Thank you so much. Beautifully read. Well, good morning again, everybody. I bring you the warm greetings of your sisters and brothers at Harper Church and Christianity Explored Ministries.
And they are praying for us today as we gather around this passage. It's a fantastic passage. Please do turn in your Bible with me to that passage.
Which your pastor's a bit of a bandit. I was sitting in Belfast Airport on Thursday and decided, right, I've got a flight delay.
Now's a chance to crack on a bit with Luke 22. So I started doing my prep and I thought, I'll just make sure I've got the passage right.
So I sent him a text saying, Graham, just to be clear, Luke 22, 39 to 65. Is that right? By reply.
Oh, mate, you're kidding. No, you're on Job 7. And then and then we only kidding.
So I've dished that one out a few times myself, so it was good to get it back.
But this is an amazing text. It is great to be in the time of year, isn't it?
And I guarantee you've said this already this morning or last week as you were coming home.
The time of year when the day's beginning to lengthen. On your way home at night, will you not say to people, look at that, it's 20 past 6 and it's light.
Or in the morning if you're up early, look at that, it's just back at 6 and it's light already.
It's great to be at that time of year.
But as we turn to Luke 22 this morning, we are descending into darkness.
Jesus said to those who came to arrest him in verse 53,
When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me, but this is your hour and the power of darkness.
And I want to take that as a title for our study this morning, the power of darkness.
There are essentially two things I want us to think about, but of course there's going to be subheadings.
So there's about 15 things.
But we'll try and condense it to two main things as we look at it together.
Number one, the depths of this darkness.
And then in a few moments, the defeat of this darkness.
So first of all, the depths of this darkness.
Let's just try and get our bearings on the big biblical picture.
Because from the beginning of his revelation of himself to us, our God is a God of light.
The first words ever recorded of God are, let there be light as he banishes physical darkness.
Gloriously.
But we quickly find in the book of Genesis that the created order experiences spiritual darkness.
And it comes along when God's word is denied in chapter 3 of Genesis and when it's disobeyed.
And so spiritual darkness, as we talk about it, to give it a proper definition, is basically rebellion against God, rebellion against his word, rebellion against his ways.
And the arch rebel, Satan, and all his efforts are channeled into rebelling and to bringing about rebellion.
That's why we read in verse 47 about Judas' betrayal of Jesus.
Because before we get to that, we read in verse 3 of our chapter that Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the number of the twelve.
And he went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them.
And they were glad, verse 5 tells us, and agreed to give him money.
So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.
I find these words at the beginning of chapter 22 that tease up our passage this morning, I find them quite chilling.
That there is a gladness in deep darkness.
That there is a celebration in deep darkness.
The authorities couldn't legally arrest Jesus, so now they're glad they celebrate the dark deal done with Judas.
And Judas himself has had a long-term problem managing his love of money.
You know, well, I'm sure 1 Timothy 6.10 famously confirms what we see here, that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
And that's what we see worked out in Judas' life.
John 12 recounts for us that occasion when Mary poured the expensive ointment in the feet of the Lord Jesus.
And Judas Iscariot complained.
He said, why was this ointment not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor?
And John adds, he said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief.
And having charge of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put in it.
That's a way at the beginning of the adventures of the Lord Jesus Christ with his disciples.
You've gone right through Luke's gospel.
Do you remember in Luke 11.35, Jesus says, when the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness?
When the light that is in you is darkness, then the addiction to money feels good.
And ripping Jesus off is nothing in comparison to the joy and the satisfaction that the money you'll get promises you.
And when you're a person like that, and in the presence of the Lord Jesus, and hearing all that he has to say,
and totally unaffected by it, you're only there to hold the money bag,
you're only there to pretend to be one of the disciples so that you can rip them off.
When you behave like that for long enough, one day you'll find yourself capable not only of ripping Jesus off,
but selling Jesus off.
Capable of betraying the Lord of life.
And not only betraying him, but betraying him for money and betraying him with a kiss.
So verse 47.
While he was still speaking, there came a crowd.
And the man called Judas, one of the twelve was leading them.
He drew near to Jesus to kiss him.
Here's the depths of the darkness.
Not only does he love money more than people,
not only does he use a sign of love as a means of betrayal,
but when the Lord tries to snap him back into reality,
Judas is powerless to see sense.
He can't stop himself.
Look at verse 48 with me.
Jesus said to him,
Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?
What a moment that was for Judas.
The Lord Jesus looks him straight in the face and says,
Judas.
So he names him Judas.
And he names his crime, would you betray?
And he names his victim, the Son of Man.
And he names his means with a kiss.
But the darkness has overwhelmed Judas.
And although he's been helping himself to the money,
he cannot help himself now.
He looks into the eyes of Jesus,
who knows exactly what Judas is doing.
And he goes ahead and executes his betrayal.
For Judas, the depth of darkness is to hear Jesus question,
Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?
And for Judas to think in effect,
Nevertheless, Jesus, not your will, but mine be done.
But we don't just see exceptional rebellion in this text,
as we see with Judas.
We also see typical rebellion in Peter.
The incident here with Peter is the story of a follower of Jesus
who, unlike Judas, was determined to do well.
So how did Peter end up, as we heard read to us there so helpfully,
weeping bitterly, full of regrets,
having on three instances denied that he even knew Jesus?
Well, we're going to slow the pace slightly now,
and I want us to take a little bit more time over Peter
as we trace how the darkness overwhelmed him,
and maybe compare notes with Peter
and see some parallels from our own experience.
I want to notice, I think, four things.
Notice, first of all, the problem with Peter
was his personal confidence.
We see with both Judas and Peter
that the behavior of these men is not just human frailty.
There is profound spiritual darkness at work.
Have a look back to chapter 22, verse 31.
Jesus said,
Now, can you imagine the Lord Jesus saying that to you?
Saying your name twice with a sense of urgency and saying,
Now, look, here's the issue.
Satan has demanded to have you.
Would that not make you very cautious?
Would that not make you extraordinarily careful?
But there doesn't seem to be much of that with Peter,
verse 33.
Lord, I'm ready to go with you,
both to prison and to death.
And Jesus said,
I tell you, Peter the cock will not crow this day
until you deny three times that you know me.
There's Peter imagining that imprisonment and death
won't be able to prize him from Jesus' side.
And yet Jesus knows and tells him
that before the night is out,
Peter will deny even knowing Jesus.
So his first problem is his personal confidence,
his ability to make promises to Jesus
about his love and commitment and faithfulness to him.
His second problem is what we might call his willful disobedience.
Just try and track the deterioration with me here.
At this point,
there is still strength to be found for Peter.
Jesus has a strategy to stop his followers
being overwhelmed by darkness.
He has prayed for Peter.
He has warned Peter.
And now at the beginning of our particular section,
in verse 39,
as Jesus came out and went,
as was his custom,
to the Mount of Olives,
and the disciples followed him,
and when he came to the place,
he said to them,
pray that you may not enter into temptation.
And temptation can mean either temptation to sin
or meaning a time of severe trial and testing.
And the Lord Jesus knew about the power of darkness.
He saw it as a clear and present danger.
And he says to the disciples,
pray that you will not enter into either temptation to sin
or a severe time of trial and testing
that will lead to temptation to sin.
Again,
because you know your way through Luke's gospel,
back in chapter 11,
verse 4,
in what we call the Lord's Prayer,
he gave an example.
He taught his disciples that they ought to pray,
lead us not into temptation.
And Jesus wanted his disciples to acknowledge,
as we pray to our Heavenly Father,
on a routine basis,
that we are not personally able to stand in the hour of trial.
It's the opposite of what Peter felt with his self-confidence.
The Lord Jesus wants us on our faces every day,
saying,
Lord,
we will not stand in the hour of trial.
That's the point of that clause.
And you may recall that Jesus had also
precisely warned them about this in chapter 21.
Have a quick look back to verse 33 of chapter 21.
He says,
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.
But watch yourselves,
lest your hearts be weighed down
with dissipation and drunkenness
and cares of this life,
and that a day come upon you suddenly like a trap.
He couldn't have been clearer
as he prepared his disciples
for the hour of severe trial and test.
And now,
on the Mount of Olives,
he gives them a straightforward instruction.
Pray.
Go and pray.
And Jesus himself went and prayed.
That was a straightforward instruction.
But there's no record of Peter
and any of the other disciples doing so.
In fact,
our chapter 22,
verse 45,
when he rose from prayer,
Jesus rose from prayer
and came to the disciples,
he found them sleeping for sorrow.
And he said to them,
Why are you sleeping?
Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.
The problem of personal confidence,
the problem of willful obedience,
Jesus has told them to go and pray.
He's told them to go and acknowledge
they're in dangerous times
and he didn't do it.
I wonder,
do you see yourself here as I see myself?
I have no doubt
that the failing to obey Jesus' commandment
to pray
is the unquestionable source
of my failure
in many times of tests and trials.
Just rank,
willful disobedience.
Think about it.
What we're seeing about the Lord's prayer.
He's given us a model of prayer
whereby we acknowledge every day
our need of forgiveness
and our need of provision
and our spiritual frailty
before our Father.
Lead us not into temptation.
Lord, don't let the road be
a road of trial and testing
because I will not stand in it
by myself.
We're meant to know that about ourselves.
We're meant to say that
to our Heavenly Father.
And yet,
how often on the wrong side
of a spiritual car crash
do we sit,
you know,
head in hands
reflecting on how we just
barreled into the day
blind to the spiritual danger
we may face
through an unfounded sense
of spiritual confidence
and through willful disobedience,
neglectful disobedience
in prayer.
Third thing we see,
we notice,
is Peter's careful distance.
Verse 54 of our section
this morning,
Then they seized him
and led him away,
bringing him
to the high priest's house.
And Peter was following
at a distance.
Well, good on him
that he followed at all.
But the detail
that Luke records
of the distance
that Peter kept
between him and Jesus
is very significant.
It points at least,
do you not think,
to a subconscious,
cautious self-preservation.
Peter was following
at a distance.
Can we notice this morning
how quickly
the situation changed?
Seeing Jesus
being taken into custody,
seeing Jesus
offering no resistance,
has changed
how Peter feels
about the Lord Jesus.
When they came
for Jesus,
John tells us
that it was Peter
who had been quick,
though not particularly
skillful,
with the sword.
He was part Galilean,
part Glaswegian.
And when we get to glory,
I'd love to ask him,
Peter,
was that the upstroke,
actually,
when you're lifting the sword
when you took the poor bloke's ear off?
What was going on with it?
It would be really interesting to know.
But have a look at verse 49.
When those who were around him
saw what would follow,
they said,
Lord,
shall we strike with the sword?
And it was Peter
in verse 50,
John tells us.
Didn't wait for an answer
from Jesus.
Struck the servant
of the high priest
and cut off his ear.
And Jesus said,
no more of this.
And he touched his ear
and healed him.
So get the picture.
Peter was ready
for a sword fight.
He might possibly
have been prepared
in that situation
to be arrested
and killed
in the skirmish
there and then.
I think he was being truthful
when he said,
Lord,
I'm ready to die for you.
I'm ready to go
to prison for you.
And I think
that was the context
in which Peter
saw that happening.
They won't take me alive
and they won't take you alive.
I'm your wingman,
Lord Jesus.
Peter could have coped
with that danger,
fighting with Jesus
as Jesus also fought.
But what we learn
from Peter
now walking
at a distance,
at a careful distance
from Jesus,
is that it is much
more difficult
to remain confident
in a Savior
who is willing
to suffer loss.
Much more difficult
to follow a leader
who heals those
who've come to harm him.
It's the Lord's
apparent passivity
with his enemies
and the enemies
of his people
that puts a distance
between Peter
and the Lord
and often puts
a distance
between us
and the Lord.
You know,
as Peter watched
that freshly lopped ear
being perfectly restored,
that miracle happening,
and that miracle
having zero impact
on the arrest party,
and Jesus saying,
enough with the swords,
and Jesus submissively
going with those
who were taking him
in ultimately to death,
Peter hangs back.
And the mystery is,
why doesn't Jesus
just thump these guys?
Why doesn't he,
with all the sovereign power
he has,
take the breath
out their lungs?
They're toast!
They're finished!
A thought from Jesus
and they're gone.
Why doesn't he do it?
Why does he tolerate
this nonsense?
And Luke tells us,
doesn't he,
how completely overwhelmed
Jesus looked here?
Have a look at verse 32,
sorry,
verse 63,
at the end of our passage.
Now the men who were
holding Jesus in custody
were mocking him
as they beat him.
They also blindfolded him
and kept asking him,
prophesy,
who is it that struck you?
And they said many other
things against him,
blaspheming him.
And all this was going on
when Peter sat at the fire.
So not only had he seen
Jesus passive
at the point of arrest,
he was now seeing
Jesus passive
at the hands of his enemies.
And Peter sat there
around the fire
among the group,
struggling to summon up
the same devotion to Jesus.
Jesus now bound
and blindfolded
and beaten
and bloodied.
And you know,
2,000 years later,
people are still
in that situation.
They may be personally
impressed by Jesus
but publicly embarrassed
by him.
Personally impressed
by all the things
they see that he's able
to do in the Gospels.
Personally impressed
even by his love
and self-sacrifice
but publicly embarrassed
to identify
with someone
who's prepared
to appear
so shamefully weak
as that.
They can't bring themselves
to trust in
and stand by
a Saviour
who was willing
to suffer,
to be rejected,
mocked,
spat upon,
blasphemed,
nailed to a cross.
But that is the absolute
core of the Gospel.
Listen to Paul
in 1 Corinthians 1.
He says,
Christ did not send me
to baptize
but to preach the Gospel
and not with words
of eloquent wisdom
lest the cross
of Christ
be emptied
of its power.
For the word
of the cross
is folly
to those
who are perishing.
but to us
who are being saved
it is the power
of God.
At that point
in Peter's life
this cross
experience of Jesus
which began
long before
he was actually
nailed to the
pieces of wood
looked like folly.
It looked pathetic.
It looked so
unappealing.
It looked so
hopeless,
so embarrassing.
Peter's keeping
at a careful distance.
But the day would come
and I'll tell you
about it later
when Peter
with Paul
with all of us
who know Christ
saw that that
is the power of God.
Final thing
for us to notice.
His personal
confidence
and willful
disobedience
and careful distance
and his social
acceptance.
Verse 55
When they had
kindled a fire
in the middle
of the courtyard
and sat down
together
Peter sat down
among them.
Now it's interesting
the way Luke
records it
that there's
now no distance
between Peter
and those
who arrested Jesus.
Distance between
him and Jesus
but Luke
really
draws our
mind's eye
to the point
that Peter
gets right
in among them
there.
That's a risky
thing to do.
He'd been the one
who tried to be
a bit handy
with the sword.
So it was
likely that
they clocked
him.
They knew
his face
but Peter
had perhaps
subconsciously
decided that
he was going
to settle
at least
that night
where he was
going to be
was amongst
this crowd.
He wanted
the security
of being
among them
and soon
that was put
beyond all
doubt as the
questions came.
Verse 56
The servant
girl seeing
him as he
sat in the
light looking
closely at him
said this man
was also with
him but he
denied it
saying women
I don't
know him.
A little
later verse
58 someone
else saw
him and
said you're
also one
of them.
Peter answered
man I am
not.
And after
an interval
of about an
hour still
another insisted
saying certainly
this man also
was with them
for he too
is a Galilean.
His accent
gave them
away.
But Peter
said man I
do not know
what you are
talking about.
And immediately
while he was
still speaking
the cock crowed
and the Lord
turned and
looked at
Peter and
Peter remembered
the saying of
the Lord how
he had said
to him before
the cock crows
today you will
deny me three
times and he
went out and
wept bitterly.
You see how
fast that
happened.
Now let's not
imagine that
Peter's crimes
are in a
different league
from our own.
Haven't we all
felt the inner
conflict that
Peter experienced
here as we're
forced to
decide whose
approval we
want most.
The world's
or the Lord's.
Haven't we all
felt that kind
of I just
like to be
among them.
I just like to
fit in.
I just like to
be accepted.
I just keep a
slight distance
from Jesus.
It's not going to
mean anything.
But it means I
can follow him
and still be
pals here in
the crowd.
And although
these three
denials happened
over a period
of more than
an hour,
the stunning
reality is that
it happened so
quickly.
Just as Jesus
said, remember
I read to you
chapter 21
verse 34,
watch yourselves
lest your hearts
be weighed down
with dot dot dot
cares of this
life and that
day come upon
you suddenly like
a trap.
Is that not
exactly what
happened to
Peter?
The cares of
this life,
that is the
need to belong,
the need to
fit in,
the need to
be accepted,
the need to
be approved
of by the
culture,
by our peers,
the need to
be loved in
the world that
is in rebellion
against the
Savior,
that will come
upon us
suddenly like a
trap as it
came upon
Peter.
He couldn't
see that as
he went to
his death
offering no
resistance,
the Lord
Jesus was
fighting and
winning for
Peter and
all the others
who would put
their trust in
him.
He didn't see
it at that
point, he
did see it
later, but
not at that
point.
See, here's
the depth of
this darkness
in Judas and
in Peter.
But more
briefly,
let's finish
with the
defeat of
this darkness.
Let's see
the triumph
of the Lord
Jesus even
in this
dark session.
We get
nowhere near
resurrection
morning yet,
but there is
still triumph
of the Lord
Jesus here.
Notice a
couple of
things in the
text.
Number one,
Jesus defeated
the darkness
by his
prayerful
submission.
Back to the
top, verse
41,
he withdrew
from the
disciples about
a stone's
throw and
knelt down
and prayed,
saying,
Father, if
you're willing,
remove this
cup from
me.
Nevertheless,
not my
will but
yours be
done.
And you
know, until
this point
in history
when the
Lord Jesus
was born,
Satan had
enjoyed a
100% success
rate with
all the men
and women
who ever
lived as
they embraced
his dark
rebellion against
God to
varying degrees.
there had
never been a
human being
before who
in total
integrity and
sincerity could
go before the
Father and
say,
nevertheless,
not my
will but
yours be
done.
But notice
what is
happening here.
On that
dark night,
here is a
man born of
woman, fully
God yet fully
human.
And he's
unlike all the
others who
came before
him and came
after him.
On that
dark night,
he does not
run from
God and
his will,
but he
runs to
God and
his will.
And he
kneels and
he pleads in
the light of
his Father's
will.
And it gives
us a sense,
a clear indication,
doesn't it,
of the
inestimable
horror of
what Jesus
was about to
face, that
he asked
his Father
that if
possible there
could be a
change of
plan.
And you
and I
can be
sure that
if there
was any
other way
to destroy
Satan and
his darkness
and free
men and
women from
the grip
of sin
and reconcile
them to
God forever,
then the
Father who
so loved
the Son
would have
found it
in this
moment.
If there
was any
other way
of redeeming
sinners and
defeating the
darkness,
his Father
would have
found it
in this
moment,
but there
was none.
there was
no other
way.
Both the
Father and
the Son
are committed
to the
plan of
salvation.
Verse 43,
and there
appeared to
him an
angel from
heaven
strengthening
him.
That was
the Father's
way of
confirming to
his Son
that the
cup could
not be
removed.
Father,
is there
any way,
Son?
There's no
other way.
the
cup is
a reference
to the
experience
that the
Lord Jesus
is about
to face.
It's like
drinking a
cup.
It wasn't
just unbearable
physical
suffering,
but unimaginable
spiritual
suffering.
Jesus
describes the
contents of
that cup
just a
couple of
verses
earlier in
verse 37.
Let's glance
at it for a
moment.
He says,
So he
knew with
all that
was
happening,
all the
suffering,
all the
betrayal,
all the
denial,
he knew
that the
plan was
going split
second according
to the
will of
his
Father.
And in
Luke 22
verse 37
that I've
just read,
the Lord
Jesus is
quoting,
you recognize
it from
the end
of Isaiah
53,
probably to
say all
of Isaiah
53,
but he
just quotes
the last
part,
verse 12,
which says,
Because he
poured out
his soul
to death
and was
numbered
with the
transgressors,
yet he
bore the
sin of
many and
makes
intercession
for the
transgressors.
That's
how the
darkness
was defeated.
darkness
defeated
in the
darkness
as the
Lord
Jesus
prays
submissively
and obeys
the will
of his
Father
and is
numbered
among the
transgressors
and finds
a way by
his death
in our
place to
make
intercession
for the
transgressors,
to set
us free
from our
sin,
bearing the
sin of
many.
the
darkness
is defeated
as God
treats
his
perfect
son
in the
way that
loathsome
sin
deserves
to be
treated,
so that
he can
treat
loathsome
sinners
in the
way that
his
perfect
son
deserves
to be
treated.
And that's
happening
at that
moment in
the garden.
And this
was not
easy for
Jesus.
Look at
verse 44,
and being
in agony,
in an
agony,
he prayed
more
earnestly,
and his
sweat became
like great
drops of
blood falling
down to
the ground.
He was in
agony,
not at the
prospect of
dying,
but of
bearing in
himself the
gut-wrenching
vileness of
human sin.
We don't
find it gut-wrenching
and vileness.
We quite like
it.
We toy
with it.
But to the
Lord Jesus,
it is gut-wrenching
vileness.
You know that
experience you
get when you've
been out a
walk and you
go home and
you go in
through the
front door and
you're in the
door just a
couple of
minutes in
the home and
you suddenly
get that
revolting stench
in your nose.
And what's the
first thing you
check?
And there it
is.
And you
glance back and
there's that
beautiful pattern
over the white
wool carpet.
And some
dog has done
its business and
you've trod in
it and you've
dragged it into
the house.
Now you
know that
kind of
repulsive,
gut-wrenching,
oh,
vile.
The smell,
the look.
I don't want to
put you off your
lunch.
I'll say no more
about it other
than this.
Multiply that
sense of
revulsion a
billion times and
you're not getting
close to how God
feels about our
sin.
God's
sin.
And Jesus,
I'll come to
you,
buddy.
And Jesus,
Jesus knows and
feels it in the
midst of it.
Jesus knows and
feels that reality
in the midst of it.
He knows that he's
about to deal with
that.
It's the agony for
him of on the
cross bearing this
gut-wrenching
vileness of human
sin as he's numbered
among the
transgressors,
as he takes our
place on the
cross.
That's the
proclamation of
the gospel.
And as a
consequence of
that,
he's going to be
cut off from
fellowship with
his father.
So he is in
an agony in
the garden as he
thinks of it.
It didn't look
like it at the
time,
but this was the
defeat of
darkness.
In Colossians 2,
Paul,
speaking of the
Lord Jesus,
says that he,
in these very
moments,
disarmed the
rulers and
authorities and
put them to
shame,
triumphing over
them by the
cross.
Peter couldn't
see it.
He saw the
opposite.
He saw Jesus
being disarmed by
the rulers and
authorities.
He saw them
putting him to
shame, but no,
it was the very
opposite.
And it's
wonderful that
later Peter got
to see it.
1 Peter 2,
verse 21,
for to this you've
been called
because Christ
also suffered
for you.
Leave an example
that you should
follow in his
steps.
Listen to what
Peter later
rejoiced in.
He committed
no sin,
neither was
deceit found
in his mouth.
When he was
reviled,
he did not
revile in
return.
Peter was
seething at him
for that at the
point, but later
he saw it.
When he
suffered, he did
not threaten.
Peter thought
that was so weak,
but later he
gets it.
But continued
entrusting himself
to him who
judges justly.
He himself
bore our sins
in his body
on the tree,
that we might
die to sin
and live to
righteousness.
By his wounds
you've been
healed, for you
were straying
like sheep.
Oh, Peter knew
all about that,
but have returned
to the shepherd
and overseer of
your souls.
that dark
night, the
depths of the
darkness, also
in the midst of
it all, the
defeat of the
darkness.
Jesus defeated
the darkness by
his prayerful
submission.
And finally,
Jesus defeated
the darkness as
our perfect
substitute.
This is amazing.
In order to
free Peter and
me and everyone
else from the
power of darkness
over us, from
our sense of
being conquered,
completely at
ease in that
crowd, in the
depths of the
darkness, the
Lord Jesus not
only had to bear
our sin, he had
to do it as one
who had none of
his own.
He had to be
able to do
that in total
personal perfection
and that's what
we see here.
And although
we're rightly
challenged by his
straightforward
command in
verse 40,
pray that you
may not enter
into temptation,
the real take
home of this
text this
morning, is
not just that
we should pray
more, certainly
that is an
application, but
the point is to
see Jesus as our
true and only
champion.
That's what we
need to see.
He is the
champion over our
prayerlessness.
The instruction
came, the command
came, pray, and
they didn't do it
just like I didn't
do it, just like you
didn't do it.
But Jesus did it.
The true champion
over all our
sinful prayerlessness,
all our failure
and trials and
temptations, all our
rebellion against
God's will, in the
midst of that dark
night, he prevailed.
And do you know
that even as he did
that, even as he
went and prayed,
even as he went in
agony and sorrow
that we cannot enter
into, do you know
that as he was
doing that, he was
achieving something
glorious, that
before he died as our
substitute, he lived
as our substitute.
So he died for my
prayerlessness, having
not failed to be
prayerful himself.
He died for my
failure to submit to
my heavenly father's
will, having utterly
submitted to his
heavenly father's
will.
So that now as we
turn to him, risen
from the dead, we
can know beyond
doubt in this dark
world, according to
Colossians 1, that he
has delivered us from
the domain of
darkness and
transferred us into
the kingdom of his
beloved son in whom
we have redemption,
the forgiveness of
sins.
darkness.
The power of
darkness was awesome
that night.
The depths of the
power, but the defeat
of that darkness is
glorious and is
eternal.
Let's pray together.
we ask, gracious
heavenly father, as we
look at your son, as
we think about this
text, this amazing
historical record of
what happened to him
and how humans
reacted and how the
demons and Satan
reacted and how we
still struggle with the
picture of a
submissive Jesus, not
realizing what he is
accomplishing, not
realizing that by that
arrest and by that
mocking and by that
beating and by that
spitting and by that
cross, he disarmed the
rulers and authorities
and put them to open
shame, triumphing over
them by the cross.
How we thank you for the
gospel today, for its
power to deliver men and
women this morning from
the domain of darkness
and transfer us to the
kingdom of your
beloved, risen and
exalted son.
We thank you that in
him, in his
perfection, in his
substitutionary death, in
his resurrection and
reign, we have
redemption, the
forgiveness of our
sins.
Grant us to glory in
our Savior, in his
precious name we pray.
Amen.
ULATE
I
END