And they went to a place called Gethsemane and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray,” and he took with him, Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” Going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what you will.”
– Mark 14:32–36
There’s so much we could pray according to Mark 14:32–36. And really on this day, as we’re walking through the road to the cross with Jesus in the gospels. Thursday was obviously a very significant day. It is the day where Jesus shared the Last Supper with his disciples. Where John 13 tells us he stooped to wash his disciples feet. And the same time, Jesus, in a conversation with Peter, predicted Peter’s denial of him.
Jesus spoke such powerful, comforting words. Some of my favorite chapters in all the Bible. John 14 -16, over his disciples. Then he prays for them and not just them, but for you and me in John 17 and then he goes to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he prays what we just read in Mark 14:32–36 and right after that is arrested.
Mark 14:32–36 Reminds Us to Live According to God’s Will
Oh God, direct and lead us according to your will, not our will.
But I want to lead us to pray based on these words, that Jesus was praying to the Father in that garden. My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow; sorrowful even to death. And he prays “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Oh, Jesus, we praise you for your submission to the Father’s will, for your willingness to do all that the Father commissioned, called you to do. For your willingness to endure the wrath we deserve for our sin on our behalf. We realize when we read, remove this cup from me, the Old Testament imagery behind this; a cup filled with the wine of God’s wrath due sin. A cup we see later in Revelation, fill with a wine press of God’s fury toward sin and sinners.
Mark 14:32–36 Reminds Us We Deserve Judgment
Lord, we deserve to drink that cup. I deserve to drink that cup, forever, for all of eternity. I deserve judgment, condemnation, the wrath of a Holy God for my sin against you and not just me, but every single one of us who’s listening to this right now. We deserve to drink that cup and we see this passage that describes your so sorrowful to death, you’re sweating blood and asking if there’s another way bringing about Father and yet in the very next breath saying, “I trust you and I follow your will.”
Jesus, we praise you for your resolve to obey the Father. For your resolve, to drink this cup on our behalf. For your resolve to die on a cross for our sins. All glory be to your name, forever and ever, and ever for this prayer and for putting feet to it right after this, by going to the cross.
This Verse Leads Us to Pray for Obedience
Jesus, we pray that you would help us to pray the same in our lives, obviously not anywhere to the extent with which you were, but God, as we look at our lives, may the words on our lips in prayer constantly be, not what I will, but what you will. May that be so today. Take my life. Take our lives. Direct us according to your will, not our will. Lead us according to your will, not our will. Spend our lives however you desire, for your glory. Help us to be submissive to the Father’s will and everything.
To the Father’s word, help us to obey your commands today. Oh God, we pray and as your Spirit leads and guides and directs us, please have your way in our lives. We don’t want to lead. God, direct our lives. We want you to lead guide, direct our lives, our families, our future, our plans and dreams. Have it all. Our lives belong to you. You are our Lord and we say today, not our will today, your will today and not our will tomorrow, but your will tomorrow and day after day, after day,.
God, please, please, please lead us according to your will, your good, pleasing and perfect will in our lives, we pray. In Jesus name and the name of the one who’ve followed the will of the Father all the way to the cross. In your name we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
