Dear Friends,
Although John’s Gospel is not classified as prophecy, we have encountered several prophecies along the way, both made and fulfilled. For example, Jesus fulfilled several prophecies in our last post, like this one from the prophet Isaiah circa 700 BC: He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. (Isa 53:7) As Prophet, Priest, and King, Jesus made several prophecies as well. In the section before us, Jesus will fulfill his many prophetic references to his hour. His hour has arrived, just as the coming night He spoke of is sure to arrive as well. (John 9:4; Matt 24:33) It’s inevitable, as sure as the rising of the sun, and the sands of time are running low.
When we last left off, Pilate had just handed Jesus over to be crucified. Since the beginning of Chapter 18, Jesus had to deal with Judas who betrayed Him; others sent to arrest Him with swords, staves, and torches; then the kangaroo courts of Annas and Caiaphas, then Pilate and Herod, then Pilate again. He had to face the fickle mob that turned against Him; then the Roman dogs who scourged Him, beat Him, mocked Him, and spit on him. (Not to mention the disciples who forsook Him and fled and the one who denied Him.) As Chapter 19 continues, Jesus is carrying his own cross to Calvary. At any time during this bloody nightmare, Jesus could have called 12 legions of angels to deliver Him (Matt 26:53), but his love for us constrained Him. Dehydrated and thirsty, He refused the vinegar they offered Him. (Matt 27:34) He drank the full cup of God’s wrath. He only accepted a drink of vinegar after our sins were paid for in full (John 19:28), fulfilling Psalm 69:21.
Here are a few more prophecies Jesus fulfilled, relating to his death and resurrection:
Enter Jerusalem on donkey Zechariah 9:8
Betrayed for 30 pieces of silver Zechariah 11:12, 13
Passover Lamb Genesis 22:8; Exodus 12:3-7
No bones broken Exodus 12:46; Psalm 34:20
Despised and rejected Isaiah 53:3
Forsaken by friends Psalm 31:11
Forsaken by his Father Psalm 22:1
Set captives free Isaiah 61:1
Gambled for his clothes Psalm 22:18
Beaten Isaiah 50:6 et al.
Shed blood for our sins Exodus 12:13 et al.
Conspired against Psalm 31:13
Scorned Psalm 22:8
Mocked Psalm 22:7
Thirsted Psalm 22:15
Pierced through hands and feet Psalm 22:16
Lifted up Numbers 21:9; John 3:14
Committed his Spirit to his Father Psalm 31:5
Interred in rich man’s grave Isaiah 53:9
Three days in the heart of the earth Jonah 1:17; Matthew 12:40
Raised in glory Psalm 16:10 et al.
Father, thank You for your Son and for his unspeakable gift. Give us understanding now as we read your word, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
John 19:17-30
17 And he bearing his cross [1] went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:
18 Where they crucified him, and two others with him [Isa 53:12], on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.
19 ¶ And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.
The title (Gk titlos) was an inscription giving the accusation or crime for which a criminal suffered. (John 19:12)
20 This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin.
This initiated the fulfillment of Matthew 24:14; Luke 24:47; etc. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
21 Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews.
22 Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.
Jesus is guilty as charged, which Pilate seems to understand.
23 ¶ Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.
24 They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. [Ps 22:18] These things therefore the soldiers did.
25 ¶ Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved [John], he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
27 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.
Still thinking of others and not Himself, Jesus entrusted Mary to John. As Mary’s other sons were not yet believers, Mary would need someone to take care of her. She would be shunned now by the Jewish community.
28 ¶ After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
Jesus gave his life so we would never thirst. (John 4) But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: (John 7)
29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.
30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
John 19:17-30
Nailed to the cross, Jesus suffered the most excruciating form of execution ever devised. He was emaciated from fasting. (Ps 22:17) The irregular angle of his arms placed an unbearable strain on his shoulders, pulling them out of joint. (Ps 22:14) The pressure on the diaphragm made it impossible for Him to breathe without supporting Himself against the nail in his feet as his lungs slowly filled with fluid. He was completely dehydrated. The agonizing pain of the spikes driven through the median nerve in his wrists shot down into his spine, jerking his body erect and forcing the torn flesh on his back against the cross. They continued to mock Him saying, [I]f thou be the son of God, come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. All this was nothing compared to the agony Jesus suffered when He took on the sin of the world. God the Father, who will never allow sin in his presence, turned his back on his beloved Son while He bore the sin of all mankind. Jesus then quoted Psalm 22 and said, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? It wasn’t the spikes in his hands and feet that killed Him; He died of a broken heart—my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. (Ps 22:14)
Before Jesus died, He not only forgave his accusers (Luke 23:34), He forgave one of his fellow prisoners who repented, telling him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise. And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. … And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: (Luke 23:43ff) Luke used Jewish timekeeping, which started at 6:00 AM. Therefore, Jesus died at 3:00 PM, just as the other Passover lamb was sacrificed at the temple. Jesus is the true Passover Lamb; the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) During those three hours Jesus suffered as no man has ever suffered. His precious blood flowed from his back where he was scourged; it flowed from his face where they beat him with the reed and hit him with their fists. His blood flowed from his brow where He wore the crown of thorns; it flowed from his cheeks where they plucked off his beard. His precious blood flowed from his hands and his feet where they nailed him to the cross. That perfect sinless blood was shed for you and for me, and if you come to Him it will wash away your sins.
I wonder what some of the others were thinking at this point? The woman caught in adultery, for example? Or Zacchaeus? Or Blind Bartimaeus? What about the young people Jesus raised from the dead? Or their parents? Was the centurion whose servant Jesus healed there? Or the lepers Jesus healed? Or the woman who washed his feet with her tears? Or Malchus? Or Mary of Bethany? Or her brother Lazarus? What about the woman who poured ointment on Jesus’ head for his burial? As Jesus hung on the cross, He was paying for their sins. And ours.
Before Jesus yielded up the ghost He said, It is finished (Gk: tetelestai). Before his last breath, He assured us that his finished work on the cross is all that is necessary to remove our sins. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. His blood is fully sufficient to make you clean; nothing else is required. When the Lord forgives your sin, He remembers it no more. He removes it as far as the east is from the west (Ps 103:12); it’s gone.
After Jesus committed his Spirit into his Father’s hands, a Roman soldier pierced his side through with a spear [Zech 12:10] that found his heart as blood and water flowed out. The veil in the temple was rent from top to bottom. There was an earthquake, and great fear came upon those who watched. A centurion who stood by was cut to the heart. He confessed and said, Certainly this was a righteous man . . . Truly this was the Son of God.
In closing, consider these words from Paul’s epistle to the Hebrews: He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (Heb 10:28f) We have been given an unspeakable gift. Let us treasure and cherish Him accordingly. Amen.
Finally, we began this post with a reminder that the night is coming. The rest of the post was about what one has to do to escape it. The good news is it has already been done, by the only one who could do it. All that is left for us to do is to believe it. Jesus did not condemn the woman caught in adultery, the thief He was crucified next to, or Peter for denying Him. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Rom 8:1) It is finished. If you believe that, pray this: Father, I am a sinner. I receive your Son as my personal Saviour. Please take control of my life and direct my path, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Father, we know and believe that You will send your Son back soon. Please account us worthy through faith in his precious blood to be received up to be with You. Have mercy on us Lord. Create clean believing hearts within us. Renew our spirits and transform our minds. Thank You for your Son, Father. We love You now and always above all others. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Prophecy Update: As the laws of the old republic give way to the edicts of one-world governance, Habakkuk 1:5 and Acts 13:41 are looking more and more imminent each day. I made it about halfway through the 316-page Durham Report before I could not take anymore. The Report begins with a pathetic attempt to justify the fact that no criminal charges were made. It then goes on to confirm what many observers, myself included, knew all along: The FBI investigation, code name Crossfire Hurricane, that took place from 2016 to 2017, and the subsequent Russia Investigation that took place from 2017 to 2019 were both hatched using elaborate forms of synthesized parallel construction. The result was a Kafkaesque coup attempt/ PSYOP directed against the American people. Clinton crimes were covered up while Trump crimes were made out of whole cloth. The media played their part, obediently parroting whatever they were fed and flooding the American mind with Soviet–style Izvestia. However, these revelations are old news now and far from being the most significant news items concerning the emerging new world order. Let’s recap:
1. In 2020, the COVID pageant, funded by Trump, kicked off the depopulation program of the Great Reset. As a result, we now have the precedent and psychological conditioning necessary for a medical tyranny to be imposed by the new world order via mRNA shot mandates, digital IDs, and lockdowns (or Revelation 9:21).
2. In 2021, the longest war in American history (Afghanistan) ended, highlighting America’s inability (or unwillingness) to defeat one of the world’s poorest nations. As America is the nation that upholds the unipolar world order, a weakened American opens the door for a new world order (or Revelation 13:1ff).
3. The subsequent war in Ukraine is likewise weakening America, as support for the war in Europe is waning. Yet key objectives were met that will lead to WWIII, the next stage of the depopulation program (or Revelation 6:4):
a. Nordstream 2 Pipeline destroyed.
b. German-Russian business relationship terminated.
c. NATO expanded.
4. The departure from the dollar as the world reserve currency is accelerating because of blowback from sanctions related to the war in Ukraine. This will inevitably lead to economic collapse and the end of American hegemony, opening the door for a new-world-order currency (or Revelation 13:16-18).
Conclusion: As stated in the opening remarks, the sands of time are running low. These political developments only serve as markers on the prophetic timeline. Our citizenship is in heaven. In the words of the apostle Paul, “But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.”
(1) The Watchtower Society (Jehovah’s Witness) claims that Jesus was not crucified on a cross but an ‘upright’, ie a single beam. They often cite a medieval book called De Cruce Liber Primus which has an illustration of an upright beam used to crucify. What they don’t tell you, however, is that just a few pages later, the same book shows an illustration of a classic Roman cross.
