Removing the Cup

Thank you for reading this sermon from Christ Fellowship. I hope and pray that this sermon will be a blessing of grace and truth to you. With that said, let me encourage you not to use this sermon as a replacement for your local church. Christ Jesus did not establish his Church simply for us to consume content. Instead, He calls us to be part of a real, covenant family. 

We’re going to go back to the garden of Gethsemane tonight, Luke 22:

41 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed,

42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”

43 And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.

44 And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

If you want to see the heart of God on full display, look at the cross. But here in this scene, the night before the cross, Jesus is already entering into the suffering of the cross even before the nails were driven into his hands and feet.

It’s hard for us to imagine what Jesus might have been feeling in this moment. Sweating blood is extremely rare. It’s called hematidrosis and there have been only a few dozen cases reported in medical literature over the past century.

It’s been documented in cases of soldiers going into battle, individuals facing execution, and other moments of severe emotional trauma. That’s the level of anguish Jesus is experiencing — and the trial hasn’t even begun.

It would be easy for us to assume that Jesus is perhaps afraid of the physical suffering He knows He is about to endure. But the words of His prayer give us some important information.

Speaking to the Father, Jesus makes a very specific prayer request. Besides John 17 where Jesus prays for the disciples, this is the only prayer request Jesus makes. In fact, it’s the only time Jesus prayed for Himself.

He says to the Father, “Remove this cup from me.” But what is “the cup”? Jesus is obviously speaking metaphorically, and we need the Old Testament to answer that question.

In the Old Testament, the word “cup” is only used as a metaphor in two specific ways. One is a cup of blessing. The other is a cup of wrath. Jesus is clearly referring to the second type. It’s the cup of God’s divine judgment for sin.

There are numerous examples of this.

Psalm 75:8
“In the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs.”

Isaiah 51:17
“You who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath…”

Jeremiah 25:15
“Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.”

Drinking the cup is experiencing divine judgment. But it’s not random suffering. It is measured and just. Drinking the cup is the penalty for sin. It means getting exactly what someone deserves.

But Jesus did not deserve this cup. And yet, it was handed to Him. It was not forced upon Him. This was not some kind of twisted form of divine child abuse. The Father and the Son agreed long before creation that this was necessary for God to be both the just and the justifier.

That night in the garden, Jesus accepted the cup willingly. He drank it on the cross. And no one else could drink it but Him.

Jesus was in agony, sweating blood in anticipation. He recoiled, not from the physical pain that was coming, but from the wrath of God for sin. His suffering was not from the nails, but from the curse.

Why was this necessary? Why was this the way it had to be done? There’s some mystery surrounding the cross. God doesn’t tell us everything. But there were hints all along the way that this was how salvation would be accomplished.

Abraham thought he was going to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, but God provided a lamb.

The Passover lamb was slaughtered, and the blood was painted on the doorposts to protect the household from the death angel.

David offered sacrifices to save his people from God’s judgment.

The entire sacrificial system foreshadowed the substitutionary atonement of Christ. Every lamb, every altar, every priest — it was all preparing the world to recognize what Jesus was about to do.

Jesus came to be our sacrificial lamb. He came to be our shield, our covering – blood on the doorposts… the only way into the shelter of God’s forgiveness.

On Good Friday, Jesus hung on a cross, the bloody wood providing a visual echo of the doorposts on which the blood of the Lamb shielded God’s people from the wrath we deserve.

It’s important to understand that the Father and the Son are not two separate gods. This was not an angry Father punishing His sweet, innocent Son in our place. This was a Trinitarian God absorbing His own wrath so that we can enjoy His love.

Jesus drank the cup of God’s wrath so that we could drink the cup of God’s blessing. Jesus was obedient in the garden where our forefather Adam had failed.

And when we come to the Lord’s table, we come to drink the cup IN Christ. This is why we issue a warning before the Lord’s Supper. If you are not resting in Christ alone for salvation, do not take the cup – because you would be drinking judgment on yourself instead of mercy.

This is not a casual event. The Lord’s table is not for people pretending to be perfect, but for those who know they need mercy. In the end, we face one of two realities – safety and blessing in Christ or judgment apart from Christ.

All of this forces us to accept something we don’t want to believe. Our sin demands a high price. It is costly. It is destructive. We are so much worse than we want to believe.

But the cross makes us see. We would love for God to say to us, “You know what, I’m just going to let it slide. No big deal. I forgive you.”

But that’s not what the cross shows us. The cross shows us that our sin is terrible and costly.

I want to speak to those who are doubting. I’ve been there. I remember the feeling. But I also remember thinking that there is something wrong with this world. You sense it too. There is a real evil in this world.

And I bet you also feel a sort of disconnect from God, like something is missing in your life. If you’re like me, then you also feel a sense of shame – that something’s wrong with us, that I’m not who I should be.

This is what the free offer of the Gospel is meant to deal with – all of that. Open your heart and talk to God. Ask him for help to believe. Just be honest about what you feel and think and ask for help. Jesus can bring rest and healing into your life. He’s the only one who can.

And maybe you’re thinking, I’ve tried talking to God. He doesn’t seem to be listening. He’s not answering my prayers. Well, there’s hope for you as well.

Earlier I told you that removing the cup was the only prayer request Jesus ever made for Himself. And guess what? God said no. Jesus was the perfect Son of the Most High God and His prayer request was denied.

But Jesus accepted the answer and the suffering that followed. Jesus held the cup of wrath to His lips, and He did not set it down until it was empty.

He did it so that our prayers, the prayers of sinners, could be heard by His Father… so that we can now ask God to remove the cup of wrath from US and God will listen. He has promised to answer that prayer, prayed in faith.

Will you ask God to remove the cup of wrath?
Will you come tonight and receive from Him a cup of blessing?