AND THEY ALL FELL DOWN!

We know from reading the Gospels of the gut-wrenching agony that Jesus went through in the Garden of Gethsemane. Add to the turmoil of His surrender to His Father's will the fact that His closest followers grossly disappointed Him by repeatedly falling asleep instead of praying.

Jesus prayed that night - all night - in a way that is difficult for us to imagine. The scripture tells us that He prayed so earnestly that He was sweating! Luke reports that "Sweat, wrung from Him like drops of blood, poured off His face" [Luke 22: 44 All quotes from The Message Bible unless otherwise noted].

Yet, what is most important for us to realize is that by the time "Judas led the way to the garden, and the Roman soldiers and police sent by the high priests and Pharisees followed - carrying lanterns, torches and swords" [John 18:3] - Jesus had it all settled and was completely calm!
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When I was young, we would occasionally hear older believers talk about "praying through". This phrase was used to describe a pressing situation where they clearly needed a deep assurance from God! The use of the phrase indicated that the person had prayed much and fervently until God had given them a sense of assurance that He had all things under His control! [I haven't heard that phrase used in many decades!]
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Jesus had clearly prayed through that evening and had the settled assurance He needed from His Father! He had surrendered: "Not My will but Yours be done" [Luke 22:42].

As a result, He was filled with peace and calm! Let's pick up the dialogue from the point when Judas arrives:

"Jesus, knowing by now everything that was coming down on him, went out and met them. He said, 'Who are you after?'

They answered, 'Jesus the Nazarene.'

He said, 'That's me.' [TM]

...when He said to them, 'I am He,' they drew back and fell to the ground." [NASB]

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Isn't it interesting that when we read passages like this - IF we read them - we simply roll over these words and fail to catch the impact of what we have read?

Roman soldiers and the temple guards who accompanied them FELL TO THE GROUND AS THOUGH THEY HAD BEEN PUSHED BY AN UNSEEN FORCE!

All at the simple words spoken by Jesus: "I AM He!"

Don't miss the irony of those words: "I AM!" Sound familiar?

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Matthew describes the next moments that John omits:

"Then they came on Him - grabbed Him and roughed Him up. One of those with Jesus pulled his sword and, taking a swing at the Chief Priest's servant, cut off his ear.

Jesus said, 'Put your sword back where it belongs. All who use swords are destroyed by swords. Don't you realize that I am able right now to call my Father, and twelve companies...of fighting angels would be here, battle ready" [Matthew 26:50-53]?

By the way, Luke - the consummate researcher and also physician - reports in his Gospel that Jesus then turned to the man who had lost his ear AND HEALED HIM!

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Don't you want to live this way?

Don't you want to sustain an intimate relationship with the Sovereign God of the Universe?

Don't you want to have a relationship with Him that calms you in the midst of anxiety and storms?

Don't you want to maintain a spirit of peace when everyone around you is losing it?

Don't you want to heal and help, rather than do harm?

YOU CAN HAVE ALL THIS BY LETTING JESUS BE THE LORD OF YOUR LIFE AND COMMITTING YOURSELF TO KNOWING HIM THROUGH THE SPIRIT AND THROUGH HIS WORD!

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If you have 4 1/2 minutes to spare, maybe you'd like to listen to the following recording by John Michael Talbot: "Humble Thyself In the Sight of the Lord"?

John Michael Talbot is an American Catholic musician, author, and founder of the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, renowned as a pioneer of contemporary Christian music. A multi-platinum, Grammy and Dove Award-winning artist with over 50 albums, his contemplative, Scripture-based songs have influenced Catholic and ecumenical worship worldwide.