Corona Chronicles - Crown of Thorns

Welcome to Corona Chronicles. We've called this series The Crown of Thorns, as you'll know if you've been watching regularly because we're following the son of man as he approaches the cross where he was to die for our sins. And we are now really close to that that moment, we're in the Garden of gethsemane as as Jesus is preparing for his hour, the hour of his suffering. And we're going to pick up the story in verse 32. And after just hearing about Peter's denial of Jesus, and now now we're gonna see a bit more of the disciples with Jesus.

So verse 32, they went to a place called gethsemane and Jesus said to his disciples sit here while I pray. He took Peter James and John along with him and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death, he said to them. Stay here and keep watch. Going a little further, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. Abba father, he said, everything is possible for you.

Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will but what you will. Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. Simon, he said to Peter, are you asleep? Couldn't you keep watch for 1 hour?

Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. When he came back he again found them sleeping because their eyes were heavy they did not know what to say to him. Returning the third time he said to them, are you still sleeping and resting?

Enough. The hour has come. Look, the son of man is delivered into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go. Here comes my betrayer.

I think this is I mean, it is sort of like the mingling of 2 worlds, isn't it? Yeah. You could call it that. Yeah. It's it's a very, very powerful passage.

And I guess I guess in in my time as a preacher, It's interesting when you come to this passage how powerful it is, I think. Mhmm. And how people sort of sit up and listen to what's going on here because it is though 2 worlds mingling. So you've got Jesus deliberately going to this place called Bethhenic, gethsemane. Or the mount of olives as it's it's called in in in another place.

It's sort of garden. Mhmm. And we're back in a garden and you've got this massive tearing, haven't you? Of of Christ, this trouble that he's going through. I mean, the words that are used there in verse 33, deeply distressed and troubled are absolutely they're they're drowning words.

Right. They they really are very very strong. Where, you know, it's it's like a man that's in the sea drowning been down 3 times already. His lungs are full of water. Mhmm.

He's spluttering them. They're they're they're they're the strength of those words overwhelmed with sorrow. To the point of death. Now, he's going to die, but he nearly died. And there's this overwhelming sense of of doom, if you like, and destruction, and going on in Christ.

It's it's You've we've never seen him like this before, have we? No. I think that is 1 of the reasons that it is so moving to read and to talk about because Although Jesus has looked out at the crowds and he's felt this gut wrench and compassion for them. He's wept at the funeral of his friends. He's rejoiced in feasting with people to to read to read about his own emotional life.

Is quite a powerful thing and particularly because up to this point when he's spoken about the cross. Matter of fact is a is a wrong way to describe it, but he he's been very much in control of what's happening, and he knows what's gonna happen to him. And we just read statements like, the son of man will be handed over, he will die, he will rise. And it's all just but this this takes us into what what he felt as he approached that moment. It's not just a matter of a fact end of the line thing he was gonna do.

This this was the very reason he came. And we can see here in this moment both both the the the anguish of of a man you know, a true man who is going to face the torture of the cross in all of its physical agony, but in the spiritual agony of bearing the wrath of God for for our sins. And all and all the horrors of that, but also a kind of the son of God who is still sovereign and and knows that his hour, this is his hour. He knows why he's come. He's going to this cross.

And and so he's both shrinking away and setting his face at the same time, isn't he? And both are here in in this person this person of Christ. Yeah. Because nothing like this has ever happened. He's going to be divided from his father.

He's going to be, as we'll see, you know, later on, crying out, my God, my God. I'm abandoned. And so, you know, he just this isn't just death. You know, this is this is the judgment of the father is gonna come upon him. He talks about You'd -- Yeah.

-- drink on the cup and stuff like that. It's it's imagery of of drinking that poisonous cup that got got the father is going to give him. So, you know, this and I I I mean, in this, you see so much. That's the trouble. It's hard to quite know where to go.

I mean, you just see what sin is like. Because here's the pure son of God, gonna gonna take the sin of the world. And so, you know, we play with sin. We think it's fun. And we're playing not with fire.

We're playing with hellfire. Mhmm. We're playing with wrath of God stuff. And Jesus really understands he pares back. This isn't fun, sin isn't fun, sin is the thing that separates you from God.

And so this whole business of him going to do that is overwhelming. He's drowning in this this this idea. This this is this is e even I mean, this is the interesting thing, isn't it? Even for the perfect son of God and all that we've seen of him, is power and his miracles and how he rules the world. You know, he can say to a sea, be calm, storm, be calm, and how he can raise the dead and how So this powerful son of God, when it comes to having sin put on him and the wrath of God taking for that sin, this is overwhelming.

Stuff. And so, you know, when we play with sin and we laugh about hell and we laugh about the judgment of God or we belittle those things, He's not belittling them. But this is troubling this very 1. Do you know what I mean? Yeah.

I do. Yeah. And and there's so much in here as you say about you know, about his relationship with with God the father and that you've got that intimate word in verse 36, abba father. Even then he's he's using that that kind of daddy word to show the intimacy of his his fellowship with the father. And yet in just few chapters time as you say.

He's gonna be forsaken of the father. And so there's so much in here about the sort of inner inner workings of the trinity as well, isn't there? Yeah. And of course, although it's not mentioned, the Holy Spirit is equipping him for his ministry. Came upon him right at the beginning of his public ministry and is equipping him for all that he's doing, even strengthening him for for the for the sufferings of the cross.

And And I mean, so it says in verse 35 going a little further, he fell to the ground and prayed. It's almost like fainting, isn't it? Yeah. If possible, if possible, the hour might pass from him. It's so it's so The tension, isn't it?

Yeah. It is. Yeah. And and he knows, you know, this is why you know you go into some of those kind of orthodox churches perhaps and you see Jesus just looking sort of serene and disconnected. Yeah.

It's almost like a Christian Buddhist. Yeah. You know, you read this and you just think that is not what he was like. What he was a true man. And this was a true suffering, and he knew what he was going through, and he's shrinking back from it.

And he's wanting it to pass from and can't bear the thoughts of what's to come. And yet, as the sovereign God, knowing the will of God, he is he is going to go through with this for our sakes. Yeah. And so you've got both there. And I suppose it's easy to this is a great place just to understand Jesus, isn't it?

I think so. And and they understand the cross and understand sin and who kinds of things, you know, take this cup from me if it is possible. Yet not what I will, but your will be done. He's submitting to the father's will. Yeah.

And and let's be honest, if if if he didn't go through this, we would have to go through this forever -- Yeah. -- for all eternity. So this is this is a savior This is a rescuer. This is 1 who understands hell more than we understand it and and and is saying I'm gonna step, I'm gonna step in here. I'm gonna step in the wrath of God for you.

And not someone who does it casually or even just sort of instinctively if you like. He he knows what he's going to go through and the horror of being separated from the father. He's stepping in for us. So we need to understand this. This is an amazing savior.

And, you know, sometimes we say, you know, look what Jesus did on the cross for us. Of course, we speak that and that's right. But it mustn't be casual. You know, this is this is a magnificent savior he loves you this much. Oh, we'll come back to this next time.