Moments to Ponder

Thirst, Death, and Fulfillment: Understanding Jesus' Sacrifice

• Betsy Marvin • Season 15 • Episode 147

Share episode

Thought to share? Send me a text...

Jesus's journey to the cross reveals his complete humanity and profound love as he fulfills numerous prophecies through his final moments, culminating in his ultimate sacrifice for humanity's redemption.

• Walking through Jerusalem's streets multiple times during his final 24 hours, Jesus becomes increasingly beaten and weak with each journey
• Jesus's words "I am thirsty" fulfill scripture while revealing both his physical humanity and spiritual thirst for relationship with us
• The Roman soldiers' offer of sour wine on a hyssop branch creates a powerful connection to Passover symbolism
• When Jesus declares "It is finished," he announces the complete fulfillment of his mission to save humanity
• Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, formerly secret disciples, honor Jesus with a royal burial, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy
• At least 20 Old Testament prophecies are fulfilled during Jesus's final 24 hours
• Though the disciples faced a night of confusion, grief, and fear, Sunday's resurrection was coming

Let's remember that Jesus thirsted for you and me, giving his life so we could have forgiveness and eternal life.


To read my blog, find out more about me, or to book a speaking engagement, head to
https://betsymarvin.com/

For access to past podcasts and transcripts, head to
https://betsymarvin.com/podcasts/

You can follow me on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/betsyjmarvin/
and Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/betsy.marvin.98

Speaker 1:

Hey friends, welcome to Moments to Ponder. This is a podcast designed to help you spend a few moments in God's Word, gain fresh perspectives and find meaningful takeaways to ponder throughout your week. I'm Betsy Marvin and this is Episode 147. As we finish out, john 19 today, we have a lot to cover, so we're going to dive right in.

Speaker 1:

It had been a long 24 hours. I mean think about it Beginning with the long meal, followed by a prayer walk through the city and then time spent in a garden where Jesus prayed. It has been a long night. And then, late in the evening, a large contingent of soldiers show up and take Jesus away from the garden to stand before one high priest and then another high priest, and after a full night has passed, jesus is brought in the morning before Pilate. From Pilate, jesus was sent to Herod who, after some brutality, sends Jesus back to Pilate.

Speaker 1:

You know, I hadn't really realized before how many times Jesus passed through the streets of Jerusalem in this process. I know it's not a small city, but it seems like Jesus continues to travel the same road, surrounded by soldiers. I mean, people couldn't help but notice right, as he went from one house and then back to the other and then back to the other, the other and then back to the other, and then, after what I assume was a public flogging, jesus took his final walk, carrying the crossbeam on his way to Golgotha. Each time he was seen, he was more beat up, more weak. And, I wonder, did the crowd grow as the day went on, some spitting on him and yelling insults, while others just wept the disciples like? Did they see him from hidden alleyways or upper windows as they watched helplessly in fear? And what would it have been like to see the man that had fed thousands and healed so many being led through the streets like a criminal? We see a lot of violence in our world. We see riots on the news or hatred on our social media, and I don't think, though, in all of that, and I don't think, though, in all of that, that we can fully comprehend the sheer dehumanizing brutality of Roman crucifixion. The Romans had perfected crucifixion, the painful road toward death. I mean, they were good at it. And this wasn't just done to Jesus right. This was a Roman form of punishment that they used all the time.

Speaker 1:

As we begin with verse 28 in John 19, we need to remember that Jesus spent on the cross for about three hours and he said a few words as he's hung there words of forgiveness, words of entrusting care, words of forsakenness. And now he's going to say just a couple more Verse 28. Jesus knew that his mission was now finished and to fulfill scripture, he said I am thirsty. A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch and held it up to his lips. When Jesus had tasted it, he said it is finished. And he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Speaker 1:

With all that Jesus has done turning water to wine, raising Lazarus from the dead it can be easy to forget that he was also fully human, as well as being fully God. The forgiveness and promise of paradise were divinely given right. But his thirst reminds us that he's human. Jesus had human emotions and human needs. Jesus most likely hasn't had food since the supper with his disciples, and who knows about something to drink? So, after all the blood loss and pain and trauma, jesus is dehydrated. If he was to receive a drink, someone was going to have to help him. I mean, he's completely at the mercy of the soldiers In Mark 15, we read that earlier when they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha, meaning place of the skull, they offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it, and in that time myrrh was a painkiller.

Speaker 1:

So by drinking the wine, jesus would have dulled the pain of what was to come, but he didn't drink it. We don't know why, but without it he took the full brunt of all the pain. And now, as he prepares to say his final words, his dry mouth can't get the words out. He didn't call down angels to ease his pain. He didn't just make himself not thirsty, he didn't heal his wounds. Out of obedience, humility and love, god put himself on the cross. And love God put himself on the cross.

Speaker 1:

I wrote a sermon on these verses during Lent this year and I'd like to share with you some of what I learned in my research. So let's go back to verse 28. Again, jesus knew that his mission was now finished. And to fulfill scripture he said I'm thirsty. At least 20 Old Testament prophecies are fulfilled during the last 24 hours surrounding Jesus' death. So when it says to fulfill scripture, he's been doing that all along.

Speaker 1:

And then we read this in Psalm 22. My strength has dried up like sun-baked clay. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have laid me in the dust and left me for dead. If you've ever had such a dry mouth that your tongue sticks to the roof of your mouth, then you know how much Jesus needed a drink. Yet Jesus isn't just thirsty. Right, he's fulfilling prophecy In Psalm 69, we read these words.

Speaker 1:

But instead they gave me poison for food. They offer me sour wine for my thirst. Poison, the myrrh, sour wine for his thirst. At this point Jesus has fulfilled all the scripture that he possibly can. Then we read in verse 29,. A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch and held it to his lips. A sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch and held it to his lips. So the soldiers are there and I'm sure they heard many requests come from the people on crosses, but for some reason they actually listen and take action on what Jesus is asking for. I mean, the soldiers hear Jesus's scratchy voice say I'm thirsty, and they look around and see a jar of sour wine sitting there. It's there because it belongs to the soldiers. They call it Pascha. Pascha was a mix of water and wine vinegar. That was used for a lot of things in Roman times, like medicine or even cleaning wounds, but it was also used for hydration. In fact, it's often referred to as the Gatorade of the Roman world. Crucifixion could take hours. This would have been a really long day for soldiers just standing there watching and waiting. So it makes sense that they would have their Gatorade close at hand. So it makes sense that they would have their Gatorade close at hand.

Speaker 1:

I've often read this moment with the soldiers and their sour wine as a mockery, giving Jesus such a sour drink when he is so thirsty. But as I studied it I realized that that might not be the case In reality. We see the soldiers were sharing what they had. They knew it would quench the thirst of Jesus, so was it actually a moment of mercy instead of mockery? John also notes in verse 29 that soldiers used a hyssop branch to reach up to Jesus. That soldiers used a hyssop branch to reach up to Jesus. Interestingly, it's Passover right and every Jew present knew that a hyssop branch was used to put the blood of the lamb over the doorposts. John is so aware of this and the connection between the Passover lamb and Jesus these two verses show us that his mission is done, his fulfillment of scripture complete and the blood of the final Passover lamb, the final sacrifice whose blood was shed to bring life. And it all comes through the words.

Speaker 1:

I am thirsty and as I looked at this and thought about it, I had to wonder yes, he was thirsty physically, but was he also soul dry? I mean, in that moment is Jesus spiritually thirsty? He's feeling forsaken by his father, his disciples. Who knows where they are? But Jesus had a strong desire to do his father's will and to show love and to open a way for forgiveness and to fulfill all the prophecies. Yet he thirsted for intimacy with his father. He took the separation from God upon himself and the sting of death because, ultimately, jesus thirsted for you, his desire was for you. Jesus put himself on that cross, he placed himself in the most vulnerable of positions because of his love for you. His desire, his thirst for you Put him there and, with his mission done and scripture fulfilled, he finally says teleo, meaning it's done, paid in full, and he gives up his spirit. And he gives up his spirit, verse 31.

Speaker 1:

It was the day of preparation and the Jewish leaders didn't want the bodies hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath, and a very special Sabbath because it was Passover week. So they asked Pilate to hasten their deaths by ordering that their legs be broken. Then their bodies could be taken down. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus they saw that he was already dead, so they didn't break his legs. One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear and immediately blood and water flowed out.

Speaker 1:

This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe. These things happen in fulfillment of the scriptures that say not one of his bones will be broken and they will look on the one they pierced. More scripture fulfilled, not a bone broken and his side pierced. I discovered that it was normal practice to break the legs of those on the cross to hurry their death. The choice of the soldiers not to break Jesus's leg would have been in direct disobedience of an order, but they didn't break his legs. Instead, one soldier decides to pierce his side, which would have been a death blow if Jesus were not already gone. The detail of blood and water flowing out is an interesting detail as well because of what it tells us. It's a little graphic, but it's important to note for those that think Jesus didn't really die.

Speaker 1:

After someone dies, bodily fluids separate and although we don't know whether the spear punctured Jesus' heart or not, the point in the two separate fluids show that Jesus had already been dead. John follows this with. I was there. This is true. I'm the eyewitness. I saw him pierced. Jesus was dead and this is so important because of what is to come. Verse 38.

Speaker 1:

Afterward, joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus, because he feared the Jewish leaders, asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus's body. Leaders asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus' body. When Pilate gave permission, joseph came and took the body away. With him came Nicodemus, the man who had come to see Jesus at night. He brought about 75 pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. Following Jewish custom, they wrapped Jesus' body with the spices in long sheets of linen cloth. The place of crucifixion was near a garden where there was a new tomb never used before, and so, because it was the day of preparation for the Jewish Passover and since the tomb was close at hand. They laid Jesus there.

Speaker 1:

No longer following Jesus secretly, joseph and Nicodemus come together to honor Jesus' body with spices and linen. In order to wrap him, they would have had to carefully wash him, removing any foreign matter. I imagine that the room was silent, as it could be as they ministered to him. Their tears are flowing. You can hear the water dripping in the basins. There's an understanding that they need to hurry. Evening is coming, sabbath is almost here, yet they had so much to do. They would have had to remove any thorns that were still on his head and wash the blood and sweat from his hair. They would have seen all the bruises on his face and the bare areas where his beard had been pulled out. As they turned him over, they would have had to pull the splinters from his back Each one, I'm sure, was removed with loving care. They would have seen his crushed hands and feet, the gaping wound on his side, below his ribs, and they would have wrapped them with such care.

Speaker 1:

What an incredible act of love done by two men that generously loved Jesus. In this moment, from the abundance of spices to this brand new tomb, they honored their king. This moment fulfilled prophecy as well In Isaiah 53, 9,. It tells us that he was buried like a criminal and he was put in a rich man's grave. These two rich men did what servants would normally do. These men knew they had to do it and I'm sure the image of Jesus' broken body never left these men For the rest of their lives. They would remember the smell of myrrh and the aloes.

Speaker 1:

It was a holy moment for them, but also a desperate one. Jesus is laid in a tomb, a stone rolled in front of the entrance as night falls and Sabbath begins. For many it was just another Passover week, albeit a pretty exciting one. But for John and the others it had to have been so heartbreaking and confusing. As night came, disillusionment, grief and fear, totally bewildered by what had happened to the one they love. Just a week ago they were singing a parade celebrated by everyone, and now they're outcasts hiding in a room Dear one.

Speaker 1:

These verses are full of rich prophecy fulfilled, but they're also so hard. Rich prophecy fulfilled, but they're also so hard Thirst. A final breath, the piercing of his side, the careful burial. It is only a few verses, but it is the culmination of thousands of years of waiting. And even with all of that these verses are personal. Jesus, thirsted for you, he gave his life. He was focused on that mission, his entire life focused on you and on me and all of those who would come to believe. And he accomplished it all, even unto death, finishing the work his father had given him to do in order to offer us forgiveness and life. But that is to come. So, as we close our time together, we are in the time of waiting. Our time together, we are in the time of waiting. The tomb is quiet, but Sunday is coming. Thanks be to God, amen.