The Road to the Cross (Part Two): Yielding

Daily Scripture Threshing for Today, Friday, April 3, 2026

Today’s Text: Luke 22:39–46

Key Verse: “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” — Luke 22:44 (KJV)

Part two of “The Road to the Cross” brings us into Gethsemane, the place where surrender became visible and obedience became costly. The road to the cross did not begin at Calvary; it passed first through a garden where Jesus wrestled in prayer, confronted sorrow, and yielded His will to the Father. In Luke 22, we see not weakness but holy resolve. We see not defeat but submission. We see the Son of God facing the weight of redemption and choosing to obey even when obedience hurt. Gethsemane reveals that before the nails came the prayer, and before the cross came the surrender.

Jesus’ agony in the garden teaches us that the road to the cross is often paved with inner conflict. He was “in an agony,” yet He did not turn away from the Father’s will. Instead, “he prayed more earnestly.” That is the pattern for every believer: when the burden deepens, prayer must deepen. Gethsemane is where the flesh resists, but the spirit learns to yield. It is where our desires are brought under divine authority and where our hearts are aligned with heaven. The Lord’s prayer, “not my will, but thine, be done,” remains the language of every mature disciple. On the road to the cross, surrender is not passive resignation; it is active trust in the wisdom and goodness of God.

This passage also reminds us that spiritual strength is not the absence of tears. Jesus sweat great drops of blood, showing that holy obedience can be accompanied by deep distress. Some of the hardest moments in the believer’s journey are not on the outside, but in the secret place of decision. Yet it was in that prayerful struggle that Jesus emerged ready for the cup, ready for betrayal, and ready for the cross. The same is true for us: when we meet God in our Gethsemane, He strengthens us to face what is ahead. The road to the cross is not traveled by emotional power alone, but by a will fully submitted to God.

Action Steps: Today, bring your own Gethsemane before the Lord. Name the thing you are struggling to surrender and pray honestly about it. Ask the Father to align your will with His, even when the path is painful or unclear. Do not hide your sorrow from God; pour it out before Him and wait for His strength. Set aside time for earnest prayer, because many victories are won in the garden before they are seen in public. Walk through this day with the prayer of Jesus on your lips: “Not my will, but thine, be done.”

Quote for the Day: “In Gethsemane, surrender is not the end of strength; it is the beginning of victory.” — (Simon Olatunji #quotablequote)

Let Us Pray: Heavenly Father, thank You for showing me the path of Jesus in Gethsemane. Teach me to pray when I am under pressure and to yield when my flesh resists Your will. Help me to trust You with my sorrow, my uncertainty, and my fears. Give me grace to say, not my will, but Yours be done. Strengthen me for the road ahead, and let my obedience honor You in every season. In Jesus’s mighty name, Amen.

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Thank you for threshing the Word with me today. For further study on this topic, please read: Matthew 26:36–46; Hebrews 5:7–9; Philippians 2:5–8.

With love and prayers,

Simon Wale Olatunji, Ph.D.

Your Darling Bishop (DaBishop)

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