Agony in the Garden
Spiritual struggle and the power of prayer
And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
Luke 22:44 KJV
The night before Jesus was crucified, he went off alone to a garden called Gethsemane and prayed to his Father in agony. The word “agony” now is mostly used for intense physical pain. But in the early modern English of the King James Bible, it meant great emotional and spiritual suffering: what we would call “anguish.” It was translated from the original Greek word ἀγωνία (agōnia) which particularly referred to the suffering experienced in conflict, struggle, and contest: as in ancient Greek athletic or musical competitions.
Jesus is God, but he was also incarnated as a flesh-and-blood mortal man. So his “Agony in the Garden,” as this moment in his earthly life has been called, was an arduous struggle with his human fears and sorrows in the face of his imminent torture and death.
Jesus had already long committed himself to his divine mission to sacrifice himself for the remission of man’s sins. And moments before, he had already, in spite of his fears, submitted himself to God’s grand design, praying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” And, in response to that faithfulness, God had already sent an angel to strengthen Jesus in his hour of trial and tribulation.
Yet still Jesus struggled. Still he suffered such distress that he sweated profusely. But he did not succumb. He did not flee. He did not lose faith. Jesus persisted in prayer. Indeed, he prayed even more earnestly, redoubling his efforts to commune with his Father: to supplicate him for grace and to align with his will.
His Father answered his prayers by strengthening him. Having won his spiritual struggle, Jesus was then able to face his physical tormenters with unflinching courage and endurance, and to fulfill his destined mission to die on the cross for our sins and, through his resurrection, to conquer death itself for our sake.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 KJV
In his Agony in the Garden, Jesus gave us the perfect model for how we can vanquish any anguish. If you’re struggling, pray. If then you’re still struggling, pray more—and more earnestly. Address God with reverence, thanksgiving, and adoration. Speak to him from your heart, but also with your mind. Articulate to him what you are struggling with: inwardly, vocally, or in writing. I have found praying in a journal to be especially powerful. Confess your sins and shortcomings. Ask him for forgiveness and aid. And listen for guidance and insight from the Holy Spirit: the person of the triune God that dwells within you.
Anything can be overcome with God’s aid. And God’s aid graces us more abundantly the more we submit to him and humbly ask for it.
…always pray and never give up.
Luke 18:1 NLT
