Title: Galle-Charcoal Wine
Content 3> Matthew 27:33-37
They came to a place called Golgotha, the place of the skull, and gave Jesus wine mixed with gall to drink, but when Jesus tasted it, he refused to drink it. After they had crucified Jesus, they divided his clothes by lot, and sat there and kept his head. Above it was placed a plaque that read, “Jesus, King of the Jews.”
Two thousand years ago, there was a kid who was running a small errand in the camp of the Roman soldiers stationed in Jerusalem. People referred to the little boy and called him Spotty. Because he had an unusually large dot on his face. I didn't like to hear that Little Spotty people didn't call him by name when they called him, but teasingly "Spotted! Spotted!" because of the mole on his face.
Then, one day, the little spotted boy heard a rumor about Jesus. It was rumored that Jesus had the power to make the blind see, the deaf hear, raise the lame, give birth to the leper, and even bring the dead back to life. So Little Spotted thought to himself.
"I'll have to go to Jesus someday and ask him to get some spots off my face!"
However, there were so many errands that I hardly had time. Then, one day, Little Spotted gets some very unexpected news. That same day, the news was that Jesus was going to be crucified on the hill of Golgotha. Little Spotted couldn't help but be discouraged.
"Now the opportunity to remove the spots on my face is gone!"
While he was so discouraged, one of the Roman centurions called him.
"Son, dot! Take this gallbladder wine and go up to the place of execution, on the hill of Golgotha. Then go there and give this to Teacher Jesus, who is to be executed today, and ask him to remove the mole from your face!"
Little Spotted was overjoyed. So they took the wine burnt with gall and ran quickly to the hill of Golgotha. A little while later, the little speckled came back. But when he looked at his face, he still had a dot in it. So the Roman centurion asked him.
"Hey, how come you have a spot on your face? Or, didn't you ask Jesus to take it off?"
Hearing this, the Little Spotted Boy said:
"Yes, Jesus did not want to drink the wine I gave him with gallbladder, but he just pretended to put it on his lips. Besides, Jesus was pierced with thorns in his forehead, and his whole body was whipped, and he groaned in blood. I couldn't ask you to remove the mole on my face after seeing it, so I just came back."
This story didn't really happen, it was invented by an imaginative fairy tale writer to tell the youngest Sunday School children. But I know that the fairy tale writer has something to say to us through the little spotted mouth. What would it be? Still, seeing the suffering of Jesus, the little spotted, he couldn't bear the request to remove the spots on his face, which was his lifelong wish, so he just came. But what about us? Jesus, it doesn't matter whether he suffers or drinks on the cross, isn't it just us who are busy with the world? It is simply to reflect on whether we are trying to satisfy our fleshly desires or our desires through Jesus.
And what is our wish? At best, we're not stuck at that level, just as little Spotted would ask him to remove a single dot from his face. Do we just want to eat well, live well, and make a lot of money in this world? Money goes round and round and eventually we have to leave it all in someone else's hands, so we should think about whether our wish is still at the level of struggling for it.
A difficult week has begun. Today, we are faced with the flesh that Jesus tore and the blood that was shed to save us from the cross. Jesus shed His flesh and blood for us, so why aren't we so moved in our hearts? Why do we have no tears? May the Holy Spirit descend like a waterfall over our heads today. Our eyes cannot be opened unless we are filled with the Holy Spirit. We cannot see the image of Jesus suffering and suffering on the cross. Only the Holy Spirit can open our eyes. Also, only the Holy Spirit can open our ears. When the Holy Spirit works, I can hear the voice of Jesus suffering on the cross and groaning for me. Only the Holy Spirit can warm my heart. Only the Holy Spirit can shed tears in my eyes. I pray that the Lord will open the door of heaven wide at this time so that our hearts that cannot stand without crying are moved by the love of the Lord for us.
Gentlemen, why didn't our Jesus drink wine mixed with gall?
First, because Jesus wanted to experience all the pain and suffering of the cross with a clear mind.
Our Jesus laid the cross in front of him in the Garden of Gethsemane and prayed earnestly with blood and sweat.
"My Father! If it is possible, let this cup pass from me. But not as I will, but as you will."
Jesus was determined to be absolutely obedient to the will of God. As soon as Jesus' prayer was over, the servants sent by the chief priests and Pharisees came out to arrest Jesus with swords and hammers. Seeing this, Simon Peter drew his sword and cut off the right ear of the high priest's servant Malchus. Then Jesus said to Peter.
"Peter, put the sword back in the house. How can I not drink the cup the Father has given me?"
Our Jesus wanted to drink every drop of the cup of suffering that God had given him. Jesus did not intend to relieve any physical pain with the help of wine burnt with gall, which is used as an anesthetic. Jesus wanted me to go through all the pain and suffering of the cross with a clear mind down to the smallest detail in order to save me.
Guys, how much did Jesus suffer on the cross? Please think about that process for a moment. Then we will be able to understand Jesus' suffering a little bit better.
Our Jesus was judged unjustly in Pilate's court. Although Pilate, the Roman governor, knew that Jesus was innocent, he gave Jesus to the crucifixion just to win the favor of the Jews.
The first thing Jesus was beaten was the whip. The Roman soldiers whipped Jesus without mercy. At that time, the first thing that was inflicted on a prisoner once anyone was crucified was the flogging. He was whipped to the point of almost death. It was to completely break the prisoner's rebellious will, and to make him die quickly without suffering long on the cross. Our Jesus was no exception. The Roman soldiers mercilessly beat Jesus with a whip. Jesus had blood bruises all over his body, and blood began to leak from his skin that had been cut from the whip.
After the Roman soldiers had finished whipping, they stripped Jesus of his clothes. And I put on red robe. It was to make fun of Jesus by pretending to be a king. The plaque was hung around Jesus' neck. It was a plaque with the words "Jesus, King of the Jews" written on it. They put a crown of thorns on Jesus' head. And in Jesus' right hand he gave a scepter that symbolized the kingship. It was a reed. Roman soldiers made Jesus look like a king, knelt before him, and mocked him, saying, "Peace be with you, King of the Jews!"
And then they spit dirty spit at Jesus. "What kind of king are you?" He spat out dirty spit. Someone took the reed from Jesus' right hand and struck him on the head. Jesus' face was already pierced by a thorn and blood was flowing, but what would have happened when he hit his head with a reed? The thorn must have penetrated deeper into Jesus' flesh and made Jesus' suffering that much worse.
After they were harassed, they removed the scarlet robe from Jesus' body and put Jesus' clothes back on. Then they put the cross on Jesus' shoulders and started dragging him to Golgotha Hill. However, Jesus was already weakened to the point of being unable to speak. He couldn't bear the weight of the cross. Jesus fell over and over as he went. Whenever that happened, the Roman soldiers came up to Jesus and began to whip him without mercy. However, the Roman soldiers came to realize that it was not enough for Jesus, who was tired in mind and body, to bear the cross. So, one of the onlookers, Simon the Cyrene, was arrested and forced to remove the cross in Jesus' place and walk to Golgotha Hill.
But what did our Jesus do? Jesus pretended to bring wine mixed with gall to his mouth as a token of his gratitude to the ladies of Jerusalem. But Jesus stopped drinking. Why? Jesus was meant to experience all the pain and suffering of the cross with a clear mind down to the smallest detail for the sake of my poor self.
Jesus lay on the cross. He lay down with a clear consciousness. Roman soldiers nailed coarse nails to Jesus' feet and arms. And in the pit dug in advance, the cross of Jesus was set high. So our Jesus hung on the cross for six hours. From above, the hot sun shines down. Heat rises from below. How painful was Jesus? As time went on, as Jesus' weight descended, his torn flesh must have gotten bigger and bigger.
"I'm thirsty!"
Our Jesus cried out in agony on the cross.
"My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?"
Jesus' suffering cannot be expressed in words. Jesus hung on the cross for six hours, suffering all kinds of pain and suffering. But that day was a preliminary day. The next day was the Sabbath. It was also a great Sabbath associated with the Passover, so the Jews did not want the body to be hung on the cross. So they went to Pilate, the governor of Rome, and asked him to remove the body. Pilate accepted their request. The Roman soldiers pierced the side with sharp spears to confirm Jesus' death, even though they knew that Jesus had already died. Blood and water poured out. In this way, our Jesus suffered all the pain and suffering on the cross with a clear mind in order to save the ugly me.