WATCH! A Call to Spiritual Vigilance: Part 3
The Garden of Gethsemane provides the most profound and moving example of what it means to truly watch.
Read Time: 14 minutes
The Garden of Gethsemane provides the most profound and moving example of what it means to truly watch. Here, in the dark hours before his crucifixion, our Lord Jesus demonstrated perfect watchfulness while his closest disciples revealed the depth of human frailty. This final scene, before his arrest, offers both the ultimate pattern for faithful watching and gracious understanding of our own failures.
Setting the Scene: The Night of Watching
To fully appreciate the significance of that night, we must understand its historical and prophetic context. It was the 14th day of Abib (also called Nisan), which began around 6:00 PM according to Jewish reckoning. The moon was full—the first full moon after the spring equinox—when day and night stand in equal measure and the moon shines at its brightest, just as it had guided God’s people through the darkness out of Egypt.
After sunset, in the warm glow of the upper room, the disciples reclined with Jesus for what would be their last supper together. Significantly, this was not the Jews’ Passover (John 2:13; 11:55)—that would occur the following day. This meal was the new Passover in Christ, fulfilling His words:
The traitor was identified and expelled, and John records with haunting simplicity: “So, after receiving the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.” (John 13:30 NRSV). The remnants of day’s glow were gone, and soon the Light of the World would be temporarily extinguished by this world’s darkness.
After the final Hallel psalm was sung (likely Psalm 118, with its prophetic significance), around 9:00 PM, Jesus told his disciples they must leave the comforting glow of his presence in that upper room and venture into the darkness beyond. John 18:18 tells us it was “cold,” requiring servants and officers to warm themselves by a fire of coals.
Around the city, the sounds of many Passover visitors echoed, and through it all, the bleating of lambs—a haunting reminder of the sacrifice soon to come.
The Journey to Gethsemane
As the small company walked through Jerusalem’s streets under the full moon’s light, they crossed the Kidron Valley. The name “Kidron” means “black,” with a strong secondary meaning of “mourning”—fitting for this night of sorrow. Their path retraced that of the weeping David fleeing Jerusalem during Absalom’s rebellion (2 Samuel 15:23, 30).
John’s Gospel describes the Kidron as a winter torrent (John 18:1), perhaps intentionally recalling the Messianic associations of Psalm 110:7: “He shall drink of the brook by the wayside; therefore He shall lift up the head.”
They entered the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus had frequently resorted with his disciples. The name means “winepress of olive oil,” prophetically appropriate for the place where our Lord would be “pressed out of measure.” Tradition holds that this was where olive oil for the temple and for anointing kings was produced, as well as where the blood of the red heifer was taken.
The struggle for humanity’s redemption, foretold in a garden (Genesis 3:15), was now reaching its crisis in a garden and would be finally resolved in another garden (John 19:41).
The Chosen Three: Progressive Revelation
As Jesus prepared for his final struggle, he demonstrated the principle of progressive revelation in his selection of companions. First, he left eight disciples in one place, exhorting them: “Pray that you enter not into temptation.” (Luke 22:40 KJV). He knew that for them, as for him, Gethsemane would provide a supreme test—one to be met not in human strength but with divine help.
Then he took with him three special disciples:
- Peter (the Rock, son of Jonah)
- James and John (the sons of Zebedee, the Sons of Thunder)
This selection wasn’t arbitrary. These three disciples had been chosen for special revelation on exactly three previous occasions, and understanding these experiences sheds light on why Jesus needed them in Gethsemane.
First Occasion: Jairus’s Daughter
The first time Jesus separated these three, they witnessed resurrection power:
Jairus (Hebrew Jair) means “enlightener,” or “the break of dawn.” Mark alone preserves Jesus’ actual Aramaic words, gentle and tender, as though morning had come: “Little girl, it’s time for you to get up.” At his touch, she not only arose but became of age—the Greek changes from paidion (young child) to korasion (maiden).
- Time: During the day
- Disciples’ response: Wide awake, speechless with wonder
- Jesus’s response: No rebuke
Second Occasion: The Transfiguration
The second separation occurred on the Mount of Transfiguration:
- Time: Early evening (first watch)
- Disciples’ response: Fell asleep once during the glorious revelation
- Jesus’s response: No rebuke
Third Occasion: Gethsemane
Now, in the garden, these same three would witness the ultimate revelation, not of glory, but of suffering and perfect obedience.
- Time: Middle of the night (second and third watches)
- Disciples’ response: Fell asleep three times
- Jesus’s response: Gentle rebuke for the weakness of flesh
The Pattern of Christ’s Watching
Jesus’ experience in Gethsemane demonstrates the perfection of watchful obedience through three distinct prayers, each marking a deeper level of surrender to the Father’s will.
The First Prayer: “If It Were Possible”
Mark 14:35-36 records:
The phrase “if it were possible” reveals, as Robert Roberts wrote, “a strong inclination to avoid what was required.” Jesus didn’t limit his Father’s power. He acknowledged that “all things are possible”—yet he recognized that Scripture must be fulfilled (Matthew 26:54).
His use of “Abba, Father” echoes the language of Genesis 17 (Sarah conceiving) and the Annunciation to Mary, words that only a sinless man could truly pray. At this precise moment, the gap between Jesus and his disciples was narrowest; they also struggled with their flesh. What was the Father’s answer? Isaiah 49:8 provides the response: Thus says the Lord: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, and in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You as a covenant to the people, to restore the earth.” The phrase “not My will, but Yours” reveals two opposing wills coming into perfect alignment through surrender.
Jesus Returns to the Disciples
The address to Peter is significant. Not “Rock” or “Bar-Jonah,” but simply “Simon,” his natural, given name. The Greek phrase translated “Could you not watch” literally means “Had you not strength one hour?” This was spoken to the one who had promised never to fail his Lord.
Jesus’ assessment— “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” wasn’t an excuse but an acknowledgment of human frailty while calling for dependence on divine strength. If the disciples struggled to watch during Jesus’ agony, how much greater was their need for vigilance—and ours.
The Second Prayer: “If This Cup Cannot Pass”
Mark 14:39-40 continues: “Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words.” Matthew’s account provides the specific content: “Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.’” (Matthew 26:42).
The change is subtle but significant: “If this cup may not pass.” Final resolve was approaching. Jesus was learning obedience through suffering, as Hebrews 5:7-8 explains: “Who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.”
When Jesus returned, “He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; nor did they know what to answer Him.” The disciples, who had hoped to provide sympathy, found themselves unable to watch, unable to answer and unable to comfort. Psalm 102:7 captures Christ’s isolation: “I lie awake, and am like a sparrow alone on the housetop.”
The Third Prayer: Complete Surrender
Luke 22:43-44 provides the climactic details: “Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
The angel (possibly Gabriel, whose name means “Strength of God”) was sent directly from heaven in response to urgent need. Psalm 34:6-7 promises: “This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them.”
“Agony” (agon) denotes a severe contest. Jesus was still delighted to do God’s will (Psalm 40:8), but the internal battle was fierce. When the adversary is oneself, both victory and defeat are bitter. The only resolution was for “My will” to become wholly “Your will” for the self to die completely.
For Jesus, this merging of self into the Father’s will settled the raging battle, but at an enormous cost. His sweat became like “great drops of blood falling to the ground” on a bitterly cold night. At midnight, when the firstborn of Egypt had been slain, the victory over the Egypt of His flesh was completed by the firstborn of God.
The Disciples’ Failure and Jesus’ Grace
When Jesus rose from prayer, Luke uses anastas, the resurrection word. He found his disciples “sleeping for sorrow.” (Luke 22:45). With tears running down their faces, they had failed him again by falling asleep. The weight of the situation overwhelmed them, and they sought unconsciousness to escape the pain. Jesus’ final words to them show remarkable grace: “Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.”
Three times Jesus prayed, three times He returned to find them sleeping, and later, in the third watch of the night (just before cockcrow), Peter would deny him three times. Failure of flesh over spirit was complete.
Yet it was their willingness to follow and their genuine love that enabled Jesus to redeem them still. This pattern offers hope for all who struggle with the weakness of flesh while maintaining a sincere desire to serve faithfully.
A Changed Lord: The Victory Won
The disciples may have failed to watch, but the Lord was ever awake.
From the moment Jesus rose from his final prayer, everything changed. Though battles remained to be fought in the dawn’s light, the war was won. His captors were in the garden, yet all subsequent proceedings occurred under Jesus’ control; it was his sacrifice, offered willingly.
Gone was every sign of agony, wrestling, or struggle. No more wearing the tension of a mind torn between two choices. No more sweat or reluctance to submit to the Father’s will. From this point forward, “My will” as distinct from “Your will” became meaningless—they were perfectly united.
In a profound sense, both Christ’s sacrifice and his resurrection occurred in Gethsemane. The first made the second inevitable.
Practical Application: What This Means for Us
“Take heed, watch and pray: that you enter not into temptation.”
Christ’s example in Gethsemane, combined with his grace toward the failing disciples, provides essential guidance for our own watching:
- Perfect Watching Is God’s Standard – Jesus demonstrated what complete watchfulness looks like—alertness to the Father’s will, persistence in prayer despite agony, and ultimate surrender of self-will. This course of action is the standard toward which we strive.
- Human Weakness Is Acknowledged – Jesus did not excuse the disciples’ failure, but he understood. Their spirit was willing; their flesh was weak. This favor remains true for us too. Our struggle with spiritual drowsiness doesn’t disqualify us from grace, but it shouldn’t lead to complacency.
- Progressive Revelation Increases Responsibility – The three disciples had witnessed resurrection power and divine glory before being asked to watch through suffering. Greater revelation brings greater responsibility. As inheritors of the complete New Testament revelation, our accountability is correspondingly higher.
- Mutual Support Is Essential – Jesus desired the fellowship of His closest friends during His greatest trial. We, too, need the encouragement and accountability of fellow believers. Watching isn’t a purely individual discipline. We’re called to watch for one another.
- Grace Covers Sincere Failure – Despite their repeated sleeping, Jesus didn’t abandon the three disciples. Their sincere desire to follow, even imperfectly, qualified them for continued grace and eventual restoration. The same grace covers our failures, whether they spring from weakness or willful rebellion.
The Final Watch: Our Present Responsibility
As we noted in our first article, we live in the Morning Watch—the final period before dawn breaks and our Lord appears. The signs of His return multiply around us:
- Israel has returned to the land after nearly two millennia
- Knowledge increases at an unprecedented rate
- The nations rage and plot against the Lord and His Anointed
- Moral darkness deepens while spiritual light shines brighter
Revelation 3:2-3 addresses our generation directly:
Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. If therefore you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.
But the promise follows for faithful watchers:
You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. (Revelation 3:4-5).
The Ultimate Hope
When Christ returns, he won’t come alone. Matthew 25:31 promises: “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” Heaven itself will be emptied as every angel accompanies the King of Kings back to earth.
Until that glorious moment, our watching continues. We maintain our vigil not in uncertainty but in absolute confidence. Christ will return, the Kingdom will come, justice will prevail. Our watching expresses faith, not fear; hope, not anxiety; love, not mere duty.
The Eternal Perspective
Catherine A. Macdonald’s poem captures the heart of faithful watching:
Thou find thyself alone;
Watch, lest while toiling weary in the field,
Thou find thy fellow gone:
Or, drowsed with sleep, thy empty lamp in hand,
The Bridegroom comes with all his festal band,
And thou awake too late, and makest moan,
Outside the door, uncalled, unloved, unknown.
Watch, therefore, for thy Lord will surely come,
From that far Land. He hath been long away;
And, busy, careful, weary o’er thy toil,
Do thou but watch and pray.
Watch with the faithful patience born of years,
Or through the misty windows of thy tears.
Repine thee not, nor charge Him with delay,
To whom a thousand years are yesterday.
The call to watch echoes across the centuries from Gethsemane’s garden to our present moment. It carries both divine authority and loving grace. Authority that demands our best effort, grace that covers our faithful failures.
As we wait for that final dawn when the Sun of Righteousness rises with healing in His wings, may we be found watching, not perfectly, but sincerely. Not without failure, but with persistent faith. Not in our own strength, but in His grace.
Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. (Matthew 24:44).
Watch!
David Fraser,
Pinetown Ecclesia, South Africa
- All Scriptural citations are taken from the New King James Version, unless specifically noted.