Let us turn to the Gospel according
to Saint Luke in chapter 23 Luke 23 and I'll read the portion
from verse 33 to verse 38 Luke 23 33 When they were come to
the place which is called Calvary. There
they crucified him and the manufacturers, one on the right hand and the
other on the left. Then said Jesus, Father forgive
them for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment
and cast lots. And the people stood beholding
and the rulers also with them derided him saying he saved others
let him save himself if he be Christ the chosen of God and
the soldiers also mocked him coming to him and offering him
vinegar and saying if thou be the king of the Jews save thyself
and a superscription also was written over him in letters of
Greek and Latin and Hebrew this is the king of the Jews want
to center for a text upon the words that we have here at verses
36 and 37 and the soldiers also mocked
him coming to him and offering him vinegar and saying if thou
be the king of the Jews save thyself here then we read of
that bloody scene the crucifixion of the Lamb of God, that precious
blood that was shed, that blood that taketh away the sin of the
world. It's remarkable, isn't it, that
when they bring Him there to the cross, the very first words
that the Lord utters from the tree is that word of forgiveness
in verse 34 then said Jesus Father forgive them for they know not
what they do the whole point and purpose of course of what
he was having to suffer and endure was that there might be forgiveness
or without the shedding of blood there is no remission no forgiveness
of sin And here the Lord Christ comes to suffer and to bleed
and to die. The first word that he speaks
is the words of forgiveness, but we're going to consider the
first action of the soldiers. What was their first action as
they came to the cross? The soldiers, we're told, mocked
Him, coming to Him and offering him vinegar and saying, if thou
be the king of the Jews, save thyself. They offer him vinegar,
but he refuses what they offer. We're told in both Matthew and
in Mark's accounts that he would not drink. He refused this drink
that they were offering to him. Why so? because he would be fully
conscious in the midst of all these sufferings. And that's
the theme really, that's the subject matter that I want to
address tonight. How that Christ was a voluntary
death and his sufferings were felt sufferings. He would feel. He would feel the anguish of
what he meant to make his soul an offering for sin and so the
theme is that of a voluntary death and felt sufferings as
the Lord is confronted by these soldiers and we remember of course
that he was very much aware that this was the work that he had
to accomplish He says there in John chapter 10, Therefore doth
my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take
it again. No man taketh it from me. I lay
it down of myself. I have power to lay it down. I have power to take it again.
This commandment have I received of my Father. And so he was obedient
unto death. He is not passive when he comes
to the cross. He is very active in dying. And
I think that's important because you're probably aware that the
theologians when they speak of the work of the Lord Jesus Christ
do like to divide it into two parts. And it's very helpful
the way they speak of the active obedience of the life that he
lived. He comes, he's made of a woman,
he's made under the law, and he comes to honor that law, to
magnify that law. How does he do that? By the life
that he lives, the obedience. He was the sinless one. The only
man who has obeyed perfectly every commandment of God. That
is the righteousness that justifies the sinner. That robe of righteousness
that was wrought by the obedience, the active obedience of his life.
But then, when it comes to his dying, the theologians tend to
speak of that as his passive obedience. In dying, of course,
he is still honoring and magnifying the law, but now he's addressing
it in terms of all its dreadful penalties. He's bearing the punishment
of the broken law. He's dying as a substitute. He
is dying the just, the just one for the unjust. The great truth
of substitutionary atonement, Christ in the sinner's place. That's how they divide the work
of Christ. Active obedience in life, passive
obedience in death and yet he's not passive in dying. The great
danger is that we might therefore think that here He is not the
one who is making the sacrifice and he is making the sacrifice.
They couldn't take his life. There was no cause of death in
him. His human nature in that sense
was immortal. He would never have died. He
dies by a voluntary sacrifice. He gives himself. and so to think
then of this voluntary death and these felt sufferings and
we see it here as these soldiers come and they make this offer
as it were to him that's what we are told here in the text
they offered him vinegar and it's in the present tense actually
It's not just that they offer that when he first comes to the
cross, it's a repeated action. They keep on offering him this
drink. And what was the drink? Well,
it's spoken of here as vinegar. Mark speaks of it as wine mingled
with myrrh. It's a very precise mixture that
they're offering. There's a purpose in it. It's
a sour, it's a bitter drink. And so Matthew, in his account,
refers to it as vinegar mingled with gall. Wine mingled with
myrrh, vinegar mingled with gall. What's the point of this concoction
that they're presenting to the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, we're
told it's a sort of drug. It's given to the person on the
cross to stupefy, really. to deprive that person of some
sensibility in the midst of his sufferings. And this is the very
first thing that he's done. Now that's made quite plain in
the account that we have in Mark. We look at Mark chapter 1 this
morning but there when we come to the end of Mark we have the
account of course of his crucifixion and then his resurrection. And
there in Mark chapter 15 verse 22 we're told they bring
him unto the place called Gotha which is being interpreted the
place of a skull and they gave him to drink wine mingled with
myrrh but he received it not as soon as they're there they're
presenting this particular drink to him and Calvin the great protestant
Reformer in his commentary says that the concoction was suited
to make the blood flow. It would therefore hasten the
death of the person who is being crucified. But the Lord refuses this drink.
When he had tasted thereof, we read, he would not drink. He
tasted, yes. but he knows what it is and he
refuses it. Why? Well, he tasted a drink
because he was determined that he was going to taste death.
Well, remember the language that we have there in Hebrews chapter
2 and verse 9, how he tasted death. He tasted death. In fact, he will drink the very
drinks of that bitter cup of death when They come to arrest
him in the garden and Peter is there and the other disciples
and they will defend him and Peter draws his sword. What does
the Lord say? Put up thy sword into the sheaf,
the cup which my father hath given me, shall I not drink it? He is determined to drink this
bitter cup of death and he will feel all the agonies that that
will entail, not just physically, with regards to the bodily aspect
of his suffering, but all. The hymn writer says the pangs
of his body were great, but greater the pangs of his mind. He is making his soul, that human
soul, an offering for sin. That righteous, holy soul, he's
presenting it now to the Father. and of course as they come to
give this drink to stupefy him at the same time we see that
they want to be mocking him that's what it says in the text they
mocked him coming to him and offering him vinegar had they
not previously mocked him when he had to endure that trial it
was a mockery of a trial Do you remember what we're told
in the 19th of John? How Pilate therefore took Jesus
and scourged him and the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns and
put it on his head and they put on him a purple robe and said,
Hail King of the Jews and they smote him with their hands. How they mocked him there in that trial It was a mockery of
a trial, but it must be a trial, because this was a judicial death,
this was no ordinary death. And now they come and they begin
to deride Him again. Even upon the cross they deride
Him as they bring this drug potion and present it to the Lord Jesus
Christ. And they kept on coming. As I
said, it's in the present tense. They keep on coming, they keep
on offering it to Him. and yet we have to recognize
that this is such an awful part of his sufferings all remember
how he cries out at one point and says I thirst and that thirst
was a real part of the sufferings that he had to endure here in
the 16th chapter the Lord speaks of those two the rich man and
Lazarus and each goes to his appointed
place how different when those men come to die the rich man goes to his portion
which is hell and the poor beggar is taken into the very bosom
of Abraham And we read there in verse 22 of chapter 16. It came to pass that the beggar
died and was carried by the angels into Abram's bosom. The rich
man also died and was buried. And in hell he lift up his eyes,
being in torments, and saith Abram far off and Lazarus in
his bosom. And he cried and said, Father
Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip
the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue for I am tormented
in this flame all that thirst that the man must have been enduring
all he wants Lazarus to do is to dip the tip of his finger
in water and cool his tongue thirst you see such a real part
of those sufferings and these are the sufferings that the Lord
Jesus Christ must endure in order to save his people from such
a dreadful punishment. But throughout it all, in the
midst of all these agonies, in the midst of all this thirst,
he is constantly refusing what they keep on offering to him. He received it not. He would not drink, we read in
Mark and in Matthew. He would be conscious of those
sufferings he would feel the real pain of what it meant to
bear the sins of his people and how intensely Christ felt these
things all the sensitivity of his soul
and we see it don't we in the way in which he agonizes there
in the garden of Gethsemane In the 22nd chapter here, He begins
to anticipate that that is before Him, dreadful sufferings. And
so He prays to the Father, Father, if Thou be willing, remove this
cup from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but
Thine be done. And we're told there appeared
an angel unto Him from heaven strengthening Him. and being
in an agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was as it were
great drops of blood falling down to the ground remarkable
seeing that bloody sweat and that's not him making the great
sin atoning sacrifice that's what he made upon the cross but
he's anticipating it, he's not stoic, he feels these things
There's a certain sensitivity there in the human soul of the
Lord Jesus Christ, not surprisingly because he was a holy man. If Lot, in the midst of Sodom
and Gomorrah, was vexed with all their unrighteousness and
all their filthy conversation, how must it have been for the
Lord of Glory, living here upon the earth, this world that lies
in wickedness, this world which is the realm of the wicked one
or what sensitivity of soul was in Christ and here he is he is
feeling now the bitter thing that is the punishment of sins the cup which my father hath
given me he says shall I not drink it? he is determined he
is determined and this is why he is constantly refusing the
offer that is being made by these soldiers. And isn't there a truth
here? Because we learn that Christianity
is very much a feeling religion. Now it's not just a feeling religion.
I think we'd better call it a felt religion. Something must be known and felt. through faiths more than intellectual
ascent to the truth there is truth and God speaks to us in scripture
of the importance of a sound mind because God has created
us as rational beings and when he comes to us in his word he
addresses us through our minds there are truths for us to read
and to comprehend in holy scripture there are great biblical doctrines
that we have to wrestle with and we should wrestle with these
things but we need to be wary don't we that saving faith is
much more than just an intellectual ascent to the truth The old writers
used to speak about the dangers of Sandemanianism, the teachings
of a Baptist minister in Scotland, Robert Sanderman, who saw faith
as nothing more than a mental ascent to the truth of Scripture. It's more than that. It is that.
We're not to discount the importance of comprehending something of
the truths that are laid before us here in Holy Scripture but
we recognize that there is something to be felt in the soul and so
if we know anything of a true beginning of the grace of God
in our souls we will feel it, surely we'll feel it we'll feel
something our emotions will be stirred within us and we're not
to be afraid of that true religion is more than notion something
must be known and felt God causes us to feel something
of the bitter thing that sin is. And then we'll appreciate
the sweet thing that grace in the gospel is. Remember how the
paschal lamb was always eaten with bitter herbs. And how those
bitter herbs must have made the meat so sweet to the taste. Or
is it not true also in a spiritual sense? It's when we feel the
bitterness of our sin that we understand how sweet it is to
see the grace of God demonstrated in the person and work of the
Lord Jesus Christ. He's a feeling saviour. And here
he is feeling the bitterness of those sins that were laid
upon him when he comes to make that great sacrifice. I spoke
just now of the importance of the life that he lived and the
righteousness that he wrought, and it's that righteousness that
is imputed, of course, to the sinner in his justification.
It's reckoned over to the sinner's account, but there's an exchange.
because as Christ's righteousness is imputed to the sinner so that
sin of the sinner is reckoned over to Christ, imputed to Him,
laid upon Him and He feels the burden of it. He felt what it was to be the
sin bearer for His people. When the disciples come to Him
James and John, and they want to have that preeminent place
in the heavenly kingdom, one on the right hand, the other
on the left. What does the Lord say to them? He says, ye shall
indeed drink of the cup that I drink of. They must drink of
that cup. And they must be baptized with
that baptism that he was to be baptized with. They must know those things,
but to allow one to sit on the right hand and the other on the
left, he says, was not his to give, but all his disciples must
know what it is in some measure to drink of that cup and to be
baptized with that baptism. And what did Christ do? He drank
the whole of the cup. He drank the wormwood, he drank
the gall, and we do but taste the cup that bitter cup and so
often we sing those lines though our cup seems filled with gore
there's something secret sweetens all and the secret thing is that
Christ has really borne the punishment of those sins and felt the burden
of those sins Isn't this why Paul speaks as he does there
in Philippians? What is his great desire? That
I may know him, he says. He wants to know the fellowship
of his sufferings. He wants to know that conformity
to the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. And where does he begin?
The power of his resurrection. All that I may know him and the
power of his resurrection. that new life in the soul and
then the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable to his
death this is that one you see who feels or we have not an high
priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities
Paul says but was tempted in all points like as we are yet
without sin therefore let us come boldly to the throne of
grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help. He can
sympathize. He's a sympathetic priest because
of the reality of that human nature and all that he felt even
as the great high priest he is making that great sacrifice for
sins forever. Again, those remarkable words
maybe you tire of me referring to them but they are so remarkable
there in Hebrews 5 concerning Christ who in the days of his
flesh when he had offered up prayer and supplication with
strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him
from death and was hurt in that he feared though he were a son
yet learned the obedience by the things that he suffered this
is Christ and in all these sufferings He is never less than the eternal
Son of God. Who was it who died? Who was
it who died? It's the God-man. Don't think
it's just the human nature dying. It's the God-man. It's the God-man. And so Paul speaks to those Ephesians
there in Acts 20 of the church which God hath purchased by His
own blood. these are remarkable statements
that we have in the word of God but it shows us who this man
is he's God and yet he's man and he's one who is all together
making the sacrifice so active and so feeling as he lays down
his life for his people and so they come they offer this drink
and he refuses They mocked him, coming to him and offering him
vinegar and saying, if thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself. Now, he could, or he could have
saved himself. But he will not save himself,
because his determination is that he will be obedient even
to the death of the cross but then when he comes to the
end of those sufferings upon the cross strangely there is
a request that he makes and we have it recorded specifically
in the account that we find in John there in John 19 verse 28
after this Jesus, knowing that all things were never accomplished,
that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, I thirst. Now there was
set a vessel full of vinegar, and they filled a sponge with
vinegar, and put it upon Hyssop, and put it to his mouth. When Jesus therefore had received
the vinegar, he said, It is finished. and he bowed his head and gave
up the ghost now they'd given him this drug drink at the very
beginning when first at Calvary but this is the end now knowing
that all things were now accomplished that the scripture might be fulfilled
he says I thirst all throughout you see he is
so conscious of the scriptures and all that must have its accomplishment
in him So what do we see here when he comes to the end and
he utters that word? Do we not see something of his
reverence? His reverence for the word of God. That the scriptures
must have their fulfillment in himself. Again those words that we just
read and the strength of the statement, Jesus knowing that
all things were now accomplished It says that, literally, in order
that, in order that the scripture might be fulfilled, he says,
I thirst. And then they come and they offer
him this drink. It's the language that we had there in Psalm 69
and verse 21. They gave me also gore for my
meat and in my thirst. they gave me vinegar to drink constantly the Lord is aware
of the scriptures and has this high regard for the scriptures
after his resurrection remember how he speaks to those two on
the road to Emmaus and then subsequently we see him speaking to all of
his disciples in Jerusalem here in chapter 24. What does he say to the two on
the Emmaus road? O fools and slow of heart to
believe all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ
to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory?
and beginning at Moses and all the prophets he expounded unto
them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. This is the Lord's regard for
the Word of God. It must be fulfilled, it must
have its accomplishment. He's mindful of it. And then
later to the whole company of the disciples as he comes to
them there in the upper room verse 44 in chapter 24 these
are the words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you
that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law
of Moses and in the prophets and in the Psalms concerning
Mary then opened in their understanding that they might understand the
scriptures and said unto them thus it is written And thus it
behoves Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third
day. Oh, he knew. He knew the Scripture
and he would honour the Scripture and he would fulfil the Scripture.
And we are to have that selfsame regard for the Word of God. Is
not Christ here a wonderful pattern to us? Why does he not bear the
same name? He is the Word of God, the Word
of God incarnate. And what do we have in Holy Scripture?
We have the inspired Word of God. And the Scriptures and the
Lord bear one tremendous name and the written and incarnate
Word in all things are the same. And so here is Christ, He will
Himself fulfill everything that is written. and in order that
the scripture might be fulfilled he utters the word I thirst and
they bring the vinegar and present it to him and he receives it. Oh but when we think of the the
felt sufferings of the Lord how we see something of the reality
of what those sufferings are and it really comes out so remarkably
in that 69th Psalm The Psalms teach us so much concerning
the inward nature of the sufferings of Christ. It has been rightly
said that in the Psalms the veil is drawn aside and is not so
much the outward aspect of those sufferings but we are here permitted
to look into the depths of his soul. And what does he say? here in the opening words of
the Psalms, save me O God for the waters are coming unto my
soul I sink in deep mire where there is no standing I am coming
to deep waters where the floods overflow me I am weary of my
crying my throat is dry my eyes fail while I wait for my God
isn't this expressing something of of what the Lord is feeling,
the reality of his sufferings So profound, so deep. John Newton
says, did Christ my Lord suffer? And shall I repay him? Here he is, he's a broken hearted
saviour. And can there be any real fellowship
between this broken hearted saviour and a whole hearted sinner? All
the sacrifices of God, that's a broken heart. a broken and
a contrite spirit God will not despise the blessed ones, the
Lord speaks of the blessed ones blessed are they that mourn for
they shall be comforted are we those who do mourn, we mourn
over our sins? there's comfort you see for mourners
or do we have that sort of feeling religion Again, how those hungry
and thirsty ones are blessed. Blessed are they that hunger
and thirst after righteousness, says the Saviour, for they shall
be filled. If any man thirst, let him come
unto me and drink. We are going presently as a church
to sit together once more around that table and to partake of
those blessed elements, the broken, bread, the wine poured out into
the cup of communion. And what does Christ say? We're
to do it all in remembrance of Him. But again, I trust that
that remembrance is not just an intellectual exercise, that
we come with some feeling in our souls, with some desire.
to really know the blessings of true union and communion with
him. Remember how in John there's
no account at all, is there, of the institution of the Holy
Supper? It's in all the synoptic Gospels how the Lord instituted
that supper but there's no record at all in John. John's Gospel
is different, it's unique in that sense and in other senses.
But what we have there in John chapter 6 is quite remarkable
where the Lord speaks of himself as the bread that came down from
heaven and he says, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat
the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, ye have no life
in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood hath eternal life and I will raise him up at the last
day for my flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed
he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me and I
in him now he's not he's not saying anything that lends any
support at all to the blasphemies of the Roman Catholic Church
and the doctrine of transubstantiation he's not speaking of any sort
of cannibalism he is speaking of a spiritual feasting he is
that bread that has come down from heaven that a man may eat
thereof he says and not die I am the living bread if any man eat
of this bread he shall live forever and the bread that I shall give
is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world or
do we come then remembering Him in the sense that we're wanting
to feed upon Him spiritually and we want to know that ours
is a true union with Him and that our fellowship might ever
be with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, a
feeling Saviour and His people therefore surely must be a feeling
people or we're to be like Him Is that our desire that we might
even be as He was in this world? How we see Him here then at the
cross and what is His first word? Father forgive. All this was
done for the forgiveness of our sins and if we are those who
know anything of the Lord we must be that people who are ready
to forgive, ready to forbear. Oh the Lord grant that we might
truly then enter into these things by the gracious ministry of the
Holy Ghost Himself. And the soldiers come, they mocked
Him, coming to Him, offering Him vinegar and saying, if thou
be the King of the Jews, save thyself. And others would say,
He saved others Himself, He cannot save. Ah, he would not save himself
because he was determined that he would be the one who saves
others. Well, the Lord be pleased to bless his word to us.