Jesus Arrest in the Garden

You would go ahead and take your Bible, turn with me to John chapter 18. John chapter 18. Of course we're still in our verse by verse study through the gospel of John. The title of that series is "Christ the Son of God, Believe and Live." We've been here together in John for quite some time, some three years. I think I said earlier in our scripture reading we'll cover verses 1 through 11 this morning. A larger portion of scripture than we normally cover, but it just worked out that way where we could cover a good portion of scripture together today.

Now if you've been keeping up faithfully with where we've been in John, we have finally finished our farewell discourses. And then just recently the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus. Of course the farewell discourses started in John chapter 13. Jesus is there in the upper room with his disciples. They go all the way to chapter 16. The High Priestly Prayer of course is John chapter 17. From chapter 13 to chapter 17, Jesus was preparing his disciples for all that was about to take place starting in chapter 18. Now I told you more than one time that I include the prayer in the farewell discourses.

I believe it is part of this preparation, this work of preparation that Jesus was doing in these disciples. I say this because I want us to see that all that he's been teaching and preparing them for is right here on us starting in chapter 18. Now in chapter 18 we transition to the events that are leading up to the cross and the resurrection. Just like in all of the other gospel accounts, the events of the cross and the resurrection are the pinnacle or the climax of John's writings, his book. The entirety of Jesus' life was lived so as to come to the place of the cross, this substitutionary sacrifice.

This was the predetermined eternal plan of God and it is coming to fruition. We see that referred to, or referenced to on the great day of Pentecost when Peter is preaching. In that sermon he says, "This Jesus delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God." So his sacrificial death on the cross was the primary reason that he took upon himself flesh and he became the God-man. Now I mentioned the other gospels. We know that the synoptics are Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Just like John, all of the other gospel accounts give us an account of this arrest of Jesus.

Now I recommend to you that you read the other gospels as we progress in our study of John. It would be good for us to see all that the other gospel writers give. When we do read all four gospel accounts of the arrest of Jesus, we will notice some differences. Now when I say differences, I am not saying contradictions. There is information that John gives that the other gospel writers do not give. Now I want to point out some of the differences that we might see. That is when we're reading all of the gospel accounts of the arrest of Jesus. First, John does not record Jesus in this agonizing prayer in the garden.

Matthew and Mark both devote ten verses to Jesus' agonizing prayer in the garden. Luke offers slightly fewer verses covering the prayer. This is when Jesus urges his disciples to watch and pray with him. He prays, looking into the bitter cup of the death of the cross. And what does he pray? This is out of Matthew's version, verse 39 of chapter 26. "My father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will." Second, John makes it evident that he and his disciples visited the garden regularly. John 18, verse 2 tells us that Judas knew the place where Jesus often met with his disciples.

From this verse, it is obvious that they met here regularly as a retreat from the crowds. No doubt, Jesus rested there in the garden. No doubt, he prayed in the garden. And I'm sure he taught his disciples privately in the garden when they would withdraw from the great crowds. And then third, John emphasizes Jesus' great power and majesty here. John shows us that the soldiers fell backwards when Jesus identified himself to them. They were literally blown away by his great power and his majesty. The other gospel accounts do not record this event. Now, a question. Does this pose a problem? No, that's not the case.

These separate accounts do not conflict one another, but they all come together to form one story. Together, all of the gospels are what God the Father wants man to see concerning the events of the ministry of his Son, Jesus. Now, one more observation and introduction that will prepare us for our verses this morning. I mentioned earlier that John emphasizes Jesus' power and majesty here. When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus, they fell backwards in great awe when he identified himself to them. This helps us see a very, very important fact. Jesus was in complete control of everything.

Jesus was not a helpless victim being dragged away to his arrest. He was the all-powerful Son of God willingly submitting himself to these sinful men. This was all according to God's predetermined eternal plan. So Jesus was in complete control. Now, give us the title of the message. It's rather simple. It's Jesus Arrest in the Garden. You see how we will break these verses down. They all flow together very well. We see a great determination, verses 1 and 4. Really the first part of verse 4. A great revelation, verse 4 to 6. A great protection, verses 7 and 9. Then a great submission in verses 10 through 11.

We do encourage you to write notes for your own study. When we take notes, it helps us remember what the Lord wants us to see. And then when we study on our own, it really helps cement these truths in our minds. Let's go back to our verses. I know we read a few verses earlier. Let's read all of them together, starting in verse 1. "When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the ravine of the Kidron," or the Kidron Valley, "where there was a garden into which he himself entered in his disciples. Now Judas also, who was betraying him, knew the place. For Jesus had often met there with his disciples.

Judas then, having received the Roman cohort, or band of soldiers, and the officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, he came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that were coming upon him, he went forth and he said to them, 'Whom do you seek?' They answered him, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' He said to them, 'I am he.' And Judas also, who was betraying him, was standing with them.

And when therefore he said, 'I am he,' they drew back and they fell to the ground." Verse 7, "Again therefore, he asked them, 'Whom do you seek?' And they said, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' Jesus answered, 'I told you that I am he. If therefore you seek me, let these go their way, that the word might be fulfilled which he spoke of those whom thou hast given me. I lost none of them.'" Then verse 10, "Simon Peter, therefore having a sword or a dagger, he drew it and he struck the high priest's slave, and he cut off his right ear, and the slave's name was Malchus.

Jesus therefore said to Peter, 'Put the sword into its sheath, the cup which the Father has given me, shall I not drink of it.'" Again, you see how we will divide these verses. It's very easy for us to follow through the Scriptures. Let's look at our first major truth this morning. I want us to see number 1, a great determination. We see this great determination in Jesus. I won't read all of the verses, but notice the middle portion of verse 1. Jesus had spoken these words, and what does it say? "He went forth." And then at the beginning of verse 4, what does it say?

"He went forth." Now, the first part of the verse, which I just read, it alludes to all Jesus have been teaching the disciples in the upper room. Many Bible scholars believe that all of the farewell discourses were taught in the upper room. Some say otherwise. We do not definitely know. We do not know the composition that he was in the upper room teaching and praying with the disciples. Of course, those chapters are from chapter 13 to chapter 17. But simply, when Jesus had finished teaching and praying, he moved even closer to the events just before the cross. And again, we will see that Jesus is in complete control.

I want us to examine this great determination. There are three observations I want to make here. First, Jesus took his disciples to a familiar place. Jesus took his disciples to this familiar place. Verse 1, "He went forth with his disciples over the ravine," this is the Kidron Valley, "to a garden." Verse 2, "Judas also who was betraying, he knew the place." So in the second portion of verse 1, John mentions a garden. John does not give the name of the garden, only the location of the garden. Now, Matthew and Mark call it Gethsemane. We're familiar with that language, those of us who have been in God's Word.

Now, it is interesting to note that the meaning of the word Gethsemane is oil press. This seems to suggest that the garden was an olive orchard containing an oil press. In Luke's account, he states the place where Jesus usually met with his disciples was on the Mount of Olives. Some Bible scholars have suggested that the oil press could have been a walled, private garden in enclosure. Some have suggested it could have been owned by a prominent Jewish family in Jerusalem. But no doubt, Jesus was allowed to use the garden for a quiet place away from the crowds.

This would have been for personal rest, this would have been for prayer, and this would have been used as a time of instruction for his disciples. So Jesus took these disciples to a familiar place. Our second observation, notice, Judas came with those to arrest Jesus. Judas, he comes with these crowds, this mob to arrest Jesus. Verse 2, "Now Judas also, who was betraying him, he knew the place." And then verse 3, "Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons." Right away, we see that Judas knew the place.

No doubt he had been with Jesus and the disciples there many times. No doubt he had spent many hours there in the garden with Jesus. So he knew where to find Jesus. But notice who Judas is leading to arrest Jesus. First we see a Roman cohort, the New American Standard reads. Now the King James reads a band of men. The English Standard version reads a band of soldiers. Now this poses a question. Why the difference in the various translations? A Roman cohort numbered from 600 to 1,000 men. Scholars think that it is highly, highly unlikely that an entire cohort of soldiers would have been sent to arrest this one man.

This was the time of the Passover and Jerusalem was teeming with people during the Passover. Many Roman soldiers would have been stationed all throughout Jerusalem to keep the crowds under control. Most of the scholars that I looked at in study said that they believed it would have been a smaller detachment of soldiers sent to arrest Jesus. And this term cohort would have been merely a figure of speech. This might help you understand this. One of the commentators I read even phrased it this way. If we have a house fire, the fire department comes to the house fire, but it's not the entire fire department.

It is a portion of the fire department. And I think that helps us see what is taking place here. But then second, there are officers from the Jewish religious leaders. These would have been men from the Temple Police who would have been sent to make the arrest under Jewish law. Jesus was first taken to the Jewish authorities. And then he was taken to the Roman authorities. But the important thing to see here is that traitor Judas led this mob of men, Romans and Jews, to arrest Jesus. And then our third observation, notice, Jesus knew the things that were happening to him. Jesus definitely knew all that was happening to him.

Verse 4, "Jesus therefore, knowing all things that were coming upon him, went forth." Here John emphasizes the fact that Jesus knew all things surrounding these events. Not only did he know all things, but he was in complete control. I like how the Bible commentator Leon Morris says it. Anytime I quote someone, it is just that they can say something in a way in which I cannot. And notice what Morris says. He is not arrested at all talking about Jesus. He has the initiative and he gives himself up. This is a great description of this situation. Go back to the verse if you would. Verse 4, what does it say?

He went forth, which tells us that Jesus went to them rather than fleeing from them. So we see that Jesus knew all these things that were happening. So in summary, notice what we are learning here in verses 1-4. In verse 1, John says that Jesus went forth to the garden, this familiar place. Then in verse 4, John says that he went forth to be arrested. All this tells us that Jesus was walking straight into his arrest and he knew it. Now notice the contrast in the behavior of those who were arresting and the one being arrested. The soldiers, the officers, they came with lanterns, with torches, and with weapons.

They thought they would have to search for and apprehend Jesus in the night. But simply, Jesus walked toward them and he submitted to their arrest. He was determined to obey God's eternal plan. Now there are two points of application, things we can learn here I want to bring to the surface. I think that as Christians this would benefit us to remember these two points of application. First of all, no matter where we find ourselves in life, we must understand that our Lord is in complete control. These things did not sneak up on the Lord Jesus. These things did not sneak up on God. This was not a plan B. I read the Acts chapter 2 verse.

This was a predetermined plan of God. So no matter what we're going through in life, no matter how painful, no matter how long the list of questions are, no matter if we cannot see past the hand in front of our face, our Lord is in control. If we know the Lord and we've been born again, we are resting in the palm of his hand. But greater than that, we are resting in a sovereign God who is in control. Sometimes we just need to be reminded of that. But the second point of application is in the form of a question. My question for you is this. Do we have a private place where we meet with our Lord? See, Judas knew where Jesus met with his men.

His men met with their Lord many times in this garden. It was a personal place, a private place. This was a place that was set aside just for disciples and the Lord. It was a gathering place of believers. Of course, Judas was the betrayer. But for us, we have to ask ourselves, do we have a private place? Yes, in my life, I have certain places in my house where I meet with the Lord. I have a schedule in my life that I try to adhere to. And yes, there are things that come along sometimes that turn that schedule upside down. But I find myself fighting to get back to that familiar place. If you're born again, you need that place.

Make it a private room, even a closet outside somewhere. A place where it is you and the Lord and you know the Lord is waiting on you there. Just like you are waiting on him. Now, let's continue on our second major truth in our outline. Number two, we see a great revelation. A great, great revelation. Look at verse four with me. What does it say? He went forth and he said to them, "Whom do you seek?" They answered, "Jesus the Nazarene." And he said to them, "I am He." Judas also, who is betraying him, was standing with them. This is the mob. And when he said, "I am He," they drew back and they fell to the ground.

Now, the scene has been set for us. We have it in our minds. Jesus and His disciples are in this familiar, private place, the garden. According to the other gospels, Jesus prays here in the garden. He is praying in great agony while the disciples, they are struggling in their great lethargy. The disciples would have been bewildered by what was happening. This is unlike any time they had been in the garden before. But Jesus, He was not bewildered. He was in full control. Now, let's examine how Jesus reveals Himself to this mob who has come to arrest Him. Three observations here. First, Jesus takes the initiative.

Jesus, He takes the initiative. What do we see in verse 4? He went forth. Here, we continue to see this determination. Jesus, who was supposed to be the victim of an arrest, He took charge of everything that was taking place. You read the entire verse and we see that Jesus took the initiative in two ways. First of all, He stepped forward and then He asked, "Whom do you see?" So clearly, Jesus is seizing the initiative. The second observation, notice Jesus and His response. What do we see in verse 5?

They say, "We are looking for Jesus the Nazarene." And He said, "I am He." Now, after Jesus asked this mob who they were seeking, He replied very simply. He replied, and in this response, He reveals Himself and the response by Jesus is key to this revelation. Now, in the original, the word "He" is not here. Now, I'm reading from the New American. It's inserted there and it's in italics, meaning it's placed there to aid in understanding. But in the original language, Jesus simply states, "I am." Now, English translators put "He" there to help us understand. Now, I want to pause here in John 18.

And if we go back 10 chapters to John 8, we have this discourse between the religious leaders and Jesus. And in John chapter 8, verse 58, Jesus said to these Jews, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." Here in John 8, Jesus is using the exact language for God that is found in Exodus 3, verse 14. He is emphatically stating He is deity. Now, notice the response of the Jewish leaders in verse 59. They didn't say a word, so they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. The Jews here, they knew exactly what Jesus said, and they saw it as blasphemous. This was not ambiguous at all.

But let's go back. Let's go back to John 18, verses 5 through 6. Here in John 18, Jesus was not claiming to be God. Jesus was stating that He was God, exactly like He did in John chapter 8. So, notice His response. He wasn't claiming to be God. He was stating that He was God. And then our third observation, the arresting crowds, or this mob's response. At the end of verse 6, Jesus says, "I am." And they drew back and they fell to the ground. Jesus had just stated that He was God. I like how John MacArthur describes this. He calls this a demonstration of His divine dominance. I like that. Now we see the mob's response.

When Jesus declared His name, the temple police, the Roman soldiers, and Judas retreated in sheer terror, and they fell to the ground. Now, I want to pause here and explain to you some theories that you might run across here in your own study. There are some commentators who suggest that the first ones fell back, and then the rest of the crowd kind of fell accordingly, like this domino effect. There are some who think that the crowd fell back because they were startled, like Jesus stepped out of the darkness or the shadows, and He frightened them. So, they fell back because they were startled. Now, personally, I find these opinions ludicrous.

I do not believe they're accurate at all. Here we have a highly trained police force and the finest trained soldiers on the face of the earth. The Roman soldier was not startled by one man stepping out of the shadows. These men were blown away by Christ. When He said, "I am," He proclaimed the name of God. Now, imagine God proclaiming His name. That is exactly what took place. That's why John MacArthur's language is very accurate. He demonstrated a divine dominance of these men and this situation, and they were literally blown away by deity. Now, in summary, what do we see here in verses 4, 5, and 6? Jesus seizes the initiative.

While being in full control, Jesus revealed Himself as God. Judas, the Jewish temple police force, and the Roman soldiers were all blown away by Christ's divine dominance. But notice something. Christ still surrendered to this arrest. He declared Himself as God, but then immediately surrendered to sinful man, again, this was God's predetermined plan. Now, in application, I pose a question. Now, this question might make some of you perk up because many people abuse this type of language. But the question is, what type of revelation do we need today?

There are some that will say, "Oh, I've got a revelation from God." Now, we don't believe in those extra-biblical revelations. We have all that God wants to reveal to us in the cover of God's Word. But the revelation that we need today is we need God to reveal Himself afresh and anew in His Word through the teaching of God's Word here at church, in your own personal Bible study. Even if it's early in the morning and you read one verse, we need the Spirit of God to reveal God to us through the pages of His Word. That's what I mean by revelation. Not that He gives some special or unique meaning.

No, it's the person of the Spirit taking the Word of God and reminding us of what they say, revealing to us the meaning and applying it to us in a fresh, new way. That's happened to me many times in my life. Verses that I've read numerous times, God working in my life, and all of a sudden I'm gripped by a newness of what is taught. That's what we need. We need the Lord to do great things in us through His Word. But we also need God to reveal Himself in salvation. We've learned that salvation is a work of God, first and foremost. John 3 says that the salvation work of God is like the wind.

We don't know where it's coming from or where it is going. Oh, but we see its effects. We know that no man and no woman can trust by faith in Christ and believe in the finished work of Christ unless the Spirit of God enables them to. And we need God to reveal Himself in salvation. I was reminded of a good example that speaks to this this past week. I try to redeem my time. There are many times I'm doing things that might seem idle, and I listen to lots of preaching and teaching. And I was listening to a church historian refer to the famous message preached by Jonathan Edwards.

That message is called "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." And this noted church historian said that Jonathan Edwards preached that sermon first in his church with no effects. Jonathan Edwards noted that he preached the sermon and men literally walked out of the sanctuary and smoked cigarettes on the front steps of the church. But he was visiting later in a friend's church, and through some strange coincidences, he was thrust to the opportunity to preach, and he happened to have the manuscript, and he preached the very same sermon, and men and women were slain by the Holy Spirit of God and brought to the point of salvation.

History literally tells us that people cried out in the service. What is that? The revelation of God in salvation. That's what we need today. Now let's move on. Let's notice our third major truth in our outline. This one's rather shorter. We have a great protection. A great protection in verses 7 through 9. "Again, therefore," this is after they were blown away by his presence, "he asked them, 'Who do you seek?' They said, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' Jesus answered, 'I told you that I'm he.' And then notice, 'If therefore you seek me, let these go.'" That's the 11.

"Let them go their way." And then verse 9, "That the word might be fulfilled which he spoke, of those whom thou hast given me, I've lost no one." So here in these verses, we see a great protection. Now in reading verse 7, in the end of verse 8, we see that Jesus was responding to what was said earlier. Now Jesus is repeating himself, not because he's nervous. No, he is repeating himself because the arresting crowd possibly did not hear him. They were blown away. But he has a purpose in everything he is doing. Now let's examine this protection of the 11 in this arrest. There are two observations that we need to see here.

First, Jesus assured them of his identification. He assured them. He repeats himself. Is it not the case? In repeating himself, Jesus uses the same wording every time. He again states his deity. He does this to draw the mob's attention solely on himself. He did not want there to be any misidentification or mistakes in this arrest. And then second, Jesus called them to let the 11 go free. Isn't that what we see in the verses? He called the mob to allow the 11 to go free. Now here we see that Jesus performs two tasks here. First, he protects his own from arrest. He says, "Therefore, you see me.

Now let these go their way." He knew that it was not their time. He was protecting them and preserving them for their future ministry. But then second, he was fulfilling the Scripture. What do we see in verse 9? If we go back to the Scripture, that the Word might be fulfilled. That the Word might be fulfilled. Now pause right here for a moment. This reminds us of what Jesus prayed earlier in chapter 17, verse 12. Jesus prayed to the Father, "While I was with them," talking about the 11, "I kept them in your name, which you have given me.

I have guarded them, and no one has been lost except the Son of Destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled." Now notice what Jesus is doing. He is protecting his 11, which is a fulfillment of the previous prayer, but Judas is betraying him in the arrest, which is a fulfillment of this previous prayer, and other Scriptures as well. So in summary, notice what we see in these verses. Jesus fulfilled his Word in protecting the 11. He protected them from arrest and possible death. He preserved them for their future ministry. He kept his Word, and he fulfilled his own prayer. Again, this shows us that Jesus is in complete control.

Now an application. We must see that we can always rest secure in God's provision and his protection. If we are born again individuals, we rest in the sovereign hand of God. All of our days are numbered. All of our goings and comings have been ordained by God. And what I'm showing you is this. We can trust in his protection, whether we are at home, or driving in our cars, or in an airplane going around the world to do mission work. No matter if we live in a safe culture such as this, or if we live in a culture where culture and governments persecute Christians, we can rest in his great protection.

And listen, if the Lord can protect these 11, he sure can protect you and me and our families. Let's move on to our fourth main truth in our outline. Number four, a great submission. Here we see a great submission, verses 10 through 11. "And Simon Peter, therefore, he had a dagger, a sword, he drew it, and he struck the high priest, his slave's ear." Cut it off. And then verse 11, "Jesus therefore said to Peter, 'Put your sword into the sheath, the cup which the Father has given me, shall I not drink from it.'" All throughout these verses we have seen Christ's determination.

In verse 1, Jesus went forth, he went into the garden, knowing full well what was awaiting him. When the mob came to arrest him in verse 4, he stepped forward, he stepped out, seizing the initiative in every way. He was determined to be fully obedient in every way. Now, here in verses 10 and 11, we see this same determination. In the face of great temptation here, Christ was determined to submit to the will of the Father. Now, there are two ways I want us to examine this submission, two observations I want us to make. First, Peter's reaction to the circumstances. Verse 10 is probably familiar to you.

Peter, he drew his sword or his dagger, and he struck the high priest's slave's ear, and he cut it off. Here we see the great zeal and love which explodes out of the heart of Peter. Now, think about this. Peter says with his actions, "You are not going to arrest my Lord." So he pulls out a sword and he attacks the crowd. Really, he attacks the high priest's slave, Malchus. Now, this word for sword, in the original, it really means a dagger. This would have been a large knife. This would have been a weapon that Peter could have kept hidden until he needed it, and he seems to have needed it now. But notice what Peter is saying with his actions.

He is expressing a lot more than a love for Jesus. He is saying no to the arrest of Jesus. He is saying no to God's plans for the Messiah. Now, a question. Does this sound familiar in the life of Peter? Remember what happened back in Matthew 16. Peter confesses Christ as the Son of God in verse 16. What does Jesus say? "You are blessed because that was revealed to you by the Father." But later, when Jesus begins to tell the disciples that he was going to the cross, Peter stepped up and he rebuked Jesus for this. Then Jesus rebuked Peter and he said, "Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me.

You are not setting your mind on God's interests but man's." Peter was doing far more than protecting his Lord. He was protecting his plan for the Messiah. And listen, these were man's plans, not God's. And then second, notice Jesus' response to all that was happening. Jesus' response to all that was happening, verse 11. "Jesus therefore said to Peter, 'Put the sword into its sheep, the cup which the Father has given me. Shall I not drink yet?'" Here we need to see that Jesus responds in three ways. To see the first response, we must look into Luke's account. Luke tells us that Jesus completely healed the wounded slave, Malchus.

Simply, he got a new ear. Now, note this. This was the second demonstration of his deity right in front of the mob, but yet they ignored that demonstration of his deity. But Jesus' second response is seen here in John. Jesus rebuked Peter. Now, this expression here in the original language is very, very strong. He is using great force to stop Peter and his attack. Because Peter's plans were not the will of God. Now, Jesus' third reaction is found in the reference of the cup. Go back to verse 11 with me. "Put the sword into its sheep, Peter. The cup which the Father has given me.

Shall I not drink it?" Jesus says he is willing to drink this bitter cup of the cross. Now, notice the origin of the cup. It comes from the Father. This is the only passage which assigns the origin of the cup to the Father. This is Christ Jesus in his perfect submission. Now, notice this submission has two sides. Jesus is submitting to the predetermined plan of the cross, and he is rejecting man's plans for the Messiah. Jesus knew the reason why Peter fought so hard to protect him. Yes, it was out of a love for his Lord, but Peter still desired this earthly Messiah. Jesus would have no part of that.

He was submissive to the will of the Father. That's his response. So, in summary, notice what we see here. Two great expressions. Two very great expressions. Peter expresses his great love for Jesus, but Jesus expresses his great submission to the Father. Peter had the plans of man in his heart, while Jesus had the plans of God, God the Father, in his heart. Again, we see Christ's great determination and great control in the entire situation. Now, what can we learn here in application? I think that we need to see that we can be far more like Peter.

Oh, I think many times we have man's plans for our own lives, man's plans for our circumstances, when all along we can't see God's plans. Oh, that's what Peter had. He had man's plans in his heart, and we need to be submissive to the will of God. Now, granted, we don't know all things like Jesus. Jesus knew everything that was going to take place, but we, by faith, trust in God, and we don't surrender to man's plans or our ideas for our lives. We die to our ideas, and we must submit to God's will for our life. Now, this isn't easy.

The road to sanctification can be difficult, and so many times we have to crucify our flesh, die to our ideas repeatedly. Many times in prayer and fasting and in tears and heartache. Why? Because we want to do God's will in all the areas of our life. Now, in conclusion, I want to step back away from dividing the verses. We divided quite a few verses this morning, verses 1 to 11, but I want to make two observations, and they very much apply to our lives. This won't take us very long as we close the message. First of all, we see Christ surrendering to his arrest, and he is in complete control. What does verse 1 say? He went forth.

He left the upper room. He went to the garden. He went forth. Knowing all that was going to take place, when the mob stepped out, what does the Scripture say in verse 4? He went forth. Jesus was submissive and surrendering in his arrest, but he was in complete control. He's not a helpless victim. He is the Son of God surrendering to the Father's will, and that is the cross. We need to see that Jesus went all the way to the cross people. Every heartbeat while he was on earth, every step that he took, was one step closer to the cross. And see, right here in these verses, we see him purposefully taking steps to the cross.

In every way, Jesus never deviated from the cross. And listen, if we can try with all that we have to look all the way back in eternity past, Jesus and God the Father were going to the cross. See what we notice here? God is in control. Jesus is in control. This goes back before the foundation of the world was ever laid. The cross. This should well upen us a great desire to praise him and worship him and love him. That God did this for us. And then second here, we see Christ turning the corner. Let me explain what I mean. After this arrest, he's left his own. Those men that he loved dearly. He's turning the corner.

After these moments, everything will be different. He's turning the corner and he is headed faster and faster and faster to the cross. Listen, he turned the corner for salvation. He turned the corner to die on the cross to redeem these men. And he turned the corner to die on the cross to redeem us. This was very personal for these disciples. Oh, they couldn't see it. They were bewildered. This is very, very personal for us. May the Lord grip us with the reality, the truths that are taught here. Let's pray together.