Christian Reflection and Prayer

MAUNDAY THURSDAY

Go to Dark Gethsemane

Scripture:

Then Jesus brought them into an olive
grove called Gethsemane, and he said,
"Sit here while I go on ahead to pray."…
He went on a little farther and fell face
down on the ground, praying, "My
Father! If it is possible, let this cup
of suffering be taken away from me.
Yet I want your will, not mine."
Matthew 26:36-39 NLT

Hymn:

Go to dark Gethsemane, ye that feel
the tempter's power; your Redeemer's
conflict see; watch Him one bitter hour;
turn not from His grief away; learn of
Jesus Christ to pray.

See Him at the judgment hall, beaten,
bound, reviled, arraigned; see Him
meekly bearing all! Love to man His
soul sustained. Shun not suffering,
shame or loss; learn of Christ to bear
the cross.
Go to Dark Gethsemane
James Montgomery (1771-1854)

Reflection:

Learning from Christ's passion

Step by step James Montgomery takes
us through Christ's passion. We go with
our Lord to the Garden of Gethsemane,
where those troublesome thoughts of
death assailed Him. While His trusted
friends drifted off to sleep, Jesus fought
off the temptation to avoid the Cross.
It was difficult time, and in Montgomery's
simple text we feel drops of sweat.

At Jesus' trial—a shabby excuse for
justice if ever there was one—He bore
the beating and badgering without
speaking a word. He was carrying our
sins with Him to the Cross. At the
Cross we can only fall at His feet to
worship.

At each point of this journey we have
much to learn from our Savior. We
can learn to pray when tempted and
to endure suffering with patience.
And Christ teaches us to rise in
newness of life, to live in a way
that honors Him, and ultimately
to join Him in glory.

Our Holy Week readings are
adapted from The One Year®
Book of Hymns by Mark Norton and
Robert Brown, Tyndale House
Publishers (1995). Today's is
taken from the entry for April 1.