The Key to Fighting Temptation (Luke 22:39-46)
John Owen once wrote, “He who would spend little time in temptation must spend much in prayer.” This is nowhere exampled more clearly than in this text before us.
This whole chapter, so far, has detailed what happened in the Upper Room. 39 Leaving [the Upper Room], He went to the Mount of Olives (as was His custom). Though He knew that Judas was gathering the Jewish leaders together to arrest Him, Jesus intentionally went to His customary spot. The hour of His death had come.
Now, He goes to the Mount of Olives. Matthew and Mark record that this specific spot on the mount was a garden called Gethsemane. John tells us that Jesus walked and talked with His disciples the entire way, continuing the teaching He had started in the Upper Room. John even records that He stopped along the way and prayed a long prayer for all of His elect.
Luke records none of that. Luke puts the spotlight on Jesus. HE left the Upper Room and went to the Mount of Olives. And, kind of as an aside: and the disciples followed Him. This is in line with Luke’s emphasis on Jesus being the suffering servant prophesied in the Old Testament. Matthew and Mark record that Jesus left eight of His disciples behind at the entrance to the Garden. He took three with Him. But Luke doesn’t record that. He leaves out a lot of details, only wanting to focus on Jesus for a time.
Up until this point, Jesus has been fearless and immovable. He stood firm against Satan in the wilderness. He went toe-to-toe with demons at many points in His ministry. He has walked away from stonings with unconcerned composure. He has argued with the Pharisees and Sadduccees without missing a beat.
However, now, we see Jesus face the toughest moment of His life. Up to now, Jesus has set His face to go up to Jerusalem. Step after agonizing step, He has made His way to Jerusalem to die. And He has done so with resolve.
We so often read about Jesus praying. Luke 3:21, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened. Luke 5:16, Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. Luke 6:12, He went off to the mountain to pray, and he spent the whole night in prayer to God. Luke 9:18, He was praying alone. Luke 9:28, before the Transfiguration, He went up on the mountain to pray. Luke 9:29, during the Transfiguration, He was praying. Luke 11:1, Jesus was praying in a certain place. Luke 22:32, Peter, I have prayed for you. Jesus was constantly praying.
Until now, however, we haven’t read much about what Jesus’ prayers were like. In Luke 11:1, the disciples asked Jesus, “teach us to pray.” And they waited until AFTER He had finished praying. They didn’t dare interrupt this divine communion. They were obviously in awe of Jesus’ prayers. Have you ever prayed with somebody, who, once they start praying, you just sit there and think, “Wow, I want to pray like that.” Such prayer is taught by the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ prayers were so reverential, so faithful, so holy, so bold, that the disciples came and asked Him to teach them to pray like that. The author of Hebrews records that He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety (Heb 5:7). The author may be referring specifically to this prayer in the Garden, which is our text today. But I also think he is referring to Jesus’ prayer life in its whole. If so, it must have been something else to watch Jesus pray. Loud crying. Tears. Piety.
All of that is only intensified in this passage in Luke. The hour is now upon Him. Everything hinges on THIS moment, for it is this moment that will either win Him the victory or lose the battle. And too much is at stake. The fate of the world hangs in the balance. He cannot afford to enter this moment without being prayed up.
So, He hurries to His usual spot on the Mount of Olives, His disciples in tow.
40 When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Be praying not to enter into temptation.” If it were me, I would have said, “Be praying for me.” But Jesus knew that they needed strength to stand against temptation just as well as He did. They would encounter the same arresting party as Him. They had all already told Him they would go to death with Him. And to do that, they would need to pray. Prayer brings strength against temptation.
Notice what Jesus tells them: Be praying not to ENTER INTO temptation. This is instructive for all of us. There is a difference between being assaulted by temptation and entering into the temptation. We can’t help the first. We are constantly assaulted with temptations. The lust of the eyes. The lust of the flesh. The prideful boasting in the things of this world. The devil throws temptations at us. The world throws temptations at us. The flesh throws temptations against us. We are powerless to stop the temptations from coming.
However, we can derive strength from God through prayer so that we do not ENTER INTO the temptation. What is it to enter into temptation? It is to allow the object of our desire to tantalize us. It is to open the door to the temptation.
Let me give you two examples. One kind of silly, one biblical.
First, the silly. Imagine a salesman is knocking on the door at your house. You look through the peephole, and he flashes you his brightest smile and holds up the object he’s selling. At that moment, you have the choice to open the door and listen or to walk away and ignore him until he goes away. Maybe, you decide to open the door. Just a crack. Now, he hands you his business card through the opening and tells you that this object he is selling will change your life. You still have the option. You can open the door the rest of the way or you can close it. Maybe you decide to open the door all the way. Now, you can see his charming smile. And, yes, the object he’s holding really is very lovely. It would certainly make life easier. In fact, now that you think about it, life isn’t worth living without this object. It’s worth whatever it costs. Now, you still have the option. You can slam the door in his face. But you don’t want to. This is too tantalizing. You have entered into the temptation.
Second, the biblical illustration. Eve knew not to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God had plainly said so. Eve even adds the restriction that she’s not even supposed to touch it. But then that snake got her attention. He started working his treachery on her by asking, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?” He lets her answer, and then he strongly contradicts her. “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” And at that point, he stops talking. He’s laid his trap. Now, the right response would be to flee. Run away and live. But now, she’s frozen. She’s thinking, “You will be like God. And God doesn’t want that for you. He’s keeping something good from you. And you should have it.” She’s opened the door to temptation just a crack. Her gaze moves to the tree. She saw it was good for food. It was a delight to the eyes. It was desirable to make one wise. Now the door is wide opened. She should still run and flee from the devil. But she can’t. The fruit is too tantalizing. The thought of being like God is too juicy. She doesn’t want to run. She wants to eat. Life isn’t worth living without that fruit. So, her hand reaches out. She takes the fruit and eats. The rest is history.
So there is a difference between being assaulted with temptations and entering into the temptation. James says it this way: Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin (Jas 1:14-15). We need strength so that we are not carried away and enticed by lust. We need strength so that when we are, we can still close the door to sin. We need strength not to enter into temptation. Where does this strength come from? It comes through prayer.
Luke highlights Jesus, the Champion of our salvation, battling against temptation through prayer. He is wrestling with the will of God. And He overcomes, because of the strength that God provides in answer to His prayer. However, the disciples will fail to pray, and due to this, they WILL enter into temptation and their lust will conceive sin.
Main Point: Luke presents 2 contrasting pictures of responses to temptation in order to show that we must constantly watch and pray that we do not enter into temptation.
I. THE PICTURE OF PRAYERFULNESS
41 He Himself withdrew from them about a stone’s throw and knelt down on His knees. He was praying, 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, take away this cup from Me. This is a metaphorical cup that contains the wrath of God against sin and wickedness. Psalm 75:8, A cup is in the hand of the LORD, and the wine foams; It is well mixed, and He pours out of this; Surely all the wicked of the earth must drain and drink down its dregs. But Christ wasn’t wicked! No! He wasn’t! But He was about to stand in for you and me and drink that cup that was mixed for us. Earlier He had asked His disciples, “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink?” (Mark 10:38-39). They answered almost flippantly, “Yes, we are able.” But we should pull back in revulsion. It should be a visceral reaction. If we don’t shake and tremble at the thought of drinking that cup of wrath, then we haven’t understood anything yet! Now, imagine the sinless Son of God’s reaction to that cup. He is about to be made sin on our behalf. Thus, the prayer, if you are willing, take away this cup from Me. But here is the resolve of submission: Nevertheless, let not My will be done, but Yours.” This is always where prayer must be. Lord, here is my desire. But Your desire overrules mine. In fact, I don’t want what I desire if it’s against Your will. Help me to conform my desire to Yours.
As you know, the Father’s answer was ‘No.’ There is no other way to atone for sin. You and I and the Spirit decided before the foundation of the earth was even laid that we would do this.
Of course, Jesus was struggling with this. If it is even proper to say that the divine will can struggle, then it was struggling against the idea of being made sin. His human will certainly struggled against the prospect of being imputed with the sins of us all.
Now, His plea before the Father was rejected. This is the foreordained method of redeeming a host of lost sinners.
But notice that even in the “no” answer, God was gracious to His Son. He sent an angel to give Him strength.
43 Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. This is usually hidden from our view, but I think we can trust that God strengthens us in the same way. They are, as Hebrews 1:14 says, all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of [us] who will inherit salvation. The angel imparted spiritual strength to Jesus. This strength allowed Him to continue in prayer and receive more strength and resolve. 44 Being in agony, He was praying even more fervently. The intensity has increased. The temptation is raging against Him. “Deny the Father’s will. Forsake Your mission. Don’t go to the cross.” As the temptation increases, He gains more and more strength to pray with even more fervency. There was such intensity that even His sweat became like drops of blood falling on the ground.
How many of us break a sweat while we pray? Much less sweat with blood. Have you and I even experienced a fraction of this fervency in our prayers? I must confess that my prayers seem rather tame in comparison to our Lord’s. Do we sweat in prayer against temptation? Do we agonize in prayer to God? Do we wrestle with our own will and beat it into submission to the will of the Father? Do we cry out to God to strengthen us so that we do not enter into temptation?
Or do we look like the disciples? Luke’s focus takes us back to them.
II. THE PICTURE OF PRAYERLESSNESS
45 Then, rising from prayer. Jesus has now won the battle. He has overcome. He is ready to face the six sham trials, be beaten and whipped, then crucified like a hardened criminal. Now, through prayer, He has the strength of spirit and resolve of will to face it all. The devil is vanquished. Now, events just have to play out according to plan. And coming to the disciples, He found them sleeping from their grief. These are the same disciples who had been so overwhelmed by Christ’s glory that they slept during the Transfiguration. Now, they are so overwhelmed with grief and distress because Jesus has been telling them He is going to be arrested and crucified that they fall asleep. Matthew and Mark record Jesus taking time out of His own prayers to go wake them three times. But each time, they had succumbed to sleep. 46 He said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up. Pray, so that you may not enter into temptation.” It is urgent that they pray and gain the same strength that He had. However, while He is speaking this to them, Judas comes to betray the Lord. The disciples had no more time to pray. And what happens to them? They enter into temptation, and they run. They had boasted only hours ago that they would go with Him to prison and to death. But now, the time had come, and they ran like cowards.
This was all according to Scrpture. Zechariah prophesied, Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered (Zech 13:7). It was no surprise to Jesus. He had even quoted this verse to them. But what if they had indeed prayed so that they didn’t enter into temptation?
What would happen if you and I prayed this fervently without ceasing? Would we have more ability to recognize temptation and consciously not enter it? Would we have more power to slam the door in Satan’s face whenever he comes knocking? Would we have more power to change the channel when something ungodly comes on the screen? Would we have power to say, “No, I’m not even going to think about those lusts. I’m not giving them an inch. I will not be conquered by it!”
IN CONCLUSION, Jesus calls His followers to pray in the same manner He prayed to not enter into temptation. It is our sure method of victory.
It is well said that “a sinless man battled Satan, sin, self, and temptation in a garden and lost–saying, “My will not Yours be done” and the loss impacted all mankind. The second Sinless Man battled Satan, sin, self, and tempation in another garden and won–saying, “Not My will, but Yours, be done”--and its impact touches people from every tribe and tongue.
I invite you to look upon the sinless one made sin for you and me.
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