that proves He was not God, the Father?
Was it necessary for Jesus to be despised by His fellow men in order to redeem the human race?
In Hebrews 5:7 the apostle says that Jesus feared death. Does this mean that He was afraid to die?
In what sense can it he said that the Master surrendered and thereby was victorious?