The Spirit is Willing, but the Flesh is Weak

Isaiah 53 shows the weakness of the flesh and the overcoming power of the Spirit. It is hard for our minds to fully comprehend all that Jesus endured in His Passion for us. The devil’s attacks were aimed at the weakness of the flesh. As he watched Jesus during His earthly ministry, he saw him in a weak earthen vessel and sought several times to kill Jesus but always failed.

The weakness of our flesh is revealed in our Secret Place life. It is here, when no one is looking, that the flesh is able to do what it pleases. Our Secret Place life either demonstrates the strength of our spirit or the weakness of our flesh.

Paul would tell Timothy in his second letter to him that he knew the God he served and consequently, he was fully persuaded that the Lord God was able to keep until the Day of His return all that which has been entrusted to Him (2 Timothy 1: 12). He also told Timothy not to be ashamed of the testimony of Jesus. When we are strong spiritually, we know Him, and we are persuaded by Him in the Secret Place.

We may appear strong at Church or around other believers, but the Lord, who looks at the heart, is not interested in how we appear in public. He is looking for the real thing, and the real thing is manifested in our Secret Place life.

David prophesied:

“O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent.”

Psalm 22:2

So many believers write to me or tell me that they feel God has abandoned them and they are alone. They explain that when they pray, they feel nothing and their prayers seem to bounce off the walls and ceilings. Well, we are given access to the Secret Place life of Jesus on the night He was betrayed. As Jesus prayed, it felt at times like the heavens were brass and He was abandoned and alone. His passion began in Gethsemane, which means the “oil press.” For Christ, He had come to the Garden many times, and here by the Temple Mount, He prayed. That night, all knew it was different. Things may have started with singing as they always did, but quickly, they sensed there was something in the air.

“My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”

Mark 14: 34

We can read those words and yet fail to appreciate the heart cry and desperation in Christ that night. During Christ’s Passion, we see Jesus in the Secret Place with the Father. He was not focused on man’s opinions or pleasing the crowds. He was left abandoned except for the Father, and it was the Father’s attention and fellowship He sought.

“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”

Luke 22: 40

In the Garden, we see that the disciples were overwhelmed with sorrow, pain, and grief. In the moment that was almost unbearable and Jesus felt alone, the Father sent an angel to strengthen Him. He was not seeking to abandon the mission, for He had stated that it was for the purpose of the Cross that He came. But He was about to become sin, and for Him, sin was everything He loathed. We downplay sin, but He knew exactly what sin is and what it causes.

The disciples didn’t understand that they were in a spiritual battle and they needed His help. We can’t overcome a spiritual battle or spiritual problem in the flesh because the flesh is too weak.

Further, they didn’t appreciate that it was the beginning of a transition season, and just as the violent storms come as spring shifts to summer, so the dawn of our salvation would come with the most violent storm launched from hell. Transition seasons are won or lost in the Secret Place. Every new season is preceded by a test the Master expects us to pass, and the key to doing so is our Secret Place life. If the Secret Place is sanctified unto Him, then here we meet with Him face-to-face and press forward in victory.

“He was oppressed and He was afflicted…”

Isaiah 53: 7a

The report of Isaiah 53 reveals that Jesus was our Provision and the One who would utterly defeat our enemy. We know that life is in the blood and “I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls (Leviticus 17: 11). The Passion of Jesus was indeed bloody as Jesus gave His blood for us.

Luke shared something powerful about Jesus when He was in the Garden:

“And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

Luke 22: 44

The medical term for what happened to Jesus is hematidrosis. What causes this to happen? There has been a vast amount of research into this, and it has been determined that in a significant number of cases, the cause of hematidrosis is a severe anxiety reaction triggered by fear. These studies have shown that it can come on due to highly elevated adrenaline levels, leading to severe anxiety. Adrenaline is part of a “fight-or-flight reaction.”

Anxiety is an abnormal and overwhelming sense of apprehension and fear marked by physical signs (such as tension, sweating, and increased pulse rate, breathlessness, a choking sensation, palpitations of the heart, muscular tension, tightness in the chest, and trembling).

They have discovered in the brain an area they call the “fear center” or amygdala, which sends out a defense alarm to the major centers in the brain. Once the danger passes, the body suddenly reverses course, and the heart rate slows down, blood pressure drops, and blood is diverted back to the skin and vessels of the sweat gland. As Jesus entered the Garden, He was hit by a massive attack, and His body went into fight-or-flight. He was about to take on our sin, and as the writer of Hebrews explained, we have not “yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin” (Hebrews 12: 4).

Paul explained that a major part of our warfare is the battle in the mind. The Greek word for agony is “agonia” and it means severe mental and emotional struggles, agony, and anguish. Now, remember Matthew gave us additional insight into what Jesus was going through, declaring He was extremely sorrowful and deeply distressed.

This deep distress would have caused His sympathetic autonomic response to kick in, causing His heart to pound. He would have broken into a cold sweat, appeared pale, His pupils would have dilated, his muscles tightened, and He would have felt weak.

We experience anxiety or fear of failing at something, and it is because of unbelief in our lives. Jesus was resisting sin. Remember, the key to overcoming is faith or our confidence in His ability to do in our lives what He promises He can do

The severe stress would have caused the brain to release catecholamines, which would have accelerated His heart rate, constricted blood vessels, raised his blood pressure, and diverted blood from nonessential areas. Jesus would have become fatigued, and His muscles would have felt weak. Such conditions can cause a person to collapse or fall.

“He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

Matthew 26: 39

Jesus fell on His face! He is resisting sin.

How often have we set out to pray, and we were tired, exhausted, had a headache, or whatever, and were not able to pray for very long? Yet, while it was critical that Jesus pray during this time, it was the hardest thing for Him to do physically.

“Then an angel appeared to Him from Heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

Luke 22: 43, 44

After surrendering to the will of the Father, Jesus was now able to overcome the Cross, and His body accepted His fate so that His heart rate slowed, and He would have begun sweating. Blood would have been diverted back so that color returned to His face and the sweat glands. The delicate capillaries around the sweat gland would have ruptured. So, the drops of blood were a symptom caused by Jesus severe mental suffering in resisting sin.

We have seen that Jesus experienced hematidrosis, or appearing to sweat blood. This would have made His skin tear more easily, and the irritated nerves would have affected the ability of the Body to regulate its temperature.

When He was held in the prison overnight, the guards on duty severely abused Christ’s Body. They would have struck Him in the solar plexus, the kidneys, or genitalia so as to inflict as much pain as possible. These soldiers would have only stopped when they were exhausted and perhaps saw it as sport. By the time He is presented to Pilate, His Body would have already been very swollen and bruised. It is also believed that the cistern in which Jesus was held captive was half-filled with water, meaning He could not sit down, and He would have been shivering.

Forensic scientists have also noted that this would have all worked to cause a general weakness, depression, mild to moderate dehydration, and a mild low blood volume. So even before He faced the Cross, He was greatly weakened and in a lot of pain.

“Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?’ When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”

Luke 22: 52b- 53

Now, we know a large army was sent to take Jesus captive, and from the moment He was arrested, He would endure torture. Not only had these men come to arrest Jesus, but also a horde from hell. Consequently, most have failed to appreciate just how severe the torture that Jesus endured was, and it was all for us. When He was brought before the high priest, we find:

“Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands. Saying ‘Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”

Matthew 26: 67, 68

Key Words

Beat: “Kolaphizo,” meaning to strike with the fist, to maltreat with violence and contumely.

Struck: “Rhapixzo.” Meaning to smite with a rod or staff or even the hand, and to box the ear

We also know the High Priest ripped off a piece of His beard.

“I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.”

Isaiah 50: 6

In the Shroud of Turin, part of the beard on His chin has been ripped out. Again, whether you accept the shroud or not, there is a lot we have learned about crucifixion and what Jesus suffered from it. The pulling out of part of His beard would have been physically agonizing or excruciating, as the face contains dense nerve endings and the skin is very sensitive. Ripping hair from the face can be significantly more painful than other forms of injury simply because of the way the body processes pain. The pain from pulling the hair travels along specialized nerves, making the pain hit the brain ten times faster than a pinprick or a burn.

The only way you can respond perfectly in such cases is by the depth of your Secret Place life being found in Him. Today, most believers have a five to ten-minute prayer life daily at best, while in times past, they prayed for hours/ Now, previous generations saw the fruit of their strong prayer lives and the strength of abiding in the Secret Place.

Jesus was held overnight in a pit where they were tied up. Luke states:

“Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him. And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, ‘Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You? And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.”

Luke 22: 63- 65

Key Words

Beat: “Dero,” meaning to flay, skin, to beat.

Struck: “Typto,” to thump, strike, smite with a staff, a whip, or the fist, and to wound

If we go back to what David prophesied in Psalm 22, we read:

“Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. They gape at Me with their mouths, like a raging and roaring lion.”

Psalm 22: 12, 13

As we have already explained all hell gathered together and was let loose on Jesus. These were mighty and strong bulls who encompassed Jesus. They launch a verbal attack and seek to inflict terror on Jesus. We must remember that Jesus could see into the spiritual realm and was fully aware of what was happening as He hung on that Cross. The Hebrew word for “raging” is “taraph,” and it means to tear, rend, pluck, and to tear into pieces. If we go back to the scourging, we can imagine the fear it must have invoked in the people. Jesus knew exactly what He was about to endure, and yet He in total obedience presented Himself.

Jesus is alone, enduring His Passion in the Secret Place.

“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of the law.”

Deuteronomy 29: 29

What we do in the secret place of our life defines us in our public life. Spiritual giants are forged in the fire of the Secret Place. These are those who endure severe trials, not relying on the strength of their might or skills, but in the power of His might in our lives, released in the Secret Place. Those who dwell in the Secret Place of His Presence can rejoice in the grave of what appears to be their defeat, knowing it is not over until the Lord moves.

When we make the Secret Place of our life sanctified unto Him, He comes and meets with us. Our precious Secret Place time is meant to be a time of refreshing, renewing, and restoring as we linger in His Presence. It is here where the weak are consumed in His strength and can say, “I am strong” (Joel 3: 10). Our Secret Place time belongs to Him, and the enemy knows this, so he seeks to kill, steal, and destroy. Paul wrote:

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own.”

1 Corinthians 6: 19

Key Words

Temple: “Naos,” which means the Holy of Holies

In this verse, Paul used the word, which means the Holy of Holies and not merely the Temple building. When we talk about the Secret Place, the Holy of Holies is a type and shadow of it. In the natural, you were not allowed access to the Holy of Holies, which was protected by a large, thick veil. But through what Jesus did on the Cross and what we see revealed in Isaiah 53, the veil was torn, and access was given.

As Paul explained, the Secret Place of our lives belongs to the Lord. But sadly, it is in the secret places of our lives that we so often fail and open the wrong doors. In Deuteronomy, chapter 28, we read the curse for disobedience.

“…And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul. Your life shall hang in doubt before you; you shall fear day and night, and have no assurance of life. In the morning you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were evening!’ And in the evening you shall say, ‘Oh that it were morning!’ because of the fear which terrifies your heart, and because of the sight which your eyes see.”

Deuteronomy 28: 65- 67

The word terror means an intense state of fear, violence, or the threat of violence being used as a weapon of intimidation or coercion. Terror steals from you the ability to simply live life. I grew up in Northern Ireland during the time of the “troubles,” and I recall how much terrorism stole from the people. If we look at the Children of Israel, we can see how the Lord has fulfilled His promise and brought them back and given them the land of Israel once again. He has promised that this time they will never lose the land again. Yet, of all the nations, they have to fight and seek to justify their existence.

The enemy loves to terrorize you so that while everyone can enjoy the basics of life, you are constantly forced to justify your right to have the mere basics. The enemy wants you to never relax and enjoy the blessing, but to walk constantly fearing that you are about to lose it all.

Now, if we study the Passion, we see how the enemy sought to terrorize Jesus, but little did he realize that Jesus was making an open triumph over it.

If we look at Jesus when He entered the Garden of Gethsemane, we read:

“And He took with Him Peter, and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, ‘My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me.”

Matthew 26: 37, 38

It is hard to imagine what Jesus went through in the Garden. The disciples knew something was happening, and we are told when Jesus came back, “He found them sleeping from sorrow” (Luke 22: 45). Jesus said to them…

“The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Matthew 26: 41

Jesus understood our weakness in the flesh, so He came in the flesh to overcome the enemy for us. While the enemy thought he was winning and defeating Jesus, the truth was, Jesus would walk away with a far-surpassing victory. The key is the intense pursuit of Him in the Secret Place. When Jesus was in agony, He didn’t pull back but pressed in and prayed with greater intensity.

We have seen that the Father gave Jesus (John 3: 16). He was the Provision for our full redemption. He was the expression and manifestation of the Father’s love for us, and the report of this love is revealed to us on the Cross, or in Isaiah 53.

“By this we know love, because he laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

1 John 3: 16

The enemy seeks to hold us through terror by convincing you that he is greater. But the enemy operating in total hate sought not just to kill Jesus but to destroy Him and everything about Him.

“You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

1 John 4: 4

How could Jesus overcome the terror of the enemy? Jesus said this before the Cross:

“These things I have spoken to you that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

John 16: 33

Paul said:

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4: 6, 7

Don’t let the enemy fill you with anxiety by coming into the Secret Place and asking the Lord.

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

John 14: 27

He gives us His brand of peace that has been stress-tested and won. His peace is proven, and if you will trust in Him, He will lead you in the victory He won. It all comes down to what report will we receive? Will we receive the report of Heaven revealed in Isaiah 53, or the terror report of the enemy?