In the Garden

“When he had finished praying, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley. On the other side there was an olive grove, and he and his disciples went into it.  Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples.  So Judas came to the grove, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees.  They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons.”  John 18:1-3

We know the rest.  Jesus is arrested, bound and led to Caiaphas to be questioned.  He never denied who he was.  Just over the top of the Mount of Olives, Jesus could have been into the wilderness and gone from sight in 20 minutes.  But He did not run.  He knew what was ahead of Him.  When Peter attacked the high priest’s servant in His defense, ‘Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away!  Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”’  John 18:11 

What stands today, at the base of the Mount of Olives, is a garden perhaps similar to the one Christ was arrested in that night.  Olive trees dating back to the crusades remind us that what was rooted so long ago still remains significant today. 

Gesthmane means olive press, a reminder of the weight Jesus bore for us in that place and on the cross.  The garden looks out across the Kidron Valley and onto the temple in Jerusalem. 

There is a church detailed with stunning mosaics and glass.  The windows are constructed out of purple alabaster glass to give the constant feeling of midnight when you are inside. 

To be there is to feel a strange mix of beauty, weight and contemplation. 

At so many points along Christ’s path we can imagine what it would have been like to have walked beside Him then, in the days of His ministry on earth.  Praises and acclamation and miracles mixed with growing voices of doubt as He spoke the words and truth of God.  But at this point, more than any other, we feel the weight of what that meant, His willingness to say yes.  Because at this point there could be no other outcome for Jesus, and He knew it.  He knew where He was headed, what decisions would be made, what fate He would suffer. 

What midnights have you come to?  With a weight that seems too heavy to bear?  What fear, what anxiety, what doubt troubles you when it’s God’s voice you’re trying to hear? 

Amidst the sorrow that fills us in these gardens of midnight, when the weight of what we must carry seems to be crushing us, we are not alone.  Our willingness to say yes sometimes comes at a price.  But never without God’s glory. 

When we drink the cup the Father has given us, we say yes to His Kingdom, yes to His glory, yes to the sacrifice Christ made for us that night.  We might yearn for a way to turn back, but we won’t.  In the garden it is midnight, but hold fast, friends.  Because Sunday’s coming.

XOXO…Kelly