The Gethsemane Experience Significance

The Significance of the Gethsemane Experience

As we know, the Bible is a Book of stories with a lot of lessons to be learnt from each story. The lessons you would learn is dependent on reading beyond the logos and catching the Rhema engrafted in them. The Gethsemane Experience is one of my favourite Biblical stories.

When I say ‘The Gethsemane Experience’ I mean when Jesus went to Gethsemane with some of His disciples (Peter, James and John) to pray. After He had eaten the Passover with His disciples, He needed to communicate with the Father.

Mark gave the account in Mark chapter fourteen verses thirty-two to forty-one that when they arrived, He told them to tarry and watch while He went a little ahead and prayed. After an hour, He returned to meet them asleep. He said, “… Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? Couldest not thou watch one hour?…” He went, prayed some more and returned to meet them asleep again.

Any time I think about the Gethsemane Experience, I remember when Jesus slept in the boat in the midst of a great storm in the book of Mark chapter four verses thirty-five to forty-one. While He slept, a great windstorm arose. The boat was filled due to the waves that broke into it and the disciples panicked. They woke Him up and said, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” What did He do? He arose and simply took care of the situation. He said, “Peace, be still.”

Also Read: Whom Shall I Fear?

In the Gethsemane Experience, the opposite was the case – they swapped character roles. In the midst of the storm, Jesus was asleep and the disciples were awake; while in Gethsemane, Jesus was awake and the disciples were asleep.

One would think and conclude that they had spent enough time with Him to know that He would take care of the situation like He did in the midst of the storms. What actually happened was that there was an exchange that took place at the Last Supper or the Passover. Read, study and meditate on the Word.

From the Gethsemane Experience, there’s a lot to learn. These include but are not limited to the following:

1. The disciples were asleep because their Master was awake. This means that we don’t need to stay awake to keep watch like it’s a duty. We can choose to stay awake out of choice. Probably because we want to pray or do something else. Imagine your four year old son telling you that he won’t sleep at night because he wants to watch; your reaction is as good as mine.
2. Inasmuch as Jesus prayed for the cup to pass over Him, He concluded that the Will of the Father be done. This tells us that we should pray for God’s will to be done just like in the Lord’s prayer in Luke chapter eleven verse two and Matthew chapter six verse ten – ‘… thy will be done…’ This is because He knows the end from the beginning. His thoughts towards us are thoughts of peace to give us an expected end (hope and a future); Jeremiah chapter twenty-nine verse eleven says so.
3. He constantly intercedes for us. He’s on standby pleading for mercy on our behalf.

When it comes to the significance of the Gethsemane Experience, there is a lot to be learnt.

Most of all, one thing is assured and certain right from the Great Windstorm Experience to the Gethsemane Experience – PEACE and REST.

Thanks for reading.

What is your view on the happenings in Gethsemane? We would love to learn from you too. Do well to enlighten us in the comment section below. Thank you.