Jesus’ actions on the cross

A question came up in a Bible class at our WELS church about whether or not Jesus accepted the wine vinegar offered to him on the cross. The consensus was (and acknowledged by the pastor) that Jesus did not accept it or "spit it out." However, John 19:30 tells us, "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, 'It is finished.'" I would be inclined to believe that, after suffering on the cross for six hours, his mouth was so dry that he could not have spoken his last words without first receiving the drink. Is that correct?

We get the complete picture of Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection by looking at the parallel accounts of other evangelists.

Mark 15:23 speaks of the soldiers offering Jesus wine, mixed with myrrh. They made that offer when they were preparing to crucify the Lord. Previously, I offered this commentary: “Myrrh had the properties of dulling the senses and making a crucifixion victim more cooperative and less likely to put up any resistance as he was being fastened to a cross. When Jesus tasted the potion offered by the soldiers, he rejected it. He refused to reach the culmination of his messianic mission in a stupor; he was going to drink the cup of suffering for the world’s sins fully alert and in command of his senses. That meant he would refuse to drink what was in the soldiers’ cup.” (When Christ Walked Among Us)

At some point later, Jesus spoke the words recorded in John 19:30. He expressed his thirst—fulfilling prophecy (Psalm 22:15)—and then received wine vinegar, without myrrh, to be able to speak loudly and clearly the message the world needed to hear: “It is finished.” We praise him for that message!