When our dear savior had finished
his great intercessory prayer as our great high priest in John
chapter 17, the 18th chapter opens by telling us that he arose
from prayer and crossed over the brook Kidron into the garden
of Gethsemane. It was in a garden that the first
Adam sinned against God and we in him and lost everything. In the garden, the first Adam
plunged himself and his race into sin and death and the curse. It's only fitting then that in
the garden, the garden of Gethsemane, The last Adam comes to undo all
that was begun in the Garden of Eden. The last Adam, our Lord
Jesus Christ, comes as the representative, not of the human race, but of
an elect race. Not of all men, but of all being
given to him in the covenant of grace before the world began.
And he comes to the Garden of Gethsemane where he commences
the undoing of that which Adam had destroyed, the undoing of
the curse, the undoing of sin, the undoing of death on the behalf
of his people. In the garden, our savior sweats,
drops of blood falling to the ground as he anticipated being
made sin for us. It was in a garden not far from
this place where he was nailed to the cursed tree, suffering
all the fury of God's wrath as our substitute until justice
was satisfied. Sin was put away and the curse
removed for those people for whom Christ died. That is for
every sinner who believes on him. Christ was made a curse
for us, and thus the curse was taken away. It was in a garden. that our Lord Jesus was buried
and in a garden that he came forth in resurrection power,
triumphant over death, hell, and the grave. Augustine wrote,
it is fitting that the blood of the physician should there
be poured out where the disease of the sick man first commenced. But did you ever notice that
of all the four gospel narratives, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
John alone was inspired by God the Holy Spirit to omit anything,
any reference to our Lord's agony in Gethsemane. The Holy Spirit
inspired Matthew, Mark, and Luke to describe the agony and the
bloody sweat in Gethsemane in great detail. You mix them together
and you see that they give us a full picture of what transpired. John, however, mentions nothing
of the agony. John mentions nothing of the
Lord's prayer when he cried three times, Father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me. John says nothing about the bloody
sweat. John mentions none of those things
for a reason. But what could that reason be?
What could that reason be? I can only guess, but I think
at least in part, the answer is obvious. John's distinct objective
throughout his gospel narrative is to show us the greatness of
our Savior as the mighty God. John certainly speaks and demonstrates
our Lord's humanity in his own unique ways. But his purpose
is to show us clearly that this man who walked on the earth in
our nature is himself God Almighty. So when he describes Gethsemane,
he mentions nothing of the weakness and sorrow. All John mentions
about Gethsemane, all that he mentions of that which transpired
in Gethsemane is triumph and victory, demonstrating that our
Lord Jesus Christ, as he is undergoing the agony of Gethsemane, as he
goes up to Mount Calvary, is himself still the sovereign God,
Lord over everything. The title of my message this
morning is Gethsemane's Sovereign. Gethsemane's Sovereign. Let's
read verses one through 11 here in John 18 together, and you
will see that our Lord Jesus was indeed the sovereign in Gethsemane. When Jesus had spoken these words,
that is, he had spoken his great high priestly prayer, he went
forth with his disciples over the brook Kidron. In the Old
Testament, the same brook is spelled K-I-D-R-O-N. He went over the brook Kidron,
where was a garden into which he entered and his disciples. And Judas also, which betrayed
him, knew the place, for Jesus oft times resorted thither with
his disciples. Judas then, having received a
band of men and officers from the chief priest and the Pharisees,
cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. Jesus
therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went
forth. What a tremendous statement.
Jesus, therefore, knowing all things that should come upon
him, stepped forward. He went forth and said unto them,
Whom seek ye? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am. The translators added the word
he. Jesus saith unto them, I am. Remember the word by which the
Lord God made himself known to Moses? I am that I am hath sent
thee. Jesus saith unto them in the
presence of these priests and these Pharisees, I am. Particularly in the presence
of his disciples, I am. and thereby declares himself
Jehovah God. I am. And back up here. Whom seek you, they answer Jesus
and Nazareth. He saith unto them, I am. And
Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with him. Verse six, and
as soon as he had said unto them, I am. They went backward and
fell to the ground. Somebody knocked them over. Somebody
had. They stumbled backward and fell
to the ground. Then asked he them again, Whom
seek ye? And they answered and said, Jesus
of Nazareth. Jesus answered, I've told you
that I am. If therefore, remember who I
am now, I am. I am. If therefore, since I am,
if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way. That's not an argument. That's not a proposition. That's
not an offer. That's a declaration with authority. I am. If you seek me, let these
go their way. If you seek me, let these go
their way. That the saying might be fulfilled
which he spake of them which thou gavest me Have I lost none? Of them which thou gavest me,
have I lost none? Then Simon Peter, having a sword,
drew it, and spoke the high priest servit, and cut off his ear." Now, a lot of fellows chew on
Peter pretty hard for that. I'd like to have that kind of
spiserate them, wouldn't you? That fellow took, he wasn't carrying
a warrior soldier, he was carrying a fisherman's knife. He took
out his fisherman's knife and took on a Roman troop, single-handed. And the Lord Jesus, after Peter
did that, he cut off his right ear. The
servant's name was Malchus. Then said Jesus unto Peter, put
up thy sword into the sheath. That's not the way we do things.
The cup which my father hath given me, shall I not drink it? I just told you Bible's on your
laps. Now I want to show you seven things that I believe will
help you this morning. First, our Savior's crossing
of this brook, Kidron, is highly symbolical. This Brook Kedron,
as I said earlier, is the same Brook Kedron mentioned often
in the Old Testament. Let me remind you of how it's
used. King David, when he was fleeing
from Absalom, crossed over the Brook Kedron, fleeing from his
son who sought to kill him. David, you'll remember, is an
imminent type of our savior. It was there at the Brook Kedron
that King Asa burned his mother's idols and scattered the ashes
of his mother's idols to the winds. It was here at the brook
Kidron that good King Josiah caused all the polluted vessels
of the temple to be burned. The brook Kidron was the place
where that in Hezekiah's day all the uncleanness that was
found in the house of the Lord was disposed in this brook. Every year on the day of atonement
when the high priest offered the Passover lamb, another lamb
was offered to the Lord called the scapegoat. And that scapegoat
was placed in the hands of a fit man. On him too was confessed
the sins of the people of Israel. And that fit man would take the
scapegoat out into the wilderness and let him go, never to be seen
again. A picture of the putting away
of sin by the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. But as he
stepped away from the temple and headed out into the wilderness,
he had to cross the Brook Kedron. The Brook Kedron was just below
the temple. And I'm told that there was a
drainage system by which all the blood of the sacrifices in
the temple ran down into this brook. This is the place outside
the camp where they took all the sacrifice carcasses, the
entrails, the filth that was left over and burned the sacrifices
here at the brook Kidron. The word Kidron means turbid
or blackness. It was a foul place. It was a
place that you wouldn't really want to wade in, let alone spend
any time in. You can imagine the filth, the
foulness, and the blackness of this brook. What a loathsome, repulsive stream
it must have been. Turn back to Psalm 110. Psalm 110. Bear in mind now all that I've
said to you about this brook. And here you will see the significance
symbolically of this brook, Kidron, when John tells us that Jesus
Christ, our Redeemer, went over the brook, Kidron, into Gethsemane. Psalm 110. It's a psalm about
our Savior. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou on my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion. Rule
thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. In the beauties of holiness from
the womb of the morning, thou hast the due of thy youth. In verses five and six, the psalmist
talks about our Lord Jesus, the king of glory, who is also this
priest after the order of Melchizedek, our great savior, ruling over
his enemies and causing men to fall before him. Now look how
it happens. Verse seven, and he shall drink
of the brook in the way. Therefore, Don't ever miss the
therefores. Therefore, therefore shall he
lift up the head. He shall be exalted. He shall
be lifted up. He shall be magnified. He shall
sit on the right hand of the majesty on high because he shall
drink of the brook by the way. Now, that's a prophecy. That's a prophecy. But our Lord
did not literally drink from the brook Kidron. He did not
take those foul, sewer-like waters and drink them with his physical
lips. But the psalmist says he drank
of the brook, by the way. And it is through him drinking
of the brook, by the way, that he's lifted up and exalted Lord
over all. Well, what does this mean? What
does this mean? Our blessed savior took the cup
of our iniquities, transgressions, and sins. And he drank all the foulness
and filth and blackness of our sins when he was made sin for
us. He drank the cup of trembling
down to its last bitter dregs as our divine surety that we
might take the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.
And he did it voluntarily. We read in verse 11, the cup
which my father hath given me, shall I not drink it? More about
that later. Look here in Isaiah chapter 51. Isaiah 51, verse 22. Thus saith thy Lord, the Lord,
and thy God, that pleadeth the cause of his people. Isaiah 51,
22. Behold, I have taken out of thine
hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury. Thou shalt no more drink it again. This cup, the cup of the dregs of God's
fury. Bob Duffy took it out of your
hand. He said, you'll never drink this cup. You'll never drink
this cup. For he, his own self, bear our
sin in his own body. the tree. Not on his body, in his body
on the tree. Bearing our sins in his body
on the tree as he took the cup of dregs and the cup of trembling
and drank damnation dry for us, he was made a curse for us. Christ
hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse
for us. that we might receive the blessing
of Abraham. But what do you say to all that? Let men argue and fuss and debate
and scream and holler. I'll tell you what I'm going
to do. I will take the cup of salvation and call on the name
of the Lord. He was made sin for us that we
might be made the righteousness of God in him. All right, back
in John 18. Look at verses 2 and 3, where
John describes for us Judas coming with the Pharisees and the soldiers
to the place of prayer in Gethsemane and learned this. Oh, God help
you to learn it. Nothing has such a hardening
effect upon the hearts of men as religion without Christ. Judas. Judas was one of the 12 disciples,
one of our Lord's original apostles. There are no apostles today,
and I just have to say this. Over in the Citadel of Antichrist,
they are in the process of the beatification of that old holy
papa who died. And they claim to be the successors
of the apostles, the successors of Peter. Well, there's not much
likelihood Peter ever went to Rome, let alone buried there.
But I can tell you this, the only thing They have in common
with the apostles is that one of them was a betrayer originally,
and all of those are betrayers. But Judas was one of our Lord's
apostles. That means that for three years. He was the constant companion
of the son of God. For three years, he heard the
savior preach. And preached with him. For three
years, he watched the master perform marvelous miracles. Judas was among those who broke
bread. Just a couple of loaves of bread,
a couple of fish, and kept passing them out to thousands of people. He was there. He was there. often resorted to this place
of prayer in Gethsemane with our Savior. He knew the spot
well. Judas enjoyed the benefit of the Lord's private instruction
when he would come aside from the crowds and he would teach
his disciples alone. Judas professed himself to be
a believer. He had worked with the Lord Jesus
and his apostles. J.C. Ryle observed concerning
Judas, from the highest degree of privilege down to the lowest
depth of sin, there is but a succession of steps. Because privileges
misused seem to paralyze the conscience. Religion without Christ paralyzes
the conscience. He that eateth and drinketh the
things of God, not discerning the Lord's body, eateth and drinketh
damnation to himself. Religion without Christ hardens
the heart. Hardens the heart. The same sun
that melts the wax hardens the clay. I urge you beware of resting
your hopes of salvation on religious knowledge, however great, religious
advantages, however many, religious experiences, however unusual. Many there are, I fear, who know
all doctrinal truths and are zealous teachers of others.
Preaching the doctrine feverishly, who yet prove reprobates and
go to hell at last. Let him that thinketh he standeth,
take heed lest he fall. Salvation. Oh, hear me. God help you to hear me. Oh,
preacher, hear yourself. Salvation is not in what you
know. Salvation is not in what you
do. Salvation is not in where you've
been. Salvation is not in what you
feel. Salvation is not in your experiences. Salvation is not in religious
duty. Salvation is Christ. Salvation is Christ. This is
life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. Third, look at verse four. Our blessed Savior, the Lord
Jesus, we are told here new from the beginning, all that must
come upon Him as our Redeemer. Jesus, therefore, therefore. Again, don't skip over the therefores. Jesus, for this reason, knowing
that, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth
and said unto them, Whom seek ye? One of those things that must
have made our Savior's sufferings so terrible is the fact that
he knew full well all that he must suffer to redeem our souls
and knew from the beginning. He knew what he must experience. Though John mentions not a word
of it, Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell us that our Lord Jesus,
in anticipation of that which he is about to suffer, cried,
my God, oh, my God, oh, my father, if it be possible, let this cup
pass from me. He broke out into a bloody sweat,
his heart breaking within him as he anticipated what he must
suffer. It was not death that he feared. It was not leaving this world
that he feared. It was the suffering of death
that terrified him. Explain that, preacher. I leave
that to folks who want to play with such sacred things. I'm
just telling you. He cried unto God while he walked
on this earth, Hebrews 5, 9, and was heard in that he feared. Feared. He feared. What can that mean? He feared. He reverenced. That won't get
it. That won't get it. Reverence
never caused anybody to break out into a bloody sweat. He feared. His soul quaked within him as
he anticipated all that must come upon him, the crown of thorns,
the scourging, the nakedness, the spit, the beating, the nailing
to the tree, the mocking, and being made sin for us. He knew all that must come upon
him, all of it. He who knew no sin, Alan Kibbe,
is the only man who ever walked on this earth who knew sin. He knew no sin, but he alone
is God who knew sin as God knows sin. That horrible, obnoxious,
hideous thing. So contrary to God that for it,
God will soon destroy this world. That horrible, obnoxious thing. So hideous to God that for it,
God will send men to hell. Our Lord Jesus knew what sin
was. What sin is. And he went forth. From old eternity, when first
he took the cup of trembling in his holy hands of grace, as
I sure at day and all the days of his life, he went forth to
meet that which he must suffer. Fourth. Verses four through 11. Our Lord Jesus suffered all that
he suffered for us. He took the cup of trembling
for us and died in our place under the wrath of a holy God
by the hands of wicked men because he desired to do so. I'm using the word voluntarily. And we often use the word he
voluntarily laid down his life. He voluntarily assumed our nature. He voluntarily stood forth as
our surety. He voluntarily gave his life
as our substitute and died in our room instead. But voluntary
doesn't quite get it. Our Lord Jesus suffered all that
he suffered and died in our stead because he desired to do so. that we might live by him. This was the joy set before him
for which he endured the cross, despising the shame. He goes
forth to meet these soldiers and says, Whom seek ye? Our Lord Jesus was the sovereign
in Gethsemane. Notice it is he who takes the
initiative who ever heard tell of such a thing. He steps forward
and says, here comes a band of soldiers with lanterns and torches
and weapons of war. And this unarmed man steps forward
and says, who are you fellas looking for? He knew exactly
who it was. We're seeking Jesus of Nazareth. More literally, the words would
read Jesus the Nazarene. But he wasn't of Nazareth. And
he wasn't a Nazarene. Oh, yes, he was. Read Numbers
chapter 6 and you'll find out he's the only Nazarene who ever
lived. The only real Nazarene. We're seeking Jesus the Nazarene.
This one whose life is a life utterly devoted to God alone. Little did they know what they
were saying. And the Lord Jesus says, I am. He demanded that
they speak. and identify themselves that
he may identify himself. And when they did, he demonstrated
with divine force that he was in total control of the situation.
When he spoke and said, I am, they went away backward, falling
prostrate on the ground before him. I think I have to agree with
Mr. Hawker. He said this is perhaps The greatest miracle recorded
on the pages of inspiration. Imagine this. This is accomplished by nothing
but our Savior declaring, I am. Three times. He identified himself
as God Almighty and by his word raised men from death to life
when he walked on this earth. But here, by the same word, he
speaks and men fall as dead men at his feet. Turn to Psalm 27. Hold your hands here in John
18. Turn to Psalm 27. And you'll see that this too
was a fulfillment of prophecy. Psalm 27 verse 2, when the wicked,
even mine enemies and my foes came upon me to eat up my flesh,
they stumbled and fell. They came seeking him with ladders
and torches. Apparently, apparently God blinded
them. Judas knew who he was. Those
soldiers, I had no question, knew who he was. Certainly the
Pharisees knew who he was, but here he stands in front of them,
and they don't recognize him. They've stood there with lanterns
and torches. He says, who y'all looking for? I am. I am. And they stumbled and fell. Turn to Isaiah chapter 11. Isaiah
chapter 11. And there shall come forth a
rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of
his roots, and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord, and shall
make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord. Skip
down to the last line, verse 4. With the breath of his lips,
Shall he slay the wicked? Oh, how easily that same breath
and those same words might have cast these men immediately into
hell. But don't overlook this. The
very same words. The very same words. Which are
death and condemnation to the reprobate. are the greatest possible
comfort to God's people. The Lord Jesus says, I, even
I am he that comforteth you. Who then? Who then? Who art thou that thou shouldest
be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which
shall be made as grass? Then shalt thou call, and the
Lord will answer. Thou shalt cry, and he shall
say, here I am. He spoke to Moses. Moses said,
Lord, how am I going to bring these people out of Egypt? And
if I go down there and tell them that you sent me to bring them
out, they won't believe me. Who should I tell them sent me?
Lord, I can't speak. I'm a man of stammering tongue.
How shall I do this? And the Lord says, I am that
I am. Say to them, I am hath sent thee. And Moses took off to Egypt.
The very words that bring consternation and fear and judgment and death
to the ungodly are words of comfort and life and peace to those who
are called by his grace so that As we preach the gospel of God's
grace, proclaiming this one who says, I am the eternal God, our
Savior, God in human flesh, who died in our stead, who rose again,
who sits on the throne today. We proclaim to men the I am.
And we are always a sweet savor unto God. And to them that are
saved and to them that are perishing, to them that are saved, we are
a savor of life unto life. to them that perish, a saver
of death unto death, by the same word and by the same spirit who
speaks through that word. Our Lord Jesus laid down his
life in our room and in our stead as our covenant surety, willingly,
the great I am. He was not forced to die. No
man took his life from him. He laid it down of himself. Because
he says with desire, if I desired to eat this bread and drink this
cup with you. He was infinitely more willing
to die by the hands of wicked men than those men who cried,
crucify him, crucify him, wanted him to die. He was infinitely
more willing to save our souls than we are to be saved by him. Our Lord Jesus is a willing substitute. He said, but didn't he pray,
Father, it would be possible to let this cup pass from me?
Indeed he did. And he gets up from that as he
says, Father, not my will, thy will be done. And he says to
Peter, the cup which my father has given me, shall I not drink
it? And he shows his resolve to do
so, setting his face like a flint to go up to Jerusalem. Now, what
an example he gave us. Suffering for us, he left us
an example. to walk in his steps. What is
that? The trouble of his heart. The
thing that disturbed him was done when he said, not my will,
thy will be done. Now understand this. You who
are gods, the only way to live in peace in this world is to
bow to God's will. It's the only way. The only way. Take my yoke upon you and learn
of me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light, and you shall
find rest unto your souls. The only way to live at peace
in this world, children of God, is to bow to God's will. Oh,
happy is the man Happy is the woman who learns by grace to
bow before God and say, Lord, do with me what you will. Place
me where you will use me as you will. That's the mind of Christ. Let this mind be in you, which
also was in Christ Jesus. That's the mind of Christ by
which he lived in this world. Oh let us in every stage of our
lives bow to God's will. Look at John 18 verse 8. Here's
the fifth thing. The death of Christ in the place
of his people demands, demands, demands that all for whom he
died go free from the curse of God. Our Lord says to these soldiers,
representatives of law, executioners of justice, I am. If you seek me, I can almost
see him wave his hand over his disciples. And he says, let these
go their way. Let these go their way. You see,
justice satisfied demands the release of the prisoner. Justice
satisfied demands the salvation of God's elect. Justice satisfied
demands that every soul for whom Christ suffered and died go free. Free from the law, oh happy condition. Jesus hath bled and there is
remission. payment God cannot twice demand,
first at my bleeding surety's hand and then again at mine.
I was reading a biography of Thomas Dudley, one of the early
pioneer Baptist preachers in Lexington. He was first president
of Georgetown College, if I remember correctly. His father was a preacher,
obviously a well-known, greatly used preacher of the gospel.
And Dudley was raised in that household. He said, when I was
a boy, I had some religious stirrings and things that called me uneasiness
of mind. And he went off to war and came
back and was listening to another man preach, a fellow by the name
of Trott. And he said, for the first time in my life, I saw
how that God could be a just God and a savior. And God gave
me faith in Christ. I saw how He can be God and punish
my sins as He has sworn to do. And God who freely forgives my
sins as He declares He will. And that's only possible through
the sacrifice of His Son by whom justice has been satisfied. Now look here, look here, look
here, look at this man right here, this man right here. It's most exciting, most comforting,
most delightful thing in the world to me. Yonder in heaven
sits my Savior. And the very law and justice
of God that I spent my life breaking and violating now demands as
strongly as the mercy, love, and grace of God that Don Fortner
perish not. The Savior said, you can't have
me and have him. You can't have me and have him. Here's the sixth thing. Verse
eight again, the same thing. And understand that our Savior,
our dear Lord Jesus, always watches over his people with a keen eye,
a tender heart, and omnipotent grace. Here are these disciples who
followed him into the garden. And here comes a band of soldiers.
What's going to happen? They're no match for them. Can
you imagine how fearful they must have been? Can you imagine
how they must have quaked in their boots, in their sandals?
Can you imagine how their knees must have begun to knock? What
are we going to do now? Here's a band of soldiers who've
come to arrest the master, and we're with him. Just us 12. Just
us 12, wait, Judas is with them. Just us 11, here with the Savior. I dare say that Peter drew out
his knife almost in a last ditch effort. If they're going to kill
us, I'm going to take them with me. He takes on this garrison
of soldiers. But the master is watching out
for them, even in Gethsemane. because he will not suffer you
to be tempted, tried, tested. Above that you're able to bear
it, but will with the temptation, will with the trial, will with
the testing, make a way of escape that you may be able to bear
it. He watches over you, his child, tenderly as the apple
of his eye. One last thing, verse nine. Understand this. Understand this. The salvation of God's elect
is a matter of absolute certainty. Let these go their way that the
same might be fulfilled which he spake of them which thou hast
given me, I have lost none. He said earlier all that the
Father giveth me shall come to me and him that cometh to me
I will in no wise cast out. He says of those which you've
given me I've lost none and it's not possible that I should because
justice has no claim upon them. Law cannot touch them. God's
fury has been swatted up on their behalf. Oh brother Dodd I sure
wish that salvation were mine. Come to Christ. Come to Christ. Right where you are. Don't wait
for somebody to tell you what to say, what to do. You'll miss
him if you do. Right where you sit. Come to
Christ. Believe on the Son of God. He
declares Him that cometh to me. I will in no wise cast out. I
don't know how to come. Come any way you can. Come any
way you can. How will I know if I've got him?
When you get to him, you'll know you're there. Because he's in
you. Reigning and ruling and living
the hope of glory. And he that hath the son hath
life forever. because the Son laid down His
life willingly as our substitute. Amen.