<>The final words of a person are very important.
--Our judicial system gives the final words of an individual extra weight, extra status in court trials, deeming death-bed testimonies to be of a special nature.
--The final conversations of a pilot and others in the cockpit of an airplane provide valuable information to investigators in the National Aviation Safety Administration.
---In fact, I’ve often wondered why we don’t just make the planes out of the same stuff the black boxes are made out of since the black boxes seem to always be intact after a crash.
<>The final words of a person who knows he/she is facing death at any moment reveal a lot about a person’s true values, true thoughts, true viewpoints.
---QUOTE>P. T. Barnum’s last words, spoken from his death bed on an evening where “The Greatest Show on Earth,” the Barnum circus, had performed at Madison Square Garden: “How were the receipts for today’s show?”
---QUOTE>Florence Ziegfield, likewise revealed his “bent” toward show business firmly ingrained in his thoughts. His final words: “Curtain! Fast music! Light! Ready for the last finale! Great! The show looks good, the show looks good!”
---QUOTE>Louis B. Mayer, a man known for creating fantasy on the big screen, uttered these last words: “Nothing matters. Nothing matters.”
---QUOTE>Oscar Wilde: “Either that wallpaper goes, or I do.”
---QUOTE>Pancho Villa, famous outlaw, mindful of the significance of last words, uttered these: “Don’t let it end like this. Tell them I said something important.”
---QUOTE>Louise, Queen of Prussia, was profound in her understanding of death: “I am a Queen, but I have not the power to move my arms.”
-Death certainly brings with it the recognition of our own mortality and how our own power is limited, and how our life’s deeds are too late to change.
---QUOTE>Elizabeth 1, Queen of England, recognizing death was just moments away cried out, “All my possessions for a moment of time!”
---QUOTE>Voltaire, well-known atheist and antagonist to Christian thinking, a man who once predicted that in twenty years no one would even remember Jesus, at the point of his death revealed the despair that was really in his heart, saying, “I am abandoned by God and man. I will give you half of what I am worth if you will give me six months of life. Then I shall go to hell and you will go with me. Oh, Christ! Oh, Jesus Christ!”
-On the other hand, for those who are believers, followers of Jesus, death can bring a new sense of God’s goodness to us.
---QUOTE>D. L. Moody’s final words testify of the reality of God’s promise of eternal life with Him to believers, as He spoke aloud in the hearing of those in the room where he was prone upon his bed, “I see earth receding and heaven is opening. God is calling me.”
---QUOTE>Likewise, John Wesley’s final words were words of triumph: “The best of all is, God is with us!”
<>Today, in part one of a two-part message, we’ll be looking at Jesus’ final words and the practical truths we can glean from them.
--I invite you to open a Bible and turn once again to Luke, chapter 22.
---ILL>The great musical cantata written by Thomas DuBois, “The Seven Last Words of Christ,” focuses on the seven statements Jesus made from the cross.
-But today I want us to back even before He was on the cross...beginning just after the time of His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane late Thursday night of the fateful Passover Week.
<>All in all, today I want us to look at six statements, divided into three categories...
1) WORDS OF EMPHASIS.
-Before Jesus’ sentence had been pronounced, before the Sanhedrin turned Him over to Pontius Pilate, before Pilate turned Him over to the soldiers to take Jesus to His crucifixion, notice Jesus’ final words...
-They began with words of emphasis.
--They were bold statements that could not be misunderstood of His meaning or of His intensity.
---ILL>In this year’s Presidential campaign, an emphatic phrase has entered the public arena, from Senator Obama: “Yes, we can!”
->Jesus spoke emphatically as His death was nearing, beginning with these words...
->a) ”YES, I AM THE SON OF GOD.”
--Lk.22:70 -- "And (the Sanhedrin) all said, ’Are You the Son of God, then?’ and He said to them, ’Yes, I am.’”
--There are some who would like you to believe that Jesus never claimed to be God, that He never claimed to be the long-awaited Messiah.
--But it’s simply not true when you examine His last words, because He emphatically declared that He is BOTH.
--When Jesus declared Himself to be the Son of God, it was not a statement about His physical birth (although even His virgin birth was clearly the result of God the Father’s handwork through the Holy Spirit).
---Instead, Jesus’ being the Son of God speaks of His eternal pre-existence.
---That’s what the Sanhedrin was asking Him about, and what He emphatically answered.
--Interestingly, He answered by invoking the very Name they deemed to be the greatest name, too holy to be voiced by humans.
---But even in Jesus’ invoking the name He was declaring that He was NOT ONLY HUMAN.
---Instead, He is the Great I Am.
--->Why is it so important for us to understand?
----Because it means He, as God in flesh, is able to work miracles in our lives.
-----He’s not just a good teacher, not just a moral man...He’s fully God...and He’s within us!
----Therefore, nothing is so big we should be afraid of it.
----Jesus within us is bigger than the hour in front of us.
->b) "YES, I AM THE KING.”
--Lk.23:3 -- "Pilate asked Him, saying, ’Are You the King of the Jews?’ and He answered, ’It is as you say.’”
--Remember back when Jesus was born and the Wise Men came, seeking Him?
---Remember what they said?
----Mt.2:1-2 -- "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ’Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.’”
-->Pilate was asking Jesus about an earthly kingdom, to which Jesus answered straight-forwardly but also declared His true kingdom was not of this world.
---Jn.18:37 -- "Pilate therefore said to Him, ’So You are a king?’ Jesus answered, ’You say correctly that I am a king, for this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth.’”
-->Jesus’ answer emphatically declared that He was not only the rightful earthly descendant to David’s throne, but that He had descended, come down to earth from His lofty throne in heaven...as the King of the universe.
---ILL>Sorry, Leonardo DiCaprio, it might have been great drama as your character leaned out into the wind on the front nose of the Titanic and yelled, but are NOT “the king of the world!”
---Jesus IS, however.
-->It is at the name of Jesus that every knee, including those of kings, will bow and declare Him to be Lord.
--<>Why is it so important that we realize this truth?
----Because it means that Jesus is in charge, He’s in control, He reigns.
-----It means He will never be surprised by anything that comes up.
-----It means His love for us is so great He was willing to leave His luxurious throne and come to a stable, then to a cross because of His tremendous love for you and me.
---LYR>We sang the lyrics earlier, “Amazing love, how can it be that You my King would die for me?”
-----It also means His presence within us, His power within us is greater than any challenge we’ll ever face.
2) WORDS OF EMPATHY.
--Someone has rightly defined empathy as “your pain in my heart.”
--Two weeks ago we examined the tears of a crown, and we noticed how Jesus’ heart broke as He entered Jerusalem, weeping over the lost condition of its residents.
--Now, as He’s exiting Jerusalem, on His way to Calvary, He again demonstrates His compassion, His empathy.
---ILL>Some years ago a man put up a sign in his yard that read, “Puppies For Sale.” Among those who came to inquire about the puppies was a young boy. The boy told the man, “Mister, I’d like to buy one of your puppies if they don’t cost too much.” The man responded, “Well, the puppies are $25.00” The boy looked crushed, explaining to the man, “I’ve only got two dollars and a nickel. But, could I see them anyway?” The man was more than happy to let the boy look at the puppies. The boy’s eyes danced at the sight of five little fur balls playing in a pen. “What is that one not playing like the rest of ‘em?,” he asked. The man responded, “Well, I’m afraid he is crippled.” The boy answered, “If I had enough money, that’s the one I’d like to buy.” The man spoke again, “Well, he’s going to be crippled all his life.” The boy answered, “Well, that’s the one I’d like to buy. Could I pay for her a little at a time?” The man said, “Well, you know this puppy won’t ever be able to run like the other puppies.” The boy then pulled up his pant leg, revealing a leg brace, and explained, “I don’t walk so good either.” Then, looking at the puppy sympathetically, continued, “I guess he’ll need a lot of love and help. I know I sure did.” The man then told the boy, “You know what? I think maybe I looked at her price tag wrong. I think her price is actually not twenty five dollars, but I think the tag should say, ‘two dollars and a nickel.’”
--As Jesus is being led away, having already been beaten, ridiculed, mocked, scourged, and now bearing His cross along the narrow road leading to Mt. Calvary, He is met by some women in the crowd, crying over His treatment, and His impending crucifixion.
--But notice where His thoughts were:
---Lk.23:27 -- "And there were following Him a great multitude of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him. But Jesus turning to them said, ’Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and your children.’”
->”WEEP FOR YOURSELVES.”
--As we sang earlier, above all, even in agony, He was thinking about others.
-->Why is it so important for us to know?
----Because it means that Jesus is thinking about us when WE suffer.
----If His thoughts were on others while He was suffering, you know His thoughts are on others while they are suffering.
---The book of Hebrews tell us He’s our High Priest who very much understands our suffering, and identifies with our pains.
----And this truth was never seen more clearly than in His final moments, and in His final words.
---ILL>We sang it about Him and to Him earlier, “Like a rose trampled on the ground, He took the fall and thought of Me above all.”
3) WORDS OF EMPOWERMENT.
-Once Jesus was nailed to the cross, it’s interesting to not what His final words would be while hanging there.
--Next week we’ll look at His final four statements, but today I want us to look at the first three.
-In each case, the first three statements Jesus uttered from the cross were words of encouragement, words of support, words of empowerment.
-a) ”FATHER, FORGIVE THEM.”
--Lk.23:33-34 -- "And when they came to the place called The Skull there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying, ’Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.’”
---ILL>When Narvaez, the Spanish patriot, lay dying, his father-confessor asked him whether he had forgiven all his enemies. Narvaez look astonished, and said, “Father, I have no enemies. I have shot them all.”
---Jesus, however, chose not to kill those who had mistreated Him, even though He certainly could have.
-<>The obvious question we need answered: WHO IS THE “THEM” IN JESUS’ STATEMENT, in His request for the Father to forgive “them”?
--The answer:
----1) The men who had just nailed Him to the cross and raised Him up to be embarrassed, humiliated, and to die.
----2) The crowd members who were yelling insults, mocking Him, cheering His death.
----3) His disciples who, with the exception of John, had abandoned Him in His final hour of life.
----4) All of us....because it was our sin that actually brought Him to this place of death.
-----He was dying for us.
-----And even though the world might reject Him, He still loves us!...The Bible tells us so, and this passage is one of many places it does so.
---ILL>There’s a Spanish story of a father and son who had become estranged. The son ran away, and the father set off to find him. The father searched for months to no avail. Finally, in a last desperate effort to find him, the father put an ad in a Madrid newspaper. The ad read, “Dear Paco, meet me in front of this newspaper office at noon on Saturday. All is forgiven. I love you. -- Your father.” On Saturday, 800 Pacos showed up, looking for forgiveness and love from their fathers.
---Jesus, of course, knew that forgiveness is incredibly important to every individual...even when it’s not deserved.
-<>Why is this statement so important to us?
----Because it means that nothing we’ve ever done is too big for Jesus to forgive.
----It means that nothing can ever separate us from His love.
-----If anything could have separated us, it surely would have been how our sin led Jesus to be crucified.
-----But, in fact, it was Jesus’ love for us that kept Him there, finishing love’s redeeming work on our behalf.
-b) ”TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
--Lk.23:42-43 -- "And (the thief) was saying, ’Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!’ And He said to him, ’Truly, I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.’”
-<>Why is this statement so profoundly important?
---1) Because it means that Jesus holds the keys to heaven.
----It means heaven is not entered into because of our good works...or how clean we’ve lived our lives.
---Jesus, in this passage, welcomed a criminal under the death penalty into Paradise!
---2) It also means there is no such place as Purgatory.
----If Purgatory truly exists, then this thief would clearly have had to be there for a long time awaiting his sins to be “purged” through the prayers and lit candles of friends and prayer warriors on his behalf.
----After all, this man had not lived a pure life...he was under the death penalty for his crimes!
---3) It means that Paradise is the immediate dwelling place for a believer after his/her birth.
----Jesus didn’t tell the thief that he would “soul sleep” and one day wake up in Paradise.
----No, He was quite clear: you’ll be with Me in Paradise...TODAY!
---4) And, it means that baptism is not required for salvation.
----There are some who take some Scripture passages out of context to teach that you must believe AND be baptized “for the remission of your sins.”
----The accurate interpretation of that phrase is to understand that the word “for” in the passage is to be understood in the same way as the word “For” in “For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son...”, meaning “because.”
----Understood properly, the passage states, believe and be baptized BECAUSE of the remission of your sins.
-----In other words, BECAUSE you’ve already been saved, be baptized as a testimony to the world.
----If baptism IS required, then either Jesus was lying to the thief (which, of course, is not possible), or Jesus was mistaken (which also cannot be so), because clearly this thief had no way he could ever be baptized.
---We might want to insert a warning here: Yes, death bed confessions are possible. However, I would remind you that there were TWO thieves who perished that day, and the other thief was defiant, refusing to turn to Jesus even in the thief’s last moments.
----So I would ask you, how do you know which thief YOU would emulate on your death bed?
-c) ”WOMAN, BEHOLD YOUR SON. SON, BEHOLD YOUR MOTHER.”
--Jn.19:26-27 -- "When Jesus therefore saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, ’Woman, behold your son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ’Behold, your mother!’”
-->The scene: Mary is front and center at the crucifixion, and alongside her is the only disciple brave enough to be present, John.
-->The timing of this final word:
---It takes place immediately after the soldiers begin gambling over who will take Jesus’ one possession, His seamless robe, home with him.
-->The meaning of the seamless robe:
---In Judaism only one person was “authorized” to wear a seamless robe: the high priest, the “go-between” between man and God.
----So, Jesus’ one possession was a bold testimony of His being our only Mediator between us and the Father.
----But the tradition was that the mother of the high priest is the only who crafted the robe for her son.
---So, Mary’s heart is now breaking as the soldiers begin “trashing” this precious gift she had given to her Son.
----As a result, Jesus instructs John to take Mary away from the cross and take her to his own home...and John did.
--<>Why is it so important for us to understand?
----It means Jesus doesn’t only “see” the masses, the crowds. He sees and knows each one of us.
----He’s concerned about our own personal well-being.
---LYR>We sing a song around here that says, “He knows my name, He knows my every thought. He sees each tear that falls, and He hears me when I call.”
<>Bringing It Home...
->The questions I would ask you to think about today:
--What if today was your last day?
--What would your last words reveal?
--Are you ready for eternity?
