Matthew 27:47-49
It’s after three o’clock on the last day
of Jesus’ life on earth living with our limitations. In moments, His life will
be released to the care of His Father, and He will return to us on the other
side of the resurrection in a different form. The supernatural darkness in
midday seems to have had no affect on the Savior’s torturers. When the lights
come on, they are still bent on teasing and torturing Him.
His statement is simple: “I thirst” [John
19:28]. Quickly, someone runs for a sponge and a hyssop branch. The sponge is
soaked in vinegar and lifted to Jesus’ lips. Upon tasting it, Jesus releases
His spirit to the Father.
Our Lord’s request is short and simple,
but it tells us that He has not become delirious. He is still of sound mind.
There is no complaint of pain … not here or anywhere. Our dehydrated Master
simply makes a statement concerning His condition: “I’m thirsty!” Then, in the
closing moments of Jesus’ suffering, the head of evil protrudes one final time.
He wasn’t given much of an opportunity to
quench His thirst. There was the misunderstanding that his cry, “Eloi, Eloi
lama sabachthani,” meant that He was calling for Elijah. The suggestion came
from the crowd that they stop, pull back the reed, and then “see if Elijah will
come to save Him.”
The true nature of sin is revealed here
in the shadows at the end of our Savior’s life. Today, my responsibility is to
take us through a look at the nature of sin and temptation. The depth of this
act of mercy is realized by so few. Failure to realize the power and strength
of sin has led many to continue in it. Failure here has led others to a
confused concept of salvation. Salvation must be kept far away from works as
merit or influence. The only way that a person could believe that their
salvation could be lost is to not really understand the magnitude of sin.
Nothing we could ever do could earn us
salvation. No amount of works from this day forward could ever compensate for
what lies behind each of us. Salvation takes a payment that lies far beyond us.
The payment has been made in full. Nothing could ever be added to it. The true
impact on the human heart with regard to the greatness of our salvation lies in
gratitude expressed in holy living.
Without repentance, there can be no
forgiveness. Beyond repentance, there lies a peace and joy that cannot be
explained. It must be relegated to experience. Once
our name has been written in heaven’s book, our security is as firm and
unchanging as God. Through Christ, God Himself has secured our eternity. It is,
after all, eternal life that we are given.
Matthew 27:47-49
The
creation of need
A. The
B. The
C. The
The reality
of difficulty
A. A
B. A
C. A
The test of
time
A. P
B. D
C. P
The miracle
of supply
A.
B.
C.
The
sufficiency of strength
A. The Moses Principle:
B. Goliath Principle:
C. The Daniel Principle:
The joy of
eternity
A.
B.
C.
The steps
toward solution
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.