Open your Bibles, please, to John 18. We'll make it our goal this morning, Lord willing, to try to understand what's going on in verses 1-11 of John 18. I'll give you a little heads up right now that there's going to be a fair amount of scriptural background before we even get into the text this morning. I will begin by reading verses 1-11 of John 18, and then we'll pray as always for God's enabling grace. Beginning in verse 1 we read, when Jesus had spoken these words, probably referring to the teaching, the entirety of his teaching in the upper room that has been recorded, especially in chapters 14, beginning in 13, but especially chapters 14-17. In fact, some of the words in chapter 17 from his prayer are going to be recalled by John in this passage. So when Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples over the brook Kidron, where there was a garden. We know that this garden was the Garden of Gethsemane from the other gospel accounts, which he and his disciples entered. And Judas, who had betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often met there with his disciples. Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Jesus, therefore, knowing all things that would come upon him, went forward and said to them, Whom are you seeking? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth." Literally, it's Jesus the Nazarene in the Greek text. It means Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said to them, I am he. And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with Him. Now when He said to them, I am He, they drew back and fell to the ground. Then He asked them again, Whom are you seeking? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. And Jesus answered, I have told you that I am He. Therefore, if you seek Me, let these others go their way. that the saying might be fulfilled which he spoke, of those whom you gave me I have lost none. Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, Put your sword into its sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which my father has given me? Let's pray. Holy Father, We ask for your guidance this morning and for your help to understand your word. As always, we come before you humbly recognizing that aside from the work of your Holy Spirit, in, with, by, through the word in our hearts, we would never have come to see or enter the kingdom. It is by your grace alone that we are saved, through Christ alone. And so we come to you this morning dependent upon your grace and always dependent upon the work of Your Spirit to enlighten our minds, to enable us to understand what You want us to understand of Your Word this morning. So we pray, Lord, that You will do this for us. And we pray that as a result, we might become more like Christ in all the ways that we're supposed to. That we might be better witnesses for Him and for Your Kingdom in this world. We ask these things in the name of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. You notice there as I read the text, we ended there with Jesus asking Peter a rhetorical question, shall I not drink the cup which my Father has given me? And that's sort of the climax of this portion of the passage here. But in order to understand what Jesus is really communicating there, It's important that we understand the background for the imagery that he's employing. The Old Testament prophecies, for example, contain a particular metaphor which speaks of the judgment of God for our sins. It repeatedly refers to those who are judged by God as drinking the cup of his wrath. It's fairly common. metaphor in certain judgment passages in the Old Testament. I'll give you a couple of examples of what I mean. Beginning in Psalm 75. I'll read Psalm 75 verses 4 through 8. Which says this, I said to the boastful, do not deal boastfully. And to the wicked, do not lift up the horn. Do not lift up your horn on high. Do not speak with a stiff neck. For exaltation comes neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge. He puts down one and exalts another. For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red. It is fully mixed, and He pours it out. Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain and drink down." There's a cup of judgment that God is going to force the wicked to drink. Isaiah 51.17 says, Awake! Awake! Stand up, O Jerusalem, who have drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of His fury. Or as the ESV has it, the cup of His wrath. You have drunk the dregs of the cup of trembling and drained it out. It's talking about the judgment that had come upon God's people as they're having been forced to drink the dregs of the cup of trembling, the cup of His wrath. Similar imagery is taken up later on in the book of Revelation when it talks about God's judgment on those who worship the beast, for example, in Revelation 14. And in Revelation 14 verses 9 through 11 we're told, Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If anyone worships the beast in his image and receives his mark on his forehead or in his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God. which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever. And they shall have no rest day or night who worship the beast in his image and whoever receives the mark of his name." That's referring to judgment at the end times as the drinking of the cup of God's wrath. You see, this cup of God's wrath is what everyone deserves to drink. All the wicked deserve to drink this cup. All those who did not look to God for salvation. Now, Lord Jesus, of course, also took up the metaphor of the cup of God's wrath, which He knew He would have to drink for our sakes when He died on the cross as a propitiation for our sins. You see, as Christians, we don't fear having to drink the cup of God's wrath. because Jesus has already drunk that entire cup for us. This is what Jesus had in mind, I think, when He prayed concerning the cup that He desired to be taken from Him, if it were possible. In fact, He prayed this earlier on in the same evening, just preceding the events that we're reading about here in John 18. Between, sometime between, having left the upper room and the events we're reading here, Jesus had prayed three times that the Lord might take a particular cup from him, if it's possible. For example, in Matthew 26, beginning in verse 36, we're told that Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane. This is the same garden that John is talking about, where Jesus is later arrested. And he said to the disciples, sit here while I go and pray over there. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. These would be James and John, of course, the same John who wrote the Gospel of John. And Jesus began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. And then He said to them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me. And He went a little farther and fell on His face and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. What cup is He talking about? What's He looking forward to in the coming hours? Death on the cross. But we know, from the implications of this metaphor that he's using, if we understand it in terms of Scripture, and we know because of the way, for example, the Apostle Paul describes his death as a propitiation for sinners in Romans 3, we know that the most horrific thing that happened on the cross wasn't anything physical. As bad as all that was, it was the fact that the wrath of God was being poured out on him, and there can be no doubt that when he refers to a cup here, that's the cup he's talking about. He says though, nevertheless, not as I will, but you will. In other words, he willingly offers himself as the one to drink this cup. Then he came to the disciples and found them asleep and said to Peter, What? Could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. which he knows is going to happen to Peter and the other disciples soon. Lots of temptation. He says, the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. And again, a second time he went and prayed, saying, O my father, if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it, your will be done. And he came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were very heavy. So he left them and went away again and prayed the third time, saying the same words. seen in our previous study of John's Gospel, our Lord Jesus taught that he himself had the power to lay down his life for the sheep. When Jesus prays this prayer, Father, if it's possible, remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will, but thine be done, he's also willing to die. Remember what he said when he talked about being the good shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep in John 10. He said, for example, in John 10, 15-18, as the Father knows me, even so I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold, thank God for that. That's how you and I are saved. them also I must bring. And they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore, my Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have the power to lay it down. I have power to take it again. This command I have received from my Father." Well in advance of the events that are taking place in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus made it very clear to His disciples that he was in complete control of what was going on, even of his own death and resurrection. As we've also seen in our previous study of John's Gospel, John presupposes that we've read these other Gospel accounts. So he can have Jesus talking about this cup without having given us this other background. He assumes we already know it. And he chooses to focus his attention primarily on the other teachings and events in the life of our Lord Jesus that the synoptic Gospels didn't include, but which the Holy Spirit made to stand out to him, apparently in a very special way. Remember, Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would later bring to mind all the things that he taught. Well, there are certain things that he brought to John's mind in a very special way that lead to differences and additions in his Gospel to what we see in the other Gospels. But he presupposes that we know those things. already. So, although the other Gospels each include an account of Jesus' betrayal and arrest, John gives his own presentation of the same account and emphasizes additional details in a particular way. Presupposing, for example, that we already know about Jesus' earlier prayer in the garden, as he writes. And so he presupposes that we understand how determined Jesus was to drink the cup of God's wrath." And this is really what he emphasizes throughout the passage we're about to read together and study together this morning. I give you all this background so that when you come to this passage with me, you'll see more clearly what I think the Holy Spirit, through the Apostle John, wants us to see. And that is that laced throughout this account, in these eleven verses, is Jesus' determination to drink the cup of the Father's wrath for us. And His control over the events that lead to that. Anyone who reads passages like we're about to read more deeply here this morning, and comes away thinking that Jesus was just some victim doesn't understand what John is trying to get across at all. Jesus was not out of control here. He was in complete control. So determined was he to drink that cup, that it was not just his father's will to drink, but his own will to drink. However horrific the prospect was for him to drink it. Let's dive into the text now with all this background in our heads and begin reading again. I'll read the first couple of verses again. When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples over the book Kidron, where there was a garden, which we know as Gethsemane, which he and his disciples entered. And Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place. For Jesus often met there with his disciples. The fact that Jesus went to a place where he'd often met with his disciples shows his determination to be arrested and killed so that through his death on the cross he could endure the wrath of God on our behalf. Had he not been willing to do this, arrested, falsely tried, and killed as he knew he was going to be, and it frequently foretold, He wouldn't have gone to a place where he knew Judas would easily find him in order to have him arrested. Would he? He didn't avoid being arrested. He went to a place where he knew Judas would find him so that he could be captured. As John has already told us, back in chapter 13.1, Jesus knew that His hour had finally come, that He should depart from this world to the Father. And then He went on to foretell, prophetically, the very betrayal of Jesus that we're reading about here by Judas in chapter 18. I'm going to back up and read a portion of that for you, just to remind you What's in the mind of Jesus when He decides, let's go back to Gethsemane. Let's stay there tonight again. Right where Judas knows where to find us. Why is He doing that? Well, in chapter 13, beginning in verse 18, Jesus has talked about certain blessings. of those who follow Him. And He says, I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen, but that the Scripture may be fulfilled. He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his eel against Me. Now I tell you before it comes to pass that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He. And the He there is italicized. It's I Am. That you may believe that I Am. And remember when we studied that passage and others like it, we saw that Jesus was deliberately calling Himself I Am. applying the divine name from Exodus 3 to himself. I am that I am. Calling himself the I am. And he wants them, when they later on, see these things happen. Exactly what's happening in chapter 18, what's being recorded there. He wants them to remember that he foretold this, and that he has supernatural knowledge of these things in advance, and is in control of these things when they happen. And he's not caught by surprise at all. He wants them to know that and to think about, he really is who he said he is. I am. He really is God. He really is in control of things. That's what he wants them to be able to Think back and understand. He goes on to say, Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives me, or excuse me, he who receives whomever I send receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. When Jesus had said these things, he was troubled in spirit and testified and said, Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray me. Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom he spoke. They all knew they were weak and could be the guy. Nether was leaning on Jesus, who was one of his disciples whom Jesus loved. And Simon Peter therefore mentioned to him to ask who it was of whom he spoke. Wouldn't you want to know if he were there? Then leaning back on Jesus' breast, he said to him, Lord, who is it? And Jesus answered, It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it. And having dipped the bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot." That's the Judas in John 18. the son of Simon. Now, after the piece of bread, Satan entered him, that is Judas, and Jesus said to him, what you do, do quickly. We know he did. Later on that same night, here comes Judas, the betrayer, leading a whole bunch of people. So, our Lord Jesus went to the place where Judas would have expected to find Him, and he did so because he was following a plan. A plan that had been foretold centuries before in the Old Testament. A plan that he had just told them about earlier that same night that included the very betrayal that was happening. Here in chapter 18, Jesus was determined to drink the cup of God's wrath. That meant getting arrested and being betrayed by Judas. Then in verse 3 we read, Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Here John tells us that there were two groups that came to arrest Jesus. First he uses a Greek word which refers to a Roman cohort. It's translated in the New King James as a detachment of troops. This word technically refers to a group of a thousand men in its original meaning, which consisted of 760 foot soldiers and 240 cavalry, led by what is called a kiliarkos, or a leader of a thousand. In fact, such a leader is mentioned later in verse 12 and referred to as a captain in the New King James Version, but the Greek word is kiliarkos, this leader of a thousand. And that's what this detachment would have been, this Roman cohort would have been, But such detachments were rarely at full strength in terms of their original design. In fact, in the first century, the guesstimate by most people is that there were usually only about 600 men in one of these cohorts, one of these Roman cohorts, even if their leader was still called Achillearchos. And whether or not the full detachment was present that night to arrest Jesus, we can't be absolutely sure. The commander may have left some behind when he came. But here's the thing, we may assume that there were several hundred men here at least coming to arrest Jesus. This isn't a small group of like a dozen people. This is a very large number of soldiers. As Andreas Kostenberger has pointed out, the Romans could use surprisingly large numbers of soldiers even in dealing with a single person, like the 470 soldiers protecting Paul in Acts 23.23, especially when they feared a riot. Roman troops were stationed in Caesarea, but during festivals they gathered northwest of the temple by the fortress of Antonia. This enabled the Romans to keep a close watch on the crowds during Jewish festivals and to quell any mob violence at the outset. Why are there so many soldiers on hand? For this very kind of thing, what would have happened here? Well, the Jewish leaders would have said, you know, there's this guy attracting all these crowds, thousands of people at a time. This guy's a troublemaker. We want him arrested. And they would easily have gotten a Roman cohort to come with them to arrest him. Because if this is a guy who's had so many people following him, so many people interested in him, they don't know what they're going to run into when they go out to meet him. They don't know that Jesus is ready and willing to be arrested. So apparently they're assuming the worst. And that's because they obviously have never really listened, these Jewish leaders, to anything Jesus really said about himself. And that's the second group. that he mentions here, officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees. These would essentially, most of them probably have been temple police under the authority of the Jewish leaders. In fact, one of them, as we'll find out, is a servant of the high priest named Malchus, is a part of these people who come, probably to go back later and inform the high priest of what everything that had happened. He's probably there to keep tabs for his master But they're probably mostly temple police who would have sought out Roman support due to their fear of the crowds, again, who had always surrounded and supported Jesus. At any rate, here's something to keep in mind. The forces coming to arrest Jesus would have been easily seen and heard. You've got several hundred people coming. With enough torches for them to see, and although this time of year there probably would have been a full moon, down where they are in the lower part of the Mount of Olives at night, in a garden, there are going to be lots of dark places. If you're looking for someone, you want lots of light. We don't know how many torches there were, but you can imagine a large group of soldiers coming with their armor and swords and stuff clanging, with torches and lamps, this is not going to be what you call a stealth movement. In other words, they would have heard and seen these people coming for some way off probably. So they ran and hid, right? Once again we see that Jesus stays put. He could have gotten out of there. If that had been his goal, so could the disciples. But they didn't. And so we see again, his refusal to get out well again, as good as they say, once again demonstrates his determination to drink the cup of God's wrath for us. In verse 4 it says, Jesus therefore knowing all things that would come upon him, We've already seen that, right? In his previous teaching, he knew exactly what was going to happen. He went forward and said to them, whom are you seeking? So again we see he knew full well what was going on, but this knowledge did not cause him to flee. This is what was supposed to happen. In fact, not only did he not flee or avoid these people, he went out to meet them. He offered Himself up. And He asked them whom they were seeking, knowing, of course, that they were seeking Him. Because He knows all things that are about to come upon Him. You think He didn't know they were after Him? So why does He ask them? Who are you seeking? The answer, I would say to that, is to make them say it. Why does He want to make them say it? Well, we'll see that in verses 5 and 6. But once again, we see Jesus is determined to drink the cup of the Father's wrath. He's not going anywhere. In fact, He's going out to meet these people. And then He asks, they answered Him, when He said, Whom are you seeking? In verse 5, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said to them, I am He. Now, in the New King James, that He is italicized again, that means it's not there in the Greek. Jesus said to them, I am. And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. If anybody else didn't understand what Jesus meant here when He said, I am, Judas ought to have understood it, for sure. He stood with them. Now when He had said to them, I am, they drew back and fell to the ground. Now, I've already highlighted a little bit what Jesus meant when he used this phrase, I am. And I think he has that meaning here, too, when he says, I am, to them. I think there's a double meaning. I think he's saying to them, I am Jesus of Nazareth, the guy you're looking for. But when he just says, I am, the way he says it, John, who's recorded these words so frequently of Jesus, he wants us to see something a little bit deeper going on here than just, yeah, I'm Jesus of Nazareth. He wants those who've heard his past teaching to remember some other things that he said. And some of these Jewish leaders and officers would no doubt have heard some of his past teaching. For example, teaching like that which was recorded in chapter 8, beginning of verse 54, when Jesus says, If I honor myself, my honor is nothing. It is my Father who honors me, of whom you say that He is our God. Or your God, rather. Yet you have not known him, but I know him. And if I say I do not know him, I shall be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad. Then the Jews said to him, You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham? Jesus said to them, Most assuredly, I say to you, Before Abraham was, I am. That's a clear claim to deity, pre-existence. Then they took up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them. Somehow he went right through the midst of them, but hid himself from them. There's something miraculous I think John wants to see there, and he passed by them. So on this earlier occasion, our Lord taught, saying, before Abraham was, I am. And I would argue that later on when they say, When he says, whom are you seeking? And they say, Jesus of Nazareth. And when he simply says, I am, there are still the overtones of that in his intention. Some of these people may have heard him say it before. These people wanted to stone him. And Jesus isn't backing off of that statement one bit. Because now they're supposed to kill him. See, earlier, he avoided being arrested. Because his hour had not yet come, as John told us several times. But beginning in chapter 13.1, Jesus knew what? That his hour had come. So the difference here isn't that suddenly the Jews got better at catching Jesus. No. Jesus, it's time for him to go to the cross now. And he's been in control all along. Not them. Things are going according to his timetable. Not theirs. Here you have it, though. Once again, we see His claim to be I Am again, His refusal to flee, His hour had come, and He was determined to drink the cup of God's wrath for us. We see this in everything Jesus is saying and doing, don't we? This determination. This is especially clear given the fact that his claim to divinity, I think, was backed up here by a display of his divine power. We cannot miss the fact that when all of them, including Judas, who betrayed him, by the way, drew back and fell to the ground, that this was not of their own free will. There is one commentator who is noted to have said, Somehow Jesus must have stepped forward forcefully, and the first couple of guys jumped back, and then they knocked into the next guy, into the next guy, and then they all fell down. You know, like dominoes or something. That is so silly, as though well-trained Roman soldiers couldn't stay on their feet if one of them fell down. And here's the other thing. A whole group of well-trained Roman soldiers and temple police are not going to say, this guy told us who he was, oh no, let's fall on the ground. No, what's happening here is something that we can't explain other than it's supernatural. Jesus is letting them all know as they're laying on the ground there, if he goes it's because he wants to, not because anybody's making him. Wouldn't that communicate that to you? Certainly wouldn't it to me. They didn't have any control in other words. They couldn't even stand on their feet if Jesus didn't let them, let alone arrest him. Such a display of power by Jesus is seen by us and could only have been seen later by the disciples as a clear affirmation of his earlier words when he said, Therefore, my Father loves me, because I lay down my life, and He may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from my Father." He has the power to lay them on the ground, too. And He makes His point very clearly to them, doesn't He? He wants His disciples to look back on this and say, Jesus told us all this. He exercised the very power that He said that He had. And that we saw so frequently. So again, what do we see here? We see that Jesus continues to demonstrate His determination to drink the cup of God's wrath for us. He's in control of this. He wants to do this. Verses 7-9 He asked them a second time. And here's where we're going to start to catch on to why he wants them to point out so clearly that they're after him. Then he asked them again, whom are you seeking? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. And Jesus answered, I have told you that I am. Therefore, if you seek me, let these go their way. And by that, he must mean the 11 who were there with him. And some others who were apparently there. and had joined them. You look at Mark's gospel, apparently he was around. And most people believe the guy that fled naked was Mark, John Mark. But at least the eleven, and maybe some other close disciples, were there, and he's talking about them. And that the saying might be fulfilled which he spoke, of those whom you gave me, I have lost none. So when Jesus asks for a second time, whom are you seeking? For a second time, he's getting them to say, Jesus of Nazareth, to specify a particular person that they're after. Why? So he could say, well, if you're after me, and I'm who you really want, then you have no need of these other people. He's doing it to protect his disciples. As the Net Bible Notes observe, The second time Jesus replied, I told you that I am he, identifying himself as the one that they are seeking, Jesus also added, if you're looking for me, let these men go. Jesus successfully diverted attention from his disciples by getting the soldiers and officers of the chief priests to admit twice that it is only him that they're after. Even at this hour, Jesus still protected and cared for his own, giving himself up on their behalf. By handing himself over to his enemies, Jesus ensured that his disciples went free. From the perspective of the author, this is acting out beforehand what Jesus will actually do for his followers when he goes to the cross." I think that's right, don't you? I think that's exactly what's going on here. I couldn't agree more. And I think such a perspective is also made clear when after reporting Jesus' words, if you seek me, let these go their way, John immediately adds, that this was so that the saying might be fulfilled which he, meaning Jesus, spoke, of those you gave me I have lost none." When did he speak this? Well, I think this is a summary of what he said in his High Priestly Prayer in John 17, verse 12, where Jesus says to the Father, while I was with them in the world, I kept them in your name. Those whom you gave me I have kept, and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, meaning Judas, who's standing with the enemies at this point. He says that the scripture might be fulfilled. Thus Jesus kept his word concerning his protection of his disciples and he continued to do what? To show his determination to drink the cup of God's wrath on their behalf as well as on our behalf. There's a cup he knows he must drink. That cup can only be the cup of God's wrath. Understood contextually and he is determined to drink it Verses 10 and 11 were told then Simon Peter full of Misunderstanding right then Simon Peter having a sword which is probably more of a dagger that he could hide in his clothes a Druid and struck the high priest servant and cut off his right ear The servants name was Malchus So Jesus said to Peter, put your sword into its sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given me? Remember there was another time when Jesus prophesied his death and Peter said, no, that's not going to happen. And Jesus had to tell him, get thee behind me, Satan. Well, this is the same Peter, not wanting Jesus to be arrested and killed. A courageous Peter. willing to attack a very large group of people. This is no coward we're reading about here. It's a guy, though, who's full of misunderstanding. He probably thinks Jesus is about to whip all these guys. After all, he just knocked them all down. And maybe that mustered up the courage to pull that sword out. Fighting time has come, maybe he's thinking. But he was wrong. as he often was when he jumped the gun. He didn't pay close enough attention to Jesus' teaching. Now, all four Gospels record this event, but it's only John that informs us that it was actually Simon Peter who cut off this right ear of the high priest, and only John tells us that the service name was Malchus. But John doesn't tell us that Jesus goes on to heal Malchus' ear, so for those of you who are worried about Malchus and his ear, and Peter's destructive attack on him. He doesn't tell us about that apparently again because he presumes we'd already know. Because Luke wrote about it in his account. Luke says in Luke 22, 50 to 51, and one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. Who is that one of them? John says, that was Peter. That's Peter again. And whose ear was it? It was this guy, Malchus. But Jesus answered and said, permit even this. And he touched his ear and healed him. So there was yet another display of his power that followed this. But John, he wants to focus his attention on not having told us about the prayer, about the cup. He records these words of Jesus instead. Shall I not drink the cup which my father has given me? It's the cup he was praying about earlier when he said, oh, my father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. It's the same cup that he's talking about. And he's trying to get Peter to see. Peter, who should have been hearing his prayers earlier, probably did before he fell asleep. That cup I was praying about, Peter, I must drink it. So he said, shall I not drink it? And the obvious answer is, of course. Of course you shall. See, he was determined to drink this cup of suffering for us. He was determined to drink the very cup of God's wrath. And the fullness of it. The dregs of it, as the Old Testament would say. That we deserve to drink. For us. so that we never have to fear the wrath of God ever again. Those of us who are in Christ, there is no cup of wrath that awaits us. There's only drinking this cup of the new covenant anew with Him in His Father's kingdom. That's what we await. The marriage supper of the Lamb. Jesus was in complete control of the events that led up to this. So where do I hope you get out of this? Well, I hope You can see the glory and power of our Lord Jesus Christ in this account of His determination to drink this cup that the Father has given Him. The world didn't force this cup on Him. The Father gave it to Him and He willingly took it. I hope you can see in this passage Jesus' love for His sheep for whom He was to lay down His life. His love for you and I, that made Him so determined to drink that cup of wrath for us. And I hope you're encouraged to know that just as He protected His disciples then, in a way He did not protect Judas, because he wasn't chosen. The eleven were chosen, and those others who were with Him there, they were chosen. And what did Jesus do for them? He protected them. Not just them, but in the hours to come, from all kinds of temptation. And you know what? He will protect you and I too. Jesus protects those for whom He drinks this cup of wrath. Now that doesn't mean we're not going to suffer. Because we will. We're called to suffer. We're called to follow in Jesus' footsteps, take up our cross and follow after him. We're called to suffer for his sake and for the sake of the gospel. In fact, Peter, who was there that night, acting so impetuously, later on with a clear head and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wrote in 1 Peter 2, beginning in verse 21, For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow in His steps." How determined are you to walk the path of suffering? Do you have the kind of determination your Savior has? He says of Jesus who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth, who when he was reviled did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. So we will suffer in this life. But we can be assured that our Lord Jesus will keep us through that suffering to the end. He had promised earlier in the upper room that He went to prepare a place for those whom the Father had given Him. And that He would take them to Himself. Remember what He said earlier in John 6? Beginning in verse 37? He said, all that the Father gives Me will come to Me. the one who comes to Me, I will be no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me, I should lose nothing, but raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life, and I will raise Him up at the last day." The Jesus who knocked all those soldiers on their keisters that night, who demonstrated His complete control over everything that was happening, is still in complete control of everything that's happening in your life and in mine. And He will raise us up at the last day. We will be in heaven with Him forever. Because He's determined. He's just as determined to bring us home to heaven as He was to go to that cross and drink a cup of God's wrath for us. And as you can see from this passage, when Jesus is determined to do something, no one and nothing can stop Him. He's God. Our Shepherd. Our Good Shepherd. He is all power. With this in mind, I'll just conclude with the benediction from Hebrews. Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well-pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.