The Ultimate Gift

Yesterday, I stood with Mary, Mary’s sister, Mary, Mary & John at the cross. I felt their confusion and pain as they watched their teacher, son, nephew, and the one they loved dying. Now, as he hangs in anguish, he asks for one last favor. “I am thirsty.” John 19:28 Isn’t it ironic that the one who gave living water to so many is asking for a drink as he is dying. This is definitely one of the ‘fully human’ things Jesus did – he died! God cannot die. Jesus felt the pain and suffering of death. He felt the anguish of our sins. Death was the ultimate punishment for the sins that began in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden and the Tree of Life. Genesis 3:21-24. Now, on the cross, Jesus is dying a painful, humiliating, physical death.

“When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” John 19:30 He gave up his spirit – it was not taken from him. Right to the end, he could have called on the angels to rescue him from the cross and he could have walked away. How many times before had he walked away from sure death because it was not time. Now, it was time and he was completing what he came to do – become our Passover Lamb, the sacrifice in order for us to be forgiven and saved from sure spiritual death. But unlike any other sacrifice that had happened through the years, this was the ultimate gift of salvation and grace. Over and over, the people had brought lambs and bulls and doves to the altar looking for forgiveness – at first trying to close the gap between them and God – and then because it was a tradition whether or not they understood the significance. But Jesus only had to die once to close that gap forever.

“Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken [so they would die quickly] and the bodies taken down. The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced.’” John 19:31-37

Yes, scripture was fulfilled here. But I think God was also at work in another way. It was enough for his Son to die. He could not bear for them to break his bones. In addition, it was part of the instruction in preparing the Passover lamb: “Do not break any of the bones.” Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12. As Jesus was the ultimate Passover Lamb, he was not to have any bones broken either. He chose to die for us. He did not fight it. When the time had come, he died willingly. Who but God can love that much!

I wonder if I will ever fully comprehend what God did for me. Sometimes when I am walking and talking with God, my spirit is so overcome with an intense joy and love it almost scares me. I don’t think I can absorb all that he has for me in this life. It is overwhelming to my senses. I think of Moses when he asked to see God’s glory. “And the Lord said, ‘I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.’ Then the Lord said, ‘There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.’” Exodus 33:19-23 God knows that he is overwhelming to our earthly senses. So he places us in the cleft of the rock and covers us with his hand and lets us get as close to his glory as we can stand. And like Moses, I treasure those moments and remember them when I am tempted to doubt God.

Once again, as the Jewish people are preparing for their traditional Passover, God is preparing the Ultimate Passover. And only a few are seeing it and at this moment are still not understanding what they are seeing. I am so grateful that John recorded this event with all the understanding he gained after the fact. I don’t think I could bear to walk through the pain with him without that.

There is still a little more preparing and waiting for the Ultimate Passover Feast God is preparing. I can hardly wait until the table is set and the guests are seated.