John 19:28-29. 28After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” 29A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth.
Have you ever been really thirsty? I’m sure you have. I have been too. When Jesus was on the cross he was very thirsty too. It’s very normal to be thirsty, especially when you are going through something really hard like Jesus was on the cross. So why does the Bible record that Jesus said I thirst? Isn’t that obvious?
Look at what John says in our verses. He’s not just saying that Jesus was thirsty, he’s saying that Jesus was fulfilling the scriptures. What does that mean? It means that Jesus when Jesus said I thirst; he was fulfilling a prophecy. Prophecy? Do you remember what a prophecy is? Here is the scripture that Jesus was fulfilling:
Psalm 69:16-21. 16Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good; according to your abundant mercy, turn to me. 17Hide not your face from your servant, for I am in distress; make haste to answer me. 18Draw near to my soul, redeem me; ransom me because of my enemies! 19You know my reproach, and my shame and my dishonor; my foes are all known to you. 20Reproaches have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none. 21They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me sour wine to drink.
You see, it’s not just about Jesus being thirsty, but about Jesus going through everything that Psalm 69 says – distress, reproach, shame and dishonor. Jesus took all these bad things for us. And that’s what the cup of sour wine is symbol or picture of – Jesus drinking our sins. Our sins? Yes, sour wine is made with yeast. People put yeast in bread to make it rise and get fluffy. But yeast was also a symbol of sin. At Passover, everyone had to make sure there was no yeast anywhere in their house. This was a picture of getting rid of sin from your life.
But on the cross, Jesus drank the wine mixed with yeast. Jesus “drank” our sins.
John also says that the soldiers gave Jesus the wine from a hyssop branch. This is another picture. At the original Passover people painted the blood of the Passover lamb on to the doorposts of their house with a hyssop branch. Now, on the cross, the hyssop branch is used to point to the blood of Jesus on the cross.
Jesus took our sin into himself like a drink, but he took away all our sin by his blood shed on the cross. That’s why John says that Jesus knew that all was now finished (we’ll talk more about that tomorrow).
Jesus was thirsty physically, but he didn’t get water, he got gross sour wine. Jesus was thirsty spiritually, but he wasn’t saved from the cross, he went through everything a terrible sinner like you and me must go through. Like that gross sour wine, he took our sin for us. Why? So that when he arose from the grave he might be the living water for all who are thirsty. This is how Jesus described himself earlier in John’s gospel:
John 7:37-39. 37On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” 39Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
Jesus quenches our thirst not by giving us actual water, but by giving us the Holy Spirit as the living water that never runs out. When we thirst for love, he loves us. When we thirst for joy, he makes us happy. When we thirst for peace, he reminds us that he is in control. When we thirst for hope, he reminds us that we will go to Heaven to be with him forever.
Now, let’s this Water of Jesus with all who are thirsty.
You: Think about being thirsty for water and how good a drink of cold water feels.
You with Jesus: Now think about being thirsty for things like kindness and being accepted. How does Jesus “quench” that thirst for us?
Prayer: Father, I need so many things and sometimes I feel very thirsty inside my heart. Thank you Jesus for being living water that always gives me what my heart needs. Amen.
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