By Nick Bibile
The incarnation of Christ is the eternal Son of God taking on human flesh—our Immanuel, meaning God with us (Matthew 1:23). The Almighty, majestic, and glorious God of heaven, in His divine nature, cannot suffer. There is no pain, no sorrow, no suffering in heaven. Yet sinful humanity lives under suffering because of sin.
Here is the wonder of the gospel: the second Person of the Trinity, the Son, willingly took on human nature so that He might suffer and die for His people.
Matthew
1:21
“She
will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save
his people from their sins.”
After the Last Supper, the hour of suffering begins.
John
18:1
“When
Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across
the brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which he and his
disciples entered.”
The brook Kidron was no ordinary place. In the Old Testament, faithful kings destroyed idols, burned them, crushed them, and threw their remains into this brook (2 Kings 23:6). It also received the flow of blood from the temple sacrifices—blood shed for the sins of the people.
It was a place associated with filth, judgment, death, and uncleanness. The dark waters symbolized the weight and ugliness of sin.
And here, Jesus enters.
The sinless Son of God steps into a place that represents the corruption of human sin. He who washed His disciples’ feet now walks into the filth that reflects the human heart.
There is also a striking parallel:
2
Samuel 15:23
When
King David fled from Absalom, he crossed the brook Kidron in sorrow
while the people wept.
David was a type of Christ. Now the greater Son of David walks that same path—not fleeing for His own sin, but advancing to bear ours.
After crossing Kidron, Jesus enters the garden of Gethsemane. The name Gethsemane means “olive press”—a place where olives are crushed to produce oil.
This is no coincidence.
Here, the Son of God is pressed under the weight of what is about to come.
Matthew
26:38
“My
soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with
me.”
He who knew no suffering in heaven now faces the full reality of suffering on earth. The crushing begins—not yet from men, but from what He must drink.
Matthew
26:39
“My
Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless,
not as I will, but as you will.”
The “cup” is not merely physical death—it is the wrath of God.
Throughout Scripture, the cup represents divine judgment.
Revelation
14:10
“…the
wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his
anger…”
All the sins of His people—past, present, and future—are gathered into this cup. Every lie, every lust, every act of rebellion against God’s holy law.
And Christ must drink it.
Luke
22:44
“And
being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like
great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
This is the most intense prayer ever offered on earth. The burden is unbearable—not because of physical pain alone, but because of what it means to bear divine wrath.
God is infinitely holy. Sin must be punished. If God were less holy, the punishment would be less—but God is perfectly and infinitely holy, therefore His justice is perfect.
Yet Jesus is sinless.
Even Pilate declared His innocence:
John
19:4
“I
find no guilt in him.”
Still, the will of the Father was clear:
Isaiah
53:10
“Yet
it was the will of the LORD to crush him…”
The hour comes.
The holy Son of God is mocked, beaten, and humiliated.
Matthew
27:29–31
He
is crowned with thorns, struck, spit upon, and ridiculed.
He who is worshiped by angels is now despised by men. Legions of angels could have intervened—but they did not. Salvation required that He endure it all.
He remained silent.
He endured.
He went to the cross.
God deals with sin in only two ways: grace or wrath.
At the cross, wrath fell on Christ for all who would believe. He bore the punishment sinners deserve.
Now the way is open.
Not
by works.
Not by merit.
But by grace alone—through
repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.
Because He drank the cup of wrath, believers may now receive another cup:
Psalm
16:5
“The
LORD is my chosen portion and my cup…”
Psalm
116:13
“I
will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD.”
For those who refuse to repent, the cup of wrath still remains.
But for those who turn to Christ—there is mercy, forgiveness, and life.
Man is lost and under the wrath of God. He desperately needs a Redeemer.
Christ alone is that Redeemer.
He
was crucified for sin.
He rose victoriously on the third day.
And He is alive.
There is still hope—but only in Him.
https://christiangrowth.net/