In the Garden

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:13):
Good morning everyone. I was just thinking about Jesus in
the garden and what he went through and all the
suffering he went through, and he was in the garden
as he faced the cross and the weight of the
world was upon him. Good morning. My name is Pastor Galen.
This morning, I want to talk to you about in

(00:33):
the garden. You know, this is an interesting passage found
in Matthew chapter twenty six, verses thirty four through forty six.
I would invite you to get out your bibles and
look us up later and just think about it, because
what we're going to talk about today is all the
mental and physical suffering that Jesus went through even before

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he went to the cross, while he was in the garden.
And you know, after the Last Supper, Jesus takes him
to the garden of Gosemite, and he and that this
is where I'm going to start reading in the Bible.
And then Jesus went with his disciples to a place
called Goodsemine, and he said to them, said here a while,

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I go over there and pray. He took Peter and
the two sons of Zebede along with him, and he
began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them,
my soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.
Stay here and keep watch with me. Going a little further,
he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, Father,

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if it is possible, may this cut be taken from me?
Yet not as I will, but as you will. Then
he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. Couldn't
you men watch with me for one hour? He asked, Peter,
watch and pray so that you do not fall into temptation.

(02:02):
The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. He
went away a second time and prayed, my Father, if
it is not possible for this cup to be taken
from me unless I drink it, may your will be done.
Then he came back and found them sleeping because their
eyes were heavy. So he left them and went away

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one more time and prayed a third time, saying the
same thing. Then he returned to the disciples and said
to them, are you still sleeping and resting? Look? The
hour has come. The son of Man is to be
delivered into the hands of sinners. Arise, let's go, Here
comes my betrayer. Then at Luke twenty two forty four

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has said that when he was in the garden, he
sweat drops a blood. That's how much agony, that's how
much suffering he was going through when he was in
the garden. I mean, think about it. He is in
the garden going through mental torment and agony. You know

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that takes me back to Isaiah fifty three. Surely he
took up our pain and bore our suffering. Yet we
considered him punished by God, stricken and afflicted. But he
was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities.
The punishment that brought us peace was on him, and
by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep,

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have gone astray, each one of us turned to our
own way, and the Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all. Let's pray, Lord, as we think
about what you went through in the garden, in the
mental agony and torment that you went through as you
awaited what you were going to go through in the cross.

(03:50):
I thank you in that when you were in the
garden and extreme emotional pain, that was a part of
you carrying our pain, that was a part of you
suffering the way many of us can suffer today when
we feel like we are in mental agony. So today
I pray for those that feel like they are in
the garden. I pray for those that feel like they're

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going through a mental and emotional and spiritual agony that Jesus,
you are someone who understands because you went through it yourself. Lord,
I pray that you would comfort those who are going
through us just spiritual torment and agony. Lord, I thank

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you that Easter is all about a time how you
rose from the dead and how you conquered sin hell,
death in the grave in the name of Jesus. I
thank you. You know, I just think about Jesus being
in the garden. I don't know if you're watching the
movie Chosen, they've had part one, part two, and part

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three terrific to watch, amazing. And then there's also a
movie years ago that about the Resurrection that Mel Gibson
put out. And I know some of these might not
be able to be watched by small children, But as
we are in Holy Week, we remember all that Jesus

(05:16):
did for us, and when you and I are in
spiritual pain and going through emotional agony, we can remember
that we have Jesus that we can look to. He understood.
He took the agony, He took the pain. He took
it all on himself, so that when we find that

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we are suffering, then we can give our emotional pain
to him. What did Jesus suffer in the garden of Gosemite.
First of all, he suffered emotional and spiritual agony. It
says in Matthew twenty six thirty eight, my soul is
overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Jesus experienced

(06:03):
intense grief, sorrow, and distress. He was fully aware of
the suffering and death awaiting him, including the spiritual burden
of bearing humanities. Sin. Wow, what a weight. I would
call that a crushing weight. I cannot imagine what he
felt in the garden. As he knew his betrayer was coming.

(06:28):
As he knew he was about to be arrested, as
he knew he would be spit upon a chronothorites, mocked,
hit in the face, as he knew he would be
whipped to almost death, and then he would have to
carry his cross, be nailed to his cross hung in
the air between two thieves for everyone to see. I

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cannot imagine the agony. He wasn't just executed. That would
have ended his difer him quickly, but a Roman crucifixion
took hours and the person suffered for hours in agony.
I love it, but Jesus. His last words from the

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cross were it is finished. He also cried ilamas about
the name of God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
So not only did he suffer from emotional and spiritual agony,
he also experienced loneliness and abandonment. Despite asking his disciples

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to stay awake and pray, they fell asleep. He faced
this moment largely alone, which added to his emotional suffering.
This foreshadows a deeper abandonment he would feel on the cross,
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? The

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third thing he suffered in the garden was the weight
of the sin and the cross. I mean Luke's gospel
it says he was in such anguish that he sweat
drops the blood falling to the ground Luke twenty two
forty four. A rare condition that is known in the

(08:23):
medical community when someone who was under extreme stress. Wow,
that has got to be extreme that you go and
sweat drops of blood. The fourth thing he suffered in
the garden Agassemite was a deep inner struggle with God's will. Father,

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if it be possible, let this cup pass from me?
Yet not as I will, but as you will. He
struggled with the impending pain and ultimately submitted fully to
the father will. Why did he submit fully to the
Father's will? Because he knew his suffering and his death

(09:11):
would mean that you and I could be saved. That's
why the Bible says in Hebrews, for the joy before him,
he endured the cross. So on Good Friday we have
Jesus suffering in the garden. We have his extreme suffering
in Holy Week facing the cross. I mean not just

(09:34):
in the garden of Assemine. But he knew what was
coming way in advance, and he was preparing himself and
his disciples. What are the lessons we can learn from
Jesus suffering in the garden. First of all, it's okay
to struggle in prayer. Jesus, the Son of God, wrestled

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in prayer. He was honest about his sorrow and anguish.
We learn that prayer is not always neat. It is
a place to bring our fears, pain, and uncertainty before
our heavenly Father. The second thing we can learn is
submission to God's will. In his darkest hour, he said,

(10:19):
not my will, but yours be done. This teaches us
that true faith involves trusting God even when his will
is difficult and painful. There are just certain things that
you and I are not in control of. And there
have been times in my life when I had suffered

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emotional pain where there's nothing I could do except for say, God,
I submit my life and who I am into your hands.
I asked Lord that you would take my life, and
that as I submit myself into your hands, I know
you will take care of me. Lesson is the importance

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of vigilance and prayer. Jesus tells his disciples in Matthew
twenty six forty one, watch and pray so you will
not fall into temptation. Spiritual preparation and prayer are vital
to facing trials and temptations. What are you facing right now?
Are you saying? Vigilant in prayer? Are you in prayer?

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Vigilantly praying and getting ready? The fourth thing we learn
biblical lesson Jesus understands human suffering Hebrews four point fifteen
says we have a high priest who is able to
sympathize with our weakness. Jesus's suffering in the garden shows

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that he truly understands fear, pain, and abandonment. Wow. Incredible
what Jesus understood. The fifth thing we can learn is
that faith is not the absence of fear. It chows
obedience despite it. Wow. Jesus was deeply troubled, but his
faith and obedience did not waver. This shows us that

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courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness
to follow God through it. That is a very good point.
Point number six. God's plan may involve suffering, but it
always leads to redemption. I like that. You like that.
God's plan may involve suffering, but it always leads to redemption.

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The agony of Gosemite led to the Cross, which led
to the resurrection and eternal life for all the believers.
Suffering may have a purpose far beyond what we can see.
We really need to remember that when we are suffering,
that there is a purpose far beyond what we can see.

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You know, when I grew up my grandma there was
a hymn. Grandma loved it. Was called in the Garden,
which was written in nineteen twelve by C. Austin Miles.
He was an American pharmacist who later became a prolific
hymn writer. He wrote this. Miles said he wrote in

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the Garden after reading about in the account of Mary
Magdalen's encounter with the risen Christ in John twenty one
through eighteen. He imagined what it felt like to be
in the garden with Jesus that morning and aimed to
capture the peace and intimacy of that moment. According to Miles,

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he was inspired by a vision of a scene, and
he wrote the lyrics just a few and it only
took a few minutes. The hymn expresses a deeply personal
and devotional experience of walking and talking with Jesus in
the beautiful garden. Can you imagine Mary going into the garden.

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She thinks Jesus, she thinks he's gone, he's died. And
in the garden she meets Jesus. Where have they placed him?
And she did not know she was talking to the
Lord until Jesus said Mary, And Mary looked at him
and said, my Lord and my God, listen to the

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words of the song. We used to sing this in
church a lot. I come to the garden alone, while
the dew is still on the roses, and the voice
I hear falling on my ear. The Son of God discloses,
and he walks with me, and he talks with me,
and he tells me, I am his own, and the

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joy we share as we tarry there, none other has
ever known. He speaks, and the sound of his voice
is so sweet. The bird's hush, they're singing, and the
melody that he gave to me within my heart is ringing.

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And he walks with me, and he talks with me,
and he tells me I am his own, and the
joy we share as we tarry there, none other has
ever known. If you are in the garden of suffering
this morning, you are not alone. Jesus is in that

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garden with you. Call upon his name. Whatevery emotional pain
that you're going through this morning. Jesus went through it,
suffered for it, carried it, died on the cross for it.
Surely he carried our sorrows. He was smitten and afflicted.

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Oh we carried our sorrow so we don't have to.
And he wants to carry your emotional pain. If you
feel like you're in the garden of suffering, maybe you
feel like you're suffering from emotional and spiritual agony. Maybe
you're suffering from loneliness and abandonment, and you feel like
there's so much weight on you. Jesus desires to lift

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the weight off your shoulder. Jesus said, come to me,
all you are weary, and he related, and I will
give you rest. Take my yoke. See my yoke as
easy and my burden is l As you're in that
place of suffering and pain and maybe even sorrow, this morning,

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I pray that you would see Jesus coming to you
and wrapping his arms of love around you. Maybe even now,
as the sound of my voice is going out, you
can sense the Lord with You can sense his love there,
you can sense his presence there. Maybe you begin to

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see the light piercing the darkness that you've been in
for a long time. Jesus wants you to know he cares.
Jesus wants you to know he's been there right where
you're at, and he made it through, and he is
with you today, whether you feel it or not, and
he wants to give you strength. He wants to give
you peace. He wants to give you hope. You are

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not alone in your garden. You know what, Jesus understands suffering,
and he understands agony, and he understands it. So today
I pray that you would reach out and give God
any emotional pain, hurt, or torment that you're feeling. When

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He died on the cross, he he defeated the tormentor.
And right now, in the name of Jesus, I pray
that the torment you're under would stop in the name
of Jesus, and I pray you would begin to experience
peace that passes all understanding, which the Bible says can

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guard your heart and your mind. In Christ Jesus. Therefore,
we're going to think on the things that are pure,
lovely and of good report. And I really want to
pray for you this morning that God would be with you. You're
not alone, Jesus, that I will never leave you, nor
will I forsake you, Father God. In the name of Jesus,

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I pray for those that are in the garden the suffering.
I pray for those that are going through sorrow, pain, hurt,
and abandonment. Lord, you know what that's like you have
been there in that spot, and you have suffered agony
that was so bad that you sweat drops of blood.

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I pray this morning for people that are sweating as
if it drops of blood, that you had come around them,
that you would put your arms around them, that your
light and your peace would flood the room wherever they're at.
I pray that they would know that you love them,
and that you care about them, and that you're with them.

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I think, as Psalm twenty three, the Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not want. He makes me to lie down
in green pastures. He leaves me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in pathsive righteousness
for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the

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valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for Thou art with me, thy Rod, and they staff
to comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in
the presence of myne enemies. Thou annoy us my head
with oil. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life, and I

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shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever and
Lord in the midst of all the suffering, when you
were telling your disciples that you are going to go away,
but that you had come back, you told them these words,
do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God.
Believe also in me. In my father's house, there are

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many mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you, and I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go to prepare a place for you,
I will come again to receive you onto myself. That
where I am there you may be also. And I'm
reminded of the scripture that says that you are close
to the broken hearted, then you save those that are

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crushed in spirit. I pray today for those that are
feeling crushed that you had step in there with them
and take the burdens off their shoulders. And I pray
that they would know they are not alone. And as
we are in Holy Week, we thank you that that
your crucifixion and death was not the end, but just

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the beginning, because on the third day you came out
of that grave and rose victoriously and totally defeated death,
hell and the grave. I'm so thankful you said in
the Bible, you said destroy this temple, and in three
days I will rebuild it. And I thank you that

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you did rebuild it by raising from the dead. Lord,
I thank you for that old hemn Christ. The Lord
has risen today. Hallelujah. So Father, I pray those that
are experiencing dark times, Lord, that the light of your
resurrection would pierce the darkness where they're at and give

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them hope, encouragement and strength to get through the day,
to get through the week, and to get through the years.
In the name of Jesus, Amen well, I sure thank
you for joining Healing Begins. I would love to hear
from you. My email is share at Healing Begins Radio

(22:13):
dot com. Again that share at Healing Begins Radio dot com.
If you want to know more about our ministry, go
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May the Lord keep you, May the Lord cause his
face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
And may you always understand and know that if you
are in the garden of suffering, you are not there.
Alone because Jesus is with you and by your side,

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whether you feel it or not. Well, have a great week.
I hope this was encouraging. God bless you and have
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