Jesus had taken Peter, James and John into the Garden of Gethsemane that Passover night (Matthew 26:36-38).  The other disciples were left sitting at the gateway, but these three trainee apostles were chosen to be witnesses to the agony which Jesus was going through in the same way that they were witnesses of His glory in the transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-3; 2 Peter 1:16-18).  He also wanted them to be prayerful supporters, lest Satan should gain the upper hand in the battle, against them as well as against Him.  As Jesus stepped further into the darkness, away from the light of flickering torches, His voice could be heard praying to His Father.
 
His tone was urgent.  Jesus was pleading that if there was a way to avoid the cross, then Father God would authorise it.  But He was not arguing, nor did He criticise the divine plan of salvation which He had already agreed to carry out (John 10:18).  It was a simple request to avoid the anguish of suffering, but not if that contradicted His Father's will.  The enormity of the suffering, which lay ahead, would include the only separation within the Godhead for all eternity.  The agony would be literally excruciating, but Jesus would not make an independent decision about the mission of salvation: although it must have been a temptation, He was determined not to step outside of His Father’s will (Acts 2:23-24).
 
The three men, a few metres away, should have been praying as well.  But they were soon asleep.  It had been a long and emotional day.  They were exhausted and afraid and so they opted out of the spiritual battle.  What could they do to help Jesus?  Although the primary battle was His, they too would face serious temptation to desert or deny their Lord.  Should they not also have been praying for strength and wisdom, discernment and boldness?  If they had, would they have deserted Jesus, and would Peter have denied that he ever knew the Master?
 
Often the best lessons are learned after the biggest failures.  The disciples were a huge disappointment to Jesus that night.  But in the years to come they remembered that Jesus told them to watch and pray, or they would be trapped by Satan (1 Peter 5:8).  After Pentecost, the church learned to pray as though their lives depended on it – and often they did.  They prayed in worship, in persecution and in practical decisions.  They knew that unless they referred everything to God, Satan would find a way of neutralising and discrediting the gospel … instead of serving the Lord, they would end up working against Him.  So, we also must keep alert.  Where there is spiritual danger: keep praying (1 Peter 4:7).  There is amazing spiritual protection when we fully entrust ourselves to the Lord.