“I Thirst”

Ricci Johnson-Wilson

From our August 1, 2025 teaching

John 19:28-30

What is finished? The fulfillment of the Covenant. From conception to crucifixion to resurrection, Jesus fulfilled over 300 Old Testament prophecies through His life. (A mathematician once figured out the odds of one person fulfilling just 8 of those prophecies, he said the odds are 1 in 10 trillion, he added, fulfilling 48 of those prophecies would be 1 in 157 trillion. So, what are the odds for over 300?)

So here, in verse 29, fulfilling Ps 22:14-15, Jesus said “I thirst.” Why did He, the One Who possessed Living Waters thirst? Was this a fleshly thirst or did His soul cry out for something spiritual? Was His cry for those Living Waters to quench His now contaminated soul?

Our Lord and Savior, while all God and all man, experienced this suffering to the fullest. In Luke 22:42 we read how He wrestled with His own flesh over the torment He was about to endure. I would argue that His wrestling was with the separation He would experience with the Father. He spent hours upon hours crying out to God for this cup of suffering to be taken if possible. He knew there wasn’t, but He was on a rescue mission: to redeem mankind and reunite us with our Heavenly Father. He submitted His will to the Fathers. Then, in obedience, He drank the cup of suffering.

His cry “I thirst” permeated my soul. Some may try to say this is about me, some vacancy in my heart, or whatever, even encourage me to leave it in the prayer closet. But what if it isn’t? What if He, our Lord and Savior, the One who possesses the Living Waters, is really crying out for His Body to return to Him? What if we need those Living Waters but we refuse to seek Him out? Or are we too busy? What if our souls are dehydrated and He is reminding us to return to Him in an impassioned manner, seeking His face with the same passion and determination He sought the Father with day in and day out? Scripture records time and time again He ministered to the people all day and then went away to a place alone to pray and be with the Father all night.

I believe, as He hung upon that cross, and for all intents and purposes His flesh was indeed dehydrated. The sheer loss of blood would bring about a level of dehydration that would cause His tongue to cling to the roof of His mouth. But He had won the battle over the flesh, the 40-day fast proved that… the final victory was won in the Garden the night before, would He really be crying out to mankind, the ones who crucified Him, for a drink to quench His thirst?

Jesus knew this was why He came, this cup of suffering was to redeem all of mankind to the Father. He came to battle for us in the Garden of Gethsemane and won the war that Adam lost in his Garden of Eden, so long ago.

In spite of the beatings, so unbelievably cruel, in spite of the 39 lashes, that ripped his flesh from his muscles, tissues, and even down to His bone, in spite of the long agonizing death that occurs while on the cross, He’d won that battle to overcome the physical suffering in the garden the night before. The Spirit was with Him throughout this torture, the grace was there, as horrific as this was because He knew the price if He failed. Jim Caviezel who played the role of Jesus in the 2004 film “The Passion of the Christ” would still tell you, that just playing the role of one crucified almost killed him. He still deals with heart complications today. Imaging living it.

That cry… “I thirst”

What did Jesus thirst for? I believe this was a dual cry from our Lord. He was crying out for the presence of the Father. He’d taken our sin upon Him, our sin and shame, and when the sin of humanity was packed upon the sinless Lamb (Isaiah 53:12), the Father would begin to draw back. Why? Sin separates us from God. The tearing of our Lord’s heart would be instant as the Father turned away. The cry of our Savior, for that Living Water, that cleansing that washes away all sin and shame must’ve reached the Throne Room as the weight of our horrid sin rested on His pure and Holy frame (1 Peter 2:24). So great was our sin, that in the moment the sky went dark, our sin piled high, became the wall of separation between Jesus and the Father Who Jesus walked so intimately with. Why? A Holy God could not gaze upon so much sin. The Father would turn, the grief of this separation was so great that as Jesus breathed His last breath we would see the impact here on earth as the sky would grow dark, the earth would shake violently, and tear the 60-foot high, inch-thick veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies was torn from top to bottom. (Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:37-39)

Why the separation?

When Jesus died on the cross, all our sins—without exception—were transferred to Him. He was without sin, for He was God in human flesh. When He died all our sins were placed on Him, and He became the final and complete sacrifice for our sins. In that moment, He was banished from the presence of God, just as Adam and Even were banished from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:23), for sin cannot exist in God’s presence. Jesus’ cry speaks of this truth; He endured the separation from God that you and I deserve.

Imagine the grief of the Father, His son bearing the sin of all mankind, the emotions of all of heaven had to be at their highest, the hand of God as it were, reaching down to tear open centuries of tradition only to reveal the holy place was empty. No Ark of the Covenant, it was, and had been, void of His presence. The barrier between God and humanity was gone! It was a new day for a new way and all those who wanted to drink that Living Water need only look up and receive, their redemption was nigh!

Jesus fulfilled John 6:35

I firmly believe the Father longed for His creation as much as Jesus thirsted for the Father, that’s why He came, to reconcile the relationship and invite us back into His presence.

Two of the most profound and heartbreaking words.

Jesus said when Satan tempted Him after His 40-day fast, man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes out of the mouth of the Father. He lived His life to hear and obey every Word that comes from the Father. He obeyed Him through to the end, and in the end, He overcame sin and death for you and I. His own agony in the garden the night before His passion, the night before this period of separation, would result in Him sweating great drops of blood. How many of us would agonize the thought of separation from God to the point where we would sweat great drops of blood?

John 4:3-30

3 he left Judæa, and departed again into Galilee. 4 And he must needs go through Samaria. 5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 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. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. 15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. 16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. 17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: 18 for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. 19 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. 21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. (And the veil was rent!)

History records this woman as Photini. She walked approximately a mile round trip every day, in the heat of the day to Jacob’s well to satisfy one of mankind’s greatest needs: water.

In fact, the need for water is one of the most powerful natural appetites. A man can go 30-35 days without food before the body transitions into a literal starvation state, where medically speaking, you are starving to death, and the body will even begin to eat its own organs for survival. On the other hand, when it comes to water, he can go about 3 days before the body will begin to move into such a serious state of dehydration that his organs will begin to shut down, leading to death without immediate intervention.

The need for water is intense at a physical level. At the spiritual level, it becomes a cry from deep within that leads one to seek out the Living Water. Photini’s soul ached to be quenched, and her history seems to indicate she’d sought every avenue to quench it, yet she continued to yearn. In truth, she thirsted for that Living Water to cleanse her, purify her, and renew her from within.

Photini walked alone in this region, one that typically was not traversed alone due to safety issues. Women usually went in a group in the cool of the day. We can say all kinds of things about her past; it is enough to say that her wounds left her traversing this path to Jacob’s Well alone in the heat of the day.

But wouldn’t we all prefer to hear how Christ transformed her?

Today was a Divine Appointment. Photini is on a quest to satisfy her thirst, again. But this particular day, would be the day her inner cry would become a reality. She would be made new in Christ.

In Eastern Orthodox tradition, this woman’s courage and ministry is recorded.

Her name at the time of her meeting Jesus is unknown, though she was later baptized "Photini" by the Apostles, meaning “enlightened one” because she understood Jesus' identity as the Messiah. She is celebrated as a saint of renown. As further recounted in John 4:28–30 and John 4:39–42, she was quick to spread the news of her meeting with Jesus, and through this many came to believe in Him. Her continuing witness is said to have brought so many to the Christian faith that she is described as "equal to the apostles" in her evangelism. Eventually, having drawn the attention of Emperor Nero, she was brought before him to answer for her faith, suffering many tortures and dying a martyr after being thrown down a dry well.

What tortures?

In Rome the Emperor ordered Photina and her family to be brought before him and he asked them whether they truly believed in Christ. All the confessors refused to renounce the Savior. Then Nero ordered that the joints of their fingers be broken. During their torments, the confessors felt no pain, and their hands remained unharmed.

Nero ordered that Sebastian, Photinos and Iosḗs –Phontini’s sons—be blinded and locked up in prison, and Photini and her five sisters Anatolḗ, Photó, Photida, Paraskevḗ and Kyriakḗ were sent to the imperial court under the supervision of Nero’s daughter Domnina. Photini converted both Domnina and all her servants to Christ.

Three years passed, and Nero sent to the prison for one of his servants, who had been locked up. The messengers reported to him that Sebastian, Photinos and Iosḗs, who had been blinded, had recovered their sight, and that people were visiting them to hear their preaching, and indeed the whole prison had been transformed into a bright and fragrant place where God was glorified.

Nero then commanded the Saints to be crucified, and their bodies to be beaten with straps.

Nero ordered that the skin to be flayed from Photini's body, and then to throw her into a well. Sebastian, Photinos and Iosḗs had their legs amputated, and they were thrown to dogs. Then their was skin flayed off. Photini's sisters also suffered terrible torments. Nero ordered soldiers to cut off their breasts, and then to flay their skin. An expert in cruelty, the Emperor prepared the most painful execution for Photina. Her feet were tied to the tops of two trees which had been bent to the ground. When the ropes were cut the trees sprang upright, tearing the martyr apart. The Emperor ordered the others beheaded.

Photini was removed from the well and locked up in prison for another twenty days. Nero had her brought to him and asked if now that her sisters and children were gone, if she would now relent and offer sacrifice to the idols. He offered her great wealth even, still, she refused.

She would never deny the One who gave her Living Water.

Nero ordered that the martyr be thrown into the well again. There she surrendered her soul to God. History records that she sang hymns from that dry well and that well served as an amplifier of her worship, ringing out into the region until she could sing no more and ultimately gave her life, physically she died of dehydration, spiritually, she was eternally quenched by the Giver of Living Waters.

John 6:35

Mary Jones grew up in Wales at a time when the Spirit of the Lord was moving in the land, it had wonderful revivalists, however, few children learned to read or write. By the time she was a youth most of the revival preachers of the 18th Century had died, but a younger generation of men such as John Elias and Christmas Evans and Rev. Thomas Charles had been called by God to preach the Word. Rev Charles, who had studied at Oxford University and had also spent time at Olney in Buckinghamshire. In 1783 Charles began a long and fruitful ministry in the north Wales town of Bala which overlooks the attractive Bala Lake and green mountains beyond. He carried a great burden for the communities within, preaching in barns, farmhouses, and in the open air.

As a child Mary knew Thomas Charles, for he would sometimes come to preach at her chapel at Cwrt.

Charles’s great ambition was that they should have the opportunity to read and then discuss the Bible and its message. Complete chapters, sometimes whole books of the Bible, would be committed to memory. These schools were a means of grace to thousands of people who were blessed as they read their Bibles. However, each teacher and perhaps one other person in each community actually had a Bible of their own.

Just before Mary’s tenth birthday one of these schools was set up in her town, Abergynolwyn. Mary was delighted to have the opportunity to attend and learn from her teacher John Ellis and, later, Lewis Williams. Mary made excellent progress learning to read from the Welsh Bible.

Mary’s new ability to read deepened her interest in and love for God’s Word. Her greatest cry was to have a Bible of her own. A local farmer’s wife, Mrs. Evans, invited Mary to come to her home whenever she was free to read their family Bible in the parlor. Mary walked the two miles regardless of the weather, to avail herself of the opportunity to eat and drink of His Word. She was only ten.

By now Mary resolved within herself to work hard and save up the money to buy her very own Bible. It may not seem like such a difficult thing to us, but for a poverty-stricken girl in the late eighteenth century it would have been a huge challenge. Undaunted, she worked hard to save a little money week by week and month by month. She kept chickens and sold the eggs, sold the honey from her extra hive of bees, and also took in sewing. One day she returned a wallet she had found to its owner and was delighted to receive a sixpence for her honesty. In her own words she tells us that:

One stormy Monday morning I was walking to a farmhouse about 2 miles from my home. A gentleman riding a white horse and wearing a cloth cape came to meet me and asked where I was going through such wind and rain. I said I was going to a farmhouse where there was a Bible, that there wasn’t one nearer my home and that the mistress of the farm had said that I could see the Bible which she kept on a table in the parlor, as long as I took my clogs off. I told him that I was saving every halfpenny, this long time, to get a Bible but that I didn’t know where I could get one. The gentleman was Charles of Bala. He told me to come at a certain time, that he was expecting some Bibles from London and that I could purchase one from him.

The Rev. Charles lived in a big house in the center of the High Street in Bala, twenty-six miles away.

It took Mary six years to save the money for her Bible. She was now nearly sixteen years old and had enough money to make the journey to Bala. The long journey and whatever dangers she might face on the way were not considered by her too much, her only concern was to obtain a Bible of her own. She walked barefoot to spare her shoes up over the Cader Idris mountain, passing the lakes below and crossing mountain streams, through woods and fields to get to her destination.

In her own words she relates her memorable experience:

When the time came, my mother put the money and a little bread and cheese in one end of a wallet and my clogs in the other, and I set off for Bala on a fine morning, resting where there was a stream of clear water, to eat the bread and cheese. I came to Bala, and trembling, knocked on the door of Mr. Charles’ house. I asked for Mr. Charles and was told he was in his study at the back of the house. I was allowed to go to him, and he told me the Bibles had not arrived. I started to cry because I did not know where to stay. He sent me to an old servant of his who had a house at the bottom of the garden, until the Bibles came. When they came, I set off home with my precious burden. I ran a great part of the way; I was so glad of my Bible.

In December 1864, Mary did not become a great missionary or evangelist in her own right, she simply had a tremendous hunger for the Word. However, we learn something special from the fruit of her 26-mile journey and how Mary impacted Rev Charles.

A marble headstone marks the spot and carries the following inscription, in English and Welsh:

IN MEMORY OF MARY JONES

WHO IN THE YEAR 1800, AT THE AGE OF 16, WALKED FROM LLANFIHANGEL-Y-PENNANT TO BALA

TO PROCURE A COPY OF A WELSH BIBLE FROM THE REV. THOMAS CHARLES, B.A.

THIS INCIDENT LED TO THE FORMATION OF THE BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY

Together, they began printing Bibles which were then distributed far and wide. Mary’s hunger, her unquenchable thirst for the Word, led to the mass production and distribution of His Word!

John 6:35

Think about Photini who gave everything she had, for 30 years she spread the hope of the Gospel message throughout Judea, down through northern Africa, and up into Rome. She watched her children and her sisters brutally murdered by Nero because they would not deny Christ, the Giver of Living Water. She too, would not relent in her faith and while she was cast into a dry and barren well, her eternal thirst had been quenched three decades earlier by her Savior, the One she met by the side of Jacob’s Well who promised if she would believe on Him, she would never thirst again.

Then Mary, who even as a child had such a hunger for His Word, spent six years saving up her coins to earn enough to then walk 26 miles one way to obtain that Living Word for herself.

Jesus, Who’s great sacrifice of even a brief separation from His Father compelled Him to cry out “I THIRST!” while He hung upon that cross, paved the way for Photini, Mary, you and I alike to have our hunger and thirst satisfied.

What He was willing to take on for us, to tear the veil of separation and pave the path for redemption is beyond my comprehension. In addition, when we hunger and thirst for Him as He hungers and thirst for us, we pursue Him with an unquenchable desire to fill that void within our heart, our mind and our soul. This enables us to go deeper in God, grow in maturity and expand in authority in His Kingdom. This is the key to overcoming obstacles that perhaps we’ve been unable to overcome both in our personal lives as well as in our Church and our nation.

I thirst…

Josephus, the 1st Century historian records that Jesus died of a ruptured heart. When the soldier thrust his spear in His side blood and water gushed out. Blood our redemption, living water our eternal salvation. The physiology of that event, however, is indicative of a ruptured or broken heart. Jesus’ heart burst within His chest as He cried out to the Father. The sin, our sin, separated He and the Father for the first time in all of eternity. I can only imagine that feeling…

His heartbreak, should it not be our heartbreak as well?

That cry I heard before the sun arose last Saturday still burns within my heart with an indescribable pain, one that makes me cry day and night, I Thirst for You my Savior, I hunger for You my Lord, fill me up to overflowing that I may live and die for You.

Much love,

Ricci