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Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed him. When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done." Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."
And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?" When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?" And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this." And He touched his ear and healed him. Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."
- Luke 22:39-53
In Thursday's reading, the Passover drew near. We read of Judas' betrayal of Jesus, and Jesus' preparation of the Passover for Himself and His disciples. On Friday, we read about the Last Supper, the institution of the Eucharist, and Jesus' words of warning to the one who betrays Him. In Saturday's reading, the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren." But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death." Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me." And He said to them, When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?" So they said, "Nothing." Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: 'And He was numbered with the transgressors.' For the things concerning Me have an end." So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords." And He said to them; "It is enough."
Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed him. When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." We remember that Jesus stays on the Mount of Olives, with the other pilgrims that have come to Jerusalem for the Passover. My study bible notes here: "One of the fundamental purposes of prayer is to strengthen us against temptation in terms of inner sin and outward trials." Repeatedly, there have been warnings in recent readings about temptation, and prayer as the weapon of strength both for ourselves and for others.
And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done." Jesus goes apart to pray, and to focus on His prayer. My study bible notes: "Jesus exemplifies what He taught in the Lord's Prayer -- 'Your will be done' (Luke 11:2)." It seems to me that can't divorce Jesus' inner feelings about what is to happen from His great concern about His disciples and their temptation to come.
Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation." My study bible says here: "These details, reported only By Luke, indicate the human agony of Jesus and the divine help given to Him as He contemplates His Crucifixion." And again, there is the repeated urging to His disciples to pray, in the face of the temptation to come.
And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?" A note here says, "Son of Man is an expression that Jesus used for Himself which could mean (1) simply 'man' -- that is, 'me' -- or (2) the heavenly figure of Daniel 7:13, a title which both revealed and veiled Jesus' messianic identity."
When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?" And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this." And He touched his ear and healed him. My study bible says that permit even this means "permit the arrest and let events take their course in fulfillment of God's will."
Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness." My study bible notes that "Luke reports only the Jewish participants of the arresting party, whereas John reveals a contingent of Roman soldiers was involved as well (John 18:3, 12)." Jesus points out the irony of the situation and their hypocrisy. Daily He was teaching openly in the temple and they did nothing to Him, not even reached out to take Him. But here, in the dark, in the hidden place of manipulation and deceit, is the evil and the power of darkness, their hour.
At Jesus' arrest, we face the facts of the world that crucified Jesus. We look at the motives of the people behind it, the evil and the power of darkness. He has pointed out their hypocrisy, those who want people to believe one thing about them while inwardly the truth is quite different. The religious establishment loves their places, and Jesus threatens them with His popularity, His teaching, His cleansing of the temple, His truth and forthrightness, the challenges to uphold the purpose of the Law -- as opposed to the things that cause harm but do them personally good. These are the aspects of His ministry we remember and understand. There are none of us immune from the flaws we see on display here in the Gospels: those of hypocrisy and pride of our position. But there is one weapon Jesus repeatedly emphasizes in the face of temptation, and that is prayer. If we want to take refuge in truth, we really must pray. If we want to hide nothing from ourselves, He implies, we must pray. When we need strength to face all kinds of temptation, particularly in times of deep stress and anxiety, times of anger and outrage and injustice, and especially times of great fear, then we pray. In times of great grief and in the face of tremendous loss, we pray. We can pray for ourselves and we can pray for others. In the face of the greatest danger, this is what He tells His disciples. How do we face our trials and find the way God asks us to go through them? In dialogue with Him, He is there with us. We have all kinds of help, just as He had an angel with Him in today's reading. Let us call on the Spirit, the Advocate who comes when we call, to help us through our own times of trouble.
