WEBVTT 00:00:00.660 --> 00:00:03.720 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:04.339 --> 00:00:10.220 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other 00:00:10.220 --> 00:00:13.919 use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:14.320 --> 00:00:21.280 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:33.579 Mark 11, 1-10, and again chapter 14, 32-42, as it is written here. 00:00:34.679 --> 00:00:43.120 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent 00:00:43.120 --> 00:00:48.719 two of his disciples, saying to them, Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you 00:00:48.719 --> 00:00:50.880 enter it you will find a colt tied there. 00:00:51.280 --> 00:00:52.800 Which no one has ever written. 00:00:53.280 --> 00:00:54.760 Untie it and bring it here. 00:00:55.160 --> 00:00:58.200 If anyone asks you, Why are you doing this? 00:00:58.280 --> 00:01:02.440 Say, The Lord needs it, and we'll send it back here shortly. 00:01:03.219 --> 00:01:09.520 They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied to a doorway, and as they untied it, some 00:01:09.520 --> 00:01:13.500 people standing there asked, What are you doing, untying the colt? 00:01:13.939 --> 00:01:17.640 They said, As Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. 00:01:17.640 --> 00:01:22.719 When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. 00:01:22.960 --> 00:01:28.040 Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in 00:01:28.040 --> 00:01:28.599 the fields. 00:01:28.599 --> 00:01:47.840 They went to a place called Gethsemane. 00:01:47.840 --> 00:01:53.299 And Jesus said to his disciples, Sit here while I pray. 00:01:53.680 --> 00:02:02.100 He took Peter and James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and 00:02:02.100 --> 00:02:02.400 troubled. 00:02:02.400 --> 00:02:07.340 My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow at the point of death, he said to them. 00:02:07.740 --> 00:02:09.319 Stay here and keep watch. 00:02:09.920 --> 00:02:16.879 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that, if it's possible, the hour 00:02:16.879 --> 00:02:18.260 might pass from him. 00:02:18.780 --> 00:02:21.960 Abba Father, he said, Everything is possible for you. 00:02:22.439 --> 00:02:23.680 Take this cup from me. 00:02:23.960 --> 00:02:26.319 Yet not what I will, but what you will. 00:02:26.319 --> 00:02:29.680 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. 00:02:29.979 --> 00:02:32.919 Simon, he said to Peter, Are you asleep? 00:02:33.819 --> 00:02:36.099 Couldn't you keep watch for one hour? 00:02:36.620 --> 00:02:39.900 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. 00:02:40.299 --> 00:02:42.539 The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. 00:02:43.039 --> 00:02:45.639 Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. 00:02:45.979 --> 00:02:52.879 When he came back, he again found them sleeping because their eyes were heavy. 00:02:52.879 --> 00:02:55.120 They did not know what to say to him. 00:02:55.400 --> 00:02:59.599 Returning the third time, he said to them, Are you still sleeping and resting? 00:02:59.960 --> 00:03:00.379 Enough. 00:03:00.719 --> 00:03:01.680 The hour has come. 00:03:01.879 --> 00:03:05.060 Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:06.079 Rise. 00:03:06.359 --> 00:03:07.019 Let us go. 00:03:07.379 --> 00:03:09.060 Here comes my betrayers. 00:03:09.340 --> 00:03:11.400 This is the Gospel of the Lord. 00:03:12.159 --> 00:03:16.139 Who is Jesus? 00:03:17.259 --> 00:03:19.800 What did Jesus say and what did he do? 00:03:20.620 --> 00:03:22.240 And what does that mean for us? 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:28.840 These are the questions that we've been seeking to answer as we've been exploring the Gospel of Mark since Christmas. 00:03:29.879 --> 00:03:38.140 And every year around Christmas and Easter, you'll find a new article or a new book comes out with a startling thesis 00:03:38.140 --> 00:03:44.600 based on groundbreaking research revealing entirely new insights about Jesus Christ. 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:47.100 An archaeologist digs up a new stone. 00:03:47.960 --> 00:03:50.080 An archivist redates a manuscript. 00:03:50.080 --> 00:03:52.420 A seminar comes up with a new analysis. 00:03:53.340 --> 00:03:58.260 And they say, Now we've discovered the secret of who Jesus really was. 00:03:58.380 --> 00:04:00.480 He was a Gnostic mystic. 00:04:01.140 --> 00:04:02.840 He was a cynic philosopher. 00:04:03.480 --> 00:04:06.060 He was a proto-liberation reformer. 00:04:06.600 --> 00:04:08.120 An apocalyptic prophet. 00:04:08.920 --> 00:04:10.560 A peasant revolutionary. 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:16.360 In fact, one recent bestseller argues that Jesus was actually a zealot. 00:04:17.399 --> 00:04:22.540 Another argues that he was in fact married, divorced, and then remarried. 00:04:23.240 --> 00:04:26.319 And I know some of you are wondering, he was married to Mary Magdalene. 00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:29.600 They had three kids, one daughter, two sons. 00:04:30.279 --> 00:04:32.040 According to this book. 00:04:32.040 --> 00:04:35.800 So, what are we to make of all of this? 00:04:36.600 --> 00:04:44.100 These new views suggest that Jesus never did and never said what the four Gospels claim he did and said. 00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:52.080 And what they do is they try to get behind the so-called prejudices and perspectives of the biblical Gospels 00:04:52.080 --> 00:04:55.560 in the hopes that they'll find a rather different Jesus there. 00:04:55.560 --> 00:05:03.019 These scholars and popularizers tell us, for example, that the Gospel of Mark is theological fiction. 00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:07.139 It can't be trusted to give us reliable information about Jesus, 00:05:07.259 --> 00:05:11.639 but can only really tell us about Mark's own theology about Jesus. 00:05:12.639 --> 00:05:16.300 And I want to just say as we begin today that these questions that are being raised 00:05:16.300 --> 00:05:20.420 and these conclusions that are being asserted in this quest for the historical Jesus 00:05:20.420 --> 00:05:22.220 are emphatically not new. 00:05:22.220 --> 00:05:26.780 In fact, these new discoveries and theories that come out every year 00:05:26.780 --> 00:05:31.620 that claim to pose significant challenges to the historic Christian faith, 00:05:32.300 --> 00:05:38.780 if you study it, they turn out to be variations on very well-worn themes, 00:05:39.880 --> 00:05:45.780 recycled questions and recycled ideas that you can trace back over the last 250 years 00:05:45.780 --> 00:05:47.460 of New Testament scholarship. 00:05:47.459 --> 00:05:53.739 So, of course, it's a very good thing for us to challenge popular visions of Jesus 00:05:53.739 --> 00:05:58.139 that are tamed and domesticated versions of the real thing. 00:05:58.459 --> 00:06:01.039 That's something the church should always be interested in doing. 00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:09.179 And certainly, we should know that if we discover for ourselves a Jesus with whom we can cope, 00:06:09.339 --> 00:06:11.279 that that's certainly not the real Jesus. 00:06:11.279 --> 00:06:14.819 Because the real Jesus is someone we cannot cope with. 00:06:16.139 --> 00:06:21.359 But what I want to encourage you with as we begin Holy Week is that it's not really possible, 00:06:21.559 --> 00:06:25.359 nor is it desirable for us to go back behind the four Gospels, 00:06:26.139 --> 00:06:32.619 but that what we have in these texts is reliable historical evidence and documentation 00:06:32.619 --> 00:06:35.199 about the historic Jesus. 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:43.139 And if you study these Gospels, you'll find a Jesus there that absolutely explodes 00:06:43.139 --> 00:06:45.479 whatever categories you bring to him. 00:06:46.459 --> 00:06:50.240 And I want to, some of you, I know, whenever I recommend a book, 00:06:50.339 --> 00:06:53.139 there's like two of you that actually go and get it and read it. 00:06:53.300 --> 00:06:58.579 So, two world-class scholars here, Tom Wright and Richard Baucom. 00:06:58.579 --> 00:07:03.139 Tom Wright wrote the original Jesus, the life and vision of a revolutionary. 00:07:03.319 --> 00:07:06.219 This is a series he did for the BBC back in the day. 00:07:06.800 --> 00:07:11.579 And this is Jesus, a very short introduction with this Oxford University Prez series 00:07:12.139 --> 00:07:13.360 of very short introductions. 00:07:13.579 --> 00:07:20.299 And I commend these two scholars to you if you are looking for some extra reading this week. 00:07:21.459 --> 00:07:26.839 But Palm Sunday is this doorway through which we enter into Holy Week. 00:07:26.839 --> 00:07:32.159 And 2.4 billion Christians in every culture around the world this week 00:07:32.159 --> 00:07:37.319 are going to read and remember and prayerfully meditate upon the final days of Jesus 00:07:37.319 --> 00:07:42.560 leading up to his climactic crucifixion and his resounding resurrection. 00:07:42.819 --> 00:07:45.539 And so, if you're exploring Christianity today, 00:07:45.779 --> 00:07:50.579 there's no better time to get a front row seat than Holy Week. 00:07:51.219 --> 00:07:54.979 And if you're a Christian, I want to remind you that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John 00:07:54.980 --> 00:08:01.140 had devoted a total of 30 chapters to Jesus' final days and final moments 00:08:01.140 --> 00:08:03.439 leading up to his death on the cross. 00:08:03.500 --> 00:08:09.720 So, I can imagine that even those of us who are very, very familiar with the events of Holy Week 00:08:09.720 --> 00:08:14.540 have something here in these 30 chapters, not to mention the rest of the New Testament, 00:08:14.980 --> 00:08:18.200 that we've not yet integrated into our faith and into our life. 00:08:18.199 --> 00:08:25.000 And so, I want to encourage you to take up and read and to engage in these events this week. 00:08:25.039 --> 00:08:29.500 And I pray that as you do, you'll be surprised by God the Father 00:08:29.500 --> 00:08:36.600 and that you will experience his son and you'll come to encounter the presence 00:08:36.600 --> 00:08:40.860 and the power of the Holy Spirit as you do so. 00:08:40.860 --> 00:08:47.860 But I want to dive in now to Mark chapter 11 and Mark chapter 14. 00:08:48.820 --> 00:08:53.259 And what I want to say today is that our king rides on a donkey, 00:08:54.620 --> 00:08:58.100 surrenders to the Father, and calls us to pray. 00:08:59.759 --> 00:09:04.480 Our king rides on a donkey, surrenders to the Father, and calls us to pray. 00:09:05.700 --> 00:09:08.560 So, let's start with our king riding on a donkey. 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:14.679 Oftentimes, we assume that Jesus kind of stumbled into Jerusalem that final week 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:16.939 and he realized some people really liked him and he said, 00:09:17.019 --> 00:09:19.459 oh, shucks, okay, I guess you can make me king. 00:09:20.399 --> 00:09:25.079 But Jesus is far more deliberate and reflective and strategic than that. 00:09:25.179 --> 00:09:29.500 He gives great thought and great energy to what he's going to do and say 00:09:29.500 --> 00:09:35.379 to bring his story to a climax and to bring his public vocation to a proper conclusion. 00:09:35.379 --> 00:09:40.179 And so, what we find here in this so-called triumphal entry 00:09:40.179 --> 00:09:45.220 is what we would consider premeditated symbolic action. 00:09:46.379 --> 00:09:52.439 Jesus is making decisive, calculated arrangements for how he's going to enter into the capital city 00:09:52.439 --> 00:09:54.659 during the great feast of Passover. 00:09:55.840 --> 00:10:00.059 And so, in verses 2 to 3, we find his detailed directions to his advance team. 00:10:00.059 --> 00:10:04.019 And he says, this is how I want you to set up this staged campaign. 00:10:04.219 --> 00:10:07.939 And Jesus basically is recreating an enthronement scene. 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:11.979 In the ancient Near East, a king would go out to battle. 00:10:12.339 --> 00:10:13.339 They'd defeat their enemies. 00:10:13.719 --> 00:10:18.000 They'd return in victory and they'd be welcomed back into the city. 00:10:18.119 --> 00:10:19.939 And Jesus is saying, that's what we're going to do. 00:10:20.019 --> 00:10:24.179 For about a mile, for about 30 minutes, we're going to have a red carpet event, 00:10:24.179 --> 00:10:29.719 a ticker tape parade, and there's going to be a welcome of the king, a royal reception. 00:10:31.120 --> 00:10:34.859 And how did the disciples in the crowd respond to Jesus' plan? 00:10:34.959 --> 00:10:38.399 Well, it says in verse 8, that many people spread their cloaks on the road 00:10:38.399 --> 00:10:42.000 while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:46.399 So, you can imagine a person visiting our city, 00:10:46.399 --> 00:10:51.340 and there's a crowd of people there taking off their very nice and expensive jackets 00:10:51.340 --> 00:10:54.860 and laying them down in the dirt to be walked on by people and animals. 00:10:55.399 --> 00:10:56.399 And what would we conclude? 00:10:56.500 --> 00:10:59.240 Well, we would conclude this must be a very important person. 00:10:59.360 --> 00:11:03.639 This must be a person who's worthy of great attention and respect and honor. 00:11:04.860 --> 00:11:08.699 We'd also think that this is going to be a great day for the dry cleaning business as well. 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:11.699 And we read in verse 9, it says, 00:11:11.700 --> 00:11:16.000 Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, Hosanna, which means save us. 00:11:16.940 --> 00:11:19.000 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 00:11:19.120 --> 00:11:21.460 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David. 00:11:21.680 --> 00:11:23.800 Hosanna in the highest. 00:11:23.879 --> 00:11:25.080 This is a Passover hymn. 00:11:25.180 --> 00:11:26.060 They sang it every year. 00:11:26.200 --> 00:11:30.640 It's Psalm 118, part of the Psalms of Ascent, the Hillel Psalms. 00:11:31.080 --> 00:11:31.980 And these are Jews. 00:11:32.080 --> 00:11:35.440 These are people who read Moses and the prophets and the Psalms. 00:11:36.240 --> 00:11:40.600 And they're people who are looking for a king in the line of David who will save them 00:11:40.600 --> 00:11:44.060 and put their nation and put the whole world right. 00:11:44.960 --> 00:11:49.800 And so they're singing this victory chant about Israel's hope that God would send a king 00:11:49.800 --> 00:11:54.980 to defeat their foes and establish his kingdom of peace in its fullest measure. 00:11:55.740 --> 00:11:59.680 And you've got to remember, these are people that have come down to Jerusalem from Galilee. 00:11:59.840 --> 00:12:03.240 They're pilgrims that have been with Jesus. 00:12:03.240 --> 00:12:10.180 And if you go back and you skim the first chapters of Mark's gospel, we've seen there that Jesus 00:12:10.180 --> 00:12:17.220 is exercising incredible authority and power to deliver people from demons. 00:12:17.440 --> 00:12:18.960 He's got authority over evil. 00:12:19.759 --> 00:12:24.299 He's got authority and power over illness where he's healing people of their afflictions. 00:12:25.139 --> 00:12:30.600 He demonstrates authority and power over nature as he's calming the storm and feeding the 5,000. 00:12:30.600 --> 00:12:35.560 He's demonstrated his authority and his power over death and raising people back to life. 00:12:36.600 --> 00:12:41.879 And most outrageous of all, Jesus has demonstrated his authority and his power over sin 00:12:41.879 --> 00:12:48.159 and forgiving people of their failures to love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. 00:12:48.980 --> 00:12:50.840 These are people that have been with Jesus. 00:12:51.220 --> 00:12:52.639 They've experienced Jesus. 00:12:53.040 --> 00:12:54.259 They've seen Jesus. 00:12:55.019 --> 00:12:56.460 And all that he can do. 00:12:56.460 --> 00:13:01.120 And so no wonder they're shouting, basically, long live the king. 00:13:02.120 --> 00:13:05.680 Not long live a king, but long live the king. 00:13:05.759 --> 00:13:07.660 God's only chosen king. 00:13:07.800 --> 00:13:10.320 And when Jesus hears this, he doesn't blush. 00:13:11.320 --> 00:13:14.080 And he doesn't say, oh, no, no, no, that's just too much. 00:13:14.120 --> 00:13:14.860 You're going too far. 00:13:14.960 --> 00:13:15.080 No. 00:13:15.080 --> 00:13:21.920 Jesus receives their praise and embraces their hopes and affirms their desires and implicitly says, 00:13:22.800 --> 00:13:27.060 yes, I am the one who comes in the name of the Lord. 00:13:27.940 --> 00:13:30.180 Yes, I am bringing the kingdom. 00:13:30.340 --> 00:13:33.340 And yes, I do intend to be your king. 00:13:34.500 --> 00:13:41.100 And so the question of Palm Sunday is, will we bow our knee to this king? 00:13:41.100 --> 00:13:46.200 And will we confess that he and he alone is Lord? 00:13:47.019 --> 00:13:50.840 Not just Lord of our lives or Lord of this church, but Lord of the whole world. 00:13:52.240 --> 00:13:58.860 Jesus rides into our lives like he rode into Jerusalem saying, I am an absolute monarch. 00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:02.399 I am a supreme sovereign. 00:14:02.580 --> 00:14:07.360 And therefore, on the basis of who I am, I want total surrender. 00:14:07.360 --> 00:14:12.399 And I want exclusive allegiance and I want glad obedience. 00:14:13.680 --> 00:14:16.720 Jesus does not want to be our chaplain. 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:20.139 Jesus does not want to be our consultant. 00:14:21.300 --> 00:14:24.300 He doesn't want to be your therapist or your guru. 00:14:25.500 --> 00:14:28.720 Jesus doesn't want to be even your teacher or your role model. 00:14:30.300 --> 00:14:33.820 Jesus comes in the name of the Lord and he wants to be your king. 00:14:33.820 --> 00:14:40.500 And here I think Jesus is throwing down the gauntlet and pressing his identity on the people. 00:14:40.620 --> 00:14:44.480 And basically saying, I refuse to be merely admired. 00:14:46.540 --> 00:14:53.740 And I really, really don't just want to be shoehorned into a little portion of your day or an hour or two on the weekend. 00:14:53.740 --> 00:15:01.820 No, I am either of greatest importance or of no importance whatsoever. 00:15:01.980 --> 00:15:07.180 But the one thing I cannot be is of marginal importance. 00:15:08.940 --> 00:15:10.600 So who is Jesus to you? 00:15:10.600 --> 00:15:21.120 Many of us, this thought of living under a king feels threatening because we live in this culture of self-expressive individualism 00:15:21.120 --> 00:15:24.879 where the last thing you want to do is give up your control over your life. 00:15:25.700 --> 00:15:31.300 The last thing we want to do is submit our will and our desires to the will and desire of another person. 00:15:31.299 --> 00:15:41.379 And of course, history shows us that kings and queens have abused their authority and used their power in oppressive ways 00:15:41.379 --> 00:15:44.379 and have shown themselves to not be worthy of our trust. 00:15:44.500 --> 00:15:48.439 But Jesus, I want to convince you today that Jesus is different. 00:15:50.099 --> 00:15:56.620 Notice the chosen means of Jesus' transportation into the city is not a war horse, 00:15:57.459 --> 00:15:58.939 but it's the cult of a donkey. 00:15:58.940 --> 00:16:03.800 And of course, this is Jesus' opportunity to make history, right? 00:16:03.940 --> 00:16:09.260 This is his moment to be put up there with Alexander the Great and Caesar Augustus. 00:16:10.220 --> 00:16:17.600 To be considered among all those great warrior kings like Attila the Hun and Charlemagne and William the Conqueror 00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:19.100 and Genghis Khan and Napoleon. 00:16:21.220 --> 00:16:24.360 Why does Jesus choose a donkey in this moment? 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:33.080 Well, Jesus' choice of this little baby donkey, rather than the mighty steed of a triumphant king, 00:16:33.200 --> 00:16:37.600 is his making a statement about the kind of king he's come to be. 00:16:39.000 --> 00:16:43.060 That I'm the king who's come to ride Eeyore. 00:16:43.059 --> 00:16:51.319 I'm the king who's come to ride a beast that's worthy of a little child or even a hobbit. 00:16:53.219 --> 00:16:56.919 And it's extraordinary that one who has such authority and power, 00:16:57.000 --> 00:17:01.299 the power over sin and death, power over evil and illness, power over nature, 00:17:01.839 --> 00:17:04.700 that he would come and ride such a humble creature. 00:17:04.700 --> 00:17:11.539 But Jesus comes and he rides in humble and meek and gentle on a donkey saying, 00:17:11.860 --> 00:17:16.779 I am the king, I'm the sovereign, I'm the monarch that you can trust. 00:17:18.539 --> 00:17:21.740 And my power is the power of my lowliness. 00:17:23.259 --> 00:17:26.559 My power is the power of giving up my power. 00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:37.119 Jesus, our donkey king, has not come with brute force to seize, coerce, demolish, pillage, enslave, and oppress. 00:17:38.659 --> 00:17:46.960 But rather, he's come to serve you as a gentle and lowly, vulnerable and defenseless prince of peace. 00:17:47.980 --> 00:17:51.159 And he's come not to threaten you into surrender, 00:17:51.160 --> 00:17:57.140 but to say, I'm here to willingly surrender myself and my life for you. 00:17:58.320 --> 00:17:59.740 I'm not going to oppress you. 00:18:00.560 --> 00:18:02.880 I'm going to liberate you and humanize you. 00:18:03.700 --> 00:18:05.480 I'm not going to disempower you. 00:18:05.540 --> 00:18:09.120 I'm going to empower you with a love like you've never known before. 00:18:10.440 --> 00:18:12.820 And so the question for us on Palm Sunday is, 00:18:12.980 --> 00:18:17.220 are we willing to open the gates of our city, the gates of our life, 00:18:17.279 --> 00:18:19.300 and let him ride in as king? 00:18:19.299 --> 00:18:23.259 And are we willing to say in our heart to him, 00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:26.799 Hosanna, save us, save me. 00:18:27.899 --> 00:18:31.119 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 00:18:32.740 --> 00:18:36.740 So our king rides on a donkey, but he not only rides on a donkey, 00:18:36.879 --> 00:18:39.220 he surrenders to the Father. 00:18:40.399 --> 00:18:41.940 Our king surrenders to the Father. 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:45.919 And at this point, I want to fast forward a bit into Holy Week, 00:18:46.339 --> 00:18:48.619 to the night before Jesus' cross. 00:18:49.299 --> 00:18:55.180 Where Jesus has just spent the evening with his disciples in the upper room in Jerusalem. 00:18:55.399 --> 00:18:58.879 And he washes his feet and their feet. 00:18:59.000 --> 00:19:02.099 And he says, I want you to love one another. 00:19:02.480 --> 00:19:04.720 And this is how the world's going to know that you're my disciples, 00:19:04.859 --> 00:19:06.480 if you love one another. 00:19:06.680 --> 00:19:08.659 And he institutes his Holy Supper. 00:19:09.519 --> 00:19:12.159 He promises the spirit of truth will come to them. 00:19:12.259 --> 00:19:14.839 He prays for himself and he prays for his apostles. 00:19:14.839 --> 00:19:16.980 He prays for his future church. 00:19:18.259 --> 00:19:20.179 And now it's late at night. 00:19:21.139 --> 00:19:24.579 And they leave the upper room and they go out and walk the streets of Jerusalem. 00:19:24.579 --> 00:19:26.659 And they go down into the Kidron Valley. 00:19:26.819 --> 00:19:29.000 And they climb up the Mount of Olives. 00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:32.779 And they turn aside into this olive grove called Gethsemane. 00:19:32.779 --> 00:19:36.779 And that brings us to Mark chapter 14, verse 32. 00:19:38.240 --> 00:19:38.660 It says, 00:19:38.759 --> 00:19:40.279 They went to a place called Gethsemane. 00:19:40.379 --> 00:19:41.539 And Jesus said to his disciples, 00:19:41.700 --> 00:19:43.720 Sit here while I pray. 00:19:44.920 --> 00:19:48.299 And I want to give you a bit of a preview of coming attractions this week. 00:19:48.379 --> 00:19:54.920 So that you have something to meditate on between now and these events that we're going to commemorate on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. 00:19:54.920 --> 00:20:03.400 And what is Jesus' state of mind and state of heart as he enters into Gethsemane? 00:20:03.500 --> 00:20:04.720 Well, it says in verse 33, 00:20:04.880 --> 00:20:07.019 He took Peter, James, and John along with him. 00:20:07.740 --> 00:20:11.019 And he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 00:20:12.340 --> 00:20:15.400 My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death, he said to them. 00:20:15.480 --> 00:20:17.860 Stay here and keep watch. 00:20:17.859 --> 00:20:28.679 This is amazing the way that Jesus lays bare his soul and his struggles and his agony and the fear that he has about what's coming. 00:20:28.799 --> 00:20:34.439 And it says that word troubled means that he's overwhelmed and overcome with horror. 00:20:35.779 --> 00:20:36.799 And why is that? 00:20:36.859 --> 00:20:39.000 What is it that's horrifying Jesus? 00:20:39.000 --> 00:20:42.480 Well, verse 35 says, 00:20:42.579 --> 00:20:48.380 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible, the hour might pass from him. 00:20:49.259 --> 00:20:51.940 Abba, Father, he said, everything is possible for you. 00:20:52.720 --> 00:20:56.500 Take this cup from me, yet not what I will, but what you will. 00:20:57.740 --> 00:21:06.599 This is telling us that Jesus is facing something beyond the normal fear of physical torment and physical execution. 00:21:06.599 --> 00:21:16.279 Because the Hebrew scriptures tell us that this cup that Jesus talks about is a metaphor for the wrath of God on human evil. 00:21:17.339 --> 00:21:22.619 This cup is the image of divine justice being poured out on human injustice. 00:21:23.879 --> 00:21:28.159 When Jesus would read his Bible, he would come to Ezekiel 23 that says, 00:21:28.159 --> 00:21:30.459 This is what the sovereign Lord says. 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:35.159 You will drink a cup large and deep, the cup of ruin and desolation. 00:21:35.160 --> 00:21:38.240 You will drink it and drain it dry. 00:21:39.480 --> 00:21:44.100 Jesus, when he read Isaiah 51, he read these words that God speaks of, 00:21:44.400 --> 00:21:48.860 The cup that made you stagger and the goblet of my wrath. 00:21:50.779 --> 00:21:55.160 So when Jesus turns to the Father in Gethsemane, 00:21:55.540 --> 00:22:01.519 all he can see is this cup of wrath, this cup of ruin and desolation, 00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:03.740 this cup of God forsakenness. 00:22:03.779 --> 00:22:05.799 And Jesus, as he begins to get a whiff, 00:22:06.940 --> 00:22:10.240 just a foretaste of the hell that's coming for him on his cross, 00:22:11.019 --> 00:22:17.779 the spiritual, cosmic, infinite disintegration and separation that lies before him, 00:22:18.200 --> 00:22:22.240 he's staggering under the weight of this cup in this hour. 00:22:23.700 --> 00:22:25.119 And some of us hear this and we say, 00:22:25.240 --> 00:22:28.799 You know, I don't like this idea of the wrath of God. 00:22:28.799 --> 00:22:31.440 I want a God of love. 00:22:32.639 --> 00:22:36.339 But we know that when we look around the world 00:22:36.339 --> 00:22:41.839 and we see people or whole groups of people destroying themselves 00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:43.859 or destroying other people, 00:22:43.919 --> 00:22:47.559 and we see human beings trampling on the dignity of others 00:22:47.559 --> 00:22:49.779 and on justice itself, 00:22:49.779 --> 00:22:53.000 and if we don't get angry about that 00:22:53.000 --> 00:22:59.859 and we don't feel a sense of opposition to that injustice, 00:22:59.859 --> 00:23:04.000 it's because we're callous and we don't care and we're indifferent. 00:23:05.059 --> 00:23:09.500 And God is anything but callous and not caring and indifferent about his creation. 00:23:10.660 --> 00:23:14.039 God's goodness and his love for his creation is so great. 00:23:14.039 --> 00:23:21.000 And the cumulative extent of evil over time and in the world today is so vast 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:24.980 that his wrath is an expression of his justice 00:23:24.980 --> 00:23:30.279 and of his willingness to do something to put this broken world right. 00:23:31.399 --> 00:23:34.200 And so if we want to have a God of love, 00:23:34.359 --> 00:23:36.059 we must have a God of wrath. 00:23:36.240 --> 00:23:39.659 There's no such thing as a God of love without wrath. 00:23:39.660 --> 00:23:44.380 And Jesus tells us that because he names this God whom he's praying to, 00:23:44.820 --> 00:23:46.080 Abba, Father. 00:23:47.620 --> 00:23:48.540 Abba, Father. 00:23:49.560 --> 00:23:53.180 And his appeal to the Father is based on these twin assumptions 00:23:53.180 --> 00:23:58.480 that on the one hand, all things are possible for you. 00:23:59.440 --> 00:24:00.740 And yet on the other hand, 00:24:01.380 --> 00:24:06.440 you also have a will that should be accepted and not altered. 00:24:06.440 --> 00:24:09.500 All things are possible for you. 00:24:09.559 --> 00:24:12.759 And yet your will is to be accepted and not altered. 00:24:12.860 --> 00:24:14.680 And this is how Jesus taught us to pray. 00:24:14.759 --> 00:24:17.940 It's the pattern that he taught us to pray in the Lord's Prayer. 00:24:18.100 --> 00:24:21.759 We affirm God's power and his ability. 00:24:21.860 --> 00:24:24.779 We say, Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 00:24:25.640 --> 00:24:26.840 That's how we begin in prayer. 00:24:26.920 --> 00:24:28.519 We say nothing is beyond you. 00:24:28.840 --> 00:24:30.279 Nothing's too difficult for you. 00:24:30.620 --> 00:24:32.380 Nothing's impossible for you. 00:24:32.380 --> 00:24:35.779 That's a great place to begin in our prayers. 00:24:36.860 --> 00:24:39.160 But then the very next thing Jesus taught us to pray 00:24:39.160 --> 00:24:43.120 is a resolve to submit ourselves to the Father's sovereign agenda. 00:24:43.279 --> 00:24:45.900 Your kingdom come and your will be done. 00:24:46.759 --> 00:24:50.640 Not my kingdom and not my will, but yours be done. 00:24:51.759 --> 00:24:53.980 And you see, that's what Jesus is doing right here. 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:55.600 Jesus says, 00:24:55.599 --> 00:25:00.719 My immediate and my loudest desire is to be spared from this hour 00:25:00.719 --> 00:25:02.480 and to be spared from this cup. 00:25:03.439 --> 00:25:06.799 But my ultimate and my deepest desire 00:25:06.799 --> 00:25:09.699 is to spare your people, Father. 00:25:11.439 --> 00:25:12.779 And so, Father, 00:25:13.500 --> 00:25:16.619 not what I immediately want, 00:25:17.439 --> 00:25:21.819 because ultimately I want what you want, 00:25:21.819 --> 00:25:25.399 and that is the salvation of your people. 00:25:27.599 --> 00:25:32.279 Friends, do you hear Jesus' love for you in this prayer? 00:25:32.279 --> 00:25:37.240 Can you imagine Jesus thinking about you 00:25:37.240 --> 00:25:41.440 as he's praying this prayer about the cup 00:25:41.440 --> 00:25:44.519 that really belongs to you and to me? 00:25:44.519 --> 00:25:48.139 The thrill for us is that on Good Friday, 00:25:48.240 --> 00:25:51.299 when Jesus drank that cup of divine judgment, 00:25:52.299 --> 00:25:55.480 the cup did indeed at that moment go away from us. 00:25:56.660 --> 00:25:58.680 And it's precisely because this cup 00:25:58.680 --> 00:26:00.160 was not taken away from Jesus 00:26:00.160 --> 00:26:03.019 that it has been taken away from us. 00:26:03.019 --> 00:26:06.660 Jesus drank that poison cup, 00:26:07.079 --> 00:26:09.759 that poison cup of our sin and our cursedness 00:26:09.759 --> 00:26:13.240 so that you and I never even have to taste it, 00:26:13.299 --> 00:26:15.000 never even have to get a whiff of it. 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:17.579 So thank God, right? 00:26:17.660 --> 00:26:20.579 Thank God that he surrendered his will 00:26:20.579 --> 00:26:22.579 to the will of the Father. 00:26:24.099 --> 00:26:24.460 Amen? 00:26:24.460 --> 00:26:24.599 Amen? 00:26:26.920 --> 00:26:28.500 So our king rides a donkey 00:26:28.500 --> 00:26:30.200 and he surrenders to the Father. 00:26:31.299 --> 00:26:32.460 But the last thing I want to say 00:26:32.460 --> 00:26:34.140 is that he also calls us to pray. 00:26:35.319 --> 00:26:37.200 Our king not only rides his donkey 00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:38.400 and surrenders to the Father, 00:26:38.460 --> 00:26:39.620 but he calls his church, 00:26:39.700 --> 00:26:42.200 he calls his disciples to pray. 00:26:44.120 --> 00:26:45.740 Gethsemane is the crowning prayer 00:26:45.740 --> 00:26:47.460 of the gospel for a reason. 00:26:48.660 --> 00:26:51.039 Because it shows us that Jesus' obedience 00:26:51.039 --> 00:26:52.840 on the cross is a struggled 00:26:52.840 --> 00:26:56.620 and learned and prayed for obedience. 00:26:59.220 --> 00:27:01.500 Hebrews chapter five helps us with this. 00:27:01.640 --> 00:27:01.920 It says, 00:27:02.460 --> 00:27:03.860 in Hebrews 5, 00:27:03.960 --> 00:27:04.279 seven, 00:27:04.279 --> 00:27:07.180 during the days of Jesus' life on earth, 00:27:07.259 --> 00:27:09.019 he offered up prayers and petitions 00:27:09.019 --> 00:27:11.420 with fervent cries and tears 00:27:11.420 --> 00:27:13.559 to the one who could save him from death. 00:27:14.100 --> 00:27:17.019 And he was heard because of his reverent submission. 00:27:18.160 --> 00:27:18.579 Son, 00:27:18.640 --> 00:27:19.400 though he was, 00:27:19.620 --> 00:27:20.920 he learned obedience 00:27:20.920 --> 00:27:22.819 from what he suffered. 00:27:22.819 --> 00:27:24.059 Now, 00:27:24.059 --> 00:27:26.939 now I don't pretend to know half of what that means. 00:27:28.139 --> 00:27:30.439 But what I think it does mean, 00:27:30.720 --> 00:27:32.179 at least a little bit that I understand, 00:27:32.379 --> 00:27:35.079 is that Jesus prayed himself to courage. 00:27:36.359 --> 00:27:38.980 And Jesus prayed himself to faithfulness. 00:27:39.619 --> 00:27:42.639 And Jesus prayed himself to sacrificial love 00:27:42.639 --> 00:27:44.819 and to becoming and giving his life 00:27:44.819 --> 00:27:46.579 as a ransom for the many. 00:27:46.579 --> 00:27:47.839 And what this means for us 00:27:47.839 --> 00:27:50.439 is that this reverent submission of Jesus, 00:27:50.639 --> 00:27:52.779 this learned obedience of Jesus, 00:27:53.139 --> 00:27:55.559 that's how we're to pray. 00:27:56.679 --> 00:27:59.879 That's how we're to be living our lives in prayer. 00:27:59.880 --> 00:28:02.720 But if you look at verse 37, 00:28:02.820 --> 00:28:03.100 it says, 00:28:03.300 --> 00:28:04.780 Then Jesus returned to his disciples 00:28:04.780 --> 00:28:07.240 and he found them sleeping. 00:28:08.540 --> 00:28:09.720 Simon, he said to Peter, 00:28:09.800 --> 00:28:10.580 Are you asleep? 00:28:11.640 --> 00:28:14.180 Could you not keep watch for one hour? 00:28:15.380 --> 00:28:16.140 Watch and pray 00:28:16.140 --> 00:28:17.780 so that you will not fall into temptation. 00:28:17.940 --> 00:28:18.840 The spirit is willing, 00:28:19.360 --> 00:28:21.000 but the flesh is weak. 00:28:22.300 --> 00:28:22.880 Three times, 00:28:24.480 --> 00:28:26.720 Jesus finds his disciples sleeping 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:29.200 when they ought to be praying. 00:28:29.880 --> 00:28:30.000 Right? 00:28:31.020 --> 00:28:31.900 Three times, 00:28:32.000 --> 00:28:34.560 he finds them to be physically close to him 00:28:34.560 --> 00:28:38.080 and yet spiritually quite distant from him. 00:28:39.440 --> 00:28:40.340 These disciples, 00:28:40.920 --> 00:28:41.780 they're like you and me. 00:28:41.840 --> 00:28:42.940 They talk a big game. 00:28:43.840 --> 00:28:43.960 Right? 00:28:44.040 --> 00:28:46.760 They pledge themselves to undying devotion. 00:28:46.900 --> 00:28:47.100 In fact, 00:28:47.180 --> 00:28:48.820 just before this in Mark 14, 00:28:48.980 --> 00:28:49.480 Peter said, 00:28:49.880 --> 00:28:50.140 Jesus, 00:28:50.440 --> 00:28:50.660 Lord, 00:28:50.840 --> 00:28:52.680 even if all fall away, 00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:54.360 I will not fall away. 00:28:54.420 --> 00:28:56.120 And even if I have to die with you, 00:28:56.280 --> 00:28:57.220 I will never, 00:28:57.360 --> 00:28:58.840 ever disown you. 00:28:59.880 --> 00:29:03.240 But might we argue that Peter's three denials 00:29:03.240 --> 00:29:05.480 in the courtyard when Jesus is on trial 00:29:05.480 --> 00:29:08.180 might in some way be linked 00:29:08.180 --> 00:29:09.980 to his three naps in the garden 00:29:09.980 --> 00:29:11.900 while Jesus is praying. 00:29:11.900 --> 00:29:16.180 In Mark chapter 9, 00:29:16.240 --> 00:29:16.780 verse 29, 00:29:17.060 --> 00:29:19.700 we looked a few weeks ago 00:29:19.700 --> 00:29:20.560 at Jesus' statement 00:29:20.560 --> 00:29:21.019 when he says, 00:29:21.320 --> 00:29:21.960 this kind 00:29:21.960 --> 00:29:24.460 can come out only by prayer. 00:29:25.800 --> 00:29:27.800 What he's telling us 00:29:27.800 --> 00:29:28.160 is that 00:29:28.160 --> 00:29:30.360 there are things in the Christian life 00:29:30.360 --> 00:29:31.060 and there are things 00:29:31.060 --> 00:29:32.540 in the life and mission 00:29:32.540 --> 00:29:33.640 of the church 00:29:33.640 --> 00:29:35.460 that if you attempt 00:29:35.460 --> 00:29:36.220 to do them, 00:29:36.259 --> 00:29:37.580 if we attempt to do them 00:29:37.580 --> 00:29:38.980 without an extraordinary 00:29:38.980 --> 00:29:40.839 effort of prayer, 00:29:41.039 --> 00:29:42.299 we're going to fail 00:29:42.299 --> 00:29:43.380 miserably. 00:29:44.779 --> 00:29:46.339 And in the same way here, 00:29:46.680 --> 00:29:47.579 what we learn 00:29:47.579 --> 00:29:48.519 is that the only way 00:29:48.519 --> 00:29:50.200 Jesus could surmount 00:29:50.200 --> 00:29:51.680 serious temptation 00:29:51.680 --> 00:29:52.339 and the only way 00:29:52.339 --> 00:29:53.019 his disciples 00:29:53.019 --> 00:29:54.220 could have surmounted 00:29:54.220 --> 00:29:56.059 serious temptation 00:29:56.059 --> 00:29:57.140 is through 00:29:57.140 --> 00:29:58.339 this kind of 00:29:58.339 --> 00:29:59.759 submissive prayer. 00:30:01.299 --> 00:30:02.180 And so as we close, 00:30:02.240 --> 00:30:02.860 I just want to give you 00:30:02.860 --> 00:30:03.740 a little bit of guidance 00:30:03.740 --> 00:30:05.480 on how to pray 00:30:05.480 --> 00:30:06.400 during Holy Week 00:30:06.400 --> 00:30:06.920 and hopefully 00:30:06.920 --> 00:30:08.480 beyond Holy Week 00:30:08.480 --> 00:30:10.960 into our lives 00:30:10.960 --> 00:30:11.880 in the season ahead. 00:30:12.840 --> 00:30:13.680 And I just want to 00:30:13.680 --> 00:30:14.380 point out 00:30:14.380 --> 00:30:15.360 four features 00:30:15.360 --> 00:30:16.880 that might change 00:30:16.880 --> 00:30:17.360 the way 00:30:17.360 --> 00:30:18.360 we pray. 00:30:19.440 --> 00:30:20.240 First of all, 00:30:20.280 --> 00:30:20.780 it says that 00:30:20.780 --> 00:30:22.280 Jesus fell to the ground. 00:30:23.519 --> 00:30:24.759 And I have to ask myself, 00:30:24.880 --> 00:30:25.780 how often do I 00:30:25.780 --> 00:30:27.720 put myself down 00:30:27.720 --> 00:30:28.380 on my knees 00:30:28.380 --> 00:30:28.940 in prayer? 00:30:30.259 --> 00:30:31.060 How often do I 00:30:31.060 --> 00:30:31.880 put my face 00:30:31.880 --> 00:30:33.600 down on the ground 00:30:33.600 --> 00:30:34.340 as a sign 00:30:34.340 --> 00:30:34.680 that 00:30:34.680 --> 00:30:36.160 I'm in fact 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:37.480 very poor 00:30:37.480 --> 00:30:38.039 in spirit 00:30:38.039 --> 00:30:40.560 and that I'm 00:30:40.560 --> 00:30:41.620 in a humble state 00:30:41.620 --> 00:30:43.440 that I'm more desperate 00:30:43.440 --> 00:30:44.700 than I even realize 00:30:44.700 --> 00:30:45.880 that without God 00:30:45.880 --> 00:30:46.380 I'm helpless 00:30:46.380 --> 00:30:47.039 and I'm hopeless? 00:30:47.200 --> 00:30:48.660 Jesus fell to the ground 00:30:48.660 --> 00:30:49.759 and if he fell to the ground, 00:30:50.460 --> 00:30:53.080 maybe I should fall down 00:30:53.080 --> 00:30:53.539 on the ground. 00:30:55.259 --> 00:30:55.700 And secondly, 00:30:55.860 --> 00:30:56.539 Jesus prays, 00:30:56.620 --> 00:30:57.299 Abba, Father. 00:30:58.480 --> 00:30:59.700 And I have to ask myself, 00:30:59.779 --> 00:31:00.420 do I pray 00:31:00.420 --> 00:31:01.759 with that kind of 00:31:01.759 --> 00:31:02.360 intimacy 00:31:02.359 --> 00:31:03.519 and affection 00:31:03.519 --> 00:31:04.659 and respect 00:31:04.659 --> 00:31:05.259 for God? 00:31:06.799 --> 00:31:07.719 I ought to. 00:31:09.339 --> 00:31:10.519 Romans 8, 15 00:31:10.519 --> 00:31:10.839 says, 00:31:10.959 --> 00:31:11.899 the spirit you received 00:31:11.899 --> 00:31:12.500 brought about 00:31:12.500 --> 00:31:13.119 your adoption 00:31:13.119 --> 00:31:13.899 to sonship 00:31:13.899 --> 00:31:14.500 and by him 00:31:14.500 --> 00:31:15.059 we cry, 00:31:15.579 --> 00:31:16.740 Abba, Father. 00:31:18.419 --> 00:31:19.439 Galatians 4, 6 00:31:19.439 --> 00:31:20.039 says that God 00:31:20.039 --> 00:31:21.240 sent the spirit 00:31:21.240 --> 00:31:21.740 of his son 00:31:21.740 --> 00:31:22.439 into our hearts, 00:31:22.539 --> 00:31:23.659 the spirit who calls out 00:31:23.659 --> 00:31:25.559 Abba, Father. 00:31:25.559 --> 00:31:25.659 Father. 00:31:28.159 --> 00:31:29.299 The sign 00:31:29.299 --> 00:31:31.259 of our freedom 00:31:31.259 --> 00:31:33.759 as precious daughters 00:31:33.759 --> 00:31:35.059 and treasured sons 00:31:35.059 --> 00:31:36.240 of God 00:31:36.240 --> 00:31:37.279 is whether or not 00:31:37.279 --> 00:31:38.539 we call him 00:31:38.539 --> 00:31:39.720 Abba, 00:31:40.399 --> 00:31:40.919 Father. 00:31:42.200 --> 00:31:43.000 Do I pray 00:31:43.000 --> 00:31:43.740 with the confidence 00:31:43.740 --> 00:31:45.339 of a child? 00:31:45.700 --> 00:31:46.359 Do I pray 00:31:46.359 --> 00:31:47.700 with the kind of 00:31:47.700 --> 00:31:49.980 humble boldness 00:31:49.980 --> 00:31:51.019 of Jesus? 00:31:51.220 --> 00:31:51.679 Abba, 00:31:52.019 --> 00:31:52.299 Father. 00:31:52.299 --> 00:31:54.940 He fell to the ground, 00:31:55.019 --> 00:31:55.599 he prayed Abba, 00:31:55.680 --> 00:31:55.960 Father. 00:31:56.819 --> 00:31:57.259 Third, 00:31:57.419 --> 00:31:58.460 it says in verse 39 00:31:58.460 --> 00:31:59.279 that once more 00:31:59.279 --> 00:31:59.980 he went away 00:31:59.980 --> 00:32:00.559 and he prayed 00:32:00.559 --> 00:32:01.379 the same thing. 00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:04.379 Jesus praying 00:32:04.379 --> 00:32:05.019 the same thing 00:32:05.019 --> 00:32:06.240 three times over 00:32:06.240 --> 00:32:07.139 shows me that 00:32:07.139 --> 00:32:09.740 I need to persevere 00:32:09.740 --> 00:32:10.220 a little more 00:32:10.220 --> 00:32:10.659 in prayer. 00:32:12.119 --> 00:32:12.919 I need to be 00:32:12.919 --> 00:32:13.819 persistent in prayer. 00:32:13.940 --> 00:32:14.619 I need to not 00:32:14.619 --> 00:32:15.960 try and pray 00:32:15.960 --> 00:32:16.680 one time 00:32:16.680 --> 00:32:17.119 and say, 00:32:17.460 --> 00:32:17.700 well, 00:32:17.839 --> 00:32:19.099 I'm gonna give up 00:32:19.099 --> 00:32:19.879 because I don't think 00:32:19.879 --> 00:32:20.539 God's listening 00:32:20.539 --> 00:32:22.099 or I'm not sure 00:32:22.099 --> 00:32:22.920 that God cares 00:32:22.920 --> 00:32:23.440 or I'm not sure 00:32:23.440 --> 00:32:24.440 that God's able 00:32:24.440 --> 00:32:25.180 to do what I'm 00:32:25.180 --> 00:32:25.839 asking him 00:32:25.839 --> 00:32:26.619 to do. 00:32:26.720 --> 00:32:27.000 No. 00:32:27.960 --> 00:32:28.399 Jesus, 00:32:28.899 --> 00:32:30.259 he went away 00:32:30.259 --> 00:32:30.899 and he prayed 00:32:30.899 --> 00:32:32.119 the same thing 00:32:32.119 --> 00:32:33.180 again 00:32:33.180 --> 00:32:34.220 and again 00:32:34.220 --> 00:32:35.299 and again. 00:32:35.879 --> 00:32:36.899 How much more 00:32:36.899 --> 00:32:38.200 do we need to keep 00:32:38.200 --> 00:32:38.899 going 00:32:38.899 --> 00:32:39.799 in prayer? 00:32:41.240 --> 00:32:42.240 And the fourth thing 00:32:42.240 --> 00:32:43.059 is Jesus said, 00:32:43.359 --> 00:32:44.379 not what I will 00:32:44.379 --> 00:32:45.019 but what 00:32:45.019 --> 00:32:46.139 you will. 00:32:47.259 --> 00:32:48.240 We often assume 00:32:48.240 --> 00:32:48.700 that prayer 00:32:48.700 --> 00:32:49.460 is about getting 00:32:49.460 --> 00:32:50.500 God to do 00:32:50.500 --> 00:32:51.860 what we want 00:32:51.860 --> 00:32:52.299 him to do 00:32:52.299 --> 00:32:52.860 but in fact 00:32:52.860 --> 00:32:53.700 prayer is 00:32:53.700 --> 00:32:54.240 pretty much 00:32:54.240 --> 00:32:55.200 the exact opposite. 00:32:56.700 --> 00:32:57.319 Prayer is meant 00:32:57.319 --> 00:32:57.840 to put us 00:32:57.840 --> 00:32:58.420 in this place 00:32:58.420 --> 00:33:00.579 where the Holy Spirit 00:33:00.579 --> 00:33:02.299 can shape us 00:33:02.299 --> 00:33:02.940 according to the 00:33:02.940 --> 00:33:03.440 will of God 00:33:03.440 --> 00:33:03.880 and where 00:33:03.880 --> 00:33:05.079 we can find 00:33:05.079 --> 00:33:05.700 by the power 00:33:05.700 --> 00:33:06.360 of the Holy Spirit 00:33:06.360 --> 00:33:06.960 the faith 00:33:06.960 --> 00:33:07.700 and the courage 00:33:07.700 --> 00:33:09.440 to let go. 00:33:10.400 --> 00:33:11.340 To let go 00:33:11.340 --> 00:33:12.539 of our immediate 00:33:12.539 --> 00:33:13.640 and our loudest 00:33:13.640 --> 00:33:14.100 desires 00:33:14.100 --> 00:33:16.120 so that we can 00:33:16.120 --> 00:33:17.039 embrace the ultimate 00:33:17.039 --> 00:33:18.039 and better way 00:33:18.039 --> 00:33:19.559 of our Heavenly Father. 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:21.399 When Jesus 00:33:21.399 --> 00:33:22.119 went to prayer 00:33:22.119 --> 00:33:22.899 he went to prayer 00:33:22.899 --> 00:33:23.579 with a will 00:33:23.579 --> 00:33:24.799 that was good 00:33:24.799 --> 00:33:25.920 a will that was pure 00:33:25.920 --> 00:33:27.240 a will that was undefiled 00:33:27.240 --> 00:33:28.079 and even he 00:33:28.079 --> 00:33:28.920 had to relinquish 00:33:28.920 --> 00:33:30.399 control of his circumstances 00:33:30.399 --> 00:33:31.079 and submit 00:33:31.079 --> 00:33:32.139 his desires 00:33:32.139 --> 00:33:33.019 to Abba Father. 00:33:34.319 --> 00:33:35.539 And so when we bring 00:33:35.539 --> 00:33:36.500 our wills 00:33:36.500 --> 00:33:37.839 stained as they are 00:33:37.839 --> 00:33:39.519 corrupted as they are 00:33:39.519 --> 00:33:40.000 twisted 00:33:40.000 --> 00:33:40.859 and flawed 00:33:40.859 --> 00:33:41.460 as they are 00:33:41.460 --> 00:33:42.139 to the Father 00:33:42.140 --> 00:33:43.720 we do so 00:33:43.720 --> 00:33:44.400 knowing that 00:33:44.400 --> 00:33:45.740 he has something 00:33:45.740 --> 00:33:46.900 way different 00:33:46.900 --> 00:33:47.780 and way better 00:33:47.780 --> 00:33:48.840 in mind 00:33:48.840 --> 00:33:49.720 than we could have 00:33:49.720 --> 00:33:50.620 ever come up with. 00:33:51.960 --> 00:33:52.860 And so we go 00:33:52.860 --> 00:33:53.660 to his good 00:33:53.660 --> 00:33:54.200 and pleasing 00:33:54.200 --> 00:33:55.200 and perfect will 00:33:55.200 --> 00:33:55.640 and we say 00:33:55.640 --> 00:33:56.140 ah 00:33:56.140 --> 00:33:57.960 that's going to be 00:33:57.960 --> 00:33:58.780 so much better 00:33:58.780 --> 00:34:00.360 than if you do 00:34:00.360 --> 00:34:00.880 my will. 00:34:02.480 --> 00:34:03.420 And so the question 00:34:03.420 --> 00:34:04.480 today for us 00:34:04.480 --> 00:34:07.560 on Palm Sunday 00:34:07.560 --> 00:34:08.160 is 00:34:08.160 --> 00:34:10.599 will we pray? 00:34:12.699 --> 00:34:13.480 Doesn't matter 00:34:13.480 --> 00:34:14.299 if you prayed 00:34:14.299 --> 00:34:14.859 yesterday 00:34:14.859 --> 00:34:15.739 doesn't matter 00:34:15.739 --> 00:34:16.639 what you did 00:34:16.639 --> 00:34:17.319 this past week 00:34:17.319 --> 00:34:18.039 this past month 00:34:18.039 --> 00:34:18.539 this past year 00:34:18.539 --> 00:34:19.299 the question is 00:34:19.299 --> 00:34:20.359 this week 00:34:20.359 --> 00:34:21.500 this month 00:34:21.500 --> 00:34:22.199 this year 00:34:22.199 --> 00:34:24.480 will we pray? 00:34:25.819 --> 00:34:26.739 And will we go 00:34:26.739 --> 00:34:27.539 to that place 00:34:27.539 --> 00:34:28.199 that Jesus 00:34:28.199 --> 00:34:29.500 takes his disciples 00:34:29.500 --> 00:34:30.339 to where we can 00:34:30.339 --> 00:34:31.659 find faith 00:34:31.659 --> 00:34:32.480 and find courage 00:34:32.480 --> 00:34:33.159 to let go 00:34:33.159 --> 00:34:34.039 of what we want 00:34:34.039 --> 00:34:36.480 so that ultimately 00:34:36.480 --> 00:34:37.179 we can pray 00:34:37.179 --> 00:34:38.179 as Jesus himself 00:34:38.179 --> 00:34:38.879 prays when he's 00:34:38.879 --> 00:34:39.679 hanging on the cross 00:34:39.679 --> 00:34:40.279 what does he say? 00:34:40.359 --> 00:34:40.519 He says 00:34:40.519 --> 00:34:41.019 Father 00:34:41.019 --> 00:34:43.079 into your hands 00:34:43.079 --> 00:34:44.699 I commit my spirit 00:34:44.699 --> 00:34:48.280 he didn't just 00:34:48.280 --> 00:34:49.099 he wasn't just 00:34:49.099 --> 00:34:49.880 enabled to pray 00:34:49.880 --> 00:34:51.579 that by magic 00:34:51.579 --> 00:34:52.599 all of a sudden 00:34:52.599 --> 00:34:53.500 by accident 00:34:53.500 --> 00:34:55.639 he prayed himself 00:34:55.639 --> 00:34:56.380 to that moment 00:34:56.380 --> 00:34:56.780 so that 00:34:56.780 --> 00:34:57.639 when it really 00:34:57.639 --> 00:34:58.059 mattered 00:34:58.059 --> 00:34:59.619 when Jesus 00:34:59.619 --> 00:35:00.119 was dying 00:35:00.119 --> 00:35:00.679 on the cross 00:35:00.679 --> 00:35:01.179 for us 00:35:01.179 --> 00:35:01.880 and for our sins 00:35:01.880 --> 00:35:02.239 he said 00:35:02.239 --> 00:35:02.719 Father 00:35:02.719 --> 00:35:04.739 into your hands 00:35:04.739 --> 00:35:05.920 I commit 00:35:05.920 --> 00:35:07.460 my spirit 00:35:07.460 --> 00:35:09.800 oh that we 00:35:09.800 --> 00:35:11.039 would have the grace 00:35:11.039 --> 00:35:12.800 to pray like Jesus 00:35:12.800 --> 00:35:14.699 in the name of the Father 00:35:14.699 --> 00:35:15.679 Son and Holy Spirit 00:35:15.679 --> 00:35:16.639 Amen 00:35:16.639 --> 00:35:16.779 Amen 00:35:16.779 --> 00:35:16.799 Amen