“Father forgive them”
Read Luke 23:33-49
Why do Christians make such a big deal out of the cross? Why does one decorate our wall? Why is one on top of our steeple? Why do we sing about it? Why I am writing about it? The cross represents forgiveness. It doesn’t just symbolize forgiveness; it was the very instrument that made forgiveness possible. We should not be surprised then, that the first words that Jesus uttered from the cross were words of forgiveness. In these three words, we begin our journey towards comprehending what was taking place on Golgotha.
In the first word Father we meet the offended
This was the greatest sin ever committed. The murder of God’s Son. Notice Jesus did not say, I forgive you. He was the one being crucified. He was the one being tortured to death. He was the one falsely accused, convicted by a jury of his enemies, beaten with a whip. It was all about Him, or was it? He doesn’t pronounce forgiveness; He asks the Father to dispense it. Why? Because all sin is an offense against God. The Jewish scribes of Jesus’ day were correct when they reasoned, “Who can forgive sins but God only?” Sin is a violation of God’s holy standard. Not man’s standards! Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever took something that wasn’t yours? I don’t just mean something tangible like a wallet or a bike. Have you ever taken credit for something that you didn’t deserve? Have you ever wanted something your neighbor has? Ever commit adultery in your heart or mind? Then you have a problem. You are a lawbreaker. You are a sinner! As a sinner, you have offended your maker, your creator, your God. All your righteousness is as filthy rags. You have nothing to offer Him. Except to fulfill your punishment. The wages of sin is death. Even your death is not sufficient. If you die in your sins, you stay in your sins. Sinners cannot stay in God’s presence, so you will be cast out. Eternal separation from the God whom you have offended. A separation where the Bible says will be weeping and gnashing of teeth and the flame is not quenched. Jesus addressed His Father. But in our natural state, we are the children of the devil. Satan is the Father of liars and thieves and adulterers. Not only can I not ask for the Father’s forgiveness, but I also can’t even call Him Father! But Jesus can.
In the second word Forgive we meet the offering
Romans 7:24 “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”
Jesus can! In the Old Testament, the only way God would overlook sin was to accept an offering of atonement. Something had to die; the blood had to be spilled. Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin. The wages of sin is death. The blood of bulls and goats was never sufficient but offered a covering for a while. Sacrifice a lamb, and God would Passover you, this time. But there remained one final offering. One sufficient sacrifice. The Lamb of God would take away the sin of the world. God sent His Son to offer Himself the sacrifice for sins. Forgiveness comes through the death of the Son. The cross is God’s punishment for sin. The Romans used the cross to punish criminals. The Jews allowed it to punish blasphemers. But God used it to punish sin. Our sin. My death would never be sufficient to pay the price for my sins, much less the sins of others. But the death of God the Son, infinitely holy, is more than sufficient. Jesus wasn’t just praying for our forgiveness; He was paying for our forgiveness.
In the third word Them we meet the offenders
In verse 34, we read Jesus “was saying Father, forgive them.” This implies He was saying it repeatedly. Who are the “them?” The People (vs35) The Rulers (vs35) The Soldiers (vs36) The Criminals (vs39) Us (vs41). Did they understand what they were doing? Not really, no. But ignorance is no excuse of the law. Under the Levitical system, God required that atonement should be made for sins of ignorance (the sin of omission). Sin is always sin in the sight of God, whether we are conscious of it or not. We are blind to our sin. We think we are ok. We’ll make it. It will balance in our favor. No, no, no! We are the offenders. We need forgiveness. I nailed Jesus to the cross.
Throughout the ages, anti-Semites have called the Jewish people by the derogatory name of Christ-killers. But the Jews didn’t kill Christ (who was a Jew, by the way, something bigots seem to forget). The Romans didn’t kill Christ. Pilate didn’t kill Christ. You expect me to say, I killed Christ, my sin killed Christ. But no, God killed Christ. The Lamb was slain before the foundation of the world.