Before Temptation Strikes

"And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And He said to His disciples, 'Sit here while I pray.' And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And He said to them, 'My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.' " Mark 14:32-34

"And He came and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, 'Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.' And again He went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer Him. And He came the third time and said to them, 'Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.' "  Mark 14:37-41

This can be a hard passage to read. You know what's coming. You know it's terrible. And to add insult to injury, they just could not stay awake!

They had a full day, and once they sat down all bets were off. Their eyes were heavy, and it was peacefully quiet for once. Focus was impossible. Their prayers were softly mumbled until their heads fell back, and snores escaped their lips.

The Bible says Jesus came and found them sleeping three times. They had been caught, and the disciples had no idea what to say to Jesus. Nothing seemed sufficient at a time like this.

Jesus told them to watch and pray that they may not enter into temptation, and He said, "The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."

While Jesus probably wanted His friends to pray with Him, His request wasn't self motivated. Jesus knew what was about to happen. He knew the temptations His friends were about to face. He didn't want to see them fall into temptation. He also knew their hearts, and that indeed, they were willing! However, their flesh was weak...

How true this is for all of us! We all have these different things in life, where we want to do better, but our flesh is weak. It doesn't hold up against temptation. We want to do better. We cry out to God for help to do better. But how do we do better?

Watch and pray. A good way to fight temptation is to avoid temptation. Watch for those things and situations. Build up your resistance. Pray, and then pray some more. When you find yourself in a situation where you need to make a choice, Lord willing, you will not only be willing, but your flesh will have the spiritually-built muscles to fulfill what must be done.

---Joy