November 8 2025

Mark 14:32-42

Have you ever tried to stay up all night? Was it easy? Many people find that there is a time in the wee hours of the morning that are the make-or-break point. Often, if one can stay up past that point the rest is easy. Imagine what it must have been like for the disciples. It had been a long day of travel followed by an emotionally draining agape supper when Jesus asked Peter, James, and John to stay up and pray with Him. It’s easy to look at this situation and be critical, but before you do, ask yourself how many times you have fallen asleep during prayer at bedtime or been too tired to pray.

Nature is very interesting. Have you ever looked out the window of a plane and noticed the different kind of clouds? Google “cloud formations” or use the following link to see the different kinds of cloud formations and what they represent.  https://www.zmescience.com/science/types-of-clouds/

How does it feel to be alone? Sarah Bauer Anderson in her book The Space Between Us points out, “The absence of friends is as powerful as the presence of enemies” (p. 34). If you were Jesus, then this would have been a doubly difficult situation because His friends were absent and the enemies were closing in. What lessons can be learned from this passage about how important it is to surround ourselves with other followers of Christ and the importance of our relationship with Jesus?

Read Mark 14:32-36.

32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Where is Gethsemane? It is a small olive orchard on the mount of olives.  https://www.britannica.com/place/Gethsemane

Jesus would often go off by Himself with His disciples to pray. It was His way of finding time and space to connect with His Father.

Read Mark 14:37-42.

37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

39 Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. 40 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

41 Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Does reading this passage change how you view your relationship with Jesus? Does this passage help you to understand the importance of being present for your friends during difficult times? One of the things to notice is that Jesus didn’t get really upset and yell at the disciples. He didn’t try and guilt them; He accepted them the way they were. Learning the spiritual gift of being present, being able to give grace to people who fail, and having a deep relationship with Jesus are three very important lessons that Jesus is wanting us to learn from this passage.

Mark 14:32-42

LEADER’S NOTE

For a Relational Bible Study (RBS) you’ll want to get into the Scripture passage and encourage the youth to imagine participating in the story while it’s happening. Then you will be able to better apply it to your own situation today.

You will need to ask God for the Holy Spirit to be present as your small group discusses the questions (no more than 3-6 people in a group is recommended). Start with the opening question. It is a personal question and the answer is unique for each individual. There is no right answer and nobody is an expert here, so don’t be surprised when you hear different responses. You are depending on the Holy Spirit to be present and to speak through your group. Say what God prompts you to say, and listen to what others share.

Take turns reading the chapter out loud. Follow that with giving the students some time to individually mark their responses to the questions (a PDF version of the handout is available as a download). This gives each person a starting point for responding when you start to share as a group. Next, begin the discussion by asking the students to share what they marked and why on each question as you work your way through. Feel free to take more time on some questions than others as discussion warrants.

Encourage each person in the group to apply what is discussed to their personal lives and to share with the group what they believe God wants them to do. Then ask them to pray that God will help each of them to follow through in doing so. Remind them to expect that God will show them ways to live out the message of this passage in the coming week, and that they are free to ask others in the group to help hold them accountable.

As we draw toward the end of our Youth Sabbath School lessons about Christ’s ministry on this earth, we know that He is going to die on the cross and then be resurrected. But the disciples didn’t know that. Just a few days earlier Jesus had come into Jerusalem with a crowd shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” and then Jesus cleansed the temple again. It seemed like their long-awaited time for Jesus to become king had finally arrived. And they would be Christ’s key players in this new kingdom, “Hallelujah!”

But with the Passover meal in the upper room, Christ put them into complete confusion. Jesus did the lowly task of washing the disciples’ feet. During the meal He announced that one of the 12 would betray Him. It seemed things were unraveling even faster than they had come together.

Even though night had begun, Jesus took His disciples to one of His favorite places for prayer outside of Jerusalem—the Garden of Gethsemane. Our few short verses in this Mark 14 study may be familiar to you, but take some time to enter into Christ’s agony about whether or not to go through with the next step. We think of it as “the crucifixion.” But for Jesus, it was carrying the weight of all the sins of the world, resulting in separation from God and heaven. We call it “the second death,” which means complete separation from God.

No wonder Jesus asked His disciples to pray for Him. But alas, it was night time, so they fell asleep rather than joining Jesus in prayer. Christ’s prayer might have seemed overwhelmed with pathos (emotion). His prayer might have sounded “pathetic” to us, according to one definition of that word— “arousing pity, especially through vulnerability or sadness.” However, the disciples’ prayer, or lack of it, fits more into the usage we think of with the word “pathetic”—“miserably inadequate; of very low standard.” Both usages of the word fit into our Scripture passage for today.

Who taught you to pray? What’s changed as you’ve gotten older, and what’s stayed the same?

Read Mark 14:32-42.

32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.

37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

39 Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. 40 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

41 Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

1.  Why did Jesus leave His disciples in Gethsemane while He went to pray?

2. Why did Jesus take Peter, James, and John with Him?

3. Why did Jesus pray for God to remove the cup of suffering (vs. 35-36)?

4.  Rank the following super-difficult experiences Christ suffered.

(1–most difficult to 8–least difficult)

____    The Garden of Gethsemane

____    The crucifixion

____    40 days of wilderness temptation by Satan

____    The beheading of His cousin, John the Baptist

____    Peter betraying Him 3 times in one night

____    Attempts to make Him king

____    Oppression from the religious leaders

____    Other: __________________________

5.  Why didn’t God the Father remove this bitter cup from Jesus?

6. What’s your response to, “Could you stay awake and pray with me?”

7.  What suffering would you ask God to take from you?

8.  Who do you ask to pray for you? Who asks you to pray for them?

We might find it impossible to comprehend what Jesus went through in the Garden of Gethsemane that night before His crucifixion. He wrestled with the separation from His Father as the sins of all human history came upon Him. Try to imagine that. It might be easier to identify with the disciples who fell asleep when Jesus asked them to pray. Because of what Christ went through for us, we don’t have to experience eternal separation from God. But He still invites us to pray. It would be pathetic for us if we don’t.

Most people, including those who pray, feel like they could pray more or pray better. Like improving our communication with people around us, prayer taps into our communication with God. Here are three ideas for you to apply this week’s lesson to your life, especially the prayer aspect. Use these, adapt them, or have them spark other applications in your life.

A few years ago, the movie “Black Panther” garnered attention for being a great story. It included multiple levels of meaning and included action, drama, and spiritual themes as well. One of the songs, “Pray for Me,” asks who will pray for the main character who is always ready for war. The chorus includes the lyrics, “Who gon’ pray for me? Take my pain for me? Save my soul for me? ‘Cause I’m alone, you see.”

When people say, “I’ll pray for you,” what does that mean? Maybe they will. Maybe they will forget. Or maybe they just want to wrap up their conversation with you and this is their way of saying, “Goodbye.” Some people include spiritual conversations with their friends, and they will actually ask, “Will you pray for me?” (see option #1 above).

Real Deal Heal: Gen Z and Social Issues

Edited by Steve Case

Each generation must deal with the issues of its time. Frequently this means coming to terms with a new awareness. Sometimes the past helps, but that’s not guaranteed. Often the new perspectives of young people show naiveite, innocence, and sometimes great insight. From a Christian perspective, wise people always pay attention for God to communicate through people of any age since God speaks through the Holy Spirit regardless of one’s age or experience. Consider the phrase, “Out of the mouths of babes.”

For Gen Z, the need to be “real” simply calls for honesty and openness. The term “deal” invites and holds accountable the need to face whatever social issues present themselves—both the predictable and the unpredictable. The term “heal” draws on Christ’s ministry of redemption, acknowledging our brokenness in this world and the need for the miraculous in large and small ways.

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