He Chose the Cup for Us
Month 11: The Cross & the Empty Tomb · Family Worship
Today's Scripture
Read together: John 18:1-11
1 After Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the Kidron Valley, where they entered a garden. 2 Now Judas His betrayer also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with His disciples. 3 So Judas brought a band of soldiers and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees. They arrived at the garden carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons. 4 Jesus, knowing all that was coming upon Him, stepped forward and asked them, “Whom are you seeking?” 5 “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. Jesus said, “I am He.” And Judas His betrayer was standing there with them. 6 When Jesus said, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground. 7 So He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. 8 “I told you that I am He,” Jesus replied. “So if you are looking for Me, let these men go.” 9 This was to fulfill the word He had spoken: “I have not lost one of those You have given Me.” 10 Then Simon Peter drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus. 11 “Put your sword back in its sheath!” Jesus said to Peter. “Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given Me?”
Memory Verse
“Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.””— Matthew 26:39 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: John 1-3
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (The Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, and "you must be born again.")The Heart of It
Tonight we gather everything this week has shown us into one scene. John tells the garden story with one detail no other Gospel records. When the soldiers came and Jesus said, "I am He," they "drew back and fell to the ground" (). For one flash, the glory of who Jesus is broke through, and an armed mob collapsed before Him. He was never overpowered. No one took His life. He laid it down (). He could have spoken one more word and walked free. Instead He calmly asked that His friends be let go. And when Peter swung his sword, Jesus said the words that crown our whole week: "Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?" ().
There it is. It was the same "cup" He had begged the Father to take away in the garden. Now He lifted it willingly to His own lips. In Gethsemane He prayed, "Not My will, but Yours." Here He proves He meant it. The cup was the cross. It held our sin, our judgment, and our death. All of it. And Jesus, who could have set it down, chose to drink it to the bottom for us. This is the heart of the Gospel, and a perfect place for our family to worship. We did nothing to deserve it. We could never have rescued ourselves. But Jesus loved us enough to pray the hardest prayer. Then He walked out of the garden and drank the cup we deserved, so that we could be forgiven and brought home to God. The only fitting response is to thank Him, to trust Him, and to give Him our hearts.
Around the Table
When the soldiers came, they fell down just because Jesus said, "I am He." He was never weak! He let them take Him on purpose, because He chose to rescue us. Jesus loves you that much.
Let's do it: Take turns finishing this sentence out loud: "Thank You, Jesus, for ______." Then sing a song you love about Jesus together.
Jesus wasn't trapped. The soldiers fell to the ground, and He could have walked away. He chose to "drink the cup" and go to the cross, because He loves us and wanted to obey His Father.
Let's talk: This week's verse was "Not My will, but Yours." Where in do you see Jesus actually doing what He prayed?
The soldiers drew back and fell to the ground. That showed Jesus' authority right up to the arrest. The cross was chosen, not forced. Trace the line from "let this cup pass" in the garden to "shall I not drink the cup" here. Prayer became obedience.
Let's go deeper: Jesus could have escaped at any moment. He chose the cup instead. What does that tell you about how He feels toward you?
💬 Conversation Starter
Jesus chose the cross for you. If you could say one thing to Him for that, what would you say?— Let's each say it out loud as a family tonight.
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Some say Jesus was a tragic victim, crushed by powers beyond His control. But John shows the arresting party falling to the ground at His word. Jesus was in command the whole time. He wasn't a helpless victim. He was a willing Savior who laid His life down.
For Dad · Go Deeper
Family worship is the place to let the cross land not as information but as adoration. This week your children learned the mechanics. They learned about the supper, the garden prayer, the prophecies, and the betrayal. But tonight is for the why. "Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?" The cup imagery runs deep through Scripture as the cup of God's wrath against sin (; ). The wonder of the Gospel is that the Judge drank His own cup in our place. John Stott called this "the self-substitution of God." Hold this out to your kids as good news for all of them. Christ died for the whole world (). The cup was drained for everyone, and the invitation is genuinely open to each child at your table. But press gently for a real response, not just polite agreement. Salvation comes by a real faith that receives Him (). Tonight, don't just explain the cross. Invite your children to come. Ask if anyone wants to thank Jesus for choosing the cup, or to give their heart to Him for the first time. The most important thing a father ever does is lead his children to the foot of the cross and let them say yes.
Draws on: John Stott, The Cross of Christ.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that Jesus was never trapped. He chose the cup. He chose the cross. He chose us. He drank the cup we deserved, so we could come home to You. Tonight we give You our hearts. We thank You with all that we are. In Jesus' name, amen."
Jesus wasn't a victim. He willingly drank the cup of the cross, for me.