Forgive Them

Tim Shaw
Adult Education Pastor

As spring is in the air causing the trees to bud and flowers to bloom, my thoughts are more on the approaching Easter season than the calendar season. The whole basis of our faith is the Cross of Christ and His resurrection!

When Christ was crucified, He made seven profound statements while He hung on the tree before He breathed His last earthly breath of air. As I think about Jesus Christ and what he went through on the cross, the word "amazing" dominates my mind. We can learn a lot about Christ's character from these few statements that I believe to be truly amazing. Of those seven, the one that I find the most convicting was the first. "Then said Jesus, 'Father forgive them; for they know not what they do'." Luke 23:34

Jesus, having just been nailed to a cross, was in the process of dying by the most painful method of execution that has ever been devised by man. In the midst of His agony, Jesus looked down from the cross at the people responsible for His suffering and offered up a prayer requesting that God forgive them. If you think as I do, you read this and thought, "Wow, that's amazing!" And from our human reasoning it is. But should it surprise us that He would offer such a prayer? After all, this forgiveness if the very reason that He chose to lay down His life!

There is debate among theologians as to whom Christ was referring when He said "they know not what they do." Is He referring to the Romans who were responsible for carrying out the execution or to the Jews who failed to recognize their Messiah? I believe He was referring to the Jews, for they made a serious mistake and failed to recognize God's plan for their nation. As Paul later wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:8, if they had known who Christ was, they would not have crucified Him. Regardless of which group He was referring to, all the participants in His death were included in the prayer for forgiveness.

This same forgiveness that Christ prayed from the cross is available for everyone. However, one must accept it before salvation can be claimed. How about you? Have you ever come to the point in your life where you realized that you were a hopeless sinner and that you stood in need of a Savior? Have you ever asked that Savior, who loved you enough to lay down His life for you, for forgiveness of the sins you have committed? Have you ever placed your faith and trust in that Savior as the only means by which you can have hope and eternal life? If you have not, there is no better time than right now.

If you have received Christ as your personal Savior, are you living by the example He set? Do you love your enemies? Do you offer or withhold forgiveness from those who have caused you pain and suffering? Amazing, astounding, miraculous -- choose any descriptive word you like. Then choose to live for Christ, and extend the mercy, grace, and compassion He has shown you to other people.