All was quiet. The sun had set. A bright, full Passover moon had risen over the Jerusalem hillside. The disciples had left the upper room singing a Passover song, hearts full with the presence of the Prince of Peace.
They had often come to the Garden of Gethsemane after meals and each in their own way waited eagerly for what Jesus would teach them next. Yet now, as they neared that garden on the Mount of Olives, something was different. They noticed a shift in Jesus’ countenance, a change in how he walked. He seemed to grow increasingly sad with each step he took.
Normally he would talk as they walked, drawing lessons from birds, and trees, ants and flowers, his pleasant voice wafting through the cool air to fall upon attentive ears. But this time, everything was different. His metered breaths the only sound protruding from his tight lips. The Great Teacher, and Master Physician was now silent.
As they neared the familiar place, almost in a whisper they heard him say, “My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.”[1] Without waiting for a reply, he turned and walk on from that spot falling to the ground in anguish. Stunned, not fully grasping what he had said, the disciples stood frozen.
What had changed? Wasn’t it just moments ago as they walked toward the garden, he had told them of the Master Vine-grower and His vineyards?[2] Hadn’t he told them about the Comforter that would soon be coming?[3] Oh, how they wished they had listened a little closer. Maybe, he told them what was to come.
The whole week had been a whirlwind. They had seen him ride into Jerusalem like a king. He had outwitted the temple teachers. He had thrown out the money changers. He had washed their feet and given them bread and wine. Now he, the mighty Prince of Peace, the one who was to save his people, the one who would over-through the Romans was now laid out on the ground writhing in anguish.
It was just too much. One by one, the disciples, overcome by the events of the week, fell into a deep sleep, seeking solace from the confusing and uncomfortable scene being played out before them.
And it was there in that garden, on a hill outside Jerusalem that Jesus made a choice. He had been talking with the Father for years. This was the plan all along. But now, the darkness loomed heavy about to swallow him whole. Knowing what he must do, Jesus cried out to his Father asking if there was any other way, if there was somehow an alternative plan that could accomplish the goal.
Faced with the opportunity to seek another way or to give up all together, Jesus cried out, “Yet not what I will but what You will.”[4]
And it was there he made the choice to go through with the plan of salvation to save you and me. Within the next 12 to 18 hours he would be dead after enduring a grueling night of unjust trials and brutal beatings. Yet all the while, he followed the will of the Father knowing that in the end, the plan set forth from the dawn of creation, the plan that would save any people who had wandered from the light, that plan would bring about a redemption that would last an eternity.
That night in the garden, when everyone and everything seemed to betray Jesus, he chose you and me and the rest of our fallen world. He chose death in order that we might have life. He chose separation in order that we might have reconciliation.
During this Passion Week, why not spend some time contemplating Jesus’ choice? Seeing his choice might even help us choose him all the more.
1] Mark 14:34
[2] John 15
[3] John 16
[4] Mark 14:36
Written by Michael Gibson
Pastor for Young Adults at the Keene Seventh-day Adventist Church