I was asked by our pastor to share some thoughts about one of Jesus last words on the cross, as a part of our communion service this Sunday. I thought I would share them with all of you.
*******************
Luke 23:32-34
Two other men, both criminals, were also
led out with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull,
there they crucified him, along with the criminals--one on his right, the other
on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what
they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
One of
the hardest things for us to do in life is to forgive someone who has wronged
us. Our sense of justice causes us to want them to be sorry and, in some way,
to pay for the ways that they have hurt us. Forgiving another person seems like
we are letting them off the hook. If the offence is relatively minor, we may
find it easier to forgive. But if the offence is particularly egregious,
forgiveness seems impossible.
One of
the startling things that Jesus taught his disciples was that they had to learn
to forgive others. Not just those who were easy to forgive, but those who were
hard to forgive as well. In fact, Jesus said that our willingness to forgive
others is the key to our receiving forgiveness from God. In the parable of the
unforgiving servant, Jesus made the point that because God forgives us, we are
obligated to forgive others. Paul picked up on this idea in his letter to the Colossians.
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against
one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (Col. 3:13) Jesus not only taught
his disciples to forgive, he demonstrated it in a most profound and overwhelming
way.
Jesus
was condemned unjustly. He hung on the cross because of the jealousy and bitterness
of others. In addition to the multiple wrongs committed against him, he took
upon himself the sin of the entire world. As it says in 2 Cor. 5:21, God
made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God. If anyone had the right to be angry and demand
justice, it was Jesus. But that is not how Jesus responded.
As
Jesus hung on that cross, he asked the Father to forgive those who had put him
there. "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are
doing."
Instead
of cursing his enemies, Jesus turned to the Father. Ultimately all of the
wrongs of the world were and are committed against God’s holiness. The one who
holds forgiveness in his hands in God the Father. Jesus turned to him at this
critical time.
Jesus
could have asked the Father to curse His enemies, or punish them, or destroy
them. In light of all of the injustice done to Jesus, any of these would have
been justified. Instead, Jesus asked for the Father to forgive; to show the
extreme expression of his mercy and his grace. Imagine the emotional pain and
struggle that Jesus was going through. Imagine what you would feel like given
the circumstances. Jesus chose to release his burden by asking for the Father
to forgive.
Forgiveness
is God’s antidote for bitterness and resentment. Someone has said, refusing to
forgive is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.
Unforgiveness eats away at our soul, like a spiritual cancer. Forgiveness is
the way God designed to lift the burden of bitterness and resentment off of our
shoulders and place it in his hands.
Jesus
also stated that they did not know what they were doing. That is hard for us to
understand. It seems like the religious leaders knew exactly what they were
doing. But if we take a closer look, we can see that no one but Jesus
understood what was really happening.
The
religious leaders thought they were protecting the honor of God. They saw Jesus
as a threat to the established forms of worship and religious life. They were
protecting the established traditions of their faith. They felt justified in
bringing this disruptive person to justice.
The
crowds were clueless about what was really going on. They were carried along by
the energy of the religious leaders. Just as crowds can turn into mobs today,
so it was back then. Many of the people who had cried Hosanna when Jesus
entered Jerusalem now cried crucify him. They did not fully understand why
things had changed. They were swept along by mob mentality.
The Roman
soldiers who carried out the crucifixion were even more clueless. They did not
understand why the religious leaders were so upset with Jesus. They were just
following orders. It was a dirty job that few men relished doing. They were not
there to pass judgement on the condemned, but to carry out the orders of those
in power.
In a
much broader sense, the entire world, then and now, was clueless to the
implications of their actions. Few if any understood that Jesus went to the
cross in their place. Few if any saw any connection between their sinfulness
and Jesus’ death. Few if any could fathom the outcome of Jesus dying on that
cross. Millions of people today still cannot see the connection. Millions of
people today are still clueless about what Jesus endured for them.
On the
cross, Jesus chose the ultimate act of love and compassion. He did the hardest
thing. It wasn’t dying, or even suffering. It was letting go of his right to
justice and forgiving those who placed him there. He is still offering that
same forgiveness to each of us. It was our sin that placed Jesus on the cross.
It is his forgiveness that can set us free from condemnation. It is his
forgiveness that opens the door for us to enter into new life.
Isaiah 53:4-6
Surely he took
up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by
God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he
was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon
him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each
of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of
us all.
No comments:
Post a Comment