If It Is Possible
“Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.””
— Matthew 26:36-39 (NIV)
Jesus asks to be let off. That is what the prayer says, and the Gospels did not tidy it away. He does not want what is coming and He says so first, before He says anything else. He also does not go off alone; He asks three people to stay near Him. The answer to the request is no, and He goes anyway.
Some prayers are answered with nothing changing. Maybe that has already happened once, over something that mattered. This scene does not explain why the cup stayed. It shows that asking to be spared is not a failure of faith, because He did it too.
Say the Unedited Prayer
- 1Tell God the thing you actually want, without softening it into something more acceptable.
- 2Ask one person you trust to sit with you for an hour this week.
Father, I do not want what is in front of me and I am going to say so. If there is a way around it, please take it away. If there is not, do not let me face it alone. Send me somebody to sit with me.
Asking to be spared is not a failure of faith.
Did Jesus want to avoid the cross?
The prayer says so plainly. He asks for the cup to be taken away before He says anything about the Father's will.
Was the prayer answered?
Not as asked. The cup stayed and He went on.
Why does He take three disciples?
He asks them to stay near and keep watch. He does not face it by Himself by choice.