Luke 22:39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40 And when he was at the place, he said to them, Pray that you enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if you be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done. 43 And there appeared an angel to him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

To the east of the city of Jerusalem, there’s a little mountain, called the Mount of Olives. It’s about three hundred feet above the city of Jerusalem—a limestone ridge about mile in length. It’s about 2,700 feet about sea level. And on the western slope of the Mount of Olives is a garden. Tradition says this is Gethsemane. The word Gethsemane literally means “oil press,” because it was in this garden that they had a giant press to press the olive oil from the olives.

Hours earlier in the upper room Jesus had the Last Supper with His disciples. Needing prayer, he left Mount Zion and He came down and crossed a brook. The brook was Kidron. And scholars tell us that when they would make animal sacrifices on the Temple Mount, the blood would run down into the Kidron, into that brook, and it would literally be crimson with blood.

Luke 22:41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

Jesus prayed alone. The custom of the time was to pray standing with the eyes raised to heaven, but on this specially solemn occasion Jesus knelt down. He asks that, if the Father is willing, this cup be removed. The cup has associations of suffering and of the wrath of God
(Psalm 11:6; Isaiah 51:17; Ezekiel. 23:33). It was no easy task to which Jesus looked forward, but his prayer centers on the Father’s will (rather than on his being spared).

At this critical moment then angelic strength supplemented Jesus’ human resources.

The book of Hebrews tells us that the angels are sent by God to minister to the needs of his elect, and here, of course, the supreme chosen one of the Father becomes the object of the ministry of the angels.

Hebrews 5:7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;

From the moment of his birth, Jesus lived in the shadow of the cross. but because he would die as a sacrifice, under the wrath of God. Jesus, even in his perfect humanity, shrank back at the utter horror of it and so he cries out to his Father to remove this cup from him. He was using the Jewish image of the cup filled with the wrath of God.

Dripping blood would be expected to take place at the crucifixion, but no blood like this is mentioned there. The most intense description of Jesus’ suffering in the Gospels is at Gethsemane. In Gethsemane, the victory is won, though the battle is not really realized until the death at Calvary.

What the Cup Symbolized

What was so vile, filthy, and horrible that caused Jesus to shrink back in dread?

It was not physical death by crucifixion, or Satan. Jesus had already shown his power over death in raising several people, and He met Satan in the wilderness and conquered him.

The Cup symbolized All Sin Ever Committed

The sin of the ages was in that cup. My sin and your sin was in that cup.

The Bible says that Jesus was tempted in all points as we are, and yet He was without sin. (Hebrews 4:15) Bible also teaches us that in order for Him to redeem us, our sin had to be placed upon the Lord Jesus Christ. that God “hath made him” Jesus to be sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Suppose we were to go back in time and pile all the sins since Cain’s first sin, in one pile, every sin, Hitler’s gas ovens in there. Put murder in there, put witchcraft in there, put all my sins, all your sins, every sin of every person who ever lived or will live, in the pile, put all those in that cup, that Jesus has to Drink.

Then say, “Jesus, drink it. Become sin; not just bear sin, but become sin.” Jesus never sinned, but He was “made to be sin for us,” because He carried that sin to the cross. You may not understand what sin is, but Jesus Christ knew what sin is. Jesus knew when He drank that cup He would be numbered with the transgressors.

Isaiah 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he has poured out his soul to death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Mark 15:28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which said, And he was numbered with the transgressors.

The Cup Symbolized The Punishment of Sin

Jesus knew that the punishment of all sin; and all people, would be upon Him. One man, the God-man, would bear it all. And when He did, God the Father would have to treat Him as if He had committed the sins of all the people and all of the sins of all of the people.

That’s the reason why the Bible says that God “spared not his own Son.” (Romans 8:32) The Bible says, “It pleased the Lord to bruise him.” (Isaiah 53:10) When Jesus took my sin and your sin, God the Father in justice had to treat Him as He would treat me, as He would treat you. Jesus knew that He was going to suffer the very fires of hell. Jesus was going to receive all the strikes of God’s wrath, and Jesus Christ, the eternal Son who had been in the bosom of the Father from eternity, was going to be now separated from God on that cross. Just hours later, He was going to cry out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34) And God the Father would have to turn His back on God the Son.

At the cross, the sins of the world were boiled down to that moment and eternity was compressed.. Jesus Christ suffered an eternity of hell on that cross. The price that Jesus paid, only those in hell can begin to know; but they’ll never know, because they’re only paying their sin. Jesus paid for all of the sin of all of the people for all time. That is what the cup held that Jesus ask to be removed if possible. It is no wonder Jesus said, “Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.” (Matthew 26:39)

We Should Be Thankful that Jesus Drank the Cup

Jesus shrank back from this, seeking another way for God’s will to be done, if possible. In His humanity and in His holiness, seeing the filth of sin, He said, “O God, if there be some other way. But, there is no other way, so by His divine love, He said, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” (Luke 22:42)

Jesus paid a great price. We will never know the agony that the Son of God endured there on the cross. He didn’t have to die, He had a choice. Jesus Christ said, “No man taketh my life from me; I lay it down of myself.” (John 10:18) Jesus was the only man who ever chose to die. “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) There was no sin in Him, so he would never had to die.

(Hebrews 9:27) Jesus was the only man who could say, “No man taketh my life from me; I lay it down of myself.”

In Isaiah 14, we see that Satan became Satan when He said, “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.” (Isaiah 14:13) And Satan said this to God the Father, not your will, but mine be done. But Jesus said, though He was very God, to very God, in His humanity, “Not my will, but thine, be done.”

The Lord Jesus willingly, voluntarily said, “Not my will, but thine.” If Jesus had said no to the Fathers will, every person who would ever live would be dammed for all eternity.

Jesus said yes to God’s will, suffered, bled, and died on the cross so that mankind will have a choice not to be dammed forever. Because Jesus took sin and carried it to the cross, we have a chance to be free from sin’s penalty.

No sin goes unpunished. God in His holiness, and justness, must punish sin. The cross is God’s way to punish sin and forgive the sinner at the same time—and that is by having an innocent, sinless sin-bearer to take that sin and carry it to the cross. “Him who knew no sin, God has made to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Jesus Allows Us To Share This Cup

Just before Jesus went into Gethsemane, He was there with that Last Supper with His disciples, and He told them, “This is the new testament in my blood,” (Luke 22:20) He drank the cup of sin that we might have the cup of redemption. We drink the cup of communion on this side of His death because that is where we can meet Jesus. He takes my sin, and drinks it down. We take His righteousness, and drink it in. That is what should occupy our mind when we take communion. All that Jesus did for us, by trading places with us.

God forbid that we would not be affected by what happened at Gethsemane.

He said, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful.” The word sorrowful has the idea of being separated, alone.

The victory really was won in Gethsemane, but it was paid for at Calvary.

It was won in Gethsemane—Jesus knowing what He would go through.

Jesus spoke of His agony. The agony was an athletic contest in Greek. It was a wrestling match. Jesus was wrestling. He wrestling with Himself. There was His holy humanity, and His divine love. There was that contest; there was that wrestling and His love won.

There was a Great Victory at Gethsemane
Sin Was Defeated

Let us never take for granted Jesus first won the battle over sin in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was there He decided to be obedient to the Father’s will regardless of what it cost Him.