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03.09.08 “WATCH and PRAY” Matthew 26:30-41

I was playing golf in Kansas, watching for Gale’s ball to land. It appeared to go over a 20 foot pine tree and land in a clearing near the green. But after looking for 10 minutes we were about to give up, when I went back to the pine tree and looked up, and there, perched in the very top of the tree was Gale’s golf ball! You know it’s like that with God’s Word—there are HIDDEN TRUTHS in places you might not expect to find them. One of them is found in this familiar passage we’re looking at today.

Matthew 26 30—When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31—Then Jesus told them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me; for it is written: I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.

32—But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” 33—Peter replied, “even if all fail away on account of you, I never will.” 34—“I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” 35—But peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you..” And all the other disciples said the same.

36—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.” 37—He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee (James & John) along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38—Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39—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.” 40—Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” He asked Peter. 41—“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

Jesus had told his disciples, “you will all stumble—fall away because of me.” Yet, even though they all promised that they would not desert him in his hour of need, we find that they ran like a bunch of scared rabbits. As they reached Gethsemane, Jesus took his three closest friends, Peter, James, and John, further into the Garden to support him in his greatest time of need.

What was Jesus going through at that hour? His soul was deeply grieved to the point of death—he was literally “surrounded” by sorrow because of his having to BECOME sin. You might say he was drowning in an inner agony. He felt like he was dying even before his time. This was Jesus’ most intense struggle with the Prince of darkness. The Satanic attack was so powerful as to cause Jesus’ subcutaneous capillaries to dilate and burst---and blood escaped through his pores, mingled with sweat! In the words of Hebrews 5:7, Jesus “offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save him from death.”

This TRULY was our Lord’s darkest hour of inner torment of soul! He knew his ONLY comfort was with His Heavenly Father, so with each wave of temptation & torment He sought to find a more secluded place. After each season of prayer, he returned to his best friends, only to find them fast asleep, seemingly without a care in the world.

But I want to focus on Jesus’ words to them: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” THINK WITH ME about the meaning of these words for a few minutes.

Peter, James & John surely must have had every intention of standing for their Lord. So how could these men, who had been with Jesus for 3 years, learning from him, observing his ways, seeing his power—possible have FAILED so miserably? The obvious answer: They did not WATCH & PRAY!

They were WILLING, but oh, so WEAK. Where did their power go? Sure, they must have been very tired from the events of the day. They had just eaten a big meal, and walked a good ways. But I think there is much MORE to it. I believe Jesus was telling them something that he knew would be critical to their future success after His death. He was, even in the last hours of his life, teaching them how to have the power to be overcomers.

The significance of His words “Watch & Pray” is born out by the fact that they are found throughout the Scriptures, in one fashion or another.

“WATCH” in the Greek is GREGOREUO, which means “to keep awake, in a physical, moral or spiritual sense. It means giving careful attention and mindfulness in the face of danger. Being ALERT! It reminds me of what the LIFEGUARD says when someone is drowning: “Not on my watch!”

In the HEBREW, “watch” is SHAMAR, which means “to hedge about” in the sense of building a wall of protection around someone or something. A Shepherd will sometimes build a hedge of stones or thorn bushes around the flock for the night, the shepherd lying across the opening, keeping watch.

This word also is used in reference to giving careful attention to the obligations of a covenant, or to laws.

So when Jesus told them to “WATCH” he was saying: “Stay awake and alert to danger; Stay morally and spiritually alert to the temptations that will come---when you are tempted to break your covenant, or violate God’s Law or Commandment.”

In the oldest book of the Bible, we read that JOB feared God and shunned evil, was blameless and upright. He watched and prayed for his children. Because of this God blessed Job, and Satan complained to God that he couldn’t get to JOB because of the HEDGE around his life.

In the days of Ezekiel, when the state of Israel was so evil that God said: “I looked for a man who would build up a hedge and stand in the gap before Me for the land…but I found none.” (Eze 22:30). In each situation—with a Shepherd, with Job, and in Ezekiel’s day---there was the THREAT of DANGER which required someone to STAY AWAKE and BUILD a HEDGE of PROTECTION.

God wanted just one person who would WATCH & PRAY. This surely MUST be powerful words which Jesus spoke to his disciples!

Go back to the Garden of Gethsemane: At first, Jesus did not ask his disciples to pray, but only to “WATCH with me.” So there must be some power just in this idea of WATCHING. ILLUS: My mind goes back to childhood, when every year on December 31^st, our church would gather for what was called a “WATCH NIGHT” service. Instead of going out partying, we gathered to praise God for His goodness in the old year, and PRAY for the power and working of God in our lives for the New year.

NOW LET’S GO A LITTLE DEEPER INTO THIS WORD: “WATCH”

In Matthew’s account we are given only a glimpse of Jesus’ prayer, since it would not have taken an hour to prayer two sentences. Jesus himself was doing what he had asked his disciples to do. He was WATCHING and PRAYING.

If Jesus was WATCHING – what was He doing? To answer this, remember that from the time of Jesus’ arrest until his death, Satan seemed to have the upper hand in, what was going down. When they came to arrest Jesus, he told the chief priest and officers of the Temple, “This hour and the power of darkness are yours” (Luke 22:53). Satan was given permission from God to attack the Son with the full power of his evil. This is why Jesus had been in such torment of soul.

But this is ALSO why Jesus told the disciples to WATCH & PRAY.

In this sense, WATCH means to interact with the Spirit of God. To be still and silent in His presence. I believe prayer should be as much listening to God as it is speaking to God. It is in WATCHING in this sense of LISTENING that God will show us things we need to see and know.

ILLUS: It’s like when Martha was entertaining Jesus at her home, and became upset at her sister Mary, who appeared to be “DOING NOTHING.” In reality, she was sitting at Jesus’ feet, LISTENING to him. Jesus said, “She has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Q: Let me ask you, have you ever been guilty of allowing anything to take away your time in the presence of the Lord? Think about it.

If Peter had watched and listened, he would have been prepared for the temptation that was coming. Instead, what did he do? He bragged of his loyalty, and then depended upon what? Himself! The flesh—which is what? WEAK! Why do we depend upon ONE who is weak when we have access to ONE Who is STRONG!? Even the children sing: “Little ones to Him belong; We are weak but He is strong!”

I can testify of the many times I have been faced with a situation where I had to go and talk to someone about a difficult or delicate issue. I tell you, whenever I have taken the time to get still before God, and ask Him what I should say, how I should approach this---and then I LISTEN and WAIT---He has never—NEVER let me down. Now sometimes I have had to depend on Him right IN the situation.

I can also testify HOWEVER, of many times I have rushed in—where angels fear to tread—and made a fool of myself. Why? Because I did NOT take time to ask and wait upon the Lord. I was not WATCHING and PRAYING. And I paid the price for it.

Watch is also a BATTLE TERM. In ancient Israel, that city surrounded by walls, there were watchmen upon the walls. Their job was simple: to watch out for the enemy. And when they saw their approach, they were to sound the alarm---blow the trumpet, so the city could respond and be saved.

If the watchman was distracted, or if he fell asleep, the city would likely suffer loss; and the watchman would be to blame, and be held accountable.

THIS is what happened to Jesus’ disciples that night at Gethsemane. This is what happens EVERY DAY when we fail to take time to WATCH & PRAY.

Did you know we are in a battle? Not against people, but against “spiritual forces of evil,” right here! We are in a fight to overcome temptation and live our lives in true righteousness and the glory of God. It’s a battle for the souls of people. That’s why we must WATCH! We must PRAY!

Jesus knew the power of the enemy, so he went into serious prayer, while his disciples went to dreamland. They were obviously unaware of how much their Master needed their help, in spite of Jesus’ warnings that they would abandon him. So they felt no need to be ALERT or to seek God’s strength and protection.

Peter would later learn that what they were up against that night was nothing less than a spiritual battle. The prince of darkness was at work and had succeeded in defeating them.

Listen to what Peter would write in his letter to the Christians several years later: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith..” (I Peter 5:8). He also wrote: “…the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials …” (2 Peter 2:9).

Christian, will you obey the Lord’s command to WATCH & PRAY? Recognize that you are in a spiritual battle. Be on guard every day against the attacks of the enemy. Remember that your spirit may be willing, but your flesh is weak.

Will you dare to spend QUALITY TIME with God on behalf of others?

Parents, will you watch and pray for your children, asking God to put a hedge around your home.

Watch and pray for God to lead us, and open doors of opportunity to share Christ. Watch and pray so that we will resist temptations that come every day. Watch and pray for spiritual renewal and revival within this Church.

“You are children of light and of the day; We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.” (Eph.5:5-6)

Sermon 3/09/08