Sermon Notes - Seeing Jesus in the Darkest Moments

Seeing Jesus in the Darkest Moments, Mark 14:27-52
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended March 7, 2010

When we see someone in their darkest moment it reveals them for who they really are.

Jesus is in His darkest moment here but we also see the disciples in their darkest moment. Christ is at His strongest while they are at their weakest. He submits, they resist. He weeps, they sleep. He stands, they run.

He walks right into His suffering to glorify the Father. We see His deep love for the Father and we see His deep love for us.

1. Jesus is sovereign in His darkest moments – Mark 14:26-31

Peter really speaks for all the disciples, “And they all said the same”, and is a good representative for us also. “You will all fall away…”, in Mark 14:27, speaks to a “passive stumbling”. “…one of you will betray me…”, in Mark 14:18-19, speaks to a “active willfulness”.

Jesus knew and rested in the sovereign plan of the Father. He is sovereignly aware of His suffering and of His sheep. He knows how it is all going to play out. Jesus was not a victim of the religious institution. He was sovereign, and aware. This was all the will and the plan of the Father. Jesus was willingly giving His life. (John 3:16 – “…gave…”)

If He is sovereign in His darkest so He is sovereign in our darkest moment. Don’t be like the proud, self-confident disciples who couldn’t see their need.

2. Jesus is submissive in His darkest moments – Mark 14:32-36

His soul hurt so bad He felt physical pain. He knew what was ahead but physical pain wasn’t His main concern. It can’t be because He had said to not fear those who can cause physical pain. (Matthew 10:28)

He addressed the Father in a way no one would have ever considered, “…Abba, Father…” (Mark 10:36) Not “God, Father” but “Daddy, Father”. He was revealing the intimacy He had with the Father.

All the pain and consequences of all sin were poured on Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

He knew the sweetness of communion with the Father thus He knew of the Father’s absolute hatred of sin. He knows that this intimate relationship will soon be broken. He is submissive. He is not trying to get out of the moment but we do catch just a glimpse of what it will cost Him. We see the spiritual pain.

The world leads us to believe (in films, etc.) that the physical pain is the worst. Jesus shows us that it is the broken relationship with the Father that will pain Him the most, as it should us.

The will of the Father takes Him to the cross. This destroys the idea that Jesus always leads us out of suffering. He walks into it willingly.

The disciples, on the other hand, are not submissive. He finds them asleep multiple times. They appear to have no sorrow, no prayer and no need for God at all.

3. Jesus is alone and sufficient in the darkest moments – Mark 14:41-52

He basically says, “Let’s walk into the trap set for me.” They had all these secret meetings and planning sessions which meant nothing. He wasn’t unwillingly taken. If He didn’t want to He wouldn’t have been taken.

Mark 14:50 – They had all left Him. All the ones in Mark 14:19 and Mark 14:31 had left. What a warning against self-confidence. Mark 14:51-52 could possibly be Mark himself. All of them would rather walk home naked than to stand with Jesus at this moment. He was capture alone and suffered alone.

Our salvation is not dependent on our faithfulness but on His alone. He stands alone to save us. We, on the other hand, have fled our commitments in our darkest moments. He never will.

Because of His faithfulness He is sufficient to save us from the darkest moment of Hell and the darkest moments of this earth. This doesn’t mean He will deliver you from the moment but that He will stand with you. We overestimate our own strength and underestimate His.

To stand with Jesus in the darkest moments:

We must rest in the sovereign plan of our Father – We may not know His plan but we must rest in Him with no anxiety or worry. He is in control of even the darkest moment (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

We must submit to the will of the Father – His plan is best. There is perfect peace in absolute submission. In all situations we must come to a place in which we can say, “Not my will, but your will be done.” (Romans 8:28)

We must trust in the sufficiency of the Son – We can run from Him, like the disciples, or to Him. He is sufficient to restore us after our times of faithless running. Run to Jesus! (Hebrews 4:14-16)

Sovereign, submissive and sufficient.

The worst pain you could ever experience is the wrath of God for eternity. He endured it so you could escape it. How good, gracious and great is our God!

NOTE: These are my notes, taken as I listened to the sermon live. Any errors, misunderstandings or misinterpretations are my responsibility entirely and not the fault of the preacher.