Sunday Sermon

"Strength and Weakness"
[Mark 14:26-52]
November 5, 2006 Second Reformed Church

What is your greatest weakness? What sin is easiest for you to give in to? How do we receive the strength to turn away from our weaknesses and accomplish God's Will?

After Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples, instituting the Lord's Supper, they sang a hymn and went out to the Garden of Gethsemane. And in this morning's Scripture, we have four vignettes.

First, Jesus prophecies that all of the disciples will run from Him -- hiding and denying Him -- when His time has come. And Peter, always ready to jump up and blurt out something without thinking, says, "Even if everyone else falls away, I will not." And Jesus prophecies again, "Amen, I say to you that today, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times." And Peter swore and insisted, "Even if I must die with you, I will never deny you."
And we're just like him at times, aren't we? "I can do it. I will take over. I know the answer. I would never, could never, will never, ever fail you." And then, we like sheep, push ahead of the Shepherd and wander off the edge of a cliff.

Do we think about what we're saying, about what we're promising, before we jump in? We ought to -- especially with God. We may be making a very good promise, but if we go in rashly, disaster is likely to follow. It was one of Peter's greatest weaknesses -- he jumped up, jumped in, made promises, but didn't think about what was involved -- what the consequences were.

If the Lord is willing, we'll see how this vignette ended in next week's sermon.

In the second vignette, Jesus explains to the disciples that He is going through "the valley of the shadow of death" as it were. He was sorrowful, troubled, even to the point of just wanting to die then and there. And we ask how that could be -- how could Jesus, Who came for the very purpose that He was heading straight for -- how could He now be afraid? And here we need to remember that Jesus has two natures -- He is both fully human and fully divine in a single Person. And Jesus knew, in His humanity and in His divinity that He was accomplishing the Will of the Father. Everything that was necessary to accomplish His Plan was occurring. But when Jesus, in His Humanity, looked ahead at being tortured and then put to death by crucifixion -- which is still considered among the most cruel ways to put a person to death -- He was, quite naturally, and not sinfully, upset. Since Jesus is a real human being, He looked at that impending enormous suffering, and cried out in pray to His Father, "Abba Father, all things are possible for you. Take this cup from me. But not what I will but your will."

Jesus prayed to God for strength. He called out to His Father and told Him that He did not desire to die this hideous death, and if there was any way He could accomplish the purposes of God in another way, it was preferable to Him. But if it was not -- and there is assent in His Words -- He knew there was no other way -- then carry out this Plan. But -- it is implied -- if this is the only way -- if this is Your Will, then give Me Your Strength.

And this is the focus and the point of this morning's sermon: last week we saw that God gives us His Grace, Strength, and Assurance through the reading and preaching of His Word, and through the administration of the Sacraments. This morning, we hear the third way that God normally ministers to us, and that is through prayer. So, when we are weak, go to the Word of God. When we are weak, receive the Sacraments. When we are weak, go to God in prayer. These are the places that God has given us to meet Him -- where He ministers to us, so we might accomplish His Will and not sin against Him.

Jesus returned after praying for an hour, and He found Peter, James, and John asleep. And He woke them and asked them how it was that they couldn't stay awake for even an hour to pray with Him? How would they be able to overcome temptation if they couldn't even pray for an hour?

And Jesus returned and prayed again that He might be delivered, or that He would be ministered to and strengthen by God. And then, after an hour, He went back and found Peter, James, and John asleep again -- and they were ashamed. They didn't know what to say to Jesus. They were so weak, especially in this dark and desperate hour, when Jesus called them to pray with Him.

And Jesus went back to pray again -- and He prayed the same way again, waiting for an answer from God. And this time, Luke records for us, "And there appeared to him an angel from heaven strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground" (Luke 22:43-44). The third time, God sent an angel to minister to Jesus -- to deliver strength from God the Father to Him. And we need to understand that when Luke tells us that Jesus prayed with such passion and in such agony that His sweat became mixed with blood and dropped from Him like great drops of blood -- that is not a metaphor. It has been scientifically shown that when a person is in great distress or agony that blood vessels can break and blood will flow out like sweat, and it mixed with Jesus' sweat as He prayed and it fell to the ground.

Have you ever prayed like that? Have you ever prayed with such intensity, with such passion, with such earnestness, so truly gasping and grasping for the Hand of God that you bled? Have you ever even prayed for an hour for something? -- much less three?

When we look at the Bible and compare it to the American church, what do we see? We're told to keep one day in seven as holy to the Lord, and most people can't even find an hour. We're told to celebrate the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper to our benefit and to declare Christ's Death until His Return, and until recently, most churches have celebrated the sacrament one a month, or once a year, our own denomination only requires it four times a year. And what about prayer? Again and again in the Scripture we see Jesus stop to pray and the disciples stop to pray and pray and pray, while today, so many prayers sound like we believe God is the genie in Aladdin's Lamp.

God draws us to Himself, and He tells us that He will minister to us through His Word and through the Sacrament and through prayer -- that He will give us all we need to accomplish His Will -- that He will deliver us from temptation. And we say, "Not now, I need my rest." There is a time for rest and a time to gather strength for the fight. The Christian Church has been asleep for too long.

Jesus had been hungry, so the disciples stopped and left Him at a well while they went to get food. While they were away, Jesus had a conversation with the woman who came to the well, and she came to understand that He is the Savior. When the disciples returned, Jesus said He was no longer hungry, "I have food to eat that you do not know about. ... My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that the sower and reaper may rejoice together" (John 4:32b, 34b-36).

Do we eat the good food that our Father provides for us? Or do we merely want the sugary sweets?

In the third vignette, Jesus is identified by His betrayer and carted off to the high priest and the high council -- the Sanhedrin -- for questioning. Remember that when we read the Scripture, since it is the Word of God, there is nothing that disagrees, and we are to harmonize events. Listen as I read from the four Gospels:

"[Judas] drew near to Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus said to him, 'Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?'" (Luke 22:47b-48).

"Jesus said to him, 'Friend, do what you came to do'" (Matthew 26:50).

"Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, 'Whom do you seek?' They answered him, 'Jesus of Nazareth.' Jesus said to them, 'I am he.' Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, 'I am he,' they drew back and fell to the ground. So he asked them again, 'Whom do you seek?' And they said, 'Jesus of Nazareth.' Jesus answered, 'I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.' This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken, 'Of those whom you gave me I have lost no one.' Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant's name was Malchus.) So Jesus said to Peter, 'Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that my Father has given me?'" (John 18:4-11).

"Then Jesus said to the chief priests and the officers of the temples and the elders, who had come out against him, 'Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay your hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness'" (Luke 22:52-53).

"'All this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.' And all the disciples left him and fled" (Matthew 26:56).

The fourth vignette tells us that there was one person who didn't immediately run away. A young man who was wearing nothing but a linen cloth. Who was this young man? He is only mentioned in the book of Mark -- and that has led many to conclude that it was Mark, himself. Whoever he was, when the crowd turned against him, he dropped the cloth and ran away into the night.

What is your greatest weakness? What sin is easiest for you to give in to? How do we receive the strength to turn away from our weaknesses and accomplish God's Will?

If you have heard the Word of God read and preached this morning, God has ministered to you. We are about to receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and through it, God will minister to all those who believe. There is a third way to receive strength from God and come to accomplish His Will, so let us pray:

Almighty God, we come before You knowing that Your Will will be done and You will give us all we need to accomplish it, if we come to You. On this morning when we remember the faithful saints who have gone on to the kingdom before us, we ask that Your would raise up Your saints in this church and throughout all the churches of this world. Let us no longer be satisfied with sleep, but cause the fire of the Holy Spirit to build up within our bones, and give us no comfort until is it released to Your Glory and in Your Name -- for it is in Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.