January 15, 2006
“Behold the Lamb of God Taking Away the Sin of the World!”
John 19:30-37

The more we study Scripture the more we will see its purpose and perfection. We will see that it points us to Jesus Christ as our Savior and to His death on the cross as the central and most important event in all human history.

I. We rightly see death in general as a dreadful thing:
1. Death is the penalty for sin – Romans 6:23; Genesis 2:17
2. Death of a loved one is cause for great sorrow – Zechariah 12:10; Mark 5:35-39
3. Death is usually seen as synonymous with defeat – 1 Samuel 17:48-51
4. Even Jesus’ death on the cross was (and is) seen by many as a defeat – Matthew 27:39-44; Isaiah 53:3-4

II. Yet purpose can be a mitigating factor when considering the sorrow brought about by death:
1. We often hear the saying “he died for a good cause” usually in reference to a military death, Jesus supports this sentiment – John 15:13
2. Yet in Jesus’ case I would argue purpose was even more than a mitigating factor, easing sorrow, rather Jesus’ death is so packed full of PURPOSE it actually reverses sorrow and is cause for GREAT JOY! - John 1:29

III. The fact that God accomplishes His purposes, especially His purpose in Christ’s death, is a FACT well established in Scripture – Isaiah 14:24 & 27; Isaiah 55:11; Isaiah 46:8-13; Ephesians 1:11
1. Scripture tells us clearly that God accomplishes His purposes – Daniel 4:34-35
2. God Himself tells us He will accomplish His purposes in Christ – Psalm 2
3. This fact is proved by fulfilled prophecy – Isaiah 46:8-13

IV. The two prophecies we see here, fulfilled after Christ’s death, are particularly impressive:
1. Christ fulfilled many prophecies on the cross –
2. Yet, these after His death SEEM more impressive to me, as they accomplished seemingly apart from His power to influence them, let us consider them specifically:
3. Scripture was fulfilled in Jesus legs not being broken – Psalm 34:20; Psalm 35:10
4. This is important because Jesus was and is the Passover Lamb – Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12; 1 Corinthians 5:7; John 1:29; Revelation 5:12
5. As the Lamb, Jesus was represented throughout the Old Testament in prophecies and types – Revelation 13:8; Genesis 3:21; 22:6-8; Exodus 12:1-3, 5-6, 11-14 6. This is a particularly impressive fulfillment as the soldiers were ordered to break Jesus’ legs –
7. Matthew Henry also points out –
“The Hebrew word for the bones signifies the strength, and therefore not a bone of Christ must be broken, to show that though he be crucified in weakness his strength to save is not at all broken. Sin breaks our bones, as it broke David's (Ps. li. 8); but it did not break Christ's bones; he stood firm under the burden, mighty to save.”
8. Scripture was also fulfilled in the piercing of His side – John 19:37; Zechariah 12:10
9. This piercing points to the cleansing power of His blood – Zechariah 13:1
A. Blood was for cleansing of sin – Leviticus 17:11
B. Water was for purification for service – Numbers 8:7; John 2:6
C. Water was and is symbolic of the Holy Spirit – John 7:37-39
10. This Scripture is further fulfilled in:
A. The salvation of Pentecost – Acts 2:36-39
B. In the Judgment of Revelation – Revelation 1:7

Application: See in these fulfilled prophecies the proof of God’s accomplishing our salvation – John 19:30
1. He not only did it but He did it in the way he predicted – Isaiah 46:8-13 (He is the Great Bambino of our salvation)
2. Be comforted & encouraged by this in all situations – Romans 8:28-39; Isaiah 44:21-23

Pastor Arnold Brevick