“shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?” (John 18:11)
Background: God often referred to His anger and wrath as being poured upon people for their sinfulness. Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah use it to describe the wrath that God was going to pour out on Israel and other nations that had rebelled against Him.[1] The cup is associated with devastation, destruction, and the curse of God. So, on the night of Jesus betrayal, when Jesus steps forward to drink of the cup the Father had given Him, it is a metaphorical way of saying that He was about to drink of the wrath of God. The cup that Jesus was about to drink of had caused Him much agony and had even caused Him to sweat drops of blood as He prayed about the cup before Him.
The cup was full of divine wrath for sin. Whose sin, certainly not His, for He had none. He was about to drink the wrath of God for all believers of all time. From Creation to the Second Coming, all sin of all believers was about to be placed on Jesus. From the sin of Eve’s eating of the forbidden fruit, the drunkenness of Noah, the disobedience of Moses, the adultery of David, and your sin, Jesus was about to drink the cup of wrath that we all deserve. As Peter wrote, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree.”[2]
Warning: If Jesus is not your Savior, then you will drink and continue to drink from the never-ending cup of God’s wrath for all eternity.[3] Only a fool would think that he can handle the cup that brought Jesus, the God-man, to sweating drops of blood. It is a cup that you will never be able to stop drinking from for all eternity. Repent of your sin, and believe in Jesus Christ for your salvation today.
Comfort: All who trust in Jesus Christ for their salvation will never have to drink of the Wrath of God because the cup is empty! Every drop of judgment and wrath was taken in by Jesus Christ on the cross, leaving nothing for you to drink. We will not face the wrath of God because Jesus Christ, has drunk of God’s wrath in our place.
App.: If you are a Christian, don’t walk around holding your cup as if there is something in it. The cup is empty; Jesus drank the wrath of God, so that you may have the cup of blessing.[4] Thank God that there is no wrath left in the cup for you to drink!
[1] Isaiah 51:17-22, Jeremiah 25:15, Ezekiel 23:31-35, etc.
[2] 1 Peter 2:24
[3] Revelation 14:10
[4] 1 Corinthians 10:16
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