Lessons From The Garden: Luke 22:24-53

Today's NT reading continues in Luke 22. Many lessons can be gleaned from this Garden.

• There was a dispute over who should be considered the greatest. v.24-30. How tragic! Here, Jesus is facing death, and the disciples are on a power trip. In essence Jesus told them that He was the greatest, yet He came to serve. (see Mark 10:44-45). Bottom line: If we take care of our humility, God will take care of our exaltation. Lesson: Service given, not gained, is true greatness, for it is the sign of real fellowship with the Lord Himself.
  
• Jesus prayed that Peter's faith would not fail. v.31-34. Would Peter fail? Yes. Did his faith fail? No. Lesson: Jesus is at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for us, praying that our faith not fail.
  
• Gethsemane was an appropriate place for Jesus to pray so passionately. v.41-43ff. Why? Because Gethsemane means "olive press", the place where olives were crushed to release their oil. Lesson: Every life has a Garden of Gethsemane. But every Gethsemane has an angel (v.43). The Lord will always send an angel into your Gethsemane--an unexpected person, an unexpected phone call, a letter of encouragement, a sermon etc.--to strengthen you in your time of need.
  
• Peter slept. Then jumped up and drew the sword in opposition of God's will. v.45-51 (John 18:10 tells us that it was Peter.) Lesson: We sleep-spiritually-then when problems come, we jump up and swing a sword in opposition to God's will. We're in a spiritual war trying to use physical weapons--physical solutions. Have you ever failed miserably? Can you relate with Peter? It all stems from the lack of prayer, which by the way, according to Eph.6, is a spiritual weapon.
  
• One final note. Jesus healed the servant's ear. Peter had better be grateful He did so, or else there would have been four crosses on Calvary--one for Peter, for assaulting a Roman officer. We should thank God for stepping in, at times in our lives, and healing the wounds of our over zealousness.