They gave Him vinegar!
They gave Him (Jesus) vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when He had tasted thereof, He would not drink” (Matt.27:33-34).When Jesus was brought to Golgotha, the soldiers gave Him vinegar mingled with gall. He tasted it but did not drink. The soldiers gave Him this drink just to assuage the pain of crucifixion. The soldiers that tortured and mocked Him now offer Him a drink which would relieve Him of a great pain. Jesus accepted it because it was offered to Him. Jesus accepted everything except sin in His entire life. Simon, a leper, invited Him to His house for food. He accepted it. A Samaritan woman offered Him a drink. He accepted it. A Pharisee invited Him to his house and Jesus went to his house. Peter, His disciple invited Him to his house for healing his mother-in-law. Jesus went to his house. Since the drink at Golgotha was offered by His enemies, He could have simply refused it but He accepted it. When any person who is not liked by us offers something, will we accept it? Jesus our Master has set an example for us and we have to follow Him.
Jesus accepted the drink and tasted it. But He did not drink it. Jesus must have known that it was vinegar mixed with gall meant for assuaging the pain in His body. He did taste it because He did not want to insult the people who gave Him this drink. He could have told them, “Thanks” and refused to drink it. Jesus by doing so fulfilled His duty to the people who had offered Him this drink and also to His Father Who had ordained Him to undergo this excruciating pain of crucifixion.
Nowadays, the preachers would not go to a place or a town where the people of God cannot afford to arrange any meetings for them. They would not like to go to villages where there are no churches to organize any healing crusades for them. They do not accept any offer from a church which has no resource. They would like to go to places where they have tasted the resources used by the organizers. After tasting the same, they would not refuse it. This is what happens in the Christian world. Preachers from India prefer to go abroad, especially, to nations like Malaysia and Singapore because they have tasted the resources being made available to them by the churches in these nations. But they do not like to go to villages or to North Indian states because they know that there are no resources available with the churches in these villages and towns.
A true servant of God goes to a place where the people cannot afford to make any arrangements for him. He is prepared to undergo sufferings in a place where no resources are made available for him to preach the gospel.
We want to drink the vinegar mingled with gall when offered to us so that we may not undergo sufferings and persecutions for the sake of the gospel.
- Job Anbalagan