Jesus Devotional - Day 24
Day Twenty-Four
Jesus: Real, Relevant, and Radical!
It is Finished
Mark 15:23(NLT) They offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it.
John 19:28-30(NIV) Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Twice on the cross, Jesus was offered something to drink. The first drink was wine mixed with myrrh. This drink was given as an act of mercy, paid for by an association of Jewish women in Jerusalem. It was a way of lessening consciousness to help alleviate the pain of those who were executed. Jesus refused it. He was determined to face the agony and pain of the cross fully conscious. Fulfilling what Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 50:6-7(NLT) “I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting. 7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, I have set my face like a stone, determined to do his will. And I know that I will not be put to shame,”
Jesus set His face like a flint. Flintstone is very hard, and if you strike it against metal, it sparks. If you think Sylvester Stallone is the first “Rocky,” you are wrong. Jesus is, and will forever be our Rock. Jesus refuses to take the easy way. Then, John comes along and writes these incredible words: “Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled”, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.” John makes a profound statement, saying Jesus knew that everything that needed to be done to fulfill the Scripture was finished. Then He speaks and says, “I am thirsty”. They offered Jesus wine vinegar or sour wine. This drink is made of grape juice and yeast. Like we said yesterday, it was used as a refreshing drink by soldiers and farm workers. They soaked a sponge, then lifted it to Jesus’ mouth. To do this, they used the stalk of a hyssop plant. Jesus refuses the first drink (wine drugged with myrrh) but accepts the second one, which is wine vinegar.
I believe Jesus drinks the second drink for two reasons. First, He drinks because what follows completely fulfills Scripture. Yeast is used in the Bible as a symbol for sin. Jesus is the perfect Passover Lamb because He has no sin within Himself. By drinking the fermented wine vinegar, Jesus shows that He has taken the sin of the world upon Himself. Remember what Moses told the Israelites: Exodus 12(NLT) V5 “The animal you select must be a one-year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, with no defects.”
V8 That same night they must roast the meat over a fire and eat it along with bitter salad greens and bread made without yeast.”
“V22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.”
We see in the Bible (Leviticus 14) that hyssop was used for the ceremonial cleansing of people and places. David, after he sinned, prayed this in Psalm 51:7(ESV) “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” The blood of the lambs was applied to the doorposts during Passover, and once the blood was applied, no one was allowed to go out until the next morning. By going through the door that has the blood of the lambs applied to it, the Israelites are saved. We, by going through the Door who is Christ, receive forgiveness for our sin through His blood. The Holy Spirit applies the Blood of Jesus to our lives and acts like the Divine Hyssop that cleanses us completely.
Secondly, Jesus drinks to make a proclamation that everyone can hear. Just like a soldier who has completed his orders from his commanding officer, Jesus drinks. Just like a worker who has finished planting seeds for a harvest, Jesus drinks. Jesus, our victorious Champion, has won the battle. Jesus, the Promised Seed that would crush the serpent's head, is finished. Genesis 3:15(NKJV) “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
Galatians 3:16(NIV) “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed’ meaning one person, who is Christ. The Seed that would release many from the curse of the law has come. 19(a) Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come.”
The law could not save us, but the Seed of Abraham will save us. Jesus wanted everyone to hear this message. John makes it clear that Jesus knew what was going on around Him. He is not in a derelict semi-conscious state. He is fully aware. He understands that He is the Passover Lamb. He knows He is the Door. He knows we all need to hear these words: “IT IS FINISHED.” Do you feel the weight of those words? Let them resonate deeply within your soul. What is finished? The old is finished. The blood of bulls and goats is no longer needed. No more waiting in line to make an offering for sin. No more waiting for the high priest to emerge from behind the veil and breathe a sigh of relief for another year. God's presence is no longer confined to a temple; we are now His temple.
Jesus completely fulfills all requirements of the law. Everything I could not do, no matter how hard I tried, He nailed it to the cross. Colossians 2:14-15(NLT) “He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”
If your heart is heavy with the guilt of your sin, remind yourself that it is finished. When the devil reminds you of your past, remind him that he is finished. Yes! Jubilee has come. Freedom for the captives has arrived. The weight of my own sin is dealt with at the cross. Our Champion has finished the battle and emerged victorious. Just like a Champion, Jesus finishes with a Victor’s cry. How does He do it? He started by quoting the first verse of Psalm 22, and He ends by quoting the last. See if you recognize these words.
Psalm 22:30-31(AMP) “Posterity will serve Him; They will tell of the Lord to the next generation.31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people yet to be born—that He has done it [and that it is finished].”
Prayer:
Jesus: Real, Relevant, and Radical!
It is Finished
Mark 15:23(NLT) They offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it.
John 19:28-30(NIV) Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Twice on the cross, Jesus was offered something to drink. The first drink was wine mixed with myrrh. This drink was given as an act of mercy, paid for by an association of Jewish women in Jerusalem. It was a way of lessening consciousness to help alleviate the pain of those who were executed. Jesus refused it. He was determined to face the agony and pain of the cross fully conscious. Fulfilling what Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 50:6-7(NLT) “I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting. 7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, I have set my face like a stone, determined to do his will. And I know that I will not be put to shame,”
Jesus set His face like a flint. Flintstone is very hard, and if you strike it against metal, it sparks. If you think Sylvester Stallone is the first “Rocky,” you are wrong. Jesus is, and will forever be our Rock. Jesus refuses to take the easy way. Then, John comes along and writes these incredible words: “Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled”, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.” John makes a profound statement, saying Jesus knew that everything that needed to be done to fulfill the Scripture was finished. Then He speaks and says, “I am thirsty”. They offered Jesus wine vinegar or sour wine. This drink is made of grape juice and yeast. Like we said yesterday, it was used as a refreshing drink by soldiers and farm workers. They soaked a sponge, then lifted it to Jesus’ mouth. To do this, they used the stalk of a hyssop plant. Jesus refuses the first drink (wine drugged with myrrh) but accepts the second one, which is wine vinegar.
I believe Jesus drinks the second drink for two reasons. First, He drinks because what follows completely fulfills Scripture. Yeast is used in the Bible as a symbol for sin. Jesus is the perfect Passover Lamb because He has no sin within Himself. By drinking the fermented wine vinegar, Jesus shows that He has taken the sin of the world upon Himself. Remember what Moses told the Israelites: Exodus 12(NLT) V5 “The animal you select must be a one-year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, with no defects.”
V8 That same night they must roast the meat over a fire and eat it along with bitter salad greens and bread made without yeast.”
“V22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.”
We see in the Bible (Leviticus 14) that hyssop was used for the ceremonial cleansing of people and places. David, after he sinned, prayed this in Psalm 51:7(ESV) “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” The blood of the lambs was applied to the doorposts during Passover, and once the blood was applied, no one was allowed to go out until the next morning. By going through the door that has the blood of the lambs applied to it, the Israelites are saved. We, by going through the Door who is Christ, receive forgiveness for our sin through His blood. The Holy Spirit applies the Blood of Jesus to our lives and acts like the Divine Hyssop that cleanses us completely.
Secondly, Jesus drinks to make a proclamation that everyone can hear. Just like a soldier who has completed his orders from his commanding officer, Jesus drinks. Just like a worker who has finished planting seeds for a harvest, Jesus drinks. Jesus, our victorious Champion, has won the battle. Jesus, the Promised Seed that would crush the serpent's head, is finished. Genesis 3:15(NKJV) “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
Galatians 3:16(NIV) “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed’ meaning one person, who is Christ. The Seed that would release many from the curse of the law has come. 19(a) Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come.”
The law could not save us, but the Seed of Abraham will save us. Jesus wanted everyone to hear this message. John makes it clear that Jesus knew what was going on around Him. He is not in a derelict semi-conscious state. He is fully aware. He understands that He is the Passover Lamb. He knows He is the Door. He knows we all need to hear these words: “IT IS FINISHED.” Do you feel the weight of those words? Let them resonate deeply within your soul. What is finished? The old is finished. The blood of bulls and goats is no longer needed. No more waiting in line to make an offering for sin. No more waiting for the high priest to emerge from behind the veil and breathe a sigh of relief for another year. God's presence is no longer confined to a temple; we are now His temple.
Jesus completely fulfills all requirements of the law. Everything I could not do, no matter how hard I tried, He nailed it to the cross. Colossians 2:14-15(NLT) “He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”
If your heart is heavy with the guilt of your sin, remind yourself that it is finished. When the devil reminds you of your past, remind him that he is finished. Yes! Jubilee has come. Freedom for the captives has arrived. The weight of my own sin is dealt with at the cross. Our Champion has finished the battle and emerged victorious. Just like a Champion, Jesus finishes with a Victor’s cry. How does He do it? He started by quoting the first verse of Psalm 22, and He ends by quoting the last. See if you recognize these words.
Psalm 22:30-31(AMP) “Posterity will serve Him; They will tell of the Lord to the next generation.31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people yet to be born—that He has done it [and that it is finished].”
Prayer:
- Cast all your anxiety, fears, and guilt on Him.
- Thank the Lord Jesus for His complete and finished work on the cross.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to empower you to live in the freedom that Jesus bought for you.
- Pray that others will experience this freedom, which can only be accessed by going through the Door.
Posted in Jesus Devotional