When a crowd led by Judas came to the garden of Gethsemane to arrest Him, Jesus—unlike His disciples—didn’t lose His composure. Instead, in both word and deed, He revealed Himself to be at peace and in control. What was the basis for Jesus’ startling serenity in the face of betrayal? In his sermon “‘The Hour Has Come,’” Alistair Begg considers the answer:
“Then Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders, who had come out against him”—this is a question by Jesus for the religious opponents—“‘Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs?’” Well, the answer is they have.
Now, the tone in which that question was given we don’t know, because we only have it written down. I wonder if it wasn’t simply Jesus says, “You’ve got to be kidding me. You’ve really come out here tonight, all set up like this, with all your swords and your clubs and everything, to take me under the cover of darkness? Why did you not come for me when I was out in the temple? I was preaching freely. Everybody could see me and so on. How futile it is!”
What were these people thinking? Were they afraid of Jesus, so they came in numbers? Did they think that if they came in numbers, they could intimidate Jesus? Well, clearly, if they thought that, they discovered very quickly that they couldn’t. Because even in the moment, even in this moment, when he would be regarded from a distance as both the victim and the captive, it is clear that he is neither the victim nor the captive—that there is a serenity about Jesus. There is an absolute calmness and peace in the circumstances, a peace that is not enjoyed by Peter and the rest of them. We know that. We’ve seen that.
And what is the basis of the serenity of Christ? It is that he understands that what he’s doing and where he’s going is according to the Father’s will —all that has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets have said might be fulfilled. Jesus knew that he was going to die. You say, “Well, everybody knows they’re going to die.” No, he knew that he was going to die in a way that no one else knows they’re going to die. Because Jesus knew that absence from his presence in the world was the reason that he had entered into the world. Jesus knew that he would die a violent death. Jesus knew that he would die a purposeful death. Jesus knew that he would die a vicarious death—i.e., that his death was not a display of love that people should admire and say, “Whoa, that’s a dreadful thing to happen to such a nice person.” No! His death on the cross was in place of sinners. He dies purposefully.
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