He agonized in prayer

Greetings to all

Gethsemane

Matthew 26:36-46

"Then he said to them, 'My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.'"
(MATTHEW 26:38)

Do you struggle with the concept of Jesus being fully human and fully divine? The gospel accounts of the Garden of Gethsemane bring this to the surface. We read that at this critical point in His earthly mission, Jesus was - in all his humanity - troubled and overwhelmed with distress. He knew the enormity of the task ahead, and His sleepy disciples were of little help. Luke tells us that God sent an angel to strengthen Jesus while He agonized in prayer. When the most severe of life's trials overtake us, we can be sure Jesus understands our heartache.

There is a subtle yet significant change between the prayers recorded in verses 39 and 42. In the first prayer Jesus pleads to His Father for an alternative to the suffering ahead but submits Himself to the Father's will. In the second prayer Jesus accepts that there is no alternative and so offers His wholehearted commitment to the will of the Father. Through fervent prayer His soul was restored and He became obedient "to death, even death on a cross."

JESUS IDENTIFIES WITH US IN OUR DARKEST HOURS. IN RESPONSE TO OUR FERVENT PRAYER, HE STRENGTHENS OUR SOULS TO CARRY ON.