Excerpt from Reverend Ann’s book – THE CRUSH ON THE CROSS

GETHSEMANE was a garden of agony. It was the beginning of the pain of Jesus on the way to the Cross. It was an opening door of His torture. It’s where An angel came from heaven while Jesus was praying so heavily to strengthen Him. Jesus endured the anguish. His sweat became like Blood.
During His agony as He prayed, His sweat was, as it were, great drops of blood falling down upon the ground.

” An angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him.
And being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Luke 22:43-44.”

At the conclusion of that narrative is that, Jesus accepted that the hour had come for Him to be betrayed.

Gethsemane is important because it shows us another picture of how Christ shared in the human condition. He shared in all that we are, including sadness, alienation, betrayal, being hated, anguish, and death.
Paul said that ‘Jesus became poor, so that through His poverty we might become rich”.
Jesus shared in all that we are in order to enable us to share in what that He is.

GETHSEMANE means “The place where grapes are CRUSHED. WHERE the wine is produced.” Jesus Had to be crushed for a good substance to be produced.The flow of the Blood of Jesus from His body after being crushed brought us sweet aroma of peace and satisfaction. Grapes are sweet. Salvation is a sweet thing to have and experience. The Blood of Jesus is the Blood of Love, healing, peace and joy. His Blood was squeezed out,pressed out from His body just like wine which is sweet is a final product of it’s grapes being squeezed inorder to produce that sweet wine. The grapes are crushed completely until the last drop of wine comes out. In the same case, Jesus body Had to be tortured beyond recognition till they make sure that no drop of Blood remained in His Blood veins.

Though salvation came from a tough ,pressed situation, the results of it is worth it. Jesus died as The ONLY child of God because He was the only counted as an obedient child and we were disobedience. But His Resurrection brought forth many children of God. Jesus is now not the ONLY child. But He is The First to resurrect and fight death to victory and He rose together with Him many of us.

” And He is the Head of the body, the church: Who is the Beginning, The FIRSTBORN from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. Colossians 1:18

At His hour of prayers in the garden of Gethsemane, and as He prayed till sweat dropped off from Him as blood, Jesus was very aware that this was the opening way of Him fulfilling what He came on earth for. He knew His Mission Has just started. Bringing salvation to mankind was His utmost agenda.

“Then He went a short distance away from them. There He got down on His knees and prayed. He said, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup of suffering away from Me. BUT DO WHAT YOU WANT, NOT WHAT I WANT. ” An angel from heaven appeared to Jesus and gave Him strength. Because He was very sad and troubled, He prayed even harder. His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Luke 22:41-44.”

It’s very clear that Jesus’ sadness was affecting His physical body

” An angel from heaven appeared to Him and STRENGTHENED HIM. And BEING IN ANGUISH, He prayed more earnestly, and HIS SWEAT WAS LIKE DROPS OF BLOOD FALLING TO THE GROUND. Luke 22:43-44.”

Did you know that you could be so sad that it can make your body sick or weak? People have even died from being really, really sad. That was the price of the Cross. Hallelujah!.