Let the water and the blood...

“A True Testimony”

(John 19:31-37, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 29, 2010)

31 Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. 35 He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. 36 For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

Since it was the day of Preparation... (31-32)

Jesus died. Those who were plotting against Him for some time, achieved their goal. But now they have other concerns. The opinion they hold about the good life has not changed. They have not adopted Jesus' view of the Old Testament Law. They have their own view, and life goes on. A very holy day was coming, a combination of the weekly Sabbath day and the Passover festival. The good life, the religiously observant life, required something of them as defenders of purity in Jerusalem, and the bodies of the crucified victims were in the way, including the body of Jesus.

These bodies, still publicly exposed on their crosses, offended their understanding of ceremonial holiness. What is holiness? For the enemies of Jesus, the pursuit of ceremonial holiness was everything, and holiness of heart and life was another matter. True-life holiness insists that an innocent man not be murdered. But they want the body of Jesus and the other bodies down from the cross for fear that the curse of one who dies on a tree will pollute the land. Isn't the land already polluted by what they have done? What can ceremonial holiness do for you? What are the limits of that kind of holiness? What are your goals of holiness?

But when they came to Jesus... (33)

Jesus is holy. Yet on the cross He became the sin offering for all our moral failure. His willingness to live and die for us has become the most glorious display, not only of His love, but of His holiness. It is this full obedience of Jesus to the will of the Father that sets Him apart. The obedience of His death is the opposite of the evil of those who schemed to see Him die.

Psalm 69:21 is the verse in the Bible that the crowd fulfilled by giving Jesus sour wine to drink. Listen to the verse before it: “Reproaches have broken my heart.” What is in the heart of Jesus Christ, the Man of Sorrows, as He gave the last measure of holiness and love in a sacrifice that is now finished? The heart of His enemies reproaches even His crucified body. “Clean this place up. It's a special day. Move along the death of these men by breaking their legs.” But when they came to Jesus, He had already given His heart willingly in perfect holiness. He was dead.

But one of the soldiers pierced His side... (34)

Then, in verse 34, something unusual happened. Perhaps one of the soldiers wanted to confirm that Jesus was dead. He took his spear and pierced the body of Jesus, making a gash in His side. Out of that wound both blood and water immediately flowed. John wants us to know what happened that day, yet the Apostle does not tell us what it all means.

Jesus had given up His Spirit. His heart had stopped working. People have considered the medical facts that are reported here and in other places and have reached their own tentative conclusions about what precisely happened to the body of Jesus. Their thoughts are informative, but more significant to us are the truths of the Scriptures that are brought to our attention in the pouring forth of both blood and water from the dead body of Jesus. There is something here that is more than biological. A physician can take an educated guess concerning the brokenness of Jesus' heart. A good hymn writer might add some other insights. “Rock of Ages cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee. Let the water and the blood, from thy riven side which flowed, be of sin the double cure, cleanse me from its guilt and power.” Both blood and water are referred to many times in the Old Testament as agents of cleansing. Now they are flowing out of the side of Jesus in a way that is unusually striking to the observer. Add to that the fact that our Lord had spoken these words earlier in John's gospel: “Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” See Isaiah 11:10, 12:1-6, and water from rock/temple.

He who saw it... (35-37)

John insists that we pay attention to this testimony of what came out of the pierced body of our Savior. Repeating himself for emphasis, he indicates that this fact that he reports is true. Surely this testimony is an indication that Jesus was really dead, but John says only this about the reason for reporting this fact: “that you also may believe.” And then He cites how this is a fulfillment of some specific Scriptures. See v. 36-37.

John says you need to believe. Don't miss that. You do need to believe. You might think that if you are a believer already, that your pastor is talking to someone else and not to you. Remember that the Bible regularly calls people of faith to grow in the grace of faith, and that love proceeds in growing measure from hearts that are growing in faith. Faith is more than factual assent. It is trust, and trust is a life-long issue. What are you leaning on? Most are leaning on their own opinions and habits, and not on the cleansing blood and water that comes from the Son of God. Let the present reality of Christ's holiness cleanse and renew your Christian life.

What was in the heart of the Passover Lamb? What came out of Him when He was pierced? Do you see the strength of His broken heart, the heart of a Man who faced the unjust reproach of men? He had cleansing water and blood for you, that you might believe and rejoice forever.

Let me close with a reflection on the self-authenticating nature of the Scriptures. Not one of His bones was broken. That was one of the rules from Passover. See Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12. And He was pierced, fulfilling Zechariah 12:10. The soldiers looked on Him that day. Consider the Scriptures:

1. A prophet records something impressed upon Him by God that He does not really understand.

2. For centuries that mystery lies hidden in the Scriptures, and those who use them faithfully do not understand what it might mean.

3. The people that God eventually uses to bring about the events described are not religious professionals trying to make Jesus look good. They are soldiers only doing what makes sense in light of their normal tasks and goals.

4. No one standing by connects the original prophesy with the events happening that day.

5. Years later, when the New Testament is written, suddenly the disciples and the church have all become brilliant, and they see in Christ the fulfillment of these and of hundreds of other perplexing passages in the Hebrew Scriptures. How did they all get so smart? How did it happen that the persecutor Paul, and the eleven disciples, who were plainly afraid after the death of Jesus, suddenly were preaching and writing New Testament gospels and letters that quote hundreds of confusing passages, showing them in the brightness of their religious significance?

Answer: The resurrected Jesus showed this to them, and the Holy Spirit enabled them to see in brighter light what only God could have tucked away for us in the Old Testament shadows. Believe more and more, and let your increasing belief lead you to true holiness.

1. Why did the Jews want Jesus' body down off of the cross?

2. What was unusual about Jesus being dead already?

3. What is John's point about the blood and the water?”

4. How were these events a fulfillment of Scripture?

OT Passage: Psalm 34, Zechariah 12:10