Satisfying the Thirst

After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, He said (in order to fulfill the scripture), "I am thirsty." John 19:28

Yesterday, my husband and I met his dad and brother at the Great Miami River bike path in Middletown to walk our dogs. It's a year-round weekend ritual that's been going on for quite a few years now. We walk from the West Middletown bridge to just past the Germantown Road bridge, and back again. Round-trip, it's close to seven miles. When it's hot, as it was yesterday, it can feel like a long seven miles. As we neared the end of our walk, all I could think about was having a tall, cold glass of lemonade when we got home. To say I was parched would be an understatement.

The above verse from the Gospel of John is incredibly telling about the deepest desires of our Lord. I can't begin to imagine the agony of crucifixion, especially for Jesus, who took upon the sins of the world on the cross. It is perfectly reasonable and understandable that in the midst of such agony, Jesus was thirsty. I was longing for a drink at the end of a summer stroll, so how could Jesus not thirst a thousand times more? Yet even though those around Him responded to His statement in a literal way, I suspect that physical thirst is not what Jesus meant.

Every word Jesus spoke while on earth was God-breathed. Everything He said and did while among us was with a clear purpose from God. I believe that for Christ to say "I am thirsty" at such a profound moment of His ministry on earth must mean something more than the desire for His tongue to be cooled. When Jesus knew that all was now finished, He said (in order to fulfill scripture)... His work on the cross was complete, so why was His thirst an important thing to mention?

I believe that Christ's thirst refers to His thirst for the souls of mankind. He had paid the price for our sins on the cross, and having done so, wanted nothing more than for all people to come to Him for salvation. It's why He was sent to earth to begin with. How could His physical thirst ever begin to compare with His thirst for souls?

We can help satisify Christ's thirst in two ways: First, we can satisfy our own thirst for Him. All human beings are created with a soul-thirst for that which we cannot fill on our own. Our attempts at self-fulfillment amount to drinking the waters of the ocean - it fills us with salt, which creates greater thirst and takes us that much closer to self-destruction. Only Jesus can quench us so that we will never thirst again. Secondly, we can lead others to the well-spring of life found in Jesus. The world is full of people who are dying of thirst. If we can usher them to the well of Jesus, then we can satisfy their thirst and that of Christ.

We need God, and God wants us. Isn't that wonderful? By loving and living for Christ, not only are we satisfying our own greatest need, but we are also satisfying God's greatest desire. So, let us take the cup of Christ and pass it on to all we encounter. Let us drink and be filled with His glorious love!