Hugh, please take your Bibles. Let's go over to the Gospel of Mark and chapter 14. Gospel of Mark and chapter 14. How we long to stand before the Lord and hear, well done, now good and faithful servant. And in order for that to be true, I'm certain that all of us were moved to say, yes, Lord, I want to give him more. I wish I had given him more. Mark chapter 14, let's begin reading with verse 27. Mark 14 and verse 27. The word that's translated offended there in the very first verse, you could translate it as fall away or be scattered. Jesus saith unto them, all of you shall be offended because of me this night, for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. Peter said unto him, although all shall be offended, yet will not I. And Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, that this day, even this night, before the cock crowed twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. But he spake to them more vehemently, if I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. And likewise said they all. And they came to a place which is named Gethsemane. And he saith to his disciples, sit ye here while I shall pray. And he taketh with him Peter and James and John and began to be sore amazed. and to be very heavy, very troubled. And he saith unto them, my soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death, tarry ye here and watch. And he went forward a little and fell on the ground and prayed that if it were possible that the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee. Take away this cup from me, nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt. And he cometh and findeth them sleeping. said unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? Couldst thou not watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. Again, he went away and prayed and spoke the same words. When he returned, he found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. neither know they what to answer him. And he cometh a third time and saith unto them, sleep on now, take your rest, it is enough, the hour is come. Behold, the son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go, for he that betrayeth me is at hand. Shall we pause together to pray? Father, we praise you for this wonderful passage from the Word of God today, which is so full and rich of precious truth about our Lord, about His relationship with His Father, relationship with His followers, the relationship, Lord, with how and why to deal with all the frustrations that certainly came upon Him and most certainly come upon us. Dear Heavenly Father, I ask this day that you would help us to be like Jesus, that you would teach us that even in the worst hours, the most difficult hours for us to bear, you would teach us how to face our difficulties by being more like our precious Lord. Father, I would ask that as a result of this message this morning, that for every single one of us, every single time we face trials, every single time we face difficulties, that we might think back upon this passage and think back upon our precious Savior who gave himself so that when we face these times, we can gloriously rejoice and take heart. Father, would you fill me with your spirit as I preach your word, I pray in Jesus' name, amen. Have you ever had the experience of just wanting to die? So far down, so discouraged, so wearied by the pressures upon you that you simply wanted to pass on into eternity. I would imagine there are a few of us, perhaps several of us in this room who know what that is like and know just how deep those dreaded sorrows reach down into the depths of the soul. It causes every one of us to, in our frustration, to look for ways to somehow, is there some way that I can bring my agony, my agony of soul, my irritation on my soul, to some end. And quite frankly, in the midst of that, sometimes death seems preferable. I'm not saying it's right. I'm not saying that when I was experiencing that, that it was right, it was certainly not right. But nevertheless, I think we have to admit that there are times when even God's people are so far down. Preachers are so far down that they would just rather die. They would come to the place, they'd never want to preach another message. And I suspect that as you look at this passage before you, that Jesus' followers, who Matthew 10 said that he had sent out to preach, that they were overcome with their sorrows. One of the other gospels speaks to this, that they were at the point of exhaustion because of the pressures that were upon them. And so I'm asking you this day, as we look in this passage, this specific question, when you face difficult times, when you personally have to grapple with and work through the most difficult times perhaps in your entire life, in your entire existence, How will you grapple with those difficult times? Now, you'll hear well-meaning people, well-meaning preachers and teachers say, just be courageous. Come on now, you can do this. Just be courageous. And you, if you'll act courageous, you'll be courageous. It just doesn't work. There are others who'll say, well, you just have to be disciplined. And if you just be disciplined and just keep pressing, then you could overcome anything in your own strength. And you and I also know perfectly well, that's not true. It really doesn't work that way. In fact, when the Apostle Paul was addressing all these things, he said, who is sufficient for these things? The fact is life is full of all kinds of deep agonies and frustrations that we are incapable of embracing and tackling in our own strength. So I would point out to you today that in this passage, you find Jesus in his deepest distress, in his deep agony of soul, you find about him here how you and I are given an example of how to respond. So when you think about this passage and you work through this on your own, and I've given you a study sheet here with an opportunity to grow more in your understanding, think about what Jesus is calling you to here. He is calling you to face your greatest difficulties. By the way, are your greatest difficulties behind you or ahead of you? And the answer is you may not know. It may be there are those here in this room who'd say, I believe I've faced some of the greatest difficulties I've ever had to face my whole life. And perhaps you are right. But the fact is that anytime you and I come to the Word of God, it is given to us as preparation for what is coming. It is given to us so we can anticipate and know how do we respond. And I am here to joyously proclaim to you today that even in some of the worst difficulties and the worst struggles that I have had in my entire life, I can tell you that what you find in this passage today will hold you in those difficult times. So let's think about what Jesus Christ is showing them here. And I would like to point out in this passage, there are seven important reminders of how to face difficult times. seven important reminders of how to face difficult times and notice what Jesus says immediately there in verse 27 and Jesus said it to them all of you shall fall all of you shall be scattered now you know what the disciples are getting raised not me Lord no I I won't be that way and of course that's exactly what they're getting ready to do And I've pointed out to you before that when the Lord is saying this to Peter, I've often wondered if he's not giving him an object lesson in that rooster. Just out of curiosity, how many of you here grew up on a farm and you are familiar with this? Just think about it. How many of you had a Banty rooster on your farm? Just out of curiosity, then, the question, how arrogant is a banty rooster? Eric, how arrogant is a banty? He thinks he's a little, and he thinks he owns the place. He struts all over the farmyard going, I mean, he just thinks he owns the place. And I've often wondered in this passage if what you have here is the Lord showing Peter, Peter, You're strutting around with your rooster-like flesh and it won't work. You won't be able to overcome in the evil day. As I was studying this passage, I realized that there are some commentators who think that there were as many as a thousand men who came to them in the Garden of Gethsemane. that those religious rulers weren't going to make any mistakes. They had guards. They had Romans. They had the temple guard. They had everybody. They were going to do their best to capture them all. And so imagine what it would be like, Jesus and the 11, no longer the 12. No, the 12th man is leading that legion toward them. Imagine what it will be like in that time and ask, are you going to be able to knock them all down with your rooster-like flesh? And I think that's the very reason that we have this passage in front of us, because Jesus tells us about ourselves. He says, all of you shall be offended, or all of you shall be scattered. All of you shall fall because of me. You mean? You mean if I would deny Jesus, if I would just go the other direction from Jesus, then the pressures would ease off? Sure, you could be like Judas. You could lead the whole crowd. But remember where Judas ended up. Jesus says, all of you shall be offended. All of you shall fall because of me this night. And then he says something fascinating. He says, for it is written. He says, it is written, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered. Now, if you'd hold your place there in Mark chapter 14 just for a moment, we have to ask, where is that written? It's written in the word of God, Zechariah chapter 13 and verse 7. If you go to Zechariah chapter 13 and verse 7, Jesus here is doing something for the disciples that you and I ought to do for each other. that even when we face very discouraging circumstances, circumstances that quite frankly reveal us for what we really are. Jesus said, all of you shall fall. All of you shall be scattered. See, that's what those pressures do. They reveal what we are really like. But right in the middle of that, Jesus said, but it is written. Think about what he's saying here. Zechariah chapter 13 and verse seven. Awake, oh sword against my shepherd. Okay, let's stop just for a moment and ask now. What's that about? He has just said that there's something that has been asleep or dormant and that something is an instrument of death It is a sword and he says awake. Oh sword against my Shepherd who's speaking here. It's the lord of hosts who is speaking He says awake. Oh sword against my shepherd against now catch this The man that is my fellow, or the man who is in union with me. Dear friends, here you have a fascinating verse in the Old Testament that tells you about a man who would be in union with God. It's really telling you about the God-man, about Jesus Christ. It's telling you here about the God-man who would be put to death, brought to the place of death by, no less than, the Lord of hosts. And so it says in this passage, Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts. Smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered, and I will turn my hand upon the little ones. I will turn my hand upon the little ones. You may have a translation today that says against the little ones, and I would like to point out to you, I really do think the right word there is upon. The right word and the first choice that you would define that word with would be upon, and I think I can demonstrate to you why. Hold your place, put your hand there in Zechariah 13, go back over with me to Mark chapter 14, look again at what Jesus says. He says, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered. That's exactly what we just read. But then look what he says. But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. You see what he's saying? After I am risen. Now, hold your place, go back to Zechariah 13 and say, wait a minute, how is it possible if the shepherd is put to death by the Lord of hosts, the shepherd who is the God man is put to death by the Lord of hosts, how is it possible for him to turn his hand upon the little ones? Or how is it possible for God to use this as a protection for the little ones? You know what the answer is. The answer is what you see there in Mark chapter 14, in verse 28, he says, after that I am risen. What you have in Zachariah chapter 13 is a powerful reminder, a wonderful omen, harbinger, sign, indicator of the gospel of Jesus Christ, of how he will protect the little ones. And so here's the first important reminder. When you face difficult and trying times, it's important to recall what you know from the Word of God, to recall what you know from the Word of God. That's exactly what Jesus is doing here for these disciples. He is calling back to mind the Word of God. Now you say, well, perhaps that was just a coincidence. I would remind you that when John the Baptist was going through the really low time, John the Baptist was so far down that he sent a message to Jesus and said, are you the one who should come or do we look for another one? And Jesus began to send back a message about the scripture. He said, go and tell John. And he began to list the things that were true of him, listing those things from Isaiah chapter 61. You see, he's doing exactly the same thing there. One of the most powerful encouragements that we could have in the time of our great difficulty, in our great distress, is to recall what we know from the Word of God. Look, people mean well. People would like to comfort you, but the fact is there are those of you in this room who've experienced a pain so deep that no one can touch it. They mean well, they certainly are charitable, and they're very kind to you, and they mean well, but they can't touch the pains of your heart. Why? Their arms aren't that long. Only the arms of Jesus are that long. Only the arms of our loving Lord who can comfort us are that long. And one of the best things you can do is just remind them of the comforter. Remind them of what they know for the Word of God and encourage them and shepherd their heart as they press on through life. Why? Because this is what Jesus is calling us to. is calling us to face our greatest difficulties in life. And he's calling us to do that by the way, as we shall see in a humble and prayerful submission to the heavenly father. Jesus is doing something else here because he's applying the scriptures. He's not only reminding us to recall what we know from the Word of God, but look again what he says in verse 28, he says, after that I am risen. Now he'd been telling them about this all along. Way back in Mark chapter eight, verse 31, he began to tell them about this. He's reminded them of this. Now in their deepest distress, he is going to remind them once again. He is going to remind them after that I am risen, I shall go before you into Galilee. There's a second very important reminder here. It is when you face difficult and trying times, it's important to remember the assurances that Jesus has given you. The assurances Jesus has given you. In this case, he was reminding them of his resurrection. You know what you and I could do? We can remind ourselves that there's a great getting up morning coming. We can remind ourselves of the resurrection when we, miss our loved ones. When we agonize over the trials that we are going through and we wonder sometimes, is this going to kill me? I'm at the very end of myself. Is this gonna kill me? Well, there's good news here. If it kills you, there is a resurrection. Because of Jesus Christ, who is the resurrection and the life, he passed through death so that you and I could have this. So in addition to the word of God, you have these wonderful and personable assurances from Jesus Christ himself. Notice what happens here in verse 29. Note the very first word in verse 29, but. Jesus says, you're all going to be scattered, but after I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. But it says, Peter said unto him, although all shall be offended, yet will not I. Isn't that rooster like flesh right there? Isn't one of our greatest temptations self-sufficiency? It's mine. My greatest temptation, self-sufficiency. Isn't that one of the things that we are tempted to? And by the way, isn't the hard crash, that we go through after our self-sufficiency, after we thought we had it all covered, we studied it all out. I mean, we thought we knew the end from the beginning and we were so sure, and then we realized there was a self-sufficiency involved that we had that hard crash. Isn't that a wonderful reminder for all of us? Look what the Lord says here to Peter in verse 29. Peter said unto him, although all shall be offended, yet will not I. And Jesus said unto him, Amen, verily, he uses the word there. I say to you that this day, even this night before the cock, the rooster crows twice, you shall deny me thrice. Look what Peter does in verse 31. Does he yield to the Lord? No, he speaks the more vehemently. He says, whoa, right back at you. And I'm gonna really show you. I mean, look at these muscles. I mean, look at what I'm capable of here. He speaks the more vehemently. And he says, if I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. Now careful, don't just think it's Peter, because look at the last phrase. Likewise said they all. All of them are saying this. Perhaps a thousand men are going to be coming up that dark slope in a few minutes with torches. And these men are insisting, I'm gonna go through this. I'm going to go through in my own power. I ask you, does that sound like humble, prayerful submission to the Lord? When the Lord says, it's going to be this way. No, Lord, I cannot, I've got it all here. I've got a Superman S, I can do this. Does that sound like humble, prayerful submission? Isn't it quite amazing that Peter insists that he is so capable. And in a few moments, Jesus Christ is on his knees crying out to the father for the ability to endure this and humble submission to the Lord. You really have to ask then, is it the sufficiency of the word or self-sufficiency? Jesus Christ has already told them here. It is written. He's given them his personal assurances how this is all going to come out. You really have to ask yourself on a moment-by-moment basis when you're going through these crises, Is my sufficiency in the word or is my sufficiency in myself? I can tell you from personal experience that when you are in the middle of this, You really have to, moment by moment, keep bringing the scriptures to mind. I was almost stunned by this because of the counseling I have used with people for years about individual situations and helping people know from the Word of God some things I'd experienced, at least in a light sense myself. that right in the thick of it, right in my deepest trials, folks, it was as if if I did not bring those verses back to mind, I couldn't even breathe. And I remember hours upon hours, and I was all alone, hours upon hours, trying to wrestle through these difficulties. Jesus Christ is telling us here what to breathe in and what to breathe out, and that is the very Word of God. I say again, this is why the Apostle Paul wrote, who is sufficient for these things? He said, for those of you who think you stand, take heed lest you fall. He's telling us in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 there, that's the very reason that we have the Word of God. The very reason we have it is so that we can look at the Word of God and learn from the Word of God. So there's a third important reminder here. When you face difficult and trying times, it's important to keep trusting the Lord's teaching instead of trusting others or trusting yourself. Instead of trusting others or trusting yourself, put your feet in the sandals of one of the other disciples and see how that when Peter said, oh, I can do this. Well, I'm like Peter, I can do it. They were trusting Peter. And Peter was trusting himself. You and I can't do that. If we start trusting ourselves and trusting others instead of trusting the Lord's teaching, we're going to be in very deep trouble. Look, if you will, at the very last phrase in verse 33 when it says of Jesus that he began to be sore amazed and very heavy. Just a little bit later, it tells us about his very deep sorrows. This word, sore amaze, is only used in the passive in the New Testament. That means it's something that happens to you. And you could translate this word as, he was alarmed. He was greatly disturbed. You could translate heavy as to be upset, to be distressed, to be deeply troubled. So you and I have to ask the question, well, what would cause the Son of God to be alarmed, greatly disturbed, upset, troubled, and deeply distressed? He was horrified. by what he was going to experience. He was horrified by that. Occasionally, you'll meet someone who will say, well, look, Jesus was God, and so that really wasn't all that hard for him. The cross was a, it was just a speed bump, if you will. You know, he walked on water, and so I'm sure that he could just walk across the crest of the waves of all the difficulties that way. Dear friend, nothing could be farther from the truth. Jesus Christ is here preparing to experience something that he had never experienced before, namely, and probably chiefly, would be separation from his heavenly Father. Jesus Christ, who is going to be made sin for us on that cross, is getting ready to experience something. Perhaps you've wrestled with this. You said, look, it says in the Bible that Jesus was in all points, tempted like as we are, yet without sin. And he really knows our troubles and he knows our difficulties. You ask, well, does he understand what it's like to be a sinner separated from God? not a sinner, but a sin bearer, separated from God, is exactly what Jesus Christ is preparing to be. Dr. Luke, who wrote one of the other gospels there, said in Luke 22 and verse 44, about this passage, and being in agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was, as it were, great drops of blood falling to the ground. They tell us about this condition, it's called hematidrosis. And for those of you medical folks in the room, if I mispronounce that, please come up and remind me how it ought to be pronounced. Hematidrosis, it comes from the body's response to very intense stress. Those small capillaries in the body were so full, they were so puffed up with red blood cells and blood cells that they began to burst. They began to ooze out through the sweat glands. That's the nature of the kind of thing he was going through. That's how deep the troubles were. That's how difficult all of this was. Now you have to ask, why? Well, as I say, it's because he's going to be separated from his father. That had never happened to him before. You think about it. In all eternity, in the joyous fellowship of the Trinity, that had never happened before. But it's preparing, it's getting ready to happen to Jesus and he understands it. Why? Because he was preparing to be made sin for us. And that had never happened to him before. He was preparing to do what no other man could do. He was preparing, and catch this, he was preparing to suffer multiple eternities of wrath against sin. You say, why do you say multiple eternities? Think about it. If you die in your sin, The reason you will go to hell and the lake of fire is because God's wrath is never extinguished. It is never satisfied upon you. Every one of us as sinners by rights ought to experience a never ending punishment for all eternity in the lake of fire. and each and every one of us as individuals deserves this. Do you understand when our choir sings, it was for me he died? What that means? Jesus Christ suffered the infinity of your punishment and the infinity of my punishment. He suffered multiple infinities, multiple eternities. And he did that for our sin. My dear friend, think about what Jesus Christ is getting ready to endure and the intense stress upon him. It is God's infinite wrath, a wrath that is infinite and ready to be poured out upon each sinner. And Jesus is preparing to endure this. to satisfy the wrath of God as a propitiation, and beyond that, to extinguish the wrath of God for those who trust Him. Yes, you could say of this, it is a fate worse than death, a fate worse than death. Immortal, holy God above and sinners here below, how can these two be joined as one? really long to know. For man from Eden crowns himself and with his rebel yell declares himself a god to be, but buys his death and hell. Amazing grace. When Jesus prays, the Father's heart breaks through. Forgive them, Father, please forgive. They know not what they do. To pay my debt at such high cost, God's grace may seem so odd. to heal this breach between God and man. God separates from God. A breach within my loving God, a rending made for me. My God, my God, oh why, oh why has thou forsaken me? The father's son cried out in pain on darkest Calvary. And God, estranged from God that day, became my sin for me. Christ gave himself to pay my debt. He died upon that tree, was raised again to justify cursed sinners just like me. For God, estranged from God that day, would make his mercies known. to take away the sting of death and make me all his own. You find in this passage in verse 32, they came to a place which was named Gethsemane. Gethsemane is the olive press, what an appropriate place for them all to be under pressures they're getting ready to endure. Apparently it was a private garden that had been lent to them. This is why Judas knew exactly where it was, because he was very familiar with all that they did. They came to a place called Gethsemane, and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here while I pray." Now, if you study some of the other Gospels, he also said to them, pray, but notice he said to them, sit here while I pray. You have to ask the question this way from the Word of God. Are you and I content to do that? Are you and I content for Jesus Christ, the intercessor, to continually make intercession for us while we just sit there and make no intercession? Well, after all, I mean, he said, sit here. Mark doesn't record that. He said, pray. So, you know, I think I'm all right. I just sit there. You and I both know that's, Not what the Lord wants us to do. He wants us to do far more than that. He does want us to stay there, but He wants us to do something more. He wants us to pray. I would encourage you, number four there, as the important reminder, when you face difficult and trying times, it's important to follow the example of Jesus, even in these most trying circumstances. And notice what he did. In his deep agony that we saw there in verse 33, when he was so greatly distressed and so deeply burdened, he said in verse 34, my soul is exceeding sorrowful. The idea there is, The sorrows are so deep and he's surrounded as if he were surrounded by a pack of ravening wolves or surrounded by a pack of dogs because of the grief there. My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death. Terry you hear he says to Peter James and John and watch another word for pray gentlemen It is time to pray and he went forward a little and fell on the ground He went forward a little and fell on the ground and prayed that if it were possible the hour might pass from him. I And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee. Take away this cup from me nevertheless, not that I will, but what thou will. You see that prayerful submission to the Lord that Jesus Christ is giving us there for an example. The idea of exceeding sorrow here has the idea of afflicted beyond measure, deeply grieved, very sad. So when you face your deepest troubles, do you pray or do you try to escape? Escape by going to sleep. If I could just go to sleep, I could forget all of this. You know, it really struck me as I was studying this passage, and I didn't see this anywhere else, but it just jumped out at me. one of those disciples had said to the others, come on guys, let's pray, let's together, let's agonize before the Lord and pray. If even one of them had done that, or if Peter or James or John had done that. I wonder what the Lord could accomplish if you as an individual were to encourage others, to encourage others to pray. to come to our Wednesday night meetings, to come to pray, to come to seek the Lord and say to others, we ought to pray. And there's a very specific reason why, because Jesus had warned them, if they would not, they would fall into temptation, as you'll see here in just a few moments. Job, it's interesting in Job 42.10, it says, the Lord turned the captivity of Job when he prayed for his friends. I wonder how many of our difficulties and how many of our captivities we are going through because we do not pray. But it was because, and I find this amazing in this passage, it was because Jesus was willing to pray the Abba Father and to submit to the will of the Lord. Because he was willing to cry Abba Father and to submit, that's the very reason that you and I can cry Abba Father today. It's the very reason that you and I can pray. When Abba, Father, Jesus humbly prayed, My Father, You can do all things, He said. Remove this cup from me, I ask You, Lord. Yet not my will, but Yours, Jesus implored. God chose the time when He sent forth His Son, redeeming me to make me all His own. For Jesus cried and humbly took my place. Now I cry, Abba, Father, by His grace." Isn't it interesting that Jesus Christ three times went forward to pray to ask that this cup be taken from Him? Who does that remind you of in the New Testament? It's the Apostle Paul. 2 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 1 through 10. Three times he prayed that the thorn would be taken away, and yet it was not. Can you and I begin to see that it may be characteristic in our Christianity? It may be that we have to experience the same kinds of things. It says in verse 37, he cometh and findeth them sleeping and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? Couldst thou not watch one hour, watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation? The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. Jesus is showing us here how to face our deepest agonies with fervent prayer, and to do so by submitting our will to our Heavenly Father. But you have to ask the question, when He comes and He says this to Peter in verse 37, how's He supposed to respond? Here He is in His deepest agonies, and here's the people who are supposed to be participating with Him, and they're just kind of sleeping, just sort of like shrugged. I think there's a fifth important reminder here. When you face difficult and trying times, it's important to earnestly exhort other believers so they can succeed spiritually. That's what he's doing here for Peter. Peter, pray lest you enter into temptation. He reminds him again about his very nature. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. And in verse 39, he went away and prayed and spake the same words. Is it wrong to pray the same words over and over again? You have to be careful with what Matthew 6 talks about with vain repetition. But is it wrong to come back and speak the same words? No, Jesus did it in this passage. He again went away and spoke the same words. And when he returned, he found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. Neither wish they what to answer him." And so the sixth important reminder. When you face difficult and trying times, it's important to pray earnestly, fervently, and repeatedly, even when others do not join you in prayer. Perhaps you're discouraged, and depressed over the fact that no one's really praying with you. It's still right to pray. It is still right to seek the Lord. And as you see in verse 41, he comes a third time and saith unto them, sleep on now and take your rest. It is enough. The hour has come. Behold, the son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up and let us go. He that betrayeth me is at hand. There's a seventh important reminder here in verses 41 and 42. It's when you face difficult and trying times, it's important to be patient with others. Why can you do that? Because you can trust the Lord's absolute control in the affairs of men. That's why you can be patient with other people. Even when your time schedule's upset and you just seem like, doesn't think this much you can do. You can trust the Lord. You can put yourself completely at rest in His ultimate control. What's the point of today's message? I think it is this, that Jesus calls you to face the greatest difficulties in life with humble, prayerful submission to the Heavenly Father. So in closing, picture it this way. It is a giant football stadium. Here is the coach with his 11 players out on the field. One of them, One of his own team members has gone to the other side, gone up into the stands, and suddenly there's a violent uprising, and the other member of their team leads a violent band down upon the coach. How do those players respond? You would hope that the players would defend their coach, but you and I know our gospel well enough to know that's not what happens. They all flee, they all run. And the coach, in this case, Jesus Christ, is put to death, but he rises again. He rises again to lead them to victory and to cause them to recognize that they can build upon their failures, that where they have been faithless and they have failed the Lord, they can actually use those as stepping stones to success. And as a result, they can face their most difficult trials and they can teach others how to face their difficult trials. So, dear friend, today I ask you, when you look ahead to the difficulties and the agonies ahead, would you face them like Jesus? Would you face them with prayerful and humble submission to the Heavenly Father? Shall we bow our heads together, please? Friend, the very reason that there was a break, there was a breach, a tear, a rending between God the Father and God the Son was so that you could be saved. If Jesus Christ had not been willing to be separated from the Father to utter those terrible words, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? There's not one of us in this room that could be saved if he had not been willing to do that. But that's what he did. It was for you he died. Would you today, in gracious rejoicing that he died in your place, would you embrace him as your Lord and Savior? If you've never trusted Jesus Christ, would you not see the great agony of his soul that he went through? And friend, it was for you he died. Would you not trust him and cry out to him for salvation, asking him to take away your sin? as He has promised to do, to apply His precious work on the cross to you and be gloriously saved. And Christians, when you and I face difficult times, and there will most certainly be difficult and trying times ahead, could we be like Jesus, and in prayerful, humble submission, Continue to remember what is written and the assurances of Jesus Christ. And yes, even be patient and kind with other people around us. Father, help us to be that way. Help us to be like Jesus. Help us, dear Heavenly Father, to magnify our precious Lord even in our great distress, in our great troubling of our soul. Father, I ask this day that you would help us to remember what Jesus Christ went through for all of us and to patiently press on in the strength of your word and of your assurances Because we know Jesus, and we know that he died for our sins, and we know there's a resurrection. Father, we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Would you please turn to number 400.