John 19:41d “I thirst.”

Jesus Christ has just taken upon Himself the sins of humanity, all our sins, from all time. What does He have to say about that? “I thirst.” You might not be curious about that, but as I study the scriptures, it is the first time Jesus ever uttered those words aloud. Even at the well with the Samaritan woman, He did not say those words.

John 4:10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.

He merely said, “Give me to drink.” Now why is this significant? What possesses me to bring this minor point to light today? Because I thirst. Not the thirst of dryness, another type of thirst. Righteousness. This day, this moment, I seek to be right before my God in what I bring to you this day.

John 19:35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.

I want my witness to be like John’s witness, true. Only John among the gospel writers was there that day. Only John reported the words of our Lord, “I thirst.” In this I see a direct connection to why it was the only time Jesus ever said “I thirst.”

Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

It was the first time in His life that Jesus thirsted after righteousness. He who knew no sin became sin. Our sin, our unrighteousness gave Him that thirst for the first and only time. It was so important they those words were His last spoken before He said, “It is finished.”

Do you thirst?

1 Corinthians 9:22 To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.

At one time I had long flowing hair, I wore bellbottom jeans, tie-dyed shirts, and leather sandals. I was the picture of what I was during those days. It was my uniform. Then there were the undercover agents who dressed the part but their true uniform was blue. You wouldn’t know it until they showed up in court to testify against you.

Life has always presented an opportunity to dress the part. What you wore said much about who you were or at least who you presented yourself to be to the world. It is a primary advertising scheme. The issue here is not who you are but what are you selling?

Paul was the ultimate salesman for Christ, he could fit in anywhere making his pitch for salvation to a whole range of citizens. It was not so much that Paul was looking to be accepted as much as it was to avoid being rejected. Once he was part of a group his heart lead others to Christ, not his garments.

Mark 12:38-40 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces, And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts: Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

Paul loved people not position. He sought to praise God and not the praise of men. He did not allow appearance to interfere with his ministry.