Before us, very vividly and very fully, the
agony of the Master in the Garden, and
John never even touches it.
I hope you noticed that when you read
John's Gospel.
John doesn't even touch it, and you see
the people are staggered because when the Master
came to the Garden and entered into the
Garden he leaves it of his disciples at
the gate, as it were, inside, and then
he takes three more, Peter, James and John,
further up the hill through the olive grove,
and in the shadows under, he went a
little way further from them, and there the
agony actually took place.
And if anyone was competent, humanly speaking, of
writing on the agonies of Christ in the
Garden, surely it was John.
Matthew was away at the gate, Mark and
Luke were not there, and the one who
is most competent, humanly speaking, he's got nothing
to say about the blood drops and the
agony and the sweat.
Nothing at all.
And all this only brings before us the
perfection of God's Word.
It's a tremendous point, and you must get
it.
You see, we might stop just for a
moment and ask ourselves the question, why have
we four Gospels?
Why have we four accounts?
Four separate accounts of our Lord's birth and
life and ministry and death and resurrection.
Why four separate accounts?
Well, when the Holy Ghost came upon Matthew,
and he became the servant of the Lord
to write the first Gospel, it seems very
clearly that the Spirit of God kept one
objective before Matthew in his writing, and that
is that he was bringing before us the
King of History.
The King of History.
Watch how Matthew's Gospel begins.
I think we should take note of these
things.
Now, Matthew's Gospel commences in its first chapter
and in its first verse with a very
remarkable word.
Now, watch it carefully, because I want to
show you something here.
Matthew chapter 1, verse 1.
The book of the generation of Jesus Christ.
Now, your next word is, the son of
David.
The next word is the son of Abraham.
Now, why not begin with Abraham and come
the other way?
Why not go back to Abraham and then
come down through all the genealogy to David?
Why begin with David?
Just because David was God's choice for Israel's
first king.
Saul was the people's choice.
And the throne in Israel is always called
the throne of David.
And, in fact, the angel called it the
throne of his father David.
You can see from the very first words
that here is someone taken up by God
to bring forth the glory of the King
of History.
Why, it's in the second chapter in this
very letter, this Gospel, that you have the
choice.
Where is he that is born King of
the Jews?
And I could go through the Gospel now
and find you little tidbits like that that
bring before you what is on the writer's
heart and mind the whole way through.
And, in the garden, the Gospel by Matthew
is bringing before us, with an inspired pen,
the sufferings of the sovereign.
It's the King of Israel in rejection, suffering,
in the garden of Gethsemane.
You know, when you come to Mark's Gospel,
watch how it begins.
It's different again.
Mark's Gospel and the first chapter, verse one.
The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
the Son of God.
And you will find in this Gospel there
is no genealogy whatsoever.
None at all.
He just goes into the details now of
the ministry and life and death and resurrection
of Christ.
And this is the shortest of the Gospels.
And yet, in this short Gospel, we have
more miracles than in all the other Gospels.
You see, Mark is writing with an objective
in view.
He's writing to bring before us Jesus Christ,
not so much as the King of Israel,
but Jesus Christ as the covenant of Jehovah.
You'll find that stamp on the Gospel the
whole way through.
When you come to Luke's Gospel, you will
find there's a long genealogy given, going right
back to Adam.
Oh, not to Abraham, not to David, right
away back to Adam.
Because in Luke's Gospel, Luke is bringing our
Lord Jesus Christ before us as the man,
the man Christ Jesus.
And when each of them comes to the
garden, when Mark is bringing before us the
suffering of the sovereign, and Mark is bringing
before us the moanings, the submission of the
sovereign, and Luke is bringing before us the
moanings of the man, then why did John
not touch the agony?
Because I've already shown you why John bend
his Gospel.
When we commenced this Gospel, we went away
to the end to see why it was
written.
And in chapter 20 we found, these things
were written that ye might believe that Jesus
is the Son of God.
Now, when he comes to the garden, he's
not dealing with the agony of a man.
He's dealing with the glory of the Son.
And you'll find in these eleven verses tonight,
little details that bring out unmistakably the glory
of the Lord.
He wasn't taken up with the agony of
the man.
He's taken up with the glory of the
Lord.
And he keeps very firmly to it.
Yes, I'm sure, when he was so near
to the agony, when he could see with
his own eyes the blood-like sweat that
fell to the ground, as he witnessed in
the shadow of the olive trees that evening,
the Master bowing to the earth and crying,
it would be possible, until being so near,
and seeing it so clearly, and knowing it
so well, until he longed to come to
tell.
But God didn't want him to.
You can see that men were inspired, but
just moved by emotion, by the whole thing
bottled up.
John doesn't mention it.
He does exactly as he's told.
If he mentions only the glory of the
Lord, wouldn't that teach you the perfection of
God's Word?
Oh, men were used, all right, but not
as they were moved by their own emotions.
They were moved by the Spirit of God.
My, this is one of the marks of
the perfection of the Word of God.
You know, a modernist said to me once,
he said, I don't believe in the virgin
birth, because John never mentions it in his
gospel.
And I gave him all the roof he
needed.
I said, why do you take luster?
He said, well, if anybody would have heard
this wonderful story, as you fellows call it,
surely it would have been John.
You remember standing by the cross, the master
looked down, and the Virgin Mary is there.
And he looked at her, and then looked
at John, standing over a bit, and he
said, Woman, behold thy son.
And then he turned to John, and he
said, Son, behold thy mother.
And John knew what he meant, because from
that hour John took her home, and he
looked after her.
And should there be a Roman Catholic there,
yes, there's something for you to think about.
Because the virgin didn't look after John.
John took her home to look after her.
Something for you to ponder.
But the idea that the modernists had in
mind was this.
Surely if John cared for her, and in
her old days she lived with John, surely
she must have told John about the wonders
of the virgin birth.
But he says John never mentions it.
Not that this whole argument does, no, of
his death.
So I very calmly said, Do you believe
that the Master was in Gethsemane, and slept
like great drops of blood?
Of course I do, I said.
Why do you believe it?
That's because Matthew, and Mark, and Luke, and
then he found out why I was lying.
Oh, I said you shouldn't, you know, because
John never mentions it.
Tell me, do you believe in the Sermon
on the Mount?
It was all he did believe in anyway.
This is where he bases everything, on the
Sermon on the Mount.
Tell me, you shouldn't touch it, because John
never mentions it.
Friends, we must be careful basing things on
a place like that.
We've got our full gospel.
One brings before us the King, the other
the servant, the other the man, and the
other the eternal Son of God, in all
his undimmed beauty and glory.
And I tell you, that's what John is
sticking to, when he comes here and never
mentions the agony.
But I think for the sake of the
young ones, we should look at some of
the other gospels as they're mentioned.
Have a look at Matthew, chapter 26, please.
Matthew's gospel, chapter 26, verse
36.
Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place
called Gethsemane, and saith unto his disciples, Sit
ye here while I go yonder, while I
go and pray yonder.
And he took with him Peter, and the
two sons of Zebedee, and began to be
sorrowful and very heavy.
Then saith he unto them, My soul is
exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.
Pray ye here and watch with me.
And he went a little further, and fell
on his face, and prayed, saying, O my
Father, if it be possible, let this cup
pass from me, nevertheless not as I will,
but as thou wilt.
And you will find that the other two,
Mark and Luke, they bring the very same
thing before us, with just a few different
details that we needn't go into this evening.
But you know, there is this phrase that
I want to touch before we turn to
the glory of the Lord.
When our Lord fell upon his face, who
cried in agony in the dark shadows of
the olive grove, Father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me, nevertheless not
my will, as one of the other ones
put it, not my will, but thine.
And the Jehovah Witnesses, the Millennials
on us, the Christadelphians, the Unitarians, and they're
all Unitarian anyway, they all get the hold
of this verse.
And they say, you fellows believe that Jesus
was co-equal with the Father, that he
was co-eternal, that he was the eternal
Son, that he was the one who came
up from the Father.
And we do, without hesitation we do.
And they say, you believe.
And yet in the shadows, we hear him
saying, not my will, but thine.
And if you have two wills, there is
not one person, there is not the unity.
He can't be the eternal Son, he can't
be God the Son, and in harmony with
God the Father, when you have two wills.
The man was not slow at all, that's
all, it's right.
But my dear friend, the answer is one
of the loveliest in the book.
You see, when our Lord Jesus Christ falls
down yonder, and cries that agonizing cry, Father,
if it be possible, let this cup pass
from me.
We must get down to know exactly what
this cup is.
You know, some people said that our Lord
Jesus Christ was afraid of dying.
Nonsense, that's what he came to do.
Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners by the sacrifice of himself.
Mind, he's already talked in this gospel.
Except a corn of wheat fall into the
ground and die.
He's already said that.
He's already said in John chapter 10, I
lay down my life for a king.
He's already said in chapter 3, as Moses
lifted up the serpent in the wilderness even
so much.
The Son of Man, blessed of all, we
don't need to go over all those scriptures.
There are many more.
Some people say that when he cried in
agony and sweat this blood-like sweat, that
he was facing sin.
And it was the horror of sin.
Oh, not at all.
Not at all.
He came to be the sin offering.
And let me tell you, if you say
that he was afraid of sin, you can
never again confess for the joy that was
set before him.
He endured the cross.
For you'll have to be careful.
You'll have to be careful.
Remember, in the offering of Calvary, there was
a side of it which represented the burnt
offering.
And that meant that he was giving himself
wholly to God, satisfying God.
And he never held back from that.
Oh, no.
Friends, there's something deeper still, something that's so
deep that we will need to go careful
with now.
You see, when he's saying, not my will,
but thine, remember that before that he had
said that my meat and drink is to
do the will of him that sent me.
And I do always those things that please
him.
And the Father responded, this is my beloved
son in whom I am well pleased.
No, there was no rebellion now.
I want you to get this.
He's here on the broad acres of earth
and he's here lying now in the dust,
in the dark shadows of Gethsemane as the
servant of Jehovah, the one who's been sent.
And I want you to get with me.
The Father, are you following?
The Father wills, wills for him, but he
will never will for any one of us
on what the servant could not have willed.
And that was this.
The Father is willing now, making a will
that the servant shall go out of fellowship
with me.
I'll turn my back on you.
I'll forsake you.
I'll let you fall into the depths where
there's no standing.
And I won't be there.
I want you to get this.
That the servant is letting all and sundry
and all the creative intelligences know that he
never willed to go out of fellowship with
God himself.
The Father willed it for him.
This is the Father's will and he never
willed it for any other.
He never willed that we would get out
of fellowship.
Too often we get out when we need
to get in.
But he willed that his Son, who would
become the servant, would get out of fellowship.
And do you know in the dark shadows
he's letting all and sundry, even through this
agonizing cry, know that I love God, that
I want to be in fellowship with God.
But God's will is that I go down
into the dark out of fellowship with him.
And I will.
And there are not two wills there.
There is the will of the Father for
the servant.
And there is the servant who would ever
in fellowship with the Father.
But submitting to the will of God.
Then there is no trouble with the death.
It's one of the loveliest ones, yet one
of the deepest ones in the book.
Now, having touched all this, let's really start
the chapter now.
Come to John 18, and as we step
into the garden, watch this first point this
evening.
Verse 1.
When Jesus had spoken these words, and I
believe that that phrase, and especially these words,
takes in everything that the Master had been
saying from chapter 13 right through to the
end of 16, and everything that the Master
had been saying in chapter 17.
All his great sayings and all his great
supplications are embraced in this phrase.
When Jesus had spoken these words, he went
forth.
That's a very lovely little word there.
Went forth.
Went forth from where?
Went forth out of the city of Jerusalem
with his disciples into a garden.
Now, I want to show you something that
the very fact of his going forth out
of the city over the group children into
the garden on this particular night, at this
particular time, shows that he was giving himself
into the hands of the enemy.
I think you all understand that this was
Passover night.
It's only a few hours since the Master
has risen from the Passover table.
And you know that Jerusalem was filled with
visitors on Passover night.
Why, the city was bulging out at the
seams.
The streets were swarming with people.
Thousands upon thousands had come from everywhere.
Thousands had come down from Galilee.
And here they were swarming the streets.
And the Galileans were all mostly dressed in
the common garb of the Galileans.
And almost each one of them had a
beard.
And if Christ wanted to escape, he'd only
drop him away in the clouds.
And they can't find him.
Simple enough.
If he would stay in the clouds and
mix with the clouds with the same garb
of thousands and thousands, all would be it.
You can't get him.
That's why the high priests and all the
priests were paying money for someone to betray
him.
They knew they couldn't get him if he
stayed in the clouds.
Now the mere fact that he went out
of the clouds, went to a spot where
there's no clouds, is the fact that he's
giving himself now into the hands of the
enemy.
He's not trying to hide.
He's wanting to let them get him.
Plus, plus, plus, number two, he went to
the place where Judas knew only too well.
Do you see it?
Look at your whole reading now.
When Jesus had spoken these words, he went
forth with his disciples over the brook Tegern,
where was the garden, into the which he
entered unto his disciples, and Judas also.
Which betrayed him.
Knew the place, for Jesus oftentimes resorted further
with his disciples.
You know, this was on the eastern side
of the city.
If ever you see a large picture of
Jerusalem, you will notice on the eastern side
of the city, at the east gate, just
outside the gate is the brook Tegern.
And by a little narrow bridge, he went
out of the city and over the gate,
and then the mount of Olshan going straight
up, you know.
And here are all the great olive groves.
And he's going over the brook and over
the bridge, and entering into the olive groves.
Because it was Easter, full moon, you know.
And the shadows of the trees were falling
on the hillside.
It was here that he came from the
rustling sound, often, often, often.
It was here he brought his own little
company around him, and under the shadows of
these very olive groves, he had prayed time
and time and time again.
He left the crowd deliberately.
He came to the spot deliberately.
He knew Judas was away serving them.
Oh yes, he knew.
He knew what Judas went through the door
to do.
And he knew the whole way along to
the olive groves, that Judas was away getting
his miserable thirty pieces of silver.
And he knew that he would come to
the place, because the Lord would most surely
go there to pray after the Passover supper.
So he wasn't hiding.
All that I want to bring before you
now is that John is touching these things
that others bypass.
And he's touching them to show us the
glory of the Lord.
And the first thing is this.
It's the fearlessness of the man.
Oh, he wasn't afraid.
You know, friend, I'll set you something to
do.
Go home and start as much as possible,
read every word, go through Mark, Luke, John,
and find me one spot where Christ was
afraid.
Just find it for me, that's all.
No, can't find it.
And when you preachers preach on the uniqueness
of our Lord, here's the start for you.
Talk about his sinlessness.
Oh, see, he was absolutely sinless.
There was nobody like that, you know, in
this world.
Then talk about his unchangeableness.
There's nobody you'll ever find like that.
He never changed.
Then talk about his fearlessness.
Isn't it a marvelous, thrilling thought that Jesus
was never once afraid?
I'll start your thinking.
Do you remember he got into the boat
with the disciples and went across the lake
and came to the country of the Galilee?
And he stepped onto the shore and coming
out of the tombs, coming out of the
tombs, two men, here's the wording, exceeding fear.
Yes, good master, controlled by demons.
And they're coming out their eyes, blazing, exceeding
fear, about to start trouble for us.
Well, the master didn't get excited.
He wasn't running for cover, you know.
He just walked on.
He dealt with the demons.
He put the man at his feet, carved
and chewed.
Nothing the moving echo scared him.
He wasn't afraid of the devil in any
man.
And neither should his followers be.
Neither should his followers be.
Then you remember when he was in the
boat.
You remember how the storm came.
You remember how the boat filled with water.
You remember how Peter, even a professional fisherman,
who'd been on the sea all his life,
he stood up and said, Master, see that
we perish.
Ah, and he's afraid.
The master looked at him and said, Why
are ye fearful?
Afraid.
He wasn't afraid of anything demoniacal, and he
wasn't afraid of anything atmophilical.
Neither should his followers be either.
Echo, stop, do what you like.
We're under the wings of God, What we
get excited about, you wouldn't think we were
the people of God at all sometimes.
You'd think we had no God on the
throne.
You'd think this old fellow in Russia was
ruling the whole earth.
Ah, don't, don't, don't get away from the
vision.
God will look after you.
Do you remember when the Lord Jesus was
in the wilderness to be tempted of the
devil?
This old book in Mark's Gospel, Chapter 1,
verse 10.
And the wild beasts, where are they?
There.
Lions and bears and so on.
Down in Judea, they had at those times,
they were very young.
And he wasn't scared of nothing demoniacal, nothing
atmophilical, nothing animal.
Oh no, nothing animal scared him.
He was the Lord of the animals.
I actually believe they came and lay at
his feet.
They were with him, so the Bible says.
The wild beasts were with him.
And here he's proving that if nothing demoniacal,
nothing atmophilical, and nothing animal, nothing natural, or
political, or societal, would scare him.
He's walking right into it.
He's getting out of the crowd.
He's going to the place where Judas can
find him, and he knows Judas is coming.
There he is in the shadows.
He's waiting for them.
Say, what a wonderful person our Lord Jesus
is.
Thank God that John took the time to
tell us.
Wait a minute, I haven't finished with the
point.
But look again at your reading.
We'll read it over.
When Jesus had spoken these words, as he
went forth with his disciples over the brook
Cedron.
You know, that's wonderful that it's there.
That word itself means dark water.
That's what the word means.
And do you know, I believe as he
passed over the brook Cedron, knowing the Scripture
so well, his mind so filled with the
word of God, that he was bound to
remember the day when David, the great king,
was hunted out of Jerusalem, and he went
over the brook Cedron.
It was the day that Absalom betrayed him.
Have a look at it, just to get
it in your mind.
It's in 2 Samuel, and it's chapter 15.
2 Samuel, chapter 15, and
just for the sake of time, at verse
23, 2 Samuel, chapter 15, and at
verse 23, and all the country wept with
the Lord's voice, and all the people passed
over.
The king also himself passed over the brook
Cedron.
That's how the Hebrew word comes out in
English, the other one is the Greek one.
Cedron, it's the same thing.
And the king also himself passed over the
brook Cedron, and all the people passed over
toward the way of the wilderness.
There's just a slight difference in the two
occasions.
You know, when the first king of Israel
passed over the brook Cedron, because someone had
betrayed him in the city, he was freed
from the enemy.
That's what he was doing.
But when the king, I'm the only king
that Israel will ever have, when he passed
over the brook Cedron, he was getting out
of the clouds that he might get into
the enemy's hands.
He wasn't afraid of the dark waters.
You know, when he went over the brook
Cedron, he went into the garden, and you
know the name of the garden, it's Gethsemane.
Well, Cedron means dark waters, Gethsemane means in
Greek, the oil place.
You see, this was an olive grove that
he was entering into, and in the olive
grove, somewhere near the gate, was the oil
place.
There they put the olives in, and they
crushed them, and they bruised them, and they
kept crushing them until every particle of good
was squeezed out.
That's what the Lord was talking to him.
You know, as he passed over the dark
waters, only he knew how dark the waters
were that day.
And as he passed by the oil place,
he knew that in a few hours' time,
he would be crushed between the upper and
lower millstones of God's wrath, and crushed and
bruised and squeezed.
But praise his name, for the traps he
turned.
Not back.
He was walking into the enemy's hands.
Look, there's just one more point.
Watch it.
Watch carefully now.
Verse 2, And Judas also, which betrayed him,
knew the place.
For Jesus oftentimes resorted further with his disciples.
Then, Judas then, having received a band of
men, and that's a tremendous word, that word,
band.
It's an old Greek word.
And actually, all the scholars are convinced, and
it must have taken some convincing.
They're all convinced that this word in Greek
represents six hundred men.
And I am positively sure it's true.
And when Judas went to the temple and
got his thirty pieces of silver, he wasn't
walking down with two coppers to lift the
Lord Jesus, because he knew better.
And he asked, he asked the temple guard
for a band, a band of men.
It's a word in your inspired book.
And it means six hundred soldiers, Roman soldiers.
And just a few came down to take
him, you know.
Judas knew better.
But Judas was meaning to do the job,
and he thought six hundred would be enough.
And you know, they must have made a
scene coming out of the eastern gates with
their torches, and their swords, and the clapper
of their armor.
It was Arthur Dudley of Pink who said,
and I mustn't steal it from him, that
they came with torches to arrest the light
of the world.
And they came with swords to take away
the Prince of Peace.
Poor fools that they were.
But although he knew what was coming, he
didn't run.
Watch this one.
Are you watching?
Verse three again.
Judas then, having received the band of men
and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees,
cometh hither with lanterns and torches and weapons.
Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come
upon him, went forth.
Take a word again.
Went forth from where this time?
Went forth from the shadows of the elves
this time.
Can you see it?
He went forth out of the city to
a place where they could easily get him.
And when they all come down the road,
he comes forth out of the shadows into
the midst of heaven.
Whom seekth he?
He was afraid.
My, the fearlessness of Christ is stamped upon
death with the inspired pain of John.
John had something to talk about.
It was the glory of the Lord he
was after.
It wasn't the agony of the man that
somebody else was after.
What John's doing is the fearlessness of our
Lord Jesus.
It's stamped on death.
Well, that brings us to our second point,
doesn't it?
If you see this phrase here in verse
four, that Jesus therefore knowing all things that
should come upon him.
Oh, that's a mighty thing.
Oh, you know, sometimes my blood boils when
I think about these moderns.
One in Belfast has written a book not
so very long ago saying that when Jesus
Christ was in Gethsemane, he didn't know where
he was.
He's not reading the book.
That's all that I can say for him.
He's not even reading the book before him.
My dear friends, I have pointed out to
this class, and I mustn't take the time
to go over it, that in every chapter
in this book, without exception, every chapter, you'll
find the knowledge of the Lord.
I really believe that John's gospel was written
to show you the glory of the Son
of God and his unlimited knowledge.
Do you remember how it began?
Why, he looked at, he looked up the
mound that Philip brought, do you remember?
And he said to him, I am an
Israelite and whom is no guide.
Nathanael said, whence knowest thou me?
Chapter two, he knew what was in mind.
Chapter three, little demons come with flowery language,
he knows his need, you must be born
again.
Chapter four, he knew the woman at the
well, her history, how many husbands she had,
the man you're living with is not your
husband.
Go through all the chapters and you'll find
that everywhere it's about the knowledge of the
Lord.
And here he is, standing in the olive
grove, and he knows all things that shall
come upon him.
He stepped out of the, out of the
shade of the trees and said, whom's he?
By what knowledge he had, all he knew
about the poverty of Peter.
Why, here's a man standing at his elbow
with his hand on the sword, ready for
action just now.
And, they would take you in sometimes, you
know.
He knew, you'll let me down before you're
much older.
Couldn't move the master.
He knew about the poverty of Peter, we'll
go this quickly.
He knew about the forsaking of friends.
He knew about the corruption of Caiaphas.
He knew about the gutter of Jabassa.
He knew about the curse of Tampere.
He knew the wounding, the bruising, the suffering,
the dying.
Oh, he knew all things.
But he's facing it.
Staring at his face as a prince.
Whom's he?
Oh, wonderful Jesus.
Now, John is painting the picture, remember, of
the glory of the Lord.
And we have seen the fearlessness of the
man.
And now you've seen the knowledgeableness of the
Lord.
But let's get on with it.
Now, here's a lovely bit.
Verse four.
Jesus, therefore, knowing all things that should come
upon them, went forth and said unto them,
Whom seek ye?
They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus said unto them, I am.
The word he is in italics.
It wasn't there.
He just said, I am.
Now, here's a wee phrase, and I wouldn't
want to miss it.
And Judas also which betrayed them stood with
them.
Oh, how horrible that is.
Do you see where he is?
Will you sinners give me five minutes with
me?
Do you see where he is?
The man that heard all the messages.
The man that saw all the miracles.
The man that knew his family.
He's the one that hid the Lord.
That's where you're stuck.
There isn't anything to glory in, you know.
Man, you've heard a lot of messages.
And in this place, you've seen a lot
of miracles.
People wonderfully saved and saved.
And there's a whole crowd of you here
and you know a whole lot about the
Master.
But you're stuck in the kingdom of darkness.
You're nearer hell now than you ever were
before.
What a horrible crowd they were.
You know, I don't know everybody that was
in the crowd.
I only know two men in the crowd.
I know Judas was there.
I'll tell you another fellow was there.
Have a look at this.
If only it's up to me a minute,
I'll come back there.
Verse 10.
Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it
and smote the high priest's servant and cut
off his right ear.
The servant's name was Marcus.
Well, he was there.
Have a look at the two that's together.
Here's Judas.
My, he's one of the blackest, darkest, shamefulst
fools that ever went to the pit of
hell.
That's who he is.
See the fellow standing next to him.
He's the high priest's servant.
He's unreligionable.
That's the representatives of the crowd.
There's some people in the crowd as dark
as hell.
And there's some of them so pious and
religious that they're no longer a team.
Dumb crowd.
Dumb for all eternity, they'll be.
That's where some of you in this meeting
are standing tonight.
Some of you religious boys.
That's where you are.
Clad in your robes of anti-gods, formal
religion like Balthus.
But you're the kind of people and you're
no kind of type.
That's where you're standing.
May God smite you.
This night and may sleep depart from you
until your father sees those hypocrites before he's
at rest with God.
What a picture you have to go to
bed with.
Where Judas goes.
That's where you are.
Hope you don't sleep.
Now, let's get down to this.
Verse four.
Verse five.
Then answered him, they answered him, Jesus of
Nazareth.
Jesus said unto them, I am.
Verse six.
Of whom then of he had said unto
them, I am.
They went backward and fell to the ground.
By over six hundred of them.
My, that's a wee bit that John's putting
in for us.
You know what the master's doing?
He's letting these wavering boys behind him.
But mind you, wavering as they were.
Poor, miserable creatures just like us.
Who would let the Lord down in the
midst?
Mind you, they were on the right side.
Who would take them up?
But he was letting this wavering child see
his fear of death.
He came out of the other door.
He said, who are you looking at?
And John is letting us see the knowledgeable
death of the Lord.
The Lord knew all that lay before.
Might know what lay before him and to
stand up like a man.
Bless God for Christ.
But do you know this?
He's letting them see his power.
And the moment he said, I am.
That's the name of Jehovah.
Though the Russellites don't like it, you know.
I am.
When Moses was at the burning bush.
He said, who are you looking at?
And the voice came saying, I am.
I am, not I am.
The name is usual.
And the moment he uses the name, what
a name it is.
You know, it's a non-finished name, isn't
it?
I am, I am what?
Oh friend, it would take me the night
to fill in the check.
I am.
When he's before the blind man, he said,
I am.
The light of the world.
When he's before the hungry cloud, he said,
I am.
When he's before the taking soul, he said,
I am.
When he's before the disciple looking for power,
he said, I am the true light.
Oh, you can go on forever and ever.
Fill it in, man.
Fill it in.
I'll tell you what will finish it.
I am.
I am the sufficiency for all your needs,
son.
Non-finished name.
But look, it's an unchangeable name.
You know, I am can't be I was.
Oh, not at all.
No, I will be.
Oh no, it'll always be I am.
And then it's an immeasurable name.
Can't measure I am.
There's an eternalness about I am.
You know, there's a nearness about I am.
I am with it.
What a name this is.
But the bit that I want to get
after, after I only put that in for
a tidbit for some of the pictures.
Look, the bit that I want to get
after is this.
The moment that he said, I am.
His presence and his power.
It's quite by the count.
Say, that's the powerfulness of our Lord.
If he looks in over the curtain of
Russia and says, I am.
I'll tell you, he'll put your little fellow
back a step.
He's still I am, you know.
Hallelujah.
Oh, the powerfulness.
Isn't John painted well?
The fearlessness.
And the knowledgeableness.
And the powerfulness.
Here's another wee bit.
Look at this.
Verse seven.
They gathered themselves up, you know.
Then I'll see them again, whom seek ye.
And they said, Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus answered, I have told you that I
am.
If therefore ye seek me.
Wasn't it very tender?
Let these go their way.
My Mrs. Michep was defending the Jews.
Isn't that lovely?
You see, John is really bringing the glory
of the Lord before us.
Not the agony of the man.
See, others have done that.
That's not his job.
Oh, he could have done it well.
But he's bringing before us not only the
agony of the man.
He's bringing the glory of the Lord.
He's showing us the fearlessness of the man.
For the Lord's the second man.
And he's showing us the knowledgeableness of the
Lord.
And he's showing us the powerfulness of the
Lord, of the Son.
That's what I have.
And then he's showing us the tenderness of
the child.
All these wonderful characteristics come into the mind
of Christ Jesus, our Lord.
One is defending them.
If you just let these go their way.
Putting his wings open.
Saving them from the cloud.
Yes, he saved others.
But himself he cannot save.
And that's right here in the garden.
Friends, I want you to see something behind
that.
That's what comes behind it.
This is a tremendous thing.
You see verse 8 again?
Jesus answered, I have told you that I
am.
If therefore you seek me, let these go
their way.
That the saying might be fulfilled which he
spake, Of them which thou givest me have
I lost none.
And I'm asking you to note that it's
none.
And there's a full stop behind it this
time.
And there are neither buts nor excepts.
I have lost none.
All that God gave him he lost none.
None.
Full stop please.
You know when the Lord prayed that in
John 17, some of us had the idea
that it only meant that he would protect
us spiritually to the end of the journey.
But there's more ends than that.
Protecting these fellows physically.
That the saying might be fulfilled.
He says he doesn't protect all his servants
all the time physically.
No he doesn't.
But I want you to get this.
This is lovely.
See these eleven here?
Oh what a crowd they were.
They were trembling.
My, there were still the 600 soldiers out
there.
And do you know what he knew?
That if these babes or lambs of the
fold got into the hands of this crowd,
by the foundations would be destroyed.
He knows what you're able to bear son.
Oh he could let Paul go into the
prison and get his feet tossed in the
thoughts that he can sing in there.
Ah but there's a lot of boys who
can't.
And the Lord knows them that are hence.
My dear, there's a lot in the statement,
the Lord knows them.
It doesn't only mean their name, it means
their nature.
Oh there's a lot of us, we're not
built the same.
Some of us are as tough as leather.
In other words, they're just tempered that's all.
The Lord will look after you son.
He's the shepherd of the sheep.
He knows the lambs.
And he knows all, Mr. Bishop.
But watch again.
Now verse 8 over again.
Jesus answered, I have told you that I
am.
But therefore you seek me, let these go
their way.
See how he was planning for them.
That the same might be fulfilled which is
quick of them which thou givest me.
Have I lost not them?
Simon Peter having a sword drew it and
smote the high priest's servant and cut off
his right ear.
You know he got excited all at the
last minute, didn't he?
I want you to get this.
That because of this fleshless, zealous, excitement.
He was almost undoing what the monster had
begun to do.
Monsters trying to protect them.
He's looking out with his sword, he'll get
arrested if he doesn't mind.
The very thing the monster didn't want to
happen.
You know, in summary.
Because you have more zeal than knowledge.
You would do things that would undo the
will of God.
The very thing that God, you upset it.
I'm asking people writing in the paper who
had more zeal than knowledge.
And would undo what God is wanting to
do.
Very careful with your zeal.
Don't be getting the sword out.
Cut off somebody's ear.
Because you'll only give the Lord a job
fixing it up.
He was trying to protect them.
Don't you fellas touch these ones.
And this fella rushes out and gets his
sword out.
After the monster came down.
Father was more zeal than knowledge.
But once again.
His whole portion ends.
Then said Jesus unto Peter.
Put up thy sword into thy seat.
The cup which my father hath given me.
And he asked Peter a question.
Shall I not drink it?
You know that's a tremendous little thing.
You know before our Lord Jesus Christ.
Was the cup.
What the cup it was.
All around them just there were all the
Jews.
Oh they were there.
All ready to cry away with them.
Crucify them.
Oh they were there.
And the Romans were there.
Ready to put the crown of thorns in
his brow.
And cut his back.
And the devil was there.
Who did us on for such pieces of
sin.
And the death of the cross.
And the curse of the cross.
Mine was all there.
He could see it all.
But above it all.
Beyond it all.
He can see the cup.
Is in the hand of his father.
What do you say.
Put the sword up.
The cup which my father hath given me.
Shall I not drink?
Would the God ten thousand times over.
I believe the greatest lesson you could ever
learn in this class is this one.
That you could see the hand of God
in all your sorrow.
Would the God that you could see it.
You know we believers talk like this.
We say.
We know.
Oh yes.
We know.
He will put the crown of thorns into
his father.
And then when the trouble comes.
And then when the storm wrecks.
And then when the darkness deepens.
Oh we do not believe anymore.
The text.
Brethren and sisters.
The great word in the text is.
That God is working all things together.
You have seen a woman baking a cake.
I must be careful here.
She puts in flour.
And salt.
And soda.
And lemon.
I will not go too far.
I will not make this cake too big.
You know if you take a handful of
the flour and stuff it in.
Oh you will not get on very far.
And if you take a handful of the
salt.
My it tastes horrible.
And when you come to the soda.
It is worse.
And the lemon is not much better.
Just take them individually.
And you will find it horrible.
But let her master Han get off this.
And begin to work it together.
You know when he begins to work it
together.
And work it together.
He can turn out something.
That is really powerful.
Do you see Joseph.
And his brethren took him.
Cast him into the pit.
Then they throwed him into Egypt.
Then the woman told lies on him.
Then he went down into the prison.
And his friends forgot him.
Oh what ingredients were in it.
You can see the bitterness of his brethren.
You can see the slander of a sinful
woman.
You can see the forgetfulness of Ken.
But let God throw them all together.
They bring out something.
He put Joseph on the throne.
If you could only learn.
That above everything that can happen.
Your life is in his hands.
If you could only learn tonight.
That above the Jews and the Romans and
the darkness and the devil.
The hand of your father.
A higher hand.
That he submitted to.
To the higher hand.
See the picture.
What a lovely one.
The fearlessness of the mind.
The knowledgeableness of the Lord.
The powerfulness of the child.
The tenderness of the shepherd.
The submissiveness of the servant.
Isn't John doing his job well?
That's a good job he didn't try to
do much.
He's bringing out the glory.