The Full Atonement: The Suffering in the Garden.

It all seems to start at the garden. After the Passover meal with His disciples, Christ traveled out of the city of Jerusalem to the garden of Gethsemane. To add more significance to the garden think about what the word Gethsemane means.

The word Gethsemane means an olive press. Now how does an olive press add more significance to Christ going to a garden? For that answer we must compare the similarities of an olive press and Christ's Suffering in the garden.

The way an olive press works is first crushing the olives into a fine paste. After that the paste is put under immense pressure to get every drop of oil out of the olives. How does that compare to Christ Suffering?  It is because of the immense pressure of our sins that caused Him to bleed from every pore. (Luke 22:44)  It was in the garden that He pleaded to have the bitter cup of our transgressions taken from Him, but submitted to the will of the Father. (Mark 14:36) It was during the suffering in the garden that an angel came to strengthen and encourage Him. (Luke 22:43)

In the garden of Gethsemane Christ " borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows..."(Isaiah 53:4, Mosiah 14:4) The suffering did not end after the garden, but was truly just the beginning. Shortly after His suffering in the garden, Christ was betrayed by Judas, one of his own disciples. That night in the garden, Christ suffering had only begun.