Luke 23. Come with me now to
Luke 23. Calvary. Our Lord's first words. Some of His first words from
the cross. Luke 23. You know nothing and no one should
fill us with any amazement or wonder like our Lord and His
crucifixion, what He did, His work at Calvary. Nothing and
no one should give us any sense of wonder or amazement or whatever. This is why Paul said, God forbid
that I should glory. or be amazed by or taken up with
anything or anyone save Jesus Christ, our Lord, the cross of
our Lord Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Truly, we should stand
amazed in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and wonder
how He could do this, why He would do this. At Calvary, Mercy
there was great. Grace was free. Pardon there
was multiplied to me. There my burdened soul found
liberty. I think the man that was bearing
Christ's cross, when they took it off of him and put Christ
on it, that burden was lifted at Calvary. Calvary. Alright, verse 32 is where we
left off here. Luke 23, 32, there were also
two other malefactors led with him to be put to death. Two other.
It mentions these malefactors three times. Malefactor. What
is a malefactor? Listen carefully. The word malefactor
means a wrongdoer, an evildoer, a criminal. One who has committed
a crime. These fellows were thieves, it
said. A crime is an offense. Here's what the dictionary says
a crime is. It's an offense. It's offending
someone. It's a serious wrongdoing. It's
sin. It's a foolish, senseless, shameful
act. There were two malefactors with
the Holy Son of God crucified with Him. But actually, there
were many more than that crucified with Him. I was crucified
with God. Are you a malefactor? He was
numbered with the transgressor. Are you a transgressor? How long
did you steal his glory, not give him the glory and the credit? What wrongdoing have you and
I done? What senseless, foolish, shameful
acts have we done? Yes, we were crucified with Christ,
not just two malefactors, but a number which no man can number,
and he was numbered with those transgressors. I want to be in
that number, don't you? Are you a malefactor? If so,
then Christ was crucified for you. Isaiah 53, that's where
that's written. Go back to Isaiah 53 with me. The gospel as Brother Eric preached
from 1 Corinthians 15, is how Christ died for our sins according
to the Scripture. Many Scriptures all point to
Christ and Him crucified, but so many are so clearly, clearly
speak of Christ crucified. Isaiah 53, you know. That's what,
you know, the eunuch said to Philip, of whom does Isaac the
prophet speak, of himself or some other man? Oh, not himself. Some other man. You read David's
psalm. David wrote that psalm. They
never pierced David's hands and feet. They never parted his garments,
cast not for his vesture, did they? Psalm 69, they never gave
him vesture. Who is David speaking of? He's
speaking in the Spirit. Speaking of Christ, in Isaiah
53, oh, look at this. Verse 4, Surely he hath borne
our grief, and carried our sorrows. We did esteem him stricken, smitten
of God, and afflicted him. He was wounded for our transgression. He was bruised for our iniquity.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes
we are healed. All we, all we like sheep have
gone astray. We've turned everyone to his
own way. But God and the Lord have laid
on him the iniquity of us all. He breed him. He was oppressed
and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth before Herod.
He's brought as a lamb to the slaughter, the lamb slain. As a sheep before her shearers
is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison,
from judgment. Who shall declare his generation?
He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression. of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the
wicked. He was crucified with two malefacts. Well, who did this? Verse 10.
He pleased the Lord. The Lord God to bruise him. He
had put him to grief. He made his soul an offering
for sin. And he's going to see his seed. He shall prolong his
days. He's going to rise. The pleasure
of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see the travail
of his soul, be satisfied by his knowledge. Christ shall,
my righteous servant, justify many. He shall bear. Are you
hearing these promises? He shall bear their iniquity.
Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great. He shall divide
the spoiled with the strong." We get what he earned with the
strong. Because he had poured out his
soul unto death. He was numbered with the transgressors.
And he bared the sin of many. And while hanging on the cross,
he made intercession for those transgressed. Go back to our
text. That's what our Lord did. That's
what he did. After all the shame, after all
the ridicule, after all the mockery, after being beaten, after being
spit upon, after being stripped naked, they nailed him. They nailed his hands and his
feet to that tree. and dropped that post down into
a hole in the ground where all his bones were out of joint.
And there he hangs, high and lifted up. And he says something. But first,
let me tell you something about everything that happened. We'll
look more into it Sunday. They nailed Him. Luke doesn't
say that, but Matthew does. They nailed Him there. Why? Why
was He nailed to that tree? Well, listen to Isaiah 22. Listen. God says, I will fasten Him as
a nail in a sure place. And He shall be for a glorious
throne to His Father's house. Remember we talked about that
cross being the throne He ascended to vanquish evil and sin. They
shall hang upon Him. Everything hangs on Christ crucified,
nailed to that tree. He is the tree. He is the nail,
I'm sure of that. And the glory of His Father's
house, the offspring, the issue, all the vessels, all the vessels,
And that day the nail fastened shall be removed, cut down, and
fall, and the burden upon it cut off, and the Lord hath spoken
it." So he was nailed according to Scripture. That's not all
that was nailed there on the cross. Right, John? Colossians
says, all the handwriting of ordinances were nailed to His
cross, against that, nailed to His cross. So that's wonderful. Nailed. And there He hangs, high
lifted up on the cross, and He looks out over that multitude.
He's not languishing on that cross. He's not hanging there,
writhing in pain and anguish. No, sir. just like when he stood
before Pilate. Now, he's not hanging his head,
though his face is beaten, though his eyes are surely swollen. He's looking with clear eyes
and with boldness and clarity and strength, though weak in
the flesh, yet strong in mind and heart and spirit. Straight
into the face of his accusers, because he has nothing to be
guilty of, nothing to be ashamed of. Right? He knows who's doing
this. He knows why he's doing this.
He knows who did it to him. And when he's walking up that
tree to be crucified, he's not regretting it or dreading it. He's set his face like a flint. And He didn't fall under that
cross, mind you. We saw why they put that cross
on another man. Not because Christ couldn't carry
it. Because everyone that follows Christ is going to bear that
cross. It's something of the weight of our sins, the curse,
something of the curse that Christ bore on that tree. But we don't
have to hang on it. Christ did. And He's hanging now on that
cross and He is in pain. He is in pain, but He's looking
out over that crowd with clear eyes. And He sees those for whom He's
doing this. And He sees afar off. He prays
not only for many in this crowd, not only for them, but those
that shall believe, us, whom He foreknew, He saw afar off. And he opens his blessed mouth,
blessed though bloody, and he speaks. First words, Father, forgive them. Is that not amazing? Who's he
talking about? Well, there were many there that
were at Pentecost, because Peter said, didn't he, you with wicked
hands have taken and crucified the Lord of Lords. He said that
at Pentecost, and a little while later he said, I walked through
your ignorance, you and the rulers crucified the Lord of Lords.
He said, you did what God determined before me, didn't I? My, my, you would think he would
have cursed those who crucified him, but he didn't. He blessed
them. You'd think he would have pronounced condemnation on those
who condemned him, but he didn't. He justified them. He pronounced pardon. Father,
forgive them. I want you to see with me the
greatest act of love and the greatest lesson in love the world
has ever seen. Behold what manner of love. Scripture
said, only true love forgiveth all things. They did to our Lord
everything that their evil hearts could possibly do. And yet He
forgives. Doesn't the Scripture say, love
covereth all things? It doesn't say that. Father,
forgive them. Great mercy. to spare them all. It's mercy. John martyred again. He used to say anything this
side of hell is mercy. But pardon? Great pardon? David said, pardon
mine iniquity. It is great. So this is the greatest
pardon ever. The greatest grace. To pardon
all. Now it is certain. It is certain
that whoever our Lord was praying for, He loved. Right? It is certain. Our Lord didn't
come down here and die for those He didn't love, that God didn't
choose. Whoever He is praying for, He loves. It is certain.
All the Father foreknew, foreloved, Christ was sent to live for and
die for and pray for. He's not praying for the world.
He said that in John 17 before He went to the cross dead. He
said, I pray not for the world, but I pray for them which thou
hast given me, thine they are. So whoever it is, he knew. He knew who he was praying for
then. So he was praying for them, and
he loved them. They didn't love him at the time. There were some. But even they,
the women, his apostles, his disciples, there was a time when
they didn't love him either. They saw no beauty in him. There
was a time they didn't follow him. Simon Peter, his love was
boats and nets and fishing in the ocean, wasn't it? And his
family and making money and all that. Until Christ, but Christ
loved him, he said. Herein is love, not that we loved
him, but he first loved us. That God loved us. And sent His
Son to be, here it is left, He sent His Son to be the propitiation,
that's a bloody sacrifice, that's pitch. Sent His Son to pitch
us, cover us with His own blood. Oh, the love that drew salvation's
plan. Oh, the grace that brought it
down to man. Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary. Greater loveth no man than this.
He lay down his life for his friend. But our Lord said that
Christ died for a good man some might die, for a righteous man
some might, but God commended His love toward us while we were
enemies, sinners. Christ died for us. Christ died
for the ungodly. So He's hanging on that cross,
praying for the ones that despitefully used Him. Does that sound familiar? Didn't He say that? Pray for
them that despitefully use you. He said, If you love those that
love you, what thank have you? Do you deserve any thanks for
loving those that love you? For doing for those that do for
you? Do you know? But oh, what praise and honor
it is that goes to Christ for loving those that didn't love
Him. For doing what He did for those that did what they did
to Him. Amazing. Is there anything as amazing
as this? Nothing. Men liking the love of God to
a mother's love. Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no, no. Our Lord said, can a woman forsake
her second child? Yes, happens all the time. Kill
their unborn children, but not Christ. He said, I have engraved
you on the palms of my hand. What's that mean? Died for you. Oh my, this is the greatest lesson,
greatest act of love, greatest lesson in love. This is why John
said, and Paul, and all the apostles said, if God so loved us. This is true love, like 1 Corinthians
13 teaches a lesson in. True love doesn't quit. Having loved his own, John 13,
he loved him to the end. True love forgiveth. Father,
forgive them. True love forgiveth. How much? All of them. How often? 490 times a day. One man I knew years ago, an
old preacher, counted sins, tried to count up the sins we committed
a day. You think evil thoughts? How
often? Huh? He counted them up. And he quit
counting after like 2 million. Here's love. You know, true love
forgiveth and forgiveth and forgiveth and forgiveth. And that means
forgive. It really does. He that has been forgiven much
should love much. Right? Well, isn't the same true
of those that have been forgiven? Shouldn't those who love much
forgive much? Those that love Him and love
His salvation, shouldn't we forgive much like Him? Huh? Oh, my. Amazing, isn't it? Amazing. Here's a great lesson
in prayer. Our Lord is hanging there in
pain and suffering. And we read Psalm 22 where He's
asking, Someone said that they thought he said all of that from
the cross. Everything our Lord said and
did is not written, John wrote, not written in the Bible, because
if it were, the whole world couldn't contain the book, everything
he did and said. Perhaps our Lord quoted every
single verse of Psalm 22 and Psalm 69. Maybe. We don't know. But if
he didn't, he's praying to the Father. Surely he's praying for
the strength to endure that cross. He prayed in the garden, didn't
he? He sweat great drops of blood at the thought of going to the
cross to be made sin. That's what he was sweating over.
Being forsaken by his Father. But here on the cross, he opens
his mouth and he prays. The first thing he does is pray. And not for himself. He's the
one suffering. Here's a thing about prayer. You know, back in Luke 3, you
know the first public mention of our Lord as a man is when
He came to be baptized by John in the River Jordan. You know
what it says? Here's what it says. It says that when all the people
were baptized, they were coming to be baptized, so did our Lord.
He came to pass. Jesus also being baptized and
praying. He was praying at his own baptism,
and it says heaven opened up, and a dove came down. So the
first mention of him in his public ministry as a man, he's praying,
okay? And now he's dying. What's he
doing? Praying. Didn't He tell us that
men ought always to pray? Didn't He do that? He began His
ministry praying and He ends it by praying. What a lesson
to learn. Our Lord is hanging there on
a cross. Those hands that did so much for so many are now nailed
to the cross. Those feet that walked in paths
of righteousness, who are always going in places to help others,
are now nailed to the cross. And now, as it were, he cannot
use those hands or those feet to help anybody. What's he doing? Praying. Praying. We get old. We get old and we
think, there's nothing I can do. The best thing you can do
is pray. We get sick, we languish in a
bed, unable to do for anyone or anything, what can we do?
Pray, like he did. You know what the Scripture said?
The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth none. What did this prayer avail? Everything. Every time. But that was talking
about Elijah, wasn't it? James wrote that. He was talking
about a man of like passions, like I said. It's also talking
about Christ. Preeminent. But it's an example in prayer. He let me in on all ways to pray,
and he did. And I quoted it to you, that
he said to us in his Sermon on the Mount, listen, And Matthew
5, Luke, John read tonight. He said, you've heard it said
of old time that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy.
I say unto you, love your enemies. Bless them that curse you. Father,
forgive them. Do good to them that hate you.
Pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. If
you love them that love you, what reward? Oh, since Christ loved as He
did and prayed for whom He did and when He did, the Father has
given Him a name above every name, hasn't He? Every knee should
bow. And the efficacy of... This is
a lesson in prayer, an example in prayer. Our Lord prayed. And
the efficacy of prayer, I told you what James said, the actual
fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. But Acts chapter
3, listen to this, I'll quote it to you. I partially did a
moment ago. But at Pentecost, there were
3,000 people, men, not counting children, women and children,
saved at Pentecost. They heard the message of Christ
crucified. And Peter said, You crucified the Lord. Three thousand
people were saved. Why? Because of this prayer of
Christ on the cross. He made intercession for the
transgressed. He was wounded and bruised for
their iniquity. The chastisement of their peace was laid upon
Him. He was whipped, but He was taken there with Him. He was
beaten, but He was taken there beaten. They were the sinners,
but He was made sin for them. They hate him, he prayed for
them. And so God heard him. God heard him and saved 3,000
men. And a little while later, and
this is what Peter said, he said, you killed the prince of life.
He says, you desired a murderer. Barabbas, to be granted unto
you, killed the prince of life. But he says, brethren, I want
that through ignorance you did it. as did your rulers. But those
things that God before has showed by the mouth of all his prophets
that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. And you know how many people
were saved after that message? Five thousand men. In Acts 4 verse 5. Five thousand, that's eight thousand
men. That's as many as ten or fifteen
thousand people. There were at least that many
hanging around that cross. And us. That prayer was for us. The effectual, fervent prayer.
Father, forgive them. This is also a picture of how
we ought to pray for those we think are beyond reach. Too hard. Too sinful. Too hard-hearted. You'll never
get through to them. No, you won't. But He will. These people hated Jesus Christ. But God... Don't quit praying. Don't quit
praying. Is anything too hard for the
Lord? When you think someone's beyond reach, remember this prayer
from Calvary. Now, here's a great promise fulfilled. In our text, He said, Father,
forgive them. Father, forgive them. Look at
Jeremiah 33 with me. Jeremiah 33. You're going to
love this if you don't know it by heart. Jeremiah 33. He said, Father, forgive them. Here's a great promise fulfilled. Jeremiah 33, verses 8 and 9.
God said, I will cleanse them from all
their iniquity. How's that? By the blood of Christ. The blood of Jesus Christ, God's
Son, cleanses us from all iniquity. Whereby they have sinned against
me. Jeremiah 33, verse 8. And I will pardon all their iniquities. Now that was a long time before
Christ crucified. I will. Pardon me. Why? For Christ's
sake. Whereby they have sinned. Read
on. Whereby they have transgressed against me. Verse 9. And it shall
be to me a name of joy and a praise and an honor before all the nations
of the earth which shall hear all the good that I do unto thee.
They shall fear and tremble for all the goodness, for all the
prosperity that I procure unto it. Look at Jeremiah 50. Jeremiah 50. Look at that. This is wonderful. While you're turning there, I'm
going to turn to Psalm 85. But look at that. Jeremiah 50
verse 2. Yeah. Verse 2. Declare ye among... That's not it. That's not it. What verse is it? Oh, here it is, verse 20, left
off the zero. Verse 20, Jeremiah 50, verse
20. In those days and in that time,
saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for,
and there shall be none. The sins of Judah, they shall
not be found. Why? For I will pardon them whom
I reserve. Listen to Psalm 85. Listen to
this. This is wonderful. The Lord has been favorable.
Oh, He brought back the captivity of Jacob. Jacob. Thou hast forgiven
the iniquity of thy people, for thou hast covered all their sin. Unto the blood. Our Lord said
in Mark 3, He said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, all sin shall
be forgiven. All manner of sins shall be forgiven.
Father, forgive them. Forgive them what? Every time. Every time. Past, present, and
future. Past, present, and future. This
is a great fulfillment of a promise, a promise fulfilled. Ephesians
says, In whom we have redemption, even the forgiveness of sins. Now look at what he said here.
Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Turn to Leviticus 5. I won't
keep you much longer. You rejoice in these scriptures. I don't like to always quote
everything for you. I want you to see it. Leviticus
5. You know, did they know what
they were doing? Yes, they did. That's what Peter
the priest did. You with wicked hands have taken
and crucified the Lord. They knew what they were doing.
They were doing what their evil hearts wanted them to do. Most sin, all sin before we're
saved is willful. All sin before we're saved is
willful. They knew what they were doing.
And Peter said this about the unbelievers, willingly ignorant. Willingly ignorant. I willfully
rejected the truth. Rejected God. Didn't we? So we
weren't ignorant in that sense. What our Lord is saying is they
don't know what they are doing to whom they're doing it. They just don't understand the
depth of their sin and who they're sinning against. That's what
Peter said. You just don't know. He said,
had they known, they wouldn't have crucified the Lord of glory. You just don't understand who
you're sinning against. And our Lord had to pray. They
don't know what they're doing. They don't know what they're
doing. And the consequences. They don't
realize the consequences. What should be, what should happen
to us. What could happen. That's why
I fear for our children, why we should pray for ourselves
and for our children. We just really don't fully understand
what should happen and what could happen. I knew it. I really do. Well, the scripture
speaks of eight sins of ignorance. Leviticus 5, look at this. I didn't write the verse down.
Did I? Let's see. See if I can find
it. Yes, here it is. Verse 14. Leviticus 5, 14. The Lord spake
unto Moses, saying, If a soul commit a trespass and sin through
ignorance, and the holy things of the Lord. Then he shall bring
for his trespass unto the Lord a ram without blemish. Out of the flocks, by estimation
shekels of silver, how much do you reckon? How many? About what,
thirty? For a trespassing offering. And
in verse 16, He'll make amends. The priest shall make amends
for the harm that he hath done in that holy thing, to add a
fifth part there unto it, give it unto the priest. The priest
shall make an atonement for him with that ram, that without blemish,
and the trespass offered, and it shall be forgiven him. There it is. Promised a long
time ago for ignorant sinners. So here's the thing. He said,
Father, forgive them. They know not what they do. Did
David know what he was doing with Uriah and Bathsheba? Yes,
he did. But at the time, he doesn't realize
what he's doing. He just doesn't realize what
he's doing. Have you ever acted like that?
Have you ever done anything? You just don't realize what you've
done. That's why David cried in Psalm
51, when the Lord finally made him realize who who he sinned
against. That's when he cried, against
thee, and thee only. Oh, the consequences of my sin
are great upon many people and everything, but I've brought
the greatest thing, the worst thing is I've brought great repentance.
I've sinned against my Lord, against His love, against His
mercy, against His grace, against His goodness. It's as if I'd
sinned against no one else but Him. How ignorant I was. That's why David says, deliver
me from presumptuous sins. Sins of ignorance. Don't let
me do it. Father, forgive them. They know
not what they do. And so God did. According to
that prayer, past, present, future sins against Him, And all for
Christ's sake, the loving Father crucified His Son. Now, shouldn't
this break our hearts? Shouldn't this fill our hearts
full of wonder? and love and amazement? And shouldn't
it make us forgive one another of all things, no matter what? In closing, turn to Ephesians
4. This is the last verse, okay?
Because this is how Paul appeals to us to forgive one another. Ephesians 4. Ephesians 4. Look at it. He says in verse
30, And these ignorant sins grieve
the Holy Spirit, don't they? Grieve not the Holy Spirit, whereby,
Ephesians 4, 30, grieve not the Holy Spirit, whereby you're sealed
under the day of redemption, that all bitterness and wrath
and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you
with all malice. And be ye kind one to another
and tenderhearted, forgiving one another. Why? Even as God,
for Christ's sake, has forgiven you. Father, forgive them. And surely, shouldn't we think
that about our brethren? Because this is the way we are.
But just don't, at times, just don't know what we're doing. We're going to deal with parting
his garments. It's on Sunday. I'll go ahead
and tell you. We're going to deal with the
unrent robe and the rent veil. The unrent robe and the rent
veil and the thief on the cross in one day. Won't that be wonderful?
Okay, stay with me.