A Plan to Restore & Rebuild
Last Words of the Cross II John 19:28,29
A. Background & Comments:
• last Sunday we commenced a short series, leading to Good Friday & Easter Day, that helps us consider the last hours of the life of Jesus Christ. In our consideration of John 19:25-27 we noted that Jesus Christ was teaching his followers about his sacrifice and, by extension, how to deal with life’s ugly disappointments & crushing events. He taught that his followers & closest disciples needed:
- An Understanding of the Bigger Picture of God’s Kingdom
- - “Dear woman, here is your son…”
- A Willingness to Engage in the Bigger Responsibilities of God’s Kingdom
- - “… and to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.”
• Today, we move on to the next verses in John 19 where we once again see the passion of Jesus Christ, still on the cross. After dealing with both his mother & dearest friend, we see Jesus coming down to the final moments of life, understanding that his purpose had been fulfilled, desiring to end his life well. He had one last bit of teaching & alignment of his will with that of God, the Father.
B. Main Thought:
- This passage teaches us that God used his very own Son, in a form of human fragility, to fulfill his plan for restoring & rebuilding human life.
C. Key Question:
- What is it that God does to devise restoration & rebuilding in our lives?
This act of restoring & rebuilding human lives involved a clear & present plan of action. There are a couple of things we need to know about that plan:
I. A Plan Conceived in Ancient Times (vs. 28)
“Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.”
A. On the surface of things it appears that Jesus Christ was simply expressing the human need of thirst. However, it is important that we look a little more deeply. In actuality, when we look back to the Old Testament, we see that his statement is a fulfillment of prophecy. See the prophetic Psalm 69:20,21 that was written hundreds of years before his cross event:
- 20 Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none. 21 They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.
- Jesus Christ’s statement is nothing more than an alignment of his thoughts & actions with the expressed will of the Father. It demonstrates that he knew exactly what was happening.
B. Further to knowing & understanding what was happening, Jesus Christ’s statement of “I thirst” is a submission & acceptance of the ancient plan of God, the Father. By making this statement, in effect, Jesus Christ is submitting & agreeing with the plan of his Father to restore & rebuild humanity through the forgiveness of sin… and the sacrifice of the cross.
- if you are feeling the need to restore & rebuild areas of your life, let me tell you it starts with the submission to, and acceptance of, God’s plan to deal with our problem of sin. Ancient problems are best dealt with ancient plans!
II. A Plan Made Complete With Humility & Vulnerability (vs. 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.”
A. The second item of recognition is that God’s plan of restoring & rebuilding involves Jesus Christ making himself vulnerable, in this case, to the abuse of humankind. Jesus allowed himself to be mocked, scorned & abused, purposely making himself vulnerable, so that the will of God could be effected in the lives of men & women. See Isaiah 53:3:
- 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
- these ancient words also make the case for an ancient plan, yet they make it clear that the Christ was rejected by becoming vulnerable.
B. One of the great paradoxes of the Christian faith is that we need to become vulnerable, admitting weakness, before God can do anything with our proud & stubborn hearts. It seems to be wholly unnatural for us to admit weakness because both our inner beings & our culture say that weakness & vulnerability are bad things. See the example of Paul, the Apostle, once a proud & arrogant man, torturer of Christians:
- …there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
- for some of us sitting here today, the only thing that keeps us from a real, meaningful relationship with God is the unwillingness to admit weakness & vulnerability.
Implications for Life
A. The cross of Jesus Christ obviously has implications for our salvation & relationship to God in an eternal sense. At the same time it speaks to how we live in the here & now. Do not make the mistake of thinking that it only speaks to one or the other… whole cross, whole Christ, whole life.
B. If you are prepared to live the “weak” lifestyle you will sooner be able to let go of the things that hold your life their grip. Isn’t it time to just admit it? I urge to let go of self-made perfection & be grateful for the goodness of God in your life.
