Why He Refused the Pain-killer?
by Sherry Kirton
05 February 2010
Matthew 27:34 and Matthew 27:46-51 Hebrews 2:9
Passion Week, Good Friday, Death of the Firstborn, Wine, Sour wine, Gall, Suffering.
- Mat. 27:34
they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when He tasted it, He would not drink it.
- Mat. 27:46
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit.
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51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
- Heb. 2:9
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.
Our study asked why Jesus refused the wine mixed with gall. After reading the verses I suddenly saw a Passover Seder Dinner with devout Jews holding their wine glasses in toast and awaiting Elijah at the door. And then...
It was contrasted with
He IS the Passover lamb; His blood and body were the Passover Sacrifice; His blood is the wine, and this is more evidence. For Jesus to accept the wine would have given other Jews reason to say that He was not the Messiah, but was, like all other devout Jews, still waiting for Elijah’s return to herald the still coming Messiah.
He could have accepted the wine to take away a bit of the pain, but that would have given everyone more reason to ignore the importance of what He was about to say in His next breath -- by thinking that it was only “the drugs talking.” He also needed to feel the pain of the separation from God the Father, so that we would never need to be separated from God. Jesus is our very “bridge” our connection to the Father’s Holy presence. And, I remembered that so many faithful Jews ARE separated from their Messiah because they expect that He will/would not suffer, but be nothing but a Victor who conquers.
It is through that horrible suffering that He IS victorious. Isaiah 52-53: prepare for His coming; (a small selection is here) “He shall sprinkle many nations”; “Out of the anguish of His soul He shall see and be satisfied; by His knowledge shall the Righteous One, My Servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and He shall bear their iniquities.”
IJN~
S. Kirton
www.kirtondrawnback.org
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