We think of the, obviously, when it comes to this time,
we think of the death of Christ,
and you can only preach so many sermons
about the death of Christ and some of the significance,
but if we look at Luke 23, verse number 33,
Luke 23, 33, it says,
And when they were come to the place
which is called Calvary, there they crucified him,
and the malefactors, one on the right hand
and the other on the left, then said Jesus,
then said Jesus.
Title for the sermon this evening is Words from the Cross,
Words from the Cross.
So we're looking tonight at the last words,
the words that at least the Bible has recorded for us,
that Christ spoke when he was crucified on that cross.
And I don't want to preach too long,
because of course we're having the Lord's table afterwards,
so just keep a track of time there.
But let's have a look at these words,
and what did Christ say in verse number 34?
Then said Jesus, and these are the,
you know, when you look at the chronology,
when you think of the chronology of the words
of Jesus Christ, these are the very first words,
the very first phrase that he says when he's on the cross.
Then said Jesus, Father forgive them,
for they know not what they do,
and they parted his raiment and cast lots.
The very first words that we see of Christ
recorded for us in scripture is Father forgive them.
And you know, what I think about this passage,
when I think about this, you know,
obviously Christ is speaking to his Father.
You know, as he's on the cross, the very first words,
again, recorded for us in the scriptures,
he speaks to his Father, and he says to his Father,
forgive them.
Why would he need to say those words?
I mean, consider yourself as a parent.
You know, if you were, I mean, even if you're not a parent,
consider yourself as a parent.
You know, if someone had taken your child,
and beaten your child, you know, your child's innocent.
He's beaten, whipped, spat upon, taken,
and nails driven through his hands and his feet,
and put upon a cross for the shame of all.
What would you do as a parent?
You know, if you see people mistreating your kid,
abusing your child, you would step in, wouldn't you?
You'd put a stop.
You know, you'd go on the defense of your child.
One thing that we see here is,
why would the son need to say to the Father, forgive them?
I mean, I can only imagine the wrath of the Father
burning hot.
I can only imagine God, potentially,
the Father putting a stop to this punishment of his son.
And his son reminds the Father, forgive them.
For they know not what they do.
And again, we see the relationship between Father and Son.
We see the importance of family
when it comes to the very nature of God.
And so, you know, this just reminds us how,
you know, as as parents,
that we need to be protective of our children.
You know, and of course, Christ came,
and you know, I remember, I saw a video
of this Oneness Pentecostal.
No, it's not Pentecostal, Oneness Baptist,
Tyler Baker, mocking the Father sent the son to die.
He's like, well, someone's got to die.
You know, it might as well be you son, you die,
you know, for the sins of other,
kind of mocking the fact that the Father would send the son,
because he believes the son is the Father,
so the Father died on the cross.
No, we see, this wasn't easy for the Father.
You know, for the son to turn around and say,
Dad, Father, forgive them, forgive them.
And you know, again, when we look at the steps of Christ
and how that applies for us,
the other thing that we can learn here is
that God has the ability to forgive,
even the unapologetic, okay?
It's easy to forgive those that apologize.
You know, if someone does you wrong
and they say sorry to you, it's easy to forgive them.
And actually, we are commanded as God's children
to forgive those that say sorry, that apologize.
But one thing that we see with God
is also able to forgive the unapologetic.
Father, forgive them.
Now, you know, the discussion might be,
well, how much forgiveness,
like what level of forgiveness did God give
to those people that put Christ on the cross?
Of course, it was the Roman soldiers
that were carrying out their orders,
but of course, it was the Jews behind the scenes
that had prompted Pilate to order
the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
You know, what level of forgiveness,
how far this forgiveness reached
to those that were doing this to Jesus Christ,
and if I just give you my personal opinion,
just based on the words of Christ,
it says, Father, forgive them,
for they know not what they do.
I believe this forgiveness will stretch out
to those that are acting upon ignorance.
You know, the Roman soldiers,
you know, they're just carrying out orders.
They don't necessarily, they don't hate Christ.
It's not like they're trying to crucify
an innocent man on purpose.
They're just ignorantly carrying out orders.
I'm sure there are other Jews in the midst of the crowd
that are vying for the blood of Christ,
that they just, or they see him
as a rebellious, you know, religious leader,
but of course, when it comes to others,
like the chief priests, like the Pharisees,
they did not do this out of ignorance.
These Christ haters, you know,
when Nicodemus comes to Jesus that night,
he says, he goes, we know that you're of God.
He goes, he says, I'm just paraphrasing,
he goes, you know, that no man can do what you do
unless you've come from God.
There are those that knew that Christ was from God.
They knew he performed these amazing miracles,
and the only way he could do it
was that he was sent by God.
Of course, these people are not acting out of ignorance.
They just saw Christ as a competition
for the attention and love of the people.
They wanted to stay in power,
they wanted to reign supreme over Judea
at this point in time, so, you know,
I'm not sure whether the forgiveness
really stretched out to them.
It seems like what Christ is saying
is to forgive those that are ignorant
of what's taking place.
But there were definitely those that hated Jesus Christ.
His first words were, forgive them.
That's really deep, because if someone
is treating you harshly, someone is abusing you,
even to the point of death,
that's a hard phrase to say, forgive them, I forgive you.
Father, forgive them for what they do.
This doesn't mean that that means
the people that died, they went to heaven.
It's just that they were forgiven for this act.
Of course, they had their other sins
that they had to deal with, the Lord God,
you know, in judgment time.
But these are the words of Christ,
the very first words from the cross.
Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.
Now, let's continue there in verse number,
drop down to verse number 39.
And one of the malefactors, which were hanged,
railed on him, saying, if thou be Christ,
save thyself and us.
And of course, the book of Luke,
he's just capturing one of the malefactors,
railed on him, but we have other references
that both the malefactors, both the thieves on the cross,
railed against Christ.
I'm not sure why you would do that.
I mean, they're dying to death as well,
but they look at Christ and they mock him,
save thyself and us, of course, being sarcastic here.
Verse number 40, but the other answering rebuked him,
saying, dost not thou fear God,
seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
You know, this one thief is able to say,
look, we're also condemned.
We also should fear God.
We're also about to see God,
and we're going to face the penalty for what we've done.
How can you just continue going on about,
you know, how can you continue in your wickedness?
This man started to fear the Lord.
He started to see he's near the point of death,
he's about to die.
Verse number 41, he says, and we indeed justly.
He goes, we justly are going to die for ourself,
for what we've done.
You know, the thing that you notice here about this thief,
he says, I'm a sinner.
You know, I deserve to die.
I deserve this punishment.
Because he's a sinner, he's done wrong.
He goes, for we receive the due reward of our deeds,
but this man have done nothing amiss.
Now this thief of course gets saved as we keep going,
but you know, we see the process of salvation.
He says, man, I'm a sinner, you know,
but Jesus Christ, he's perfect.
Jesus Christ has no sin.
There's nothing, there's nothing that Christ has done
that makes him deserving of his death,
but we've sinned.
And of course, the very first step in order to be saved
is to recognize yourself a sinner,
and to recognize that Christ is the one that is perfect.
He's the only one that's perfect.
Verse number 42, and he said unto Jesus,
Lord, I love that, Lord.
I mean, he was mocking Christ not long ago.
Now it says, you're Lord.
You're the boss, you know.
You've got authority.
Lord, what kind of authority?
Remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
You know, Jesus Christ had a crown of thorns on his head,
mocking his kingship.
He had an inscription over his head
saying this is the king of the Jews.
Again, mocking him.
Somehow the thief on the cross was able to see beyond that
and see this man has a kingdom.
You know, this man is,
this is not the end of this man, Jesus Christ.
This is the Lord, and he's got a kingdom.
He says, Lord, just remember me.
Like, I'm sure he would,
all he wants is just to potentially be the janitor
in the kingdom.
Just some lowly position.
Just, Lord, help me to be part of it to some extent.
I mean, I don't know exactly
how much he knew the scriptures,
but one thing that we see here is that he recognizes
this is not the end of Christ.
He's coming back, and he's coming back with a kingdom,
and he wants to be part of it.
He acts out of faith.
He puts his faith on the dying Messiah.
And verse number 43.
And Jesus said unto him, verily I say unto thee,
today shall that be with me in paradise.
He, you know, he doesn't have to be remembered
sometime in the future.
Christ says, today!
You can be saved today!
Today you'll be with me in paradise!
Again, just shows us,
this thief on the cross is a perfect example of salvation.
The moment you put your faith on Christ,
the moment you recognize yourself a sinner,
and that you need the Savior, you need the Messiah,
you need the King to save you,
is the moment you are guaranteed of heaven.
You know, it's not some future promise.
You have it today.
The Holy Spirit lives in your heart today.
And we have the ability to live a life
that pleases the Lord today.
The thief on the cross is a perfect example of salvation.
He's a man that's on the cross.
He can perform no works.
There's nothing he can do.
He can't even turn from his sins.
He can't clean up his life.
You know, he can't go to church.
He can't get baptized.
You know, he can't live a life long enough
where a lot of Baptists go,
I'm gonna watch this man live for a while
to really determine whether he's saved or not.
I'm gonna see the real fruits.
I'm gonna see, really, is he really saved or not?
Not Christ says, today shall be with me in paradise.
You know, the moment you put your faith in Christ,
you're saved.
You say, but what if he doesn't do any works?
This faith on the cross did no works.
He just died.
And Jesus Christ promises him,
today that shall be with me in paradise.
That's salvation, brethren.
I don't have to sit around watching.
Is anyone acting out of line here?
I'd said to turn to the scriptures
and someone didn't open their Bible.
I don't know if they're saved,
so I'm gonna go watch them for another 10 years.
I'm gonna watch them a few years, the kids.
Kids, I don't know, because you're just kids.
So you're just dumb kids.
I gotta watch you too.
You're 12 years old, then we'll baptize you.
No, listen, if someone puts their faith in Christ,
he's able to just verbalize.
Remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
Just some words like that.
I mean, I know we do the sinner's prayer
when we lead someone in prayer,
and that's a good thing to do.
We repeat the plan of salvation.
We make sure they've understood it, of course.
There's nothing wrong with that.
But it's not so much the words,
it's the faith in that man
that puts their faith in Christ,
that speaks to the one that saves them.
You know, that's what he said.
Remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
That's his sinner's prayer.
It wouldn't really pass the Baptist standard,
but it's good enough for Christ,
because Christ could see the faith placed upon him.
So great words that he says to the cross.
You know, the thief's faith is on his living savior.
He doesn't think this is the end of Christ,
that Christ is coming back.
So let's now look at the third statement of Christ.
If you come with me to the book of John,
you can stay in Luke,
because we will come back to Luke if you really want to,
but it's easy enough to flick through
these New Testament gospels anyway.
But come with me to the book of John,
John chapter 19, John chapter 19, verse number 25.
And look, if you've got your order of the words of Christ
in a slightly different order,
I don't think it's a big deal.
There might be some difference of opinion
as to which is the exact chronology.
I do believe it's easy to figure out
which are the first and which are the last.
And sometimes maybe in the middle, it's not so easy.
But anyway, John 19, verse 25, John 19, verse 25.
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus,
his mother and his mother's sister,
Mary the wife of Cleopas and Mary Magdalene.
When Jesus therefore saw his mother
and the disciples standing by whom he loved,
that's speaking about John,
he saith unto his mother, woman, behold thy son.
Then saith he to the disciple, behold thy mother.
And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.
These are the next words of Christ.
Woman, behold thy son and to the disciple,
behold thy mother.
He says to his mother, Mary, look, John is now your son.
He's going to take care of you.
And of course, you see that he takes her to his house.
And he says to John, this is your mother.
This is your mother.
Take care of her.
Now, the Bible doesn't really go into any great depths
as to why this is the case.
Why is Christ handing his mother over to the care of John?
I can give you some thoughts.
Because I personally believe, I'm sure you will do,
that the Bible's a consistent book, okay?
And it is my opinion that, you know,
the reason Mary needed to be taken care of
is because she's a widow.
I mean, if Joseph was still alive,
she wouldn't need to be taken care of by another man.
I believe she was a widow at this point in time.
We don't know exactly how old Joseph was
when he married Mary, you know?
And, you know, maybe he was an age,
could have been anything else
that he could have passed away from.
I do believe that Mary was a widow at this point in time.
Well, you know, if there is a widow,
you know whose responsibility is to take care of a widow?
Her children.
And it would make sense to me
that Jesus Christ is concerned for his mother, okay?
And maybe, very well was the one
making sure she had everything she needed.
We know that he worked as a carpenter.
He was probably taking care of his mother,
making sure her needs were being taken care of.
And at this point, there's no one else to take care of her,
so he hands her over to John.
He said, well, what about the other brothers
and sisters of Christ?
Mary had other children.
Yeah, but as we've been, you know,
as we've gone through the book of John,
we saw that many of his brethren did not believe on him.
Later, later after his resurrection
and after his ascension to heaven,
some of his brothers do believe on him.
They do get saved.
But, you know, earlier in his ministry,
they did not believe in him.
In fact, they kind of sarcastically said,
yeah, just go to Jerusalem,
knowing that they were seeking to kill Christ in Jerusalem.
So it could be, I'm just giving my thoughts around this.
It could be that, you know,
because obviously Mary knows who Jesus Christ is.
She knows, the angel told her that she'll fall pregnant.
She knows that she gave birth, you know, as a virgin.
And like, she knows the miracle of Christ.
She knows exactly who he is.
Obviously, she's a believer on her saviour,
but it could be that this caused some family issues.
And so the other brothers and sisters aren't there.
And so Jesus Christ hands him over to his,
hands his mother over to John to take care of her.
Now, the reason I say that, all of that,
again, because I believe the Bible is a consistent book,
and I want to quickly read to you
from 1 Timothy 5, verse number three,
which says, honor widows that are widows indeed.
Honor.
The word honor there is to take care of their needs.
It doesn't mean just respect Miley or something like that.
Not to take care of the necessities in life.
Honor widows that are widows indeed.
And these are commandments given to a church.
But then it says this,
but if any widow have children or nephews,
let them learn first to show piety at home
and to requite their parents.
And so, you know, obviously if a widow passes away,
her husband can't take care of her needs,
so the responsibility is then passed on to the children
or the nephews and the nieces, okay?
And then it says, for that is good
and acceptable before God.
And I won't go into all of it now,
but if there is no family
that are able to take care of that widow,
then it becomes the responsibility of the church
to make sure she's taken care of.
And so that's what I believe is happening,
is that the husband's passed away,
the children aren't taking care of their mother,
potentially some issues about who Christ is, okay?
And then, you know, John is taking care of Mary.
So what is the lesson there?
What can we take out of that?
I think this is an example of, you know, especially men,
you know, fathers, husbands and fathers,
you know, understanding that we're not going to live forever.
You know, we're not guaranteed
to be here tomorrow necessarily.
And I think it is important to prepare your dependents,
you know, those that depend on you,
whether it's your wife, it's your children,
that they are taken care of if you pass away.
You know, I do believe it's important, you know,
whether, you know, in your will, to write in your will,
you know, how possessions and funds are to be distributed
to your wife or children and potentially, you know,
things like life insurance,
if that's something you want to take out
in case of your death, so, you know,
your loved one has something to take care of themselves.
And I see that in Christ,
if Christ is taking care of his mother,
he's concerned, he's going to die,
he's not going to be on this earth.
And he sees, look, it's important that my dependent,
my mother, gets taken care of,
hands him over to the Apostle John.
So I believe that's the lesson there.
And again, we just see the love, you know,
Jesus Christ was speaking to his Father, Heavenly Father,
and now he's also concerned for his earthly mother.
Can we meet to Matthew 27?
Matthew 27, verse number 46.
Matthew 27 and verse number 46.
Matthew 27, verse number 46.
It says, in about the ninth hour,
Jesus cried with a loud voice saying,
Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani,
that is to say, my God, my God,
why hast thou forsaken me?
So he started speaking to his Father.
Now he says to the Father, you've forsaken me,
why hast thou forsaken me?
And so now there's a separation between Father and Son.
This is a climatic, this is a major event.
You know, for the trial and nature of God
to be divided in such a way,
where God has forsaken his Son.
He cannot be in the presence of his Son.
I mean, I don't know what Christ suffered for us,
I don't really understand, I can't comprehend.
Say why, why did God forsake his Son?
Because we know that Christ took our sins upon himself.
Not that Christ had any sin of his own,
but that Christ took your sin and my sin.
And brethren, our sin caused the Father to forsake his Son.
He paid for your sins.
And the Bible says, oh, we'll just read some passages here.
In 2 Corinthians 5, 21,
for he have made him to be sin for us,
who knew no sin,
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Christ became sin for us.
I don't know, you know,
think about how much you've sinned against God.
Think about how much you've sinned against your fellow man.
Think about how much you've sinned against yourself.
All of those sins were put on Christ.
My sins, your sins, every single sin, every single sinner,
everything you've ever done,
everything that you ever will do, you know,
as a sinful creature, was put on Christ.
The consequences, the pain, the suffering,
the sickness caused by sin, all put on Christ.
Christ became sin.
And we know that in God, God is light,
and in him there is no darkness at all.
Christ became darkness, as it were.
You know, as the Son could not be
in fellowship with the Father,
the Father had to forsake his Son,
because he cannot be in the presence of sin.
The Bible tells us in Galatians 3, 13,
Christ have redeemed us from the curse of the law,
being made a curse for us,
for it is written, cursed is everyone
that hangeth on a tree,
the tree that represents the cross.
The Bible says Jesus was cursed as he hung on that tree.
Cursed.
So the Father had to forsake the Son.
And you say, why, why would God go through such a thing
and forsake his Son?
You know, have you ever gone soul winning
and someone says to you, oh, I can't believe in God.
I can't believe in a God who would sacrifice his own son.
Have you, I've had that a few times.
I don't want to worship a God that sacrifices his Son.
He did it for you.
How can you reject it?
How can you reject such a precious gift?
Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree.
Verse number 14, it says that the blessing of Abraham
might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ,
that we might receive the promise of the Spirit
through faith.
Let me read that again, that the blessing of Abraham,
remember God gave Abraham blessings?
That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles
through Jesus Christ.
The blessings given to Abraham,
we know was given to Abraham and to his seed,
which is Christ.
If you want to be blessed with faithful Abraham,
you must be in Christ.
And how are you in Christ?
Through faith, it says there.
The promise of the Spirit through faith.
Why has thou forsaken me?
Well, I mean, Christ knows the answer.
Okay, but you can see his anguish.
The Father has forsaken me.
A division in God right there for you.
Christ became sin.
Christ became a curse.
So when you think about that, again,
just reminds us, man, we need to get busy for God.
Like how much has he done?
How much has he,
what did he give up?
You know, how broken was the Father
and how broken was the Son?
Like again, just think of a parent.
Think of your children.
A child that runs away from home,
you may never see them again.
A child that goes missing.
You know, you cannot be in fellowship with that individual.
How that would break your heart.
Of course, Christ took our sins.
A curse, a curse to God.
You're there in Matthew.
Come with me to John, John 19.
John 19 and verse number 28.
By the way, if Christ became sin for us,
he paid it all.
It's all been paid for.
Every single sin you commit
has been taken care of on the cross.
Everything.
And so you don't need to then doubt
if you do something wrong in life.
Oh, maybe I'm not saved.
Because I did it again.
Look, Christ paid for it.
Just put your faith and trust on him alone.
I mean, how much he suffered for you.
He suffered so much for you.
Paid for every sin.
So you would not have to have doubts.
It's all been covered.
It's all been paid for.
He became the curse.
So God doesn't have to curse you.
John 19 verse 28.
Let's look at the fifth statement of Christ.
The fifth words from the cross.
John chapter 19 verse number 28.
After this, Jesus knowing that all things
were now accomplished,
that the scripture might be fulfilled,
saith I first.
Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar
and they filled a sponge with vinegar
and put it upon hyssop and put it to his mouth.
Next word that he says there is I thirst.
I thirst.
Now it says that he says he thirsts
because it's fulfilled in scripture.
You know, you can find a passage in the Psalms
speaking of this thirst of Christ.
But I'm just thinking about this.
Actually, this was kind of the phrase
that I was thinking about the most
as I prepared this sermon.
And when I think of Christ saying that he thirsts,
to me, this speaks of his humanity.
It speaks of him in the limited body
that he's operating under.
It's a body that experiences pain,
but it's a body that experiences thirst,
a body that experiences hunger,
a body that experiences tiredness.
And so I believe by saying that he thirsts,
he's demonstrating that.
Yes, he's God.
He's 100% God, but he's also 100% man.
You know, like set aside for a minute
the sin that was put upon his body.
Just set that aside and just think about
just as a natural man dying on the cross.
And being there in the sun, in the hot sun,
bleeding, perspiring, and becoming just so thirsty.
And yet sometimes like that,
have you ever been just so thirsty
that it's almost like a torture?
You just have to replenish the fluid in your body.
Just setting aside the spiritual nature of things,
just the physical suffering of Christ,
demonstrates his humanity that he was thirsty.
Actually I will get you to turn to this passage.
You don't need to keep your finger there necessarily.
You can actually, you can.
Stay there in John 19
because we are going to come back straight afterwards.
But come with me to Hebrews chapter two.
Come with me to Hebrews chapter two and verse number 14.
Hebrews chapter two and verse number 14 please.
Hebrews chapter two and verse number 14.
Bible reads, for as much then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood,
you know we're partakers, we've got flesh and blood, right?
He also himself likewise took part of the same.
That through death he might destroy him
that had the power of death, that is the devil.
So brethren, we're flesh and blood.
In order for Christ to save us,
in order for him to save us from death,
he had to partake of flesh and blood as well.
He became a man like you and I.
And then it says in verse number 15,
and deliver them who through the fear of death
were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Look at verse number 16,
for verily he took not on him the nature of angels,
but he took on him the seed of Abraham.
You know how people mock what we teach,
faith on Christ alone.
They go, oh, the Bible says in James two,
even the devil's belief.
You know, if believing was enough to save you,
then the devil's can be saved.
No, it says right here, verse number 16,
for verily he took not on him the nature of angels.
Christ did not become an angel
and pay the penalty of angels or of devils.
He says, but he took on him the seed of Abraham.
He became a man after the lineage of Abraham.
He had to become a man in order to deliver us,
to save us, to be our substitute.
He had to be made flesh and blood.
And later on, as we partake of the bread and the wine,
the grape juice,
we're going to remember the fact that he
became flesh and blood to pay for our sins,
to die to death.
Then it says there in verse number 17,
wherefore in all things it behooved him
to be made like unto us,
like unto his brethren,
that he might be a merciful, look at this,
and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God
to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.
For in that he himself have suffered being tempted,
he's able to succor them that are tempted.
See, when we speak of Christ's humanity,
it's so we can speak to the Lord God.
You know, he has experienced what it is
to be a man, a human being.
He's experienced suffering,
so great suffering.
He experienced your pain,
he experienced your sins,
he experienced your consequences of your sins.
The things you beat yourself up about,
Christ experienced all of that in his body
when he took his sins upon himself.
And so it says he's able to succor,
that means to help.
You know, he's able to be there,
support, a counsel, a help at all times,
a support at all times,
them that are tempted.
And so, you know, not only is salvation wonderful
thinking about his humanity,
but his experience allows us
to be able to go to the Lord at any time
and say, Lord, I'm weak, I need your help.
And the Lord understands,
Jesus Christ understands
the pain and suffering that we go through.
Come back with me to John 19.
John 19, verse number 30, please.
John 19, verse number 30.
We're now to the sixth statement
that he says on the cross,
there are seven altogether
that are recorded for us anyway in the scriptures.
Maybe Christ said more things,
but this is what's recorded for us in the scriptures.
John 19, verse 30.
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar,
he said, it is finished.
And he bowed his head and gave up the ghost.
It is finished.
Now, the question might be, well, what was finished?
You know, people have different opinions
and I'm not necessarily gonna be so dogmatic
about this myself,
but just to show you what one thing,
if you come with me to John 17,
come with me to John 17 for a minute
and verse number four.
Some might say, well, he finished his earthly ministry.
You know, when he said those words, it is finished.
But when you look at John 17,
just two chapters before what we were reading,
John 17, verse four, Christ says these words,
I have glorified thee on the earth.
I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
So when I read John 17,
when I see that he's finished the work,
you know, Christ went to save sinners.
He went to do great works for God,
to preach great sermons.
When I see John 17,
this is just shortly before his arrest,
I see that he's claiming at this point
that he's finished that earthly ministry
that he had from the Father.
So when we get to John 19, it is finished.
And he bowed his head and gave up the ghost.
He's just completed that payment for sins on the cross.
Like that point from doing the earthly ministry
to being arrested and being the sacrifice on Passover.
At that point, it is finished.
His sacrifice on the cross is finished.
And the Bible says in Ephesians 1.7,
in whom we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of sins
according to the riches of his grace.
Of course, his blood was shed not only on the cross,
but from Jerusalem, where he was whipped and beaten.
And I can only imagine, you know, walking to Calvary,
there's probably a blood stain all the way,
you know, from Jerusalem to the cross.
And then of course, the further bloodshed
that he had as he was there.
But it's that blood that gives us redemption of sins.
That's the payment of our sins.
And you know, his blood is so precious.
You know, the Bible says, for the wages of sin is death.
When we talk about an unbeliever,
the wages or the payment of sin is death.
And of course, we know the second death, the lake of fire.
You have a choice, you know,
and I know what choice you've already made,
but you know, the world has a choice.
What do you want to be the payment of your sin?
How do you want your sins to be paid for?
They're either paid in death and the lake of fire,
or they're paid for by the precious blood of Christ.
You choose, it's your choice.
Your sin has to be paid for.
It's either the blood of Christ, or you choose death.
Now, the blood of Christ is paid for every sin.
But the thing is, not everybody has redeemed that payment.
Not everybody has accepted that payment.
And of course, it's our job to go and tell people,
look, it's been paid for, accept it, receive the free gift.
The Bible also says in 1 Peter 1.18,
for as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed
with corruptible things, as silver and gold,
from your vain conversation received by tradition
from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ,
as of a lamb without blemish and without spots.
Christ kept the laws of God perfectly as he well deserved.
He never sinned against the Lord.
A lamb without blemish, a lamb without spots.
It wasn't, you know, when you think about what fairness is,
it wasn't fair for Christ to die for our sins.
It wasn't fair.
And what did Christ do?
Did Christ deserve that death?
No, you deserve that death.
I deserve that death.
We deserve to be the curse.
We deserve to face God in sin
and to be cast into hell for all eternity.
That's what we deserve.
Christ did not deserve his death and suffering.
And I was talking to my daughter just earlier today,
and you know, I hope she doesn't mind.
You know, when you go to work, there are challenges.
Life is not fair.
You get blamed for things that you've not done.
And when we get blamed for things that we haven't done,
it's easy to get frustrated.
It's easy for the pride to kick in and say,
it wasn't me, it was this other person.
One thing that allows me to just go, you know what?
Yep, my fault, even if it's not my fault,
is when I remember that it wasn't Christ's fault,
and yet he took my faults.
Like, any blame that I might get on this earth,
even though it's not my fault,
is nothing in comparison to what Christ took upon himself.
So why do we complain?
In fact, we're commanded to share
in the sufferings of Christ, just a little on this earth.
Let me encourage you guys on the job.
If your boss gets a little bit of a problem,
let me encourage you guys on the job.
If your boss gets mad at you and blames you,
don't defend, just take the blame.
Just say, Lord Jesus, let me just experience
a little bit of the suffering you went through.
This doesn't even compare to what you went through.
And Lord, you know what's fair,
I'm gonna leave it in your hands.
I'll take the blame,
because how much more did Christ do for me?
Come with me to Luke 23, please, back to Luke 23,
and I'm almost done.
Luke 23, verse 46.
Luke 23 and verse number 46.
I'll share my thoughts here as well, it is finished.
We saw earlier that the son was forsaken by the father.
So we have this period at the beginning of the time
of the cross that he's speaking to the father.
We have a period here that he's forsaken by the father.
And in the last statement,
he's able to speak to his father once again.
Because again, I believe that there is some segment
of his sacrifice here at least that is finished.
At least this part of being forsaken by the father.
Because then it says in Luke 23, 46.
And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice,
that's probably the it is finished,
potentially that he said there.
He said, Father, into thy hands, I commend my spirit.
And having said thus, he gave up the ghost.
Now this is definitely the last words that he says.
I know in John 19, it says it is finished,
and he bowed his head and gave up the ghost.
But what you notice here in Luke 23, it says,
Father, into thy hands, I commend my spirit,
and having said thus.
So as he's saying these things, he gave up the ghost.
So this is definitely the last words of Christ as he died.
Father, into thy hands.
It seems that he's back in fellowship with the father.
He's able to speak to the father once again.
And he commends his spirit to his father's hands.
What does it mean?
I commend my spirit.
What does that mean?
Have you thought about that?
I commend my spirit.
Let me read to you another passage
that kind of speaks of similar language.
Romans 5, 8, it says,
but God commendeth his love toward us,
in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
You know, the modern versions really mess this up.
But God commendeth his love.
In the modern versions, we'll say something like,
God demonstrated his love or God showed his love.
But to commend is to praise.
If someone receives a commendation,
it's saying they have been praised,
they have been lifted up, they have been approved.
It's kind of like the word recommend, commend, recommend.
If you recommend somebody, what do you say?
Well, you're given a glowing report of that individual.
When Christ says, Father, into thy hands,
I commend my spirit.
He's saying to the Father that his spirit is untainted.
His spirit is approved.
You know, his spirit is,
what's the word I'm looking for?
You know, it's got a good report of itself,
that Christ has gone through this suffering.
And as he hands his spirit over to his Father,
he says, my spirit is commended.
It's been praised.
It's held to a high standard.
And it's probably not something
I've ever really preached in the past before.
But again, when I read that passage to you,
Romans 5-8, by God commended his love toward us,
it's not that he just showed his love
by Jesus Christ dying, but that his love is commendable,
that it's praiseworthy, that it's to be received
with all honor and glory.
So what does that mean, to commend his spirit?
Well, we know that as Christ died,
and not just as he died, but also through his ministry,
we know that as he healed the sick,
the sicknesses of those that he healed came upon his body.
You know, Christ bore our sins upon his body,
but his spirit remained commendable.
His spirit remained true.
He was without sin in his spirit.
Now the Bible says in 1 Peter 2-24,
it says, who his own self bear our sins in his body
on the tree, that we being dead to sins
should live unto righteousness,
by whose stripes ye were healed.
We see that our sins were put upon the body of Christ,
not upon his spirit.
You know, his spirit is commendable.
His spirit is without issue, any problems,
any guile, any sin, as it were.
But his body bore the brunt of our sins.
The Bible also says in Romans 7-17,
and I'm sorry, before I read that,
say, well, you know, how do we understand this?
And again, to me, there's a consistency in the Bible
that cannot be missed.
Because when we think of ourselves as we walk
this life as Christians, and you're saved now,
praise God for you, those of you that are saved,
when we sin, our sins does not taint our spirits.
Our sins are in our body.
Our sins are in our flesh.
And the born against spirit that God has given us,
that which is born of God, remains sinless.
The Bible says in Romans 7-17,
now then, it is no more I that do it,
but sin that dwelleth in me.
The apostle Paul says, look,
I'm not actually doing those sins.
But he's speaking about the inner man.
He's speaking about his spirit.
Of course, his body is doing sins.
Because then he says in verse 18,
for I know that in me that is in my flesh
dwelleth no good thing, for to will is present with me,
but how to perform that which is good I find not.
We see this sort of consistency in the Bible,
that when we sin, it's contained in our flesh.
But our spirit remains untainted.
Our spirit is without sin.
And not that Christ ever sinned, we know that,
but he became sin for us.
His sin was upon his body.
But his spirit, the whole process that Christ went through,
his spirit remains commendable to the Father,
given to the hands of the Father in that condition.
This is why we have in 1 John 3, verse 9,
whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin,
for his seed remaineth in him,
for he cannot sin because he is born of God.
And so, brethren, what is born of God, just very quickly?
Your inner man, the spirit, is born of God.
When this body sins, this is what's wonderful
about being a Christian.
When this body sins, yes, it's wrong,
yes, we should make excuses, but the new man remains clean.
This is why, let's say you die even in the midst
of performing a sin.
God's not gonna prevent you from going to heaven
because this body, this flesh and blood
cannot inherit the kingdom of God.
Your spirit is received by God
because it's without sin.
It's born again, it's born of God.
You see, Christ commending his spirit to the Father.
It's not just given to the Father, it's commendable.
It's recommended, it's without reproach.
This just tells me that as Christ suffered for our sins,
that he did not hold it against us.
You know, he did it with pure motive.
He did it out of love, a love for us.
He did it out of the perfect will of his Father.
And I thank God for that, that even though I'm saved today
and I've received his sacrifice,
that God is not like mad at me.
God's not just angry at me because Jesus had to die for me.
His love is so perfect, so pure.
His intentions are so perfect, so righteous,
the will of God.
You know, I remember growing up in church,
people saying, oh, you need to submit your will
to God's will.
I'm like, I don't know, I wouldn't do my will.
I just didn't have the knowledge and understanding
that God's will, perfect will and perfect love
is so good for me.
And so why wouldn't I submit my will to the Lord God?
Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.
Those are beautiful words.
You know, if I were to pass away in my bed,
I'd love to say those words.
You know, some people know that, right?
Some people know they're about to pass away.
Man, I would love to say those words.
Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.
Not because I'm a righteous man,
but because my spirit is born of God.
Anyway, the seven words, the seven statements.
Like I said, the title for the sermon this afternoon,
this evening was Words from the Cross.
Words from the Cross.
Hope there's something there
that you can take away for yourself.
And the whole reason why Christ died,
of course, is to save sinners.