Lesson 19--“In the Garden”--Mark 14:32-52
ID: Inductive Questions (Asking the text questions like who, what, where, when, why, & how?”)
CR: Cross References (Comparing Scripture to Scripture, understanding the vague by the clear.)
WS: Word Study (Understanding definition, theological meaning, and usages in other passages.)
The WORD: What does the Bible say?
Context: Read Mark 14:27-59 to help understand the context of this passage. Read Mark 14:32-54 in a more literal or more dynamic translation than you usually use. ID: (14:32-34) What did Jesus tell the disciples to do? What was his emotional state?
1. ID: (14:35-36) What did Jesus pray? What did “this cup” refer to? How did Jesus end His prayer?
2. ID/WS: (14:37-41) What distressed Jesus when he returned to his disciples? (14:37-38, 40, 41) Why did the disciples have so much trouble watching (grēgoreō) and praying (proseuchomai) with Jesus? Why did Jesus say it was important for them to watch and pray?
3. ID: (14:43-46) Describe the crowd that came to Jesus? How did Judas betray Jesus?
4. CR: (14:46-47, 50-52) Compare this account with those in the other Gospels (Matt. 26:47–56; Luke 22:47–53; John 18:1–11) What is being emphasized by what Mark included and excluded from his account of the betrayal?
5. ID: (14:48-49) What point was Jesus making with his rebuke to the crowd? How did His emotional state compare to earlier when He was praying (14:34)?
6. ID: (14:51-52) What does this odd event tell us about the dynamics of what was happening in the garden? What does it imply about Jesus’ followers state of mind and their response to Jesus’ arrest and betrayal?
The WALK: What should I do?
1. What are some truths about prayer we can learn from Jesus’ prayers Mark 14:35-36, 39?
2. How can the exhortations in verses 34 and 38 make the difference between resisting or falling into temptation in your own life?
3. Have you ever spent a whole hour in prayer? Have you ever fallen asleep praying or during a prayer meeting? What consolation and encouragement can you draw from the disciples' experience?
4. Where in this passage do we see Gospel truths about God, Man, Christ, and our response? Have your sins been forgiven?
Going Beyond: Something to memorize or study further.
2. What areas of theology are touched on in this passage?
The Bible God God the Father Jesus Christ The Holy Spirit Man Salvation The Church Angels & Satan Future Things –
Harmonies of the Gospels
Harmonies can be helpful because the work of harmonizing the accounts acknowledges the historical nature of the events. They also help us to understand some of the dynamics as Jesus and His disciples move from one event to another.
However, Pastor Peter Smith provides an excellent reminder of the limitations of harmonies in his introduction to his harmony of the passion week.
“Reading the Gospel events chronologically should by no means usurp the Gospel writers themselves. Each Gospel writer wants to say something very important to the reader with what they have written. That should be respected.”
Gospels are similar to biographies in that they focus on one person as the “hero”. This person in the NT gospels is obviously Jesus. The Gospels are not biographies though. The main difference is that the Gospels are not intended to describe every event in Jesus’ life. They are highly focused and emphasize more on Jesus’ role in the plan of salvation than telling his life story. They show how Jesus is the Messiah, God’s son, who came down from heaven and took on flesh in order to redeem us from sin and death. [i]
Because of this focus, it can be difficult to know with absolute certainty the exact order and timing of all the events of Christ’s life and the Passion Week.
One of the more interesting harmonies of the Passion Week is a graphic published by BibleGateway.com
An old classic harmony is the Harmony of the Gospels by A.T. Robertson. The Chronological Life of Christ by Mark Moore is a newer work. Some of the online Bible study sites like the BlueLetterBible.org, the BibleHub.com, and BiblicalTraining.org also have harmonies of the Gospels.
These are especially helpful when you use them to notice what details a particular Gospel writer, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, chose to emphasize or minimize in his account. Understanding that can result in useful insights as you seek to understand the main point(s) a writer is seeking to make and emphasize in his account.
Lesson
19 – Mark 14:32-52
Here is a link to a short video that gives an overview of the
Gospel of Mark. https://jointhebibleproject.com/?video=1-16
WORD
4. The main purpose of
this question is to help the men think
about why Mark wrote what he wrote. What
is his point? For this question, the thinking
process is more important than any specific conclusions.
WALK
The two primary aims here are learning lessons about the
content and our attitudes as we pray and how watching and praying can help
prepare us for crises in our life.
EXTRA
We have a short article about harmonies of the Gospel with
links to several.
Note first the last paragraph. This focus on the intent of the individual
accounts (books) keeps us focused on the message of the writer.
Note second a really interesting graphic of the Passion Week
by Bible Gateway.
