Cup as Metaphor of Suffering

Even while in the process of being arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus showed mercy on the stricken Malchus, healing his detached ear. Martin Collins continues to explore this incident in the life of Christ, showing that He was true to His Father's will even during the most agonizing night of His life, drinking the cup He had been given.

Ted Bowling reflects that, although at this time of the year television has produced several depictions of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, they have all fallen short of presenting the full dimensions of the event—namely the onerous price He had to pay for our sins. Most people do not understand the value of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ's life, from the beginning of the ordeal with the false arrest, the mockery, the multiple trials, the scourging, and the humiliating, horrific Roman crucifixion. We dare not undervalue the price of Our Savior's crucifixion.

David C. Grabbe:  When we partake of the Passover each spring, part of that observance is for us each to drink from a cup of wine. The wine is symbolic of the blood of Jesus Christ, shed on our behalf, which accomplishes a number of tremendous things that we cannot do for ourselves. ...

When we study the great sacrifice of our Savior in preparation for the Passover, we often are too busy hitting the "big points" to see the tremendous spiritual instruction in the little ones. This article draws our attention to Jesus' cup, the gall, and the Roman spear that appear in the gospels' crucifixion narratives.

What was Jesus thinking about during His last hours as a human? It seems highly unlikely that our pure and sinless Savior spent much time thinking about our sins. The gospel accounts reveal what Jesus knew about His suffering, death, and resurrection, as well as His relationship with the Father.

In this pre-Passover sermon, John Ritenbaugh compares God's flawless works to the imperfect works of mankind. In addition to being flawless, God's works have a multiplicity of purposes, while man's works have limited utility and many flaws. Like air, having multiple uses, God's Word also has many uses; any one scripture can be used in dozens of different applications. The closer one looks at the multifaceted aspects of Christ's offices (Creator, King, Redeemer, High Priest, Savior, etc.) the more we realize the preciousness of His life and the high cost of the sacrifice for our sins. The focus of our self-examination should not be self-centered or comparing ourselves with others, but on the awesome significance of His sacrifice.

When we partake of the tiny cup of wine at the Passover service, we usually think of its symbolism as Christ's blood shed for our sins. However, the cup itself and its contents have another, vital meaning for us!

John Ritenbaugh observes that the suffering we experience in trials stems from a desire of our carnal nature to bail out, giving in to temptation to satisfy the appetites of the flesh. As the trials become more intense, our flesh ravenously demands to be satisfied, making sin look increasingly more attractive. As we stiffen our necks and resist God's will, we automatically lose what we have gained spiritually and become ignorant of His awesome purpose for us. We must emulate our Elder Brother, who learned through suffering (resisting the powerful, deceitful pulls of sin), preparing Himself for His role as High Priest. Giving in hardens our hearts and alienates us from the fellowship with God. Like the original recipients of the letter to the Hebrews, we must soberly reflect upon our calling, unconditionally trusting in God's faithfulness to fulfill His purpose for us.