The Cup

The last few years I've been teaching mostly from the OT. One result has been an increasing understanding of NT allusions to OT concepts, allusions which would not have been difficult for 1st Century AD believers to understand, but which are often lost to modern believers, who don't tend to have their solid understanding of the OT.

I recently became aware of the OT significance of the term "this cup" in Mark 14:36 [cf. Mt.20:22], which Jesus refers to in His prayer at Gethsemane the night before His death. "And He was saying, "Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will." I had always assumed He was speaking of His approaching suffering and death ... the scourging, the humiliation, the crucifixion. On a human level, those would be considered serious, painful events. Being human, we are quick to identify with such suffering. That is certainly the main viewpoint in Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of Christ".

But Jesus is actually speaking of something He had a very clear concept of, yet something which mankind has little understanding of ... God's wrath against sin. Christ is referring to "the cup of God's wrath", seen frequently in the OT as the just response of a holy God to sin. The reference appears frequently in the OT: look at Ps. 75:8, Isa. 51:17, Jer. 25:15-28, Ezek. 23:32-34 and Hab. 2:16. The NT also refers to the cup of God's wrath in Revelation 14:10, "the cup of His anger", and in Revelation 16:19, "the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath".

What brought our Lord to His knees that evening was His knowledge that He was about to take God's wrath upon Himself - wrath He did not deserve, but which our sin had earned. Any other suffering paled in comparison! Romans 8:1 tells us the result of His having done so, "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Jesus willingly took God's deserved wrath for our sin upon Himself, with the result that it no longer lies upon those who have placed their trust in Christ and His perfect atonement. This is a truth so far beyond our wildest imaginations that I don't think we stop often enough to contemplate the significance of such a loving gift!

What is even MORE amazing is that knowing what was about to occur, Christ's over-riding, greater concern was that God's will would be done! Scripture is full of God's will for us, beginning with having a genuine sorrow for our sin against a holy God, a sorrow that leads to repentance: "For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation..." 2 Corinthians 7:10. May we never take sin against a holy God lightly!