Jesus had taken Peter, James and John into the Garden of Gethsemane that Passover night. The other disciples were left sitting at the gateway, but the three trainee apostles were witnesses to the agony which Jesus was going through. He also wanted them to be prayerful supporters lest Satan should gain the upper hand in the battle. 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, or criticising the divine plan of salvation which He had already agreed to carry out. It was a simple request to avoid suffering, but not if that contradicted the Father's will. The enormity of the suffering which lay ahead would include the only separation in 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 overrule His Father.
 
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 be trapped by Satan. 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 keep alert, there is spiritual danger: keep praying, there is spiritual protection as we entrust ourselves to the Lord.