Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”
Luke 23:34
The last words that a man or woman pronounces before dying come directly from the heart. Jesus also, during the last six hours of his life, hanging between heaven and earth, enduring great suffering, pronounced seven statements revealing the richness of his inner being.
Crucifixion was a form of torture that literally knocked the wind out of a person. The weight of the body suspended by the arms caused immediate pain in the chest, paralyzing the pectoral muscles and making breathing extremely difficult. The person being crucified could inhale but had great difficulty exhaling. To exhale he had to push on his feet and straighten his legs to release the pressure exerted on his arms and chest. But the pain that this caused to his feet was so excruciating, because of the nails, that he would immediately cease any such effort. Death usually occurred within two or three days. But when the Romans wanted to shorten his agony, they would break his legs. So, unable to straighten himself with the help of his legs, the man would suffocate rapidly. The soldiers broke the legs of the two thieves crucified with Jesus to hasten their deaths, but Jesus’ legs were not broken because he was already dead (John 19:31- 33). Thus was accomplished a prophecy from Scripture saying that none of his bones would be broken (John 19:36). It is in this context, while he was fighting for his every breath, that Jesus uttered his last words.
While they were nailing his hands and feet to the cross, or a little later, when they were putting up the cross, Jesus cried out, “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34)
Those standing around watching the crucifixion were in grave spiritual danger, but all of them were oblivious to it. The Roman soldiers saw it as just another day’s work. It was a nasty job , but someone had to do it. The soldiers are part of an execution detail, bored with crucifixion. Perhaps this team will have conducted several crucifixions this week already. The first time they saw a crucifixion they may have been moved by its brutality, but now they are calloused, emotionless.
First, the soldiers begin with the cruel process of nailing the criminal to a cross, then hoisting him up, the cross swaying forward, then back until it is secured with wedges at the bottom to hold it upright in the hole. And when that task is done, they sit around the base waiting for the criminal to die -- sometimes for days. To pass the time they gamble, deciding by a casting of lots who will be awarded the victim's last possessions. That is the scene.
Some in the crowd saw it as a gruesome, but interesting spectacle. Some were saddened, thinking that a good man was being treated cruelly and unjustly, but they made no connection between their sin and His death. They saw it as a political vendetta that the Jewish religious leaders had against Jesus, a prophet who had overstepped the line by confronting their shortcomings. The Jewish leaders were mostly relieved, glad to get rid of this troublesome prophet . But why did they want to get rid of Jesus?
We read in Luke 20 that the scribes and the chief priests sought to have Jesus arrested. In John 5, we are told that they wanted to kill Him, and in chapters 8 and 10, they tried to stone Him.
When we read these accounts in Scripture, we are prompted to ask, Why did these people speak the way they did and feel the way they did with such hostility toward Jesus? It’s difficult to provide a complete answer as to why they were motivated in this way, but here I am giving three reasons why the religious authorities hated Jesus so much.
The first is this: they were jealous of Him. Everywhere Jesus went, He attracted huge throngs, multitudes, crowds pressing around to listen to His every word, watching His every move. He was profoundly popular among the people, whereas the rulers of the Jews laid heavy burdens on their people, and they approached the masses, the people of the earth, with something like a spirit of disdain and scorn. They wouldn’t think of having dinner with a tax collector, But Jesus freely associated with people whom the Pharisees considered “rabble.”
The people loved Jesus, and they received Him gladly, but what they felt from the Pharisees was judgment. The only thing the Pharisees looked at was the people’s sin, and so they had a certain contempt for the common people. They saw Jesus associating with the common people and saw them cheering Him, loving Him. They couldn’t stand it because they were envious and suspicious of His popularity.
The second reason why they hated Him was because He exposed them. Before Jesus came, it was the Pharisees particularly, as well as the Sadducees and scribes, who set the moral standard for the community. They sat in the highest places in the synagogue. They were the ones who were most honored and celebrated for their virtue, but their virtue, as Jesus taught repeatedly, was a pretense. It was external. He said: “You’re like dead men’s tombs, whitewashed sepulchers that are painted without blemish on the surface but inside are filled with dead men’s bones. You clean the outside of the platter, but the other side, the inner side, is filthy. You do everything possible to hide that impurity, that grime, and that filthiness from public view. You pretend to be righteous." - Matt. 23:27
The third reason I think that they hated Him is because they were afraid—not so much of what He would do to them in His wrath but of the consequences of welcoming Him into their midst. Why were they afraid? Look at the history of Israel. In almost every generation going back to Abraham, the Israelites lived under the domination and oppression of a foreign nation. You’ve heard of the Pax Romana; Almost always, the people were a conquered people, a people who lived under the oppression and the tyranny of their enemies. In the case of the first-century Jews, the oppressor was Rome.
Throughout Jewish history, there had always been those who were committed to revolution, who wanted to throw off the yoke of the foreigners who held them captive. You’ll see one revolt after another in the history of Israel, and one revolt after another being quashed by the power of the enemy. There were people—at least two, probably more—among Jesus’ disciples who were called Zealots.
Those who were in positions of power and authority; the Pharisees and Sadducees were, feared losing their power and authority. They feared the consequences of a revolt against Rome. That’s on almost every page of the Gospels. They feared the Romans. They feared that Jesus somehow would lead an insurrection, cause another uprising, and consequently bring a bloodbath, and so they sought to remove Him before He caused them trouble.
So those around Him were in varying degrees of spiritual danger, but they were oblivious to it. Into this scene comes a cry from Jesus on the cross that reveals both the sinners’ great need and God’s greater grace, “Father forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” It was the first of seven final sentences recorded for us in all the gospels that Jesus spoke from the cross. Luke only records three of them; we will look at the other two in future messages.
There were many people around he cross that day
(1) the Roman soldiers;
(2) the average people;
(3) the chief priests and elders
(4) the women who followed Jesus from Galilee and probably
(5) John the apostle.
We note that this prayer was not :
( 1) a prayer for pardon apart from repentance, since such a thing is foreign to Scripture.
In other words, Jesus was not conferring God’s pardon on those who crucified Him no matter how they continued living. God never forgives sin apart from the genuine repentance and faith of the sinner. Jesus’ prayer that God would forgive was a prayer that His persecutors would repent and believe.
(2) a prayer to cancel God’s temporal judgment on Israel.
In the verses just preceding, Jesus told the women of Jerusalem to weep for themselves and for their children, because God would bring such terrible judgment on the nation that they would wish that they had never had children. He is not negating that here.
(4) a prayer granting forgiveness to all who are spiritually ignorant.
Jesus looked down from the cross upon a scene that must have been distressing to Him. The Roman soldiers were gambling for His clothing (John 19:23–24); One of the criminals on the crosses on one side of Him were reviling Him (Luke 23: 40-42); the religious leaders were mocking Him (Matthew 27:41–43); and the crowd was blaspheming Him (Matthew 27:39). Surrounded by this most unworthy lot, Jesus did not pray " Father they do not know what they are doing, but Father forgive them."
First of all what does the Bible say about ignorance of God's will? Is ignorance of God's law a defense .
The bible states - Absolutely no.
Under the Old Covenant, ignorance of God's commandments were sinful and required sacrifices when they were committed (Leviticus 4:2-5:18; Numbers 15:22-25).
The Hebrews writer also affirms this fact...
Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. 3 This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people. (Heb 5:1-3 NIV)
We must also be aware of the fact that even though the Gentiles were not bound by the Law of Moses, they were still culpable to God when they sinned against His revealed truth. Such was the case with Abimelech regarding Abraham and Sarah (Genesis 20:8-10). We must keep in mind that the Gentile nations also incurred God's wrath. Nations such as the Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, etc were punished by God, because of their irrelevance toward Him. God punished the Canaanites because of their idolatry, and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because of their immorality. There was no innocence through ignorance defense accepted by God. I believe this is Paul's inspired message in (Romans chapters 1-3). All sinned and came short of God's glory (Rom 3:23)...
What about under the New Testament? The New Testament also addresses ignorance of God's will, and it is evident that ignorance did not equal innocence. As a matter of fact the New Testament informs us that ignorance is inexcusable. The Hebrew writer states quoting Jeremiah an Old Testament prophet, that ignorance of God's would no longer be evident under the New Covenant established by Jesus Christ. (Jer. 31:31 - Cf Hebrews 8:10-12; 10:16-17)
Although ignorance does not excuse sin, but it does mitigate the punishment. The Law’s punishment for unintentional sin was significantly lighter than that for deliberate rebellion or blasphemy. Jesus reiterated this principle in Luke 12:47–48: “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” .
The Scriptures have been revealed to us in order that we not be ignorant of God's will and commandments. The apostle Paul stated often the purpose for his inspired writing was that one not be ignorant (Rom 11:25; 1 Cor 10:1; 1 Thess 4:13).
God has said that ignorance is unacceptable...
Ignorance of God's word is not because of it's unavailability or difficulties in understanding the word , but because of the lack of appeal to it. In Paul's epistle to the Ephesians he said that their ignorance was due to their "hard hearts" (Eph 4:18)
It is also important to note that Jesus’ prayer, “Father, forgive them,” does not mean that everyone surrounding Him around the cross was forgiven, unilaterally, without repentance and faith. It does mean that Jesus was willing to forgive them—forgiveness was, in fact, the reason He was on the cross.
Now what does "forgiveness" mean? The word "forgive" means to wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt. Forgiveness is not granted because a person deserves to be forgiven. Before God no one deserves to be forgiven. Forgiveness is an act of love, mercy, and grace and dependents on repentance. .
Offering forgiveness without repentance, however, does not follow the biblical model of forgiveness (Luke 17:3,4).
God forgives us when we repent (Mark 1:15, Luke 13:3,5 Acts 3:19). He does not grant forgiveness to those of us who are stiff-necked and refuse to repent. We must recognize our sin and repent to receive and enjoy God’s merciful forgiveness
Repentance is important because it’s a person’s only hope for real change (Matthew 18:3; Acts 26:20). If we don’t admit our sin, it’s impossible to be transformed. If we aren’t keenly aware of the sinful direction our lives are going, we will not see a need to adjust the direction. Repentance demonstrates that we need God to help us change our thinking, attitudes, and behavior
An unrepentant person maintains a sense of control over his life through pride, which can lead to destruction, violence, and animosity (Proverbs 8:13; 16:18; 29:23). Turning toward God (repentance) is necessary to break the cycle of destructive behaviors and patterns of relating to God and to others. To put it simply, forgiveness is a two-way process: repentance on the part of the offender and pardon on the part of the offended.
The ultimate purpose of forgiveness is the healing of a relationship. This healing occurs only when the offender repents and demonstrates deep regret for sins committed and the offended one grants a pardon and demonstrates loving acceptance. In this instance the sinner repents and asks God to pardon him and God does so.
The only just penalty for our sins is death. The first half of Romans 6:23 declares, "For the wages of sin is death…" Eternal death is what we have earned for our sins. God, in His perfect plan, became a human being – Jesus Christ (John 1:1,14). Jesus died on the cross, taking the penalty that we deserve – death. Second Corinthians 5:21 teaches us, "God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." Jesus died on the cross, taking the punishment that we deserve! Jesus’ death provided forgiveness for the sins of the entire world. 1 John 2:2 proclaims, "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." Jesus rose from the dead, proclaiming His victory over sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:1-28). Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the second half of Romans 6:23 is true, "…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Do you want to have your sins forgiven Forgiveness of your sins is available if you will first repent of our sins and place your faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior. Ephesians 1:7 says, "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace." Jesus paid our debt for us, so we could be forgiven. Then you have to do is ask God to forgive you through Jesus, believing that Jesus died to pay for your sins– John 3:16-17 contains this wonderful message, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him."
You can’t earn forgiveness from God. You can’t pay for your forgiveness from God. You can only receive it, by faith, through the grace and mercy of God. If you want to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and receive forgiveness from God, here is a prayer you can pray.
Saying this prayer or any other prayer will not save you. It is only repenting of your sins and trusting in Jesus Christ that can provide forgiveness of sins. This prayer is simply a way to express to God your faith in Him and to thank Him for providing for your forgiveness. "God, I know that I have sinned against You and I am deserving of punishment. But Jesus Christ took the punishment that I deserve so that through faith in Him I am forgiven. I place my trust in You for salvation. Thank You for Your wonderful grace and forgiveness! Amen!"
Now there are a few more steps you should follow: You should turn from your life of sin and turn back to God. That means that you must know what is God's will for your life. You have to read the Bible to know that. Not only read but also follow the commands found in the Bible.
You can't do all of this in solitary confinement. You have to associate with others who believe in Jesus. " And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Heb. 10:24-25 NIV.
Those who crucified Jesus were not aware of the full scope of what they were doing because they did not recognize Him as the Messiah. While their ignorance of divine truth did not mean they deserved forgiveness, Christ’s prayer in the midst of their mocking Him is an expression of the limitless compassion of divine grace.
