"And when He
had taken a cup and given thanks, He
gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it,
all of you; for this is My blood of the
Covenant, which is poured out for many
for forgiveness of sins.’" Matthew
26:27-28
"And He
went a little beyond them, and fell on
His face and prayed saying, ‘My Father,
if it is possible, let this cup pass
from Me; yet not as I will, but as you
will." Matthew 26:39
The
first statement was spoken to His
disciples during the Passover and the
last prayed to the Father in the Garden
of Gethsemane. There alone in the Garden
the Anointed One prayed in anguish as
great drops of blood pressed through His
skin and fell to the cursed earth below.
He who had
spoken the worlds into existence and had
breathed life into the first man, was
now tormented by the reality of the cost
of redeeming those lost in sin. But love
pushed Him on as He could not bear the
thought of living in eternity without
His chosen Bride. "Husbands
love your wives, just as Christ also
loved the Church and gave Himself up for
her." (Eph.5)
There
were four cups on the table at the
Passover and each had a significant
meaning.
When Jesus
took the cup of redemption and blessed
it saying that it represented His own
blood they all knew that this was no
ordinary Passover service. By saying
that His blood would be poured out to
ratify a Covenant that had the power to
forgive sins - He was identifying
Himself as the Redeemer.
Jesus
passed the cup and they all drank from
the same cup, yet Jesus did not drink.
No, to redeem us from the curse of sin
and death, He must drink from another
cup. To make you the blessing He must
become the curse. To make you the
righteousness of God He must become sin.
To bring you to life He must taste
death, even the second death of the Lake
of Fire. To give you the cup of
Redemption He must take and drink of the
cup of Wrath mixed in full strength.
Every sin
that is committed is poured into the cup
of wrath, "They
are not pleasing to God, but hostile to
all men, hindering us from speaking to
the Gentiles so that they may be saved;
with the result that they always fill up
the measure of their sins. But wrath has
come upon them to the utmost." (1
Thes.2)
And, -"He
also will drink of the wine of the wrath
of God, which is mixed in full strength
in the cup of His anger; and he will be
tormented with fire and brimstone."
(Rev.14)
All the sins which had ever, or will
ever be committed was in the cup which
Jesus drank. Jesus became everything
that was in the cup. He who had never
sinned, actually became every sin, past,
present and future, -"He made Him who
knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so
that we might become the righteousness
of God in Him." (2 Cor.5)
So what
was in the cup?
Everything
which incurs the wrath of a just and
holy God. Can a murderer repent and
receive salvation? If he can then his
sin is in the cup. He is set free only
because Jesus bore the sin for him. War
is in the cup - Rape is in the cup -
Child Molestation is in the cup. Hatred,
lies, slander, rebellion and even child
sacrifice is in the cup.
All of
your sins and mine, past, present and
future are in the cup. Is it any wonder
that Jesus was tormented as He cried, -"Father,
can this cup pass from Me?!" Jesus
drank into Himself the penalty due us,
our curse and our death. It is the
greatest love story of all and required
the greatest price ever. We love Him
because He first loved us. Let us
gratefully drink in His redemption.
