26 As the guards led Jesus to be crucified, there was an African man in the crowd named Simon, from Libya. He had just arrived from a rural village to keep the Feast of the Passover. The guards laid Jesus’ cross on Simon’s shoulders, and forced him to walk behind Jesus and carry his cross.
33 When they came to the place that is known as The Skull, the guards crucified Jesus, nailing him on the center cross between the two criminals. 34 While they were nailing Jesus to the cross, he prayed over and over, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”
The soldiers, after they crucified him, gambled over his clothing.
35 A great crowd gathered to watch what was happening. The religious leaders sneered at Jesus and mocked him, saying, “Look at this man! What kind of ‘chosen Messiah’ is this? He pretended to save others, but he can’t even save himself.”
36 The soldiers joined in the mockery by offering Jesus a drink of vinegar.
37–38 Over Jesus’ head on the cross was written an inscription in Greek, Latin, and Aramaic. “This man is the king of all the Jews.” And all the soldiers laughed and scoffed at him, saying, “Hey! If you’re the king of Jews, why don’t you save yourself?” (Luke 23:26, 33-38, TPT)
Jesus prayer on the cross is a model for us forgiving others today:
1.
Father…
“Yes,
if you forgive others for the wrongs they do to you, then your Father in Heaven
will also forgive your wrongs. But if you don’t forgive others, then your Father in Heaven
will not forgive the wrongs you do.” (Matthew
6:14-15, ERV)
2.
Forgive them…
“Be
kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same as God forgave you
through Christ.” (Ephesians
4:32, ERV)
3.
…For they don’t know what they’re doing.
“Listen, I can’t explain my actions. Here’s why: I am not able
to do the things I want; and at the same time, I do the things I despise.” (Romans
7:15, VOICE)
“To be a Christian means to forgive
the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” (C.S. Lewis)[i]
[i] Inspired by the sermon
“Passion-ate Prayers: Father Forgive Them” (installment five, final) Good
Friday, March 30, 2018 Pastor Dave Jansen CenterPoint
Gahanna Church Gahanna, OH
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