Hast thou laid thy hand upon his head, confessed thy sin, and trusted in him? Do not forget, also, that you bear this cross in partnership. He must love his chosen whom he has once begun to love, for he is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. Coming fresh from the country, not knowing what was going on, he joined with the mob, and they made him carry the cross. I show unto you a more excellent way. It is that he may eat and drink with you, for he promises that if we open to him he will enter in and sup with us and we with him. Holy Scripture remains the basis of our faith, established by every word and act of our Redeemer. Though bitter to him in the speaking it will be sweet to us in the hearing, so sweet that all the bitterness of our trials shall be forgotten as we remember the vinegar and gall of which he drank. What knocks he for? We care, however, far more for the fact that he went forth carrying his cross upon his shoulders. Now Christ standing in the stead of the ungodly suffers thirst as a type of his enduring the result of sin. The whole universe shall hiss you; angels shall be ashamed of you; your own friends, yes, your sainted mother, shall say "Amen" to your condemnation; and those who loved you best shall sit as assessors with Christ to judge you and condemn you! John 19:7-8. . They are created in the minds of men. Whether a disciple then or not, we have every reason to believe that he became so afterwards; he was the father, we read, of Alexander and Rufus, two persons who appear to have been well known in the early Church; let us hope that salvation came to his house when he was compelled to bear the Savior's cross. I like to think of our Lord's saying, "It is finished," directly after he had exclaimed, "I thirst"; for these two voices come so naturally together. Remember, dear friends, that what Christ suffered for us, these unregenerate ones must suffer for themselves, except they put their trust in Christ. 1 So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him. I differ from them greatly, but I will say this, that next to the actual enjoyment of my Lord's presence I love to hunger and to thirst after him. Your Prince is surrounded by a multitude of friends; hark how they joyously welcome him! Did we not do so years ago before we knew him? Christ does exempt you from sin, but not from sorrow; he does take the curse of the cross, but he does not take the cross of the curse away from you. Say not that the comparison is strained, for in a moment I will withdraw it and present the contrast. you that are ashamed of Christ, how can you read that text, "He that is ashamed of me, and of my words, of him will I be ashamed when I come in the glory of my Father, and all my holy angels with me." There can be no shadow of doubt but that our Lord was really crucified, and no one substituted for him. The woes which broke the Savior's heart must crush theirs. Beloved, if our Master said, "I thirst," do we expect every day to drink of streams from Lebanon? January 1, 1970 A Plain Answer to an Important Enquiry "Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." John vi. When they had mocked him they pulled off the purple garment he had worn, this rough operation would cause much pain. Separately or in connection our Master's words overflow with instruction to thoughtful minds: but of all save one I must say, "Of which we cannot now speak particularly." For several Sabbath mornings my mind has been directed into subjects which I might fitly call the deep things of God. O thou blessed Master, if we are indeed nailed up to the tree with thee, give us a thirst after thee with a thirst which only the cup of "the new covenant in thy blood" can ever satisfy. Weep not for him, but for these. are they not more like sharp vinegar? The lictors executed their cruel office upon his shoulders with their rods and scourges, until the stripes had reached the full number. The Redeemer's cry of "I thirst" is a solemn lesson of patience to his afflicted. Fix your hearts upon some unsaved one, and thirst until he is saved. Like the steps of a ladder or the links of a golden chain, there is a mutual dependence and interlinking of each of the cries, so that one leads to another and that to a third. A carnal appetite of the body, the satisfaction of the desire for food, first brought us down under the first Adam, and now the pang of thirst, the denial of what the body craved for, restores us to our place. Conservative, but not too much depth. Some of these were persons of considerable rank; many of them had ministered to him of their substance; amidst the din and howling of the crowd, and the noise of the soldiery, they raised an exceeding loud and bitter cry, like Rachel weeping for her children, who would not be comforted, because they were not. The power to suffer for another, the capacity to be self-denying even to an extreme to accomplish some great work for God this is a thing to be sought after, and must be gained before our work is done, and in this Jesus is before us our example and our strength. He poureth out the streams that run among the hills, the torrents which rush adown the mountains, and the flowing rivers which enrich the plains. Shall carnal appetites be indulged and bodies pampered when Jesus cried :I thirst"? What if the bread be dry, what if the medicine be nauseous; yet for his thirst there was no relief but gall and vinegar, and dare we complain? He thirsts to bless you and to receive your grateful love in return; he thirsts to see you looking with believing eye to his fulness, and holding out your emptiness that he may supply it. Come to him in prayer, come to him in fellowship, come to him by perfect consecration, come to him by surrendering your whole being to the sweet mysterious influences of his Spirit. I do not know how far it was from Pilate's house to the Mount of Doom. Exposition of the Gospel according to John by Hendriksen, William, 1900-1982 (1953) 526 pages 19 ratings May God deliver you! Some of those whom we loved very dearly we have seen quite unable to help themselves; the death sweat has been upon them, and this has been one of the marks of their approaching dissolution, that they have been parched with thirst, and could only mutter between their half-closed lips, "Give me to drink." Our sinful tongues, blistered by the fever of passion, must have burned for ever had not his tongue been tormented with thirst in our stead. It was one of Death's castles; here he stored his gloomiest trophies; he was the grim lord of that stronghold. We are to reckon upon all this, and should the worst befal us, it is to be no strange thing to us. It came from the parched lips of the Divine Victim towards the close of his agony, and after the darkness which endured from the sixth to the ninth hour. We can never forget the painful scenes of which we have been witness, when we have watched the dissolving of the human frame. The excitement of a great struggle makes men forget thirst and faintness; it is only when all is over that they come back to themselves and note the spending of their strength. We used to melt when we heard about his sufferings, but we did not turn from our sins. See, brethren, here is a picture of what we may expect from men if we are faithful to our Master. John 18:19-40 - Glory on Trial A. And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou ? Though Simon had to bear the cross for a very little while, it gave him lasting honor. That man is a fool and deserves no pity, who purposely excites the disgust of other people. Certainly it is so with you; you do but carry the light end of the cross; Christ bore the heavier end. 1089 - The Man Greatly Beloved . Your path runs hard by that of your Master. Will your Prince be decorated with honors? Let the sympathy of Christ, then, be fully believed in and deeply appreciated, since he said, "I thirst." Romish expositors, who draw upon their prolific fancy for their facts, tell us that he had a rope about his neck with which they roughly dragged him to the tree; this is one of the most probable of their surmises, since it was not unusual for the Romans thus to conduct criminals to the gallows. Certain philosophers have said that they love the pursuit of truth even better than the knowledge of truth. How near akin the thirsty Saviour is to us; let us love him more and more. May the Holy Ghost help us to hear a fourth tuning of the dolorous music, "I thirst." Even when man compassionates the sufferings of Christ, and man would have ceased to be human if he did not, still he scorns him; the very cup which man gives to Jesus is at once scorn and pity, for "the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." "Wist ye not," said he, while yet a boy, "that I must be about my Father's business?" I know he loves to receive from you, because he delights even in a cup of cold water that you give to one of his disciples; how much more will he delight in the giving of your whole self to him? Save your tears for them; Christ asks them not in sympathy for himself. Cheerfully accept this burden, ye servants of the Lord. II. Cover it with a cloak? It is said that a German regiment was at that time stationed in Judea, and I should not wonder if they were the lineal ancestors of those German theologians of modern times who have mocked the Savior, tampered with revelation, and cast the vile spittle of their philosophy into the face of truth. Our Lord in his death-cries, as in all else, was perfection itself. In fact, the tendency is to exalt man above God and give him the highest place. As for myself, I would grow more and more insatiable after my divine Lord, and when I have much of him I would still cry for more; and then for more, and still for more. When you are molested for your piety; when your religion brings the trial of cruel mockings upon you; then remember, it is not your cross, it is Christ's cross; and how delightful is it to carry the cross of our Lord Jesus? Here is the forgiveness of sin free forgiveness in answer to the Saviour's plea. So were the streets of Jerusalem; for great multitudes followed him. (7) Luke 23:46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, INTO THY HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT. A river of the water of life, pure as crystal, proceedeth to-day out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, and yet once he condescended to say, "I thirst," before his angelic guards, they would surely have emulated the courage of the men of David when they cut their way to the well of Bethlehem that was within the gate, and drew water in jeopardy of their lives. Jesus paused, and said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me; but weep for yourselves and for your children." 29. 'Tis his cross, and he goes before you as a shepherd goes before his sheep. It was pain that dried his mouth and made it like an oven, till he declared, in the language of the twenty-second psalm, "My tongue cleaveth to my jaws." What, then, dear friends, should be the sorrows excited by a view of Christ's sufferings? Today! Are you lukewarm? Let patience have her perfect work. It was a confirmation of the Scripture testimony with regard to man's natural enmity to God. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid: It shows he was afraid all along the coward the vacillating coward and now a fresh superstition seizes upon him. "I thirst," ay, this is my soul's word with her Lord. Brother, thirst to have your children save. All nations gathered about my Lord, both great and mean men clustered around his person. Nor is this all. For a biblical, reformed, and historic collection of commentaries, the Geneva Series is unsurpassed. Here is the safety of the believer in the hour of his departure, and his instant admission into the presence of his Lord. Scripture provides a wealth . John 19:1-16 - Glory Mocked and Condemned John 19:17-30 - Glory Crucified John 19:31-42 - Glory Buried A. Jesus is condemned to crucifixion. This was the act too of man at his best, when he is moved to pity; for it seems clear that he who lifted up the wet sponge to the Redeemer's lips, did it in compassion. The sharpness of that sentence no exposition can fully disclose to us: it is keen as the very edge and point of the sword which pierced his heart. Shall it ever be a hardship to be denied the satisfying draught when he said, "I thirst." A phantom, as some have called him, could not suffer in his fashion: but Jesus really suffered, not only the more refined pains of delicate and sensitive minds, but the rougher and commoner pangs of flesh and blood. How they led him forth we do not know. And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. John 1 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries; John 1:12 Multiple Older Commentaries on this verse; . Let me show what I think he meant. sinner, if God hides his face from Christ, how much less will he spare you! There are some who in company hold their tongues, and never say a good word for Christ. Here we behold his human soul in anguish, his inmost heart overwhelmed by the withdrawing of Jehovah's face, and made to cry out as if in perplexity and amazement. One would wish to be as a spouse, who, when she had already been feasting in the banqueting-house, and had found his fruit sweet to her taste, so that she was overjoyed, yet cried out, "Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples, for I am sick of love." What was he looking for from his vineyard and its winepress? High in the air ye bid your banners wave about the heir of England's throne, but how shall ye rival the banner of the sacred cross, that day for the first time borne among the sons of men. His great love makes him thirst to have us much nearer than we are; he will never be satisfied till all his redeemed are beyond gunshot of thee enemy. He came to save, and man denied him hospitality: at the first there was no room for him at the inn, and at the last there was not one cool cup of water for him to drink; but when he thirsted they gave him vinegar to drink. Always was he in harmony with himself, and his own body was always expressive of his soul's cravings as well as of its own longings. I have already told you that such was our Lord's mystical desire; let it be ours also. Jesus was proved to be really man, because he suffered the pains which belong to manhood. No blood but that which He has spilt, no groans but those which came from His heart, no suffering but that which was endured by Him, can ever make a recompense for sin. We may therefore come before him, with all the rest of our race, when God subdues them to repentance by his love, and look on him whom we have pierced, and mourn for him as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. Complain not, then. "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" No man dare call him friend now, or whisper a word of comfort to him. The extreme tension produced a burning feverishness. More solemn still is the reflection that according to our Lord's own teaching, thirst will also be the eternal result of sin, for he says concerning the rich glutton, "In hell he lift up his eyes, being in torment," and his prayer, which was denied him, was, "Father Abraham, send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame." "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" is the first. In the multitude there was a sparse sprinkling of tender-hearted women, probably those who had been healed, or whose children had been blessed by him. Beware of rendering him homage and dishonouring his name at the same time. I wonder he has ever received them, as one marvels why he received this vinegar; and yet he has received them, and smiled upon us for presenting them. Our glorious Samson had been fighting our foes; heaps upon heaps he had slain his thousands, and now like Samson he was sore athirst. Beloved, there is now upon our Master, and there always has been, a thirst after the love of his people. It is a blow at the fable of purgatory which strikes it to the heart. Yet most people today have never heard of John Gill. Barrabas may go free; the thief and the murderer may be spared; but for Christ there is no word, but "Away with such a fellow from the earth! Yet his language teaches us not to worship her, for he calls her "woman," but to honor him in whom his direst agony thought of her needs and griefs, as he also thinks of all his people, for these are his mother and sister and brother. I have now a third picture to present to you CHRIST AND HIS MOURNERS. Here you see how the mortal flesh had to share in the agony of the inward spirit. I cannot say that it is short and sweet, for, alas, it was bitterness itself to our Lord Jesus; and yet out of its bitterness I trust there will come great sweetness to us. Great and worshipful being that he is, truth is to be altered for him, the gospel is to be modulated to suit the tone of his various generations, and all the arrangements of the universe are to be rendered subservient to his interests. O to be enlarged in soul so as to take deeper draughts of his sweet love, for our heart cannot have enough. Our Lord Jesus came forth, willing to be exposed to their scorn. Among other things methinks he meant this "If I, the innocent substitute for sinners, suffer thus, what will be done when the sinner himself the dry tree whose sins are his own, and not merely imputed to him, shall fall into the hands of an angry God." The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel, they cannot spare him the agonies of dying on the cross, they will therefore remit the labor of carrying it. John 19:28 . That little rising ground, which perhaps was called Golgotha, the place of a skull, from its somewhat resembling the crown of a man's skull, was the common place of execution. When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which He and His disciples entered. They put his own clothes upon him, because they were the perquisites of the executioner, as modern hangmen take the garments of those whom they execute, so did the four soldiers claim a right to his raiment. Read Joo 15:7 bible commentary from Spurgeon's Verse Expositions of the Bible by Charles Haddon Spurgeon FREE on BiblePortal.com "Verily I say unto thee, to-day shalt thou be with me in paradise" this is the Lord Jesus in kingly power, opening with the key of David a door which none can shut, admitting into the gates of heaven the poor soul who had confessed him on the tree. For the thousands of eyes which shall gaze upon the youthful Prince, I offer the gaze of men and angels. As he commends his spirit into the Father's hand, so does he bring all believers nigh to God, and henceforth we are in the hand of the Father, who is greater than all, and none shall pluck us thence. III. According to the sacred canticle of love, in the fifth chapter of the Song of Songs, we learn that when he drank in those olden times it was in the garden of his church that he was refreshed. Come, bring him your warm heart, and let him drink from that purified chalice as much as he wills. Thoughtful men have drawn a wealth of meaning from them, and in so doing have arranged them into different groups, and placed them under several heads. The words, "I thirst," are a common voice in death chambers. who would stand in your place, ye richest, ye merriest, ye most self-righteous sinners who would stand in your place when God shall say, "Awake O sword against the rebel, against the man that rejected me; smite him, and let him feel the smart for ever!" Jesus was deserted of God; and if he, who was only imputedly a sinner, was deserted, how much more shall you be? There are no passages in all the public ministry of Jesus so tender as those which have regard to Jerusalem. If we weep for the sufferings of Christ in the same way as we lament the sufferings of another man, our emotions will be only natural, and may work no good. That impenitent thief went from the cross of his great agony and it was agony indeed to die on a cross he went to that place, to the flames of hell; and you, too, may go from the bed of sickness, and from the abode of poverty, to perdition, quite as readily as from the home of ease and the house of plenty. Let this mind be in you also. It is so with each one of you? Usually the crier went before with an announcement such as this, "This is Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews, who for making himself a King, and stirring up the people, has been condemned to die." "Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, and touch not the unclean thing." It seems to me very wonderful that this "I thirst" should be, as it were, the clearance of it all. Revelation: The Lectio Continua Expository Commentary on the New Testament (Beeke) $30.00 $40.00. A second mode of treating these seven cries is to view them as setting forth the person and offices of our Lord who uttered them. 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