Hands that Pray
Matthew 26:36-45
Lent Midweek – March 26, 2003
Pastor Richard Mau
Immanuel Lutheran – Des Plaines, Illinois
Matthew 26:36-45
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."
Then he returned to his disciples and found them
sleeping. "Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?" he
asked Peter. "Watch and pray so
that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is
weak."
He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father,
if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your
will be done."
When he came back, he again found them sleeping,
because their eyes were heavy. So he
left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same
thing.
Then he returned to the disciples and said to them,
"Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son
of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
The Hands of the Savior. We have seen a Savior whose hands invite us to come to him as he calls all who are burdened as all people, when they know God’s law and his love are burdened with the weight of their sins and look for relief. Jesus invites all to come to him for that relief.
We have seen a Savior whose hands heal. Those hands healed a man born blind, who had never been able to see the light of day. Those same hands not only heal our physical maladies in many and various ways as part of God’s creative work, those hands, outstretched on the cross, heal our worst sickness, sin.
Our Savior’s hands provide. They give us all we need to support this body and life in this world. Those hands provide nourishment and sustenance in his own self as the bread of life. Jesus is the only way to eternal life.
Today we look at hands that are clasped together in prayer. Look at your hands and fold them together. Twist them in that wringing motion of anxiety. Grip them together in the anticipation of hope. Hold them together tightly in feelings of despair. Press them together pleading your case. Fold them in humility as you bow your head to take your confessions, your thanksgivings, your hopes, your wants, and all of your desires to God who is almighty, all loving, and your dear father.
What is prayer? Prayer is speaking to God in thoughts and words. Lots of thoughts come to mind when we speak of prayer. Let us look at Jesus our Savior whose hands are folded in prayer.
Jesus prayed often. He would leave where he and the disciples were staying early in the morning and go off to a quiet and separate place to pray. His disciples would have to look for him and found him praying. The disciples were anxious and wanted to know how to pray too as they asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray.”
The prayer from Gethsemane we just recollected tells us the subject of Jesus’ prayer that night just before he was betrayed. In several accounts the Pharisees either did not pursue Jesus or were unable to apprehend him because his “time had not come.” Now, Jesus knew that his time had come. It was the moment in history, in his earthly life that God had promised continually since Adam’s fall in the Garden of Eden. Now, in this quiet garden, Jesus looks to his father in prayer. He prays that not his will, but the Father’s will be done. Jesus was perfect and Holy. Jesus was and is God. His will is God’s will. God’s will is that all who believe in his son will be saved. In this particular instance, God’s will is that his perfect and innocent son unjustly suffers hell and dies an unwarranted death for your sake and mine.
The hands of the Savior are in prayer. You see, Jesus was not praying for himself. He was praying for you, someone he loves. Jesus was putting himself aside so that you could have the glory that was and is his in heaven. When Jesus looked with compassion at the masses of people, he saw you in that compassion, and wanted you not to suffer the death and agony you had earned in sin, but wanted you to live in heavenly splendor as his dearest brothers and sisters, made just like him again, the image of God instead of the image of sinful man.
The hands of the Savior are in prayer as the disciple John writes in his Gospel. Jesus prayed for himself that he fulfill his father’s will. Jesus prayed for his disciples that they not be lost or consumed by the world, but to complete the mission of going into the world to share the word of Christ crucified into all of the world. Jesus prayed for all believers to see his glory and to be with him where he is. Jesus now sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty where he is given all honor, power, glory, and authority in heaven and on earth. Jesus now resides in his father’s house. Jesus wants you, right there at his side, with your own room in his father’s house and sharing in all of the heavenly majesty, honor, and glory that God wants you to have now and forever. Jesus prays at this very moment for that.
The hands of the Savior in prayer as he prays that you are protected by heavenly angels from all harm, specifically any harm to your faith and to your soul. The Savior prays that Satan does not have his way with you in temptation into sin, into rejection of Christ, and into eternal damnation with him. The Savior prays that all who hear his word believe in him, testify to others about him, and that he will be able to testify to his father on your behalf, presenting you in his righteousness and holiness.
On Calvary, we see hands that pray. “Father, forgive them.” “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” And the prayer of greatest news for all who believe, ”It is finished.” One answer to his prayers was a heathen soldier at the base of the cross who at that moment confessed, “Surely this man was the Son of God.” [Mark 15:39, Matthew 27:58]
Jesus’ prayers are answered. Amen.
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