Forgiveness From The Cross (Final Words Part I)

Sermon Title: Forgiveness From the Cross

Good News Statement: Jesus forgives us of our transgressions

Preached: Sunday, March 06, 2022 at Dogwood Prairie and Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): Luke 23:32-38: Today’s scripture reading comes from the Gospel of Luke chapter twenty-three verses thirty-two thru thirty-eight. Listen to the words of the physician Luke…

³² Two others also, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. ³³ When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. [³⁴ Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”] And they cast lots to divide his clothing. ³⁵ And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!” ³⁶ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, ³⁷ and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” ³⁸ There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”

 

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Introduction:

When reading together the four accounts of Jesus’ crucifixion found in the Gospels—Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19—and giving attention to the words that Jesus spoke from the cross, I was confronted with the fact that the Gospels do not agree as to exactly what Jesus’ final words were. For example, Matthew’s and Mark’s accounts have nearly word-for-word agreement between each other. They record only one statement which Jesus spoke out of agony and pain from the cross: Jesus quotes Psalm 22:1 when he cries out as blood pours down his back, hands, feet, and head, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Luke and John do not record these words at all, nor do they give even a hint that Jesus felt abandoned by God. Rather, Luke and John each include three different and distinct sentences which Jesus uttered from the cross, and in these words Jesus seems focused on his mission of saving the people and is confident that God ultimately will deliver him.

Each statement that Jesus either cries or mutters, tells us something important about Jesus. Together they offer a powerful and moving picture of what was on the heart and mind of Jesus as he struggled to lift himself up to breathe and speak. Essentially, as Adam Hamilton, pastor of The Church of Resurrection, notes in his book The Final Words from the Cross, “Jesus’ final words and thoughts were words of complete trust in his Father.”

Over the next six weeks, during the Lenten Season, we are going to explore the final words from the cross. The first three sentences—“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing,” “Today you will be with me in Paradise,” and “Behold your son…Behold your mother”—focus on his relationship with the people. The remaining three sentences—“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me,” “I thirst,” and “It is finished….Into your hands I commit my spirit”—focus on Jesus’ personal relationship with the Father.

To better illustrate the hope and power of these words, I will be sharing with you a perspective of the crucifixion from someone who was there. These perspectives are, of course, fictional. However, they bring the crucifixion to the present and they place us at the foot of the cross. Today, we will hear from Simon of Cyrene before we reflect on the words “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”

Simon of Cyrene is mentioned in Matthew, Mark, and Luke but not John. Simon of Cyrene is the one who is compelled, by demanding and controlling Roman soldiers, to carry—to bear—the cross of Jesus, who he is tired, beaten, bruised, filthy, and struggling to carry the weight of the cross and of the world. Simon of Cyrene has no choice: a passerby, simply coming to celebrate Passover, has just helped the man who will come to change the world in just a few hours. Could you carry the cross of Jesus if you were charged to do so?

Opening Prayer:

            Let us pray…Dear Heavenly Father, the time has come to find ourselves at the foot of the cross of your Son. The time has come to seek forgiveness and to begin our journey to being saved from our transgressions. Lord, please guide us, nurture us, and give us strength, wisdom, and love to embrace the true reason for this Lenten Season as we prepare for the resurrection of your Son. I pray that my words fall to the ground as your words settle in the hearts of all those before me. In your name we pray, Amen.

 

Body:

We had spent two weeks sailing from the north coast of Africa to celebrate the Passover in Jerusalem. My Sons, Alexander and Rufus, were small boys, yet old enough to feel the excitement as we approached the Holy City. As our small caravan came over the last hill, Rufus let out a shout, “Look, Father, the Temple!” There she stood, the earthly palace of God, gleaming as she towered over the city. Though my family had lived in Cyrene for generations, Jerusalem was for us, as for every Jew, our heart’s home.

            That night we joined our cousins in Bethany for the Passover Seder that marked the beginning of the Festival, sharing a meal and recalling God’s salvation of our people. During the conversation, my cousins talked about the brother of Mary and Martha named Lazarus. They were neighbors to my cousins. They were saying that Lazarus had died. A man named Yeshua—Jesus—came weeping and mourning. Then, Jesus raised him from the dead saying, “Lazarus, come out.” I have heard of this man, but I don’t know him.

            As we approached the city we saw what appeared to be a parade coming our way. But soon we could see that this was no parade. There were Roman soldiers driving three criminals toward the rock where criminals were crucified. Each of these criminals was carrying a heavy beam across his shoulders: it must have weighed anywhere from 75 to 125lbs. One of them was badly beaten, nearly to death. I took Rufus and Alexander by the hand and pulled them away from the road. I did not want them to see this terrible thing.

            Just then the tragic figure, who was badly beaten and sorely wounded, stumbled and fell at my feet. I saw that his brow was wrapped in a crude crown of thorns, and suddenly I realized who this man was. This man was Yeshua—Jesus, whom raised Lazarus from the dead and who people are calling the Messiah.

            Everything happened so quickly. I was lost in my thoughts when I heard one of the soldiers say, “You there! You carry his cross! And you, Jesus, get to your feet!” There was nothing I could do. I picked up the beam, far heavier than I imagined, and pitched it over my shoulder. Then I reached out my hand to Jesus to help him up. He was clearly in pain. But there was still, in his face, a strength and determination. He looked me in the eyes, as if to thank me, and then he set his face toward Calvary.

            It was only a five-minute walk to the place they called The Skull—Calvary or Golgotha. Dropping the beam before the executioners, I stepped back, searching for my boys. They were standing behind two weeping women and man wrapping his arms around one of them. The soldiers stripped Jesus naked and laid him atop of the beams. They stretched his arms to the sides before they drove the spikes into his wrists or hands as he shouted in pain. Then the nailed his ankles or feet in the sides of the cross. Finally, they hoisted his cross up to its final rest position. As the cross sank into the hole, Jesus let out another cry of pain.

            Because I had never been so close to a crucifixion, I had not realized what a horrible thing this was. Rufus began to cry. Alexander became nauseous. There were two thieves being crucified with Jesus, and the soldiers hoisted each of them into the air. The sound of their crosses dropping into the earth echoed throughout Jerusalem: it still echoes in my soul today.

            The Romans shouted to the crowd, “Take a look at your king now! This is a lesson from Rome—don’t forget it.” ‘King,’ I thought. ‘He is a king? A king of what?’ Then I saw the etched out inscription hanging from his cross. It said, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” The soldiers, laughing, began to throw dice for his clothing. Some in the crowd wept. Others hurled insults at him. The religious leaders stood with their arms crossed, a strange expression of satisfaction upon their faces. ‘I have read about this before, but where,’ I thought.

            And then Jesus took a deep breath, and someone in the crowd said, “Shhh! He’s about to say something.” This is what he said: “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” These words changed my life…

Simon, after being forced to carry the cross of Jesus and finding himself, with his sons, standing at the foot of the cross and hearing the words of Jesus cut through the weeping and shouting of the crowd, realized something that takes us a lifetime to comprehend. Simon realized the power of forgiveness. In a time of death and desperation, Jesus turned his attention not to saving his life, but saving all those around him. At time of excruciating pain, Jesus didn’t ask for medication to numb the pain, he spoke from the heart to help us understand that we can seek reconciliation and redemption. From chaos and torment, Jesus offered us unconditional love and grace.

As a chaplain, I have been with dozens of people as they were approaching death. In some situations, a person’s dying words simply reflected the need to be more comfortable: “Could you get me another pillow? Could you get me another blanket? Could you get me some water?” Other persons’ express a concern for those in their life—“I love you” or “It’s going to be okay.” A person’s final words reveal what is on his or her heart at that time, and sometimes they reveal the nature of the person’s faith and hope.  John Wesley is said to have uttered these words as he died: “Best of all, God is with us.”

According to Adam Hamilton and other Biblical Scholars, “In the case of one being crucified, the very act of speaking was painful and required great exertion.” It is thought that death comes to those being crucified due to some combination of exhaustion, shock, buildup of fluid around the heart and in the lungs, and asphyxiation. To speak while being crucified would require great effort as the victim would have to pull himself up by the nails in the hands or wrists in order to expand the diaphragm to speak. For all these reasons, words were sparse among the victims of crucifixion. But yet, Jesus chose to speak. Jesus chose to endure the pain of lifting himself up. Jesus chose to remind us that even though we have sinned we can still be forgiven.

Jesus, from the cross, said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” This sentence offers us to two things to consider: First, “Father, forgive them” is a prayer. Jesus is praying for them. Second, this sentence reminds us of the grace that is given to us as a gift: this grace simply tells us that we need forgiveness in our life. We need forgiveness because we are not perfect. We need forgiveness so that we can be restored, saved, and resurrected in Jesus Christ. “Father, forgive them” is a promise given to us from Jesus  that we can be forgiven of our trespasses and that we are to forgive those who trespass against us.

“Father, forgive them:” a prayer. It is not surprising that these words—the first words spoken by Jesus from the cross—were a prayer. What is surprising, haunting, and, for some, disturbing, is who he was praying for. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them…” Who was Jesus praying for? And why was he praying for them and not for himself? Jesus was praying for the soldiers who cruelly tortured him and crucified him and who were preparing to cast lots for his clothes. Jesus was praying for Pilate who had no choice but to listen to his people as they shouted from the streets, “Crucify him. Crucify him. Crucify him.” Jesus was praying for the crowd who were beginning to verbally assault  him, mock him, and shaking their heads in disapproval at him. Jesus was praying for the religious leaders who, from their own jealousy and spiritual blindness, conspired with the Romans to kill him. Jesus was praying for the weeping women who were on the side of the road to Calvary. Jesus was praying for Simon of Cyrene—a perfect stranger who didn’t know a lot about Jesus. Jesus was praying for the criminals that were being crucified next to him. Jesus was praying for the Disciples, who either were near the crucifixion or were not to be seen. Jesus was praying for Judas, who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15) and who would later take his own life in Potter’s Field. And Jesus was even praying for us: he was praying for you, and he was praying for me.

At a time of death, Jesus prayed that we would be forgiven. He prayed that we would be saved. Even those who tortured him, beat him, betrayed him, and crucified and mocked him were forgiven. What does that say about the power of Jesus’ forgiveness in your lives? He always has forgiveness for us; and it comes even when it seems too late. As disciples, we often fall short of what Jesus has anointed us to do. The Prophet Isaiah has this to say about our Christian duty: “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners;
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn…” (Isaiah 61:1-2). Although we may not always bring good news, help the oppressed, comfort the brokenhearted, or offer liberty to all, Jesus still forgives us of our wrong doings. Do you need to be forgiven today? Is there something in your life that you need Jesus to take care of? If there is, I invite you to leave it at the foot of the cross today. Don’t let it leave with you.

“Father, forgive them:” a gift of grace. The Apostle Paul has this to say to the people of Rome, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8).Christ died for the clean and unclean, for the righteous and unrighteous, for the believer and non-believer. Christ died on the cross so that you and I, who are sinners, would be given a grace of salvation. Christ died because he knew we needed saving. Before you were born, God knew the sinful things you would do and forgave you in advance: he gave you grace. On the cross, Jesus suffered and died to save you from your sins and redeem you and to give you grace.

Forgiveness is a gift of grace. God has already done everything necessary to save you and to forgive you. He has given you the gift of grace. You didn’t have to ask for it, God just gave it to you. And this grace leads towards your salvation. You are saved by God’s grace. You have been reconciled by God’s grace. You have been redeemed by God’s grace. From the cross, God sacrificed His one and only Son so that you would have an eternal life filled with love, grace, and forgiveness. You didn’t ask for these gifts, but yet God still gave them to you. Your task is to accept this gift and to continually seek forgiveness. If Jesus can forgive us during a time of death, then surely we can pray to God and ask God for forgiveness as we are driving somewhere, watching T.V., sitting in our favorite chair, eating potato chips out of the bag. God has given us a gift that has no time limit, has no time frame, and certainly has no overarching qualifications. All we have to do is simply pray, “Father, forgive me for I have sinned.”

Conclusion:

Jesus spent much of his ministry teaching about the importance of forgiving others. In the Sermon on the Mount, he taught, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy” (Matthew 5:7). Then he taught his disciples to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). When the disciples asked how they should pray, Jesus told them to pray, “Forgive us for the ways we have wronged you, just as we also forgive those who have wronged us” (Matthew 6:12, CEB). He also taught them, “If you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14, CEB).

Jesus wanted all of us to hear the prayer that he cried out from the cross. Jesus wanted us to hear, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” If Jesus can find the strength to say these words from the cross, then I believe we can do the same thing: we can pray for forgiveness in our life. Luke states in Acts 3:19, “Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out….” This Lenten Season seek forgiveness for those in your life and seek forgiveness for yourself: repent and turn to God so that you will be saved.

Is there anything in your life that you need to be forgiven for? Are you ready to give it Jesus? Are you ready to be saved? Jesus has already forgiven you, but you have to keep that forgiveness going in your life.

 

Holy Communion:

When the Disciples gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem, they didn’t know what was going on. Jesus had predicted his death three times, but they didn’t take it to heart. But gathered around the table, Jesus began to fulfill the will of his Father whether the Disciples realized it or not. Jesus began his crucifixion by offering his Disciples and us the cup of forgiveness. At the table, where we gather with family, friends, neighbors, and strangers alike, we seek forgiveness and we accept his gift of grace so that we may be saved and experience an eternal life in His presence. Please join me in celebrating Holy Communion…

Benediction:

As the Lenten Season begins, and as we explore the final words of Jesus from the cross, I encourage you to ask God for forgiveness not just today or tomorrow but every day of your life. Jesus died so that we may be saved. Jesus died so that we could pray with him, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, go, transforming lives as you live well and wisely in God’s world. Amen. Amen. Amen.