Forgive Others … “Father Forgive Them”  Luke 23:34

 

 

Intro: I asked you last week how many of you have been hurt, by others. Many raised their hands all have been hurt.  What do we do when those we love and those that we do not love hurt us. From scripture today we will see the supreme trespass against a man forgiven.

 

Coming to the end of His earthly ministry Jesus is hanging between heaven and earth with His hands and feet nailed to a rough wooden cross. 

Calvary … Golgotha … From this most unusual “pulpit” Jesus speaks His last words.  “And His last words are impressive.” 

Seven times Jesus spoke words from the cross that have impressed each generation of believers since that day on Calvary.   Therefore these words of our Savior are better viewed as “lasting” rather than His last.

The Lord’s first words as he hung on Calvary’s cross were “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”[i]

As Christ hung on the cross, he had been beaten, striped, pierced, nailed, mocked, scorned, and hated, yet his heart was to forgive those that trespassed against Him. How uncommon! What is our response when someone hurts us?

·         Hate – I hate them!

·         Vengeance – I will get even.

·         Distrust  - I will never trust them again.

·         Grudge – I will never forget what they have done to me.

·         Resentment – I can’t stand to be in their presence.

·         Bitterness – I want to hurt them because of what they have done to me,

About one year ago our nation was shocked by the evil actions of 19 terrorists. But we also were blessed by the actions of many who acted with uncommon grace. Todd Beamer who on September 11, 2001 boarded the ill-fated United Airlines Flight 93 spoke his last words to GTE operator, Lisa Jefferson.

In those last words Todd asked Lisa Jefferson to promise him that she would call his wife and 2 sons.  Then he asked her to pray with him and repeat the Lord’s Prayer.  Lisa Jefferson has stated that Todd put a great deal of emphasis on “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.”

The first of the seven “cross words” Jesus prays for His enemies.

Luke 23:33-34  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. 34 Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots.

These first words are:

The diversity of the crowd gathered around the cross represents all humanity and speaks to the greatest need man has … to be forgiven … forgiveness of sin and release from its bondage.

Crucifixion was not intended to produce sudden death, but rather a slow death filled with agonizing pain.  It was not uncommon for the one being crucified to beg for mercy, as well as spit and curse at those watching.

When men … tried Him, mocked Him, lied about Him, spit upon Him and crucified Him, Jesus prayed for them to be forgiven.

Jesus began his ministry in prayer (Lk 3:21) and was now ending His greatest act of ministry in prayer.

“His hands can no longer perform acts of love, His feet can no more carry Him on errands of mercy, but one form of service – and the highest – is still open to Him.  He can still pray!”  - J. Oswald Sanders

Jesus practiced what he preached …

Matthew 5:44  "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,

 … leaving an example for all believers to follow. 

Cross Word lesson #1: Forgive Others

1. Forgive the Cruel Intention of Others

a)      Have you ever been hurt “intentionally?”   And have you been hurt “unintentionally?”   It is safe to say all of us have been hurt both intentionally and unintentionally.

b)      Jesus prays and teaches … "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."

c)      In the crowd that day, there were those who were “intentionally” desiring and seeking the death of Jesus.  In the same crowd there were others who were “unintentionally” (unknowingly) putting to death the Son of God.

d)      1 Corinthians 2:8b  … for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

e)      But regardless of the intentional or unintentional sins against us … sins need to be forgiven.  Jesus prayed for and forgave the intentions of … 

·         Priests who accused Him.

·         Pilate who condemned Him.

·         Soldiers who nailed Him.

·         People who laughed and mocked Him.

·         You and I who deny Him.

               f)  Forgive others for their intentions.

2. Forgive the Attention of Others

a)      We need to learn to forgive not only the intention but also the attention of others … And they divided His garments and cast lots.

b)      There beneath Jesus dying for the sins of all humanity, were those who thought only of themselves … gambling for the clothing of Jesus.

·         Those who hurt others have their attention focused upon themselves.  

·         Those who can forgive others have their attention on God who has forgiven them.

“True forgiveness springs from gratitude to God for His forgiving me.”  - Jack Hayford

 

c)       But let’s make sure we know what remember what forgiveness is. Forgiveness is a promise. A promise we make to those who have hurt us, a promise to ourselves. In forgiveness we promise those that have hurt us that we will not intentional remember, or mentally dwell on the hurt they have inflicted on us.

d)       Forgiveness means “to discharge, dismiss, acquit, let loose from; to remit a debt or sin, to pardon.”9 Forgiveness does not mean that the victim will forget the offense.

e)       Jay Adams explains further what is involved: Forgiveness means no longer continuing to dwell on the sin that was forgiven. Forgiveness is the promise not to raise the issue again to the offender, to others or to himself. Brooding is a violation of the promise made in granting forgiveness.10

f)         More than this, we promise in forgiveness that we will not remind others of their offense towards us.  We forgive and forget.  Forgiveness is absolute with the Lord but you and I are human we struggle with the hurt, we nurse grudges, we pity ourselves, and blame others. Never do we see that in the life of our Lord Jesus. He forgave fully.

Conclusion:

Some would suggest that the reason we forgive is because we need to …

On the cross Jesus presented the greatest lesson for all to learn … mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:13)

From the cross, Jesus teaches us a lesson that we must become “practitioners of forgiveness.”  

 “I can forgive you, I can forgive you, I can forgive you in Christ who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:13  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

This morning … how far are you willing to put to work God’s Word?  Can you forgive others in Christ who strengthens you?  Nail it down, as Jesus did on the cross … “forgive others”.


 

[i]The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995 (Electronic edition of the 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version.) . Logos Research Systems, Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA

Forgive Others

Forgive Others … “Father Forgive Them”  Luke 23:34

 

 

Intro: I asked you last week how many of you have been hurt, by others. Many raised their hands all have been hurt.  What do we do when those we love and those that we do not love hurt us. From scripture today we will see the supreme trespass against a man forgiven.

 

Coming to the end of His earthly ministry Jesus is hanging between heaven and earth with His hands and feet nailed to a rough wooden cross. 

Calvary … Golgotha … From this most unusual “pulpit” Jesus speaks His last words.  “And His last words are impressive.” 

Seven times Jesus spoke words from the cross that have impressed each generation of believers since that day on Calvary.   Therefore these words of our Savior are better viewed as “lasting” rather than His last.

The Lord’s first words as he hung on Calvary’s cross were “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”[i]

As Christ hung on the cross, he had been beaten, striped, pierced, nailed, mocked, scorned, and hated, yet his heart was to forgive those that trespassed against Him. How uncommon! What is our response when someone hurts us?

·         Hate – I hate them!

·         Vengeance – I will get even.

·         Distrust  - I will never trust them again.

·         Grudge – I will never forget what they have done to me.

·         Resentment – I can’t stand to be in their presence.

·         Bitterness – I want to hurt them because of what they have done to me,

About one year ago our nation was shocked by the evil actions of 19 terrorists. But we also were blessed by the actions of many who acted with uncommon grace. Todd Beamer who on September 11, 2001 boarded the ill-fated United Airlines Flight 93 spoke his last words to GTE operator, Lisa Jefferson.

In those last words Todd asked Lisa Jefferson to promise him that she would call his wife and 2 sons.  Then he asked her to pray with him and repeat the Lord’s Prayer.  Lisa Jefferson has stated that Todd put a great deal of emphasis on “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.”

The first of the seven “cross words” Jesus prays for His enemies.

Luke 23:33-34  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. 34 Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots.

These first words are:

The diversity of the crowd gathered around the cross represents all humanity and speaks to the greatest need man has … to be forgiven … forgiveness of sin and release from its bondage.

Crucifixion was not intended to produce sudden death, but rather a slow death filled with agonizing pain.  It was not uncommon for the one being crucified to beg for mercy, as well as spit and curse at those watching.

When men … tried Him, mocked Him, lied about Him, spit upon Him and crucified Him, Jesus prayed for them to be forgiven.

Jesus began his ministry in prayer (Lk 3:21) and was now ending His greatest act of ministry in prayer.

“His hands can no longer perform acts of love, His feet can no more carry Him on errands of mercy, but one form of service – and the highest – is still open to Him.  He can still pray!”  - J. Oswald Sanders

Jesus practiced what he preached …

Matthew 5:44  "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,

 … leaving an example for all believers to follow. 

Cross Word lesson #1: Forgive Others

1. Forgive the Cruel Intention of Others

a)      Have you ever been hurt “intentionally?”   And have you been hurt “unintentionally?”   It is safe to say all of us have been hurt both intentionally and unintentionally.

b)      Jesus prays and teaches … "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."

c)      In the crowd that day, there were those who were “intentionally” desiring and seeking the death of Jesus.  In the same crowd there were others who were “unintentionally” (unknowingly) putting to death the Son of God.

d)      1 Corinthians 2:8b  … for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

e)      But regardless of the intentional or unintentional sins against us … sins need to be forgiven.  Jesus prayed for and forgave the intentions of … 

·         Priests who accused Him.

·         Pilate who condemned Him.

·         Soldiers who nailed Him.

·         People who laughed and mocked Him.

·         You and I who deny Him.

               f)  Forgive others for their intentions.

2. Forgive the Attention of Others

a)      We need to learn to forgive not only the intention but also the attention of others … And they divided His garments and cast lots.

b)      There beneath Jesus dying for the sins of all humanity, were those who thought only of themselves … gambling for the clothing of Jesus.

·         Those who hurt others have their attention focused upon themselves.  

·         Those who can forgive others have their attention on God who has forgiven them.

“True forgiveness springs from gratitude to God for His forgiving me.”  - Jack Hayford

 

c)       But let’s make sure we know what remember what forgiveness is. Forgiveness is a promise. A promise we make to those who have hurt us, a promise to ourselves. In forgiveness we promise those that have hurt us that we will not intentional remember, or mentally dwell on the hurt they have inflicted on us.

d)       Forgiveness means “to discharge, dismiss, acquit, let loose from; to remit a debt or sin, to pardon.”9 Forgiveness does not mean that the victim will forget the offense.

e)       Jay Adams explains further what is involved: Forgiveness means no longer continuing to dwell on the sin that was forgiven. Forgiveness is the promise not to raise the issue again to the offender, to others or to himself. Brooding is a violation of the promise made in granting forgiveness.10

f)         More than this, we promise in forgiveness that we will not remind others of their offense towards us.  We forgive and forget.  Forgiveness is absolute with the Lord but you and I are human we struggle with the hurt, we nurse grudges, we pity ourselves, and blame others. Never do we see that in the life of our Lord Jesus. He forgave fully.

Conclusion:

Some would suggest that the reason we forgive is because we need to …

On the cross Jesus presented the greatest lesson for all to learn … mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:13)

From the cross, Jesus teaches us a lesson that we must become “practitioners of forgiveness.”  

 “I can forgive you, I can forgive you, I can forgive you in Christ who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:13  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

This morning … how far are you willing to put to work God’s Word?  Can you forgive others in Christ who strengthens you?  Nail it down, as Jesus did on the cross … “forgive others”.


 

[i]The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995 (Electronic edition of the 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version.) . Logos Research Systems, Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA