Jesus Speaks from the Cross (#1)

Luke 23:26-38

It was the evening and the disciples had finished eating the Last Supper with Christ before going out to the Garden of Gethsemane with Him where Jesus would pray during those dark, lonely hours, knowing His arrest was soon. During the predawn hours of the next day, Jesus was taken to the unjust trials of the religious leaders and ultimately brought to Pilate to ask for His crucifixion. As the daylight dawned, Pilate learned that Jesus was of Galilee and as a friendly gesture, sent Him to Herod, who was in Jerusalem at the time. Though Herod had Jesus ridiculed, he wanted to avoid any political liability so he sent Him back to Pilate to be judged. And, even though Pilate could find no legitimate reason to crucify Jesus, he accommodated the angry mob and sent Him away to His death on a hillside called Calvary.

Golgotha is another name for this same location and is the Aramaic name for the place Jesus was crucified. Calvary is derived from the Latin phrase used to describe this mount of torture. Literally, these words mean,”Skull” or “The Place of the Skull” and all four Gospels reference it as the place where Jesus and two other criminals were crucified (Matthew 27:32-34; Mark 15:21-22;  Luke 23:33; John 19:16-18).

According to some early church fathers, the reason this location was called, “The Place of the Skull” was because of the shape of the hill that reminded people of a human skull. Today, there are two locations that are recognized as possibilities for the actual place of Christ’s crucifixion. One is called Gordon’s Calvary, which is a hillside outside the walls of modern-day Jerusalem with rock formations that makes it resemble a skull. The other is a site near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which is just outside the northern wall of the old city of Jerusalem, and not far from a road (Matthew 27:39; John 19:20). Maybe it’s best that the exact location of the crucifixion be unknown, since it is too holy a site to be desecrated by idolatrous superstitions and quarrels.

Listen to the text as Jesus is taken to this location to suffer a death unimaginable to us today.

Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus. And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women who also mourned and lamented Him. But Jesus, turning to them, said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!’  Then they will begin ‘to say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!”’ For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?” There were also two others, criminals, led with Him to be put to death. And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” And they divided His garments and cast lots. And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.” The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.” And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. (Luke 23:26-38)

The actual crucifixion of Jesus took place about 9 a.m. the morning following the Last Supper with the disciples the night before. In light of all the abuse Jesus had already endured during/after His trials, it is hard to imagine the enormity of the physical pain He was actually enduring.

It was probably the Persians that first utilized crucifixion as a form of punishment, but the Romans had perfected its torture and used it frequently. Usually, prisoners' arms were stretched out on the ground with their hands extended on the crossbeam (patibulum) they had carried to their crucifixion site. Their hands were then affixed to this crossbeam with large, rough spikes. The crossbeam was then lifted into place so that it rested on the wooden, upright member extending from the ground and the prisoners' feet were nailed to that beam. Roman crucifixion was cruel and brutal, intended to deter any other would-be criminals.

As Jesus hung on the cross from 9 a.m. that morning till 3 p.m. that afternoon, He spoke seven times. Listen to each of these sayings of Jesus from the cross.

Between 9 a.m. and noon:

1. "Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ And they divided His garments and cast lots." (Luke 23:34)
2. "Then he said to Jesus, ‘Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.’"  (Luke 23:43)
3. "Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold your son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold your mother!’ And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home."  (John 19:25-27)

He was silent between the hours of noon and 3 p.m.

At 3 p.m. and shortly thereafter:

4. "And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” (Matthew 27:46)   
5. "After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, ‘I thirst!’" (John 19:28)
6. "So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit."  (John 19:30)
7. "And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, ‘Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.’ Having said this, He breathed His last."  (Luke 23:46)

These seven sayings have long been the study of those that love the scripture and desire to honor Jesus Christ. Some have suggested that in these seven sayings we are given seven duties as followers of Christ.

1. To forgive our enemies (saying #1)
2. To have faith in Christ (saying #2)
3. To honor our parents (saying #3)
4. To set the highest possible value on the fulfillment of God’s Word (saying #4)
5. To cling to God even in life’s darkest moments (saying #5)
6. To persevere at whatever the task God has given us to the very end (saying #6)
7. To yield all things, even life itself, to God at God’s bidding (saying #7)

But, these words from the suffering of Jesus tell us far more than just about the duties to which we are obligated as His followers. As important as these duties may be, these words actually give us a glimpse into the very nature and work of Christ Himself.

Consider for a few minutes the first saying of Christ from the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Never have more beautiful words ever been uttered than these, which address mankind’s greatest need...his forgiveness of sin!

If you want to see the true heart of God, listen to Him interceding for the very ones that were directly guilty of crucifying Him.

As you’ll note...

1. These are AMAZINGLY COMPASSIONATE words.

Remember the fact that these words are being spoken at exactly the time He was being nailed to the cross or very shortly thereafter. And, consider that His first three sayings from the cross are not about Him, but about others (those crucifying Him, the thief on the cross and his earthly mother). The only thing you can derive from this is that Jesus continues to be compassionate towards others even in His suffering and death.

One of my favorite quotes about Jesus is found in Acts 10:38 where it says that, “He [Jesus] went about doing good.” Study the life of Jesus and you can’t help but see His compassion repeatedly as He does “good” to/for others.

Think about the widow of Nain whose only son had died. His mother and a crowd from the town were in a procession headed to bury his body. The text says that, “When the Lord saw her, his heart overflowed with compassion. “Don’t cry!” he said.” (Luke 7:13 NLT) Imagine her amazement (and all those in the funeral procession) when Jesus touched the coffin and her son sat up and began speaking...all because He was moved with compassion.

Think about the two blind men that cried out to Jesus as He was leaving the city of Jericho. They begged Him to have mercy on them and give them sight. The text says, “So Jesus had compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him.” (Matthew 20:34)

Consider the leprous man that knelt in front of Jesus and begged Him that if He was willing He could heal him. The text says, “Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. ‘I am willing,’ he said.’Be healed!’” (Mark 1:41 NLT)

Or, think about when Jesus was at the Sea of Galilee with a large crowd gathered around Him and he healed their sick, to the delight and amazement of all. After three days of these miraculous works the text says, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” (Matthew 15:32)

The occasions where we most often find the Gospels telling us about Jesus’ compassion are when crowds of people are assembled. At the sight of the great congregations gathered to hear him, our Lord was often moved with compassion. On one occasion the text says, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36 NLT)

Even when Jesus had been cruelly and unjustly tried, beaten and crucified, He still showed compassion on those that most desperately needed His forgiveness. And, it’s a compassion that only can be described as amazing!!

2. These are INEXTRICABLY GRACIOUS words.

You wouldn’t think that having just been crucified after being unjustly tried and beaten that anyone would want to extend forgiveness to his captors. But, in these first words of Jesus from the cross, He offered an unmerited and undeserved favor to all that would receive it.

Granted, He is not here pardoning people that don’t desire His pardon. But, He is opening the way of forgiveness to those that come to understand the significance of what is unfolding before them. He is giving them the opportunity to experience the Father’s gracious offer of pardon.

He even includes a special plea, an argument, if you will, for granting this inextricably gracious petition...”they do not know what they do.”

Jesus could have called the angelic hosts to deliver Him (cf. Matthew 26:53) and/or asked the Father to judge His captors instantaneously. But, His petition brings a sort of stay of execution and a hopeful expectation that they will avail themselves of the Father’s forgiveness in the future when they realize the depth of their sin (cf. Acts 2:29-39).

Who can explain the depth, height and/or breadth of such an underserved offer of pardon?

Is it any wonder that we sing the words to this song with such heart-felt emotion?

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.

And Grace, my fears relieved.

How precious did that Grace appear

The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares

I have already come;

'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far

and Grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me.

His word my hope secures.

He will my shield and portion be,

As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

And mortal life shall cease,

I shall possess within the veil,

A life of joy and peace.

One theologian from the 19th century said about this prayer of Jesus, “We have probably not the least idea how many of the conversions to God at Jerusalem which took place during the first six months after the crucifixion, were the direct reply to this marvelous prayer. Perhaps this prayer was the first step towards the penitent thief’s repentance. Perhaps it was one means of affecting the centurion, who declared our Lord ‘a righteous man,’ and the people who ‘smote their breasts and returned.’ Perhaps the three thousand converted on the day of Pentecost...owed their conversion to this very prayer...we may be sure this wondrous prayer was heard.” (John Charles Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: St. Luke [Cambridge, England: James Clarke & Co., 1976], vol. 2, p. 463)

3. These are EXPANSIVELY INCLUSIVE words.

For whom exactly is this prayer for pardon being made? And, in the answer to that question, we find the expansive nature of the petition.

Is the prayer being made for only the soldiers who were merely doing their job and probably had little understanding of the significance of their actions? Does it include all of the nation of Israel, even those that had been guilty of calling for His crucifixion that very morning? Would it include the Jewish authorities that had long been looking for a way to destroy Him and were the primary motivators behind the calls for His crucifixion?

Truthfully, when Jesus prayed, “for they do not know what they do,” He was asking for all of these to realize their sin and to change their minds about Him. This is implied in several passages of scripture. For instance...

“Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers.” (Acts 3:17)

“For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they did not know Him, nor even the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled them in condemning Him.” (Acts 13:27)

“...which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” (1 Corinthians 2:8)

In other words, Jesus included all of the people and their rulers in His intercessory prayer...even you and me. While you and I didn't nail Jesus to the cross or call for His crucifixion, it is because of our sin that He had to die.  

This prayer reflects the enormous scope of His Atonement for all mankind’s sin! In essence, Jesus prays that all people will be given time, grace and the knowledge necessary to bring them to the Father’s pardon.

After all, mankind’s greatest need is forgiveness of sin and that’s what makes this prayer so wonderfully powerful.

Think about it this way...

• If God can forgive those that condemned Him to die...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive those that cried out, “crucify Him, crucify Him”...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive the ones that asked for the guilty Barabbas to be released instead of the innocent Jesus...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive the ones that denied Him rightful and legal justice...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive those that inflicted the agonizing pain of the nails through His hands and feet, as well as the crown of thorns on His head...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive those that mocked Him during the time of His agony...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive those that gambled for His seamless robe, impervious to His suffering and agony...He can forgive you and me.
• If He can forgive those that slapped Him, pulled His beard from His face, and scourged His back...He can forgive you and me.

There is no sin too great that He cannot forgive and there is no sinner too far lost that He cannot find!

That’s what the scripture teaches about the extent of the Father’s forgiveness. Listen to the Apostle Paul talking about the power of God’s grace and forgiveness. “Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more…” (Romans 5:20)

4. These are UNDENIABLY NEEDED words.

The portrait of our true spiritual condition apart from Christ is an unflattering one. In a day when people think too highly of themselves and there is so much talk about self-love and self-esteem, the Bible is brutally honest about what lies deep within each one of us.

“What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written: There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one. Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit; The poison of asps is under their lips; Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; And the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God... (Romans 3:1-18, 23)

The truth is...everybody needs Jesus and the forgiveness the Father offers! Jesus was acting as an intercessor for us while suspended on that rugged cross, petitioning God for us to have the opportunity to know His pardon! Jesus was dying for the very purpose of paying a penalty we all owe. It is precisely because Jesus was taking the place of sinners in His death that He was able to pray, “Father, forgive them.”

For God to be just and righteous He must punish sin. God cannot merely forget about it or overlook it. Consequently, He dealt with it by providing a just punishment for it in the person of His own Son...rather than in the person of the sinner. Because of this...any one of us can be made right with God through Jesus Christ by receiving His payment for our sins at Calvary.

To grasp this truth, let’s go back to the attack on the World Trade Center as a practical illustration of the rescue God brings to us through Jesus Christ. In the September 11, 2002, issue of TIME magazine there was a touching article about 31-year old Genelle Guzman. Genelle was the last of only four people caught in the debris of the Twin Towers to be found alive.

After the planes hit the World Trade Center, Genelle was descending a staircase from the 64th floor of the North Tower. Steel beams weakened to their breaking point. Solid concrete was pulverized. But somehow her body found an air pocket.

Her right leg was pinned under heavy concrete pillars. Her head was caught between stacks of wreckage. But, she was still alive.

For twenty-seven hours Guzman lay trapped and seriously injured.

In the months leading up to the horrendous attacks of that day, Genelle had started attending the Brooklyn Tabernacle, and wanted to get her life turned around. So while she was stuck in the rubble, she started to pray. She’d trail off into sleep – wake up and pray some more.

Shortly after noon on Wednesday the 12th, she heard voices. So she screamed as loud as she could, “I’m here! HEY, I’M RIGHT HERE!” A rescue worker responded, "Do you see the light?" But, she couldn’t see it. She took a piece of concrete and banged it against a broken stairway overhead—probably the very structure that had saved her life. This allowed the searchers to find her location.

Genelle wedged her hand through a crack in the wall, and felt someone grab it. She heard a voice say, "I’ve got you," and Genelle Guzman said, "OH GOD, THANK YOU.”

It took 20 long minutes, and then she was saved.

In many ways, Genelle Guzman represents the problem of all people. We are buried under an enormous mass of our own spiritual wickedness and evil – ways we have wronged our perfect and holy God. The Bible calls these things sin and we have no hope of freeing ourselves. We are truly stuck and in need of rescue.

But by admitting the need to be forgiven – by reaching out and saying, “God, help me! I can’t get out of this mess unless you save me,” we can be confident that he hears and answers that prayer. (TIME Magazine, 9/11/02, p. 38.)

Consider three ways that you can realize the fullest meaning of Jesus' prayer on that crucifixion day…”Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

1. Stop trying to free yourself from your own sinfulness and ask Christ alone to save you.
2. Stop punishing yourself and remember that whom the Father forgives...is truly forgiven.
3. Stop holding onto bitterness toward others when Christ has forgiven you so much.

“...forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)