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The Scriptorium

"Not My Will..."

Jesus prayed, and so must we. Matthew 26.36-46

Matthew 26: Arrested (5)

Pray Psalm 88.1-3.
O LORD, God of my salvation,
I have cried out day and night before You.
Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry.

Sing Psalm 88.1-3.
(Picardy: Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence)
Lord of my salvation, hear me, as I cry by night and day;
Hear my plea, O Lord, bend near me; O, receive me when I pray!
For my soul is weak and weary, and my life draws near the grave.

Read Matthew 26.1-46; Meditate on verses 36-46.

Prepare.
1. What did Jesus teach His disciples about prayer?

2. For what did Jesus pray?

Meditate.

Jesus prayed. He is the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the King of kings and Lord of lords. Yet He prayed. And in this glimpse into His prayer life, we see just how important prayer was to Him.

O, that prayer might be equally important to us!

Jesus told His disciples that by watching in prayer, they would be able to face whatever temptation came to them (v. 41). Prayer is crucial for recognizing temptation and having the strength from God to resist it (cf. Ps. 73). The disciples, rather than follow the Lord’s instruction and example, failed in their prayers and went to sleep. The rest is history.

Jesus persevered in prayer, praying earnestly – flat on His face (v. 39) – that God would deliver Him through this time of trial. He was deeply sorrowful and distressed (v. 37), not only for Himself, but for His disciples as well. His prayer probably included some intercession for them (cf. Jn. 17). But above all, Jesus prayed that God’s will, not His, would be done (v. 42). And if that meant His suffering – and He knew that it did (in v. 42, the Greek particle εἰ, ei, can be translated “since” as well as “if”) – then He would gladly accept it, and rest in the will of His Father.

Three times Jesus came before the Father with this same prayer. After the third time, His soul was settled into the will of God, and He was ready to face what would happen next.

We need prayer more than we know. If we knew how to pray like Jesus, we would realize just how great a blessing and privilege this discipline is.

Reflect.
1. Why is prayer so important for Christians?

2. Why was it God’s will that Jesus should suffer as He did?

3. Should we include in our prayers something like “Your will be done”? Explain.

Having brought with him Peter, James and John, he began to grieve. Before he brought them along with him, he did not feel sad. It was only after they had accompanied him that he grew exceedingly sad. His sadness thus arose not from himself but from those whom he had taken with him.
Hilary of Poitiers (315-367), The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 83.1

Father, whatever this day holds for me, let Your will be done! Help me especially as I…

Pray Psalm 88.4-18.
As you pray this psalm, think of Jesus, as He prayed before the Father, before descending into His suffering. Give thanks and praise for His sacrifice.

Sing Psalm 88.4-18.
Psalm 88.4-18 (Picardy: Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence)
Like a person thought to be dying, like a man whose strength is gone;
like one with the slain now lying, like a dead and buried one:
For Your mercy I am sighing, cut off from Your hand and gone.

In the lowest pit You have set me, in a deep and darkening place;
all Your holy wrath has beset me, overwhelming me in waves.
All my former friends forget me; on me now they look with hate.

All day long I cry in vain, Lord, as my eye is wasting away.
Can a dead man sing Your praise, Lord? Can I testify from the grave?
Will I tell Your love again, Lord? Will I sing Your pow’r and grace?

Morning comes and, Lord, I am crying: Why do You my soul reject?
From my youth have I been dying; pain and terrors sore afflict.
Fear and anger, sorely trying, overwhelm, destroy, reject.

All day long my foes surround me, like a threat’ning, rising flood.
Circling round they sought and found me, taking from me all that is good.
Friend and lover gone, they hound me – all my friends in darkness stood.

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All quotations from Church Fathers from
Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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