St. Luke Ev. Lutheran Church of Watertown

Good Friday, April 9, 2004

The Seven Last Words of Jesus

Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Luke 23:34a Forgiveness! If the truth be told—this is not something that comes easily! There was a lady named Linda. Her earthly father was murdered. The police caught the killer—the man who murdered her father. He was convicted in a court of law and thrown into prison. Still—Linda could not bring herself to forgive her father’s killer. It ate away at her. It was like an infection inside her. It had literal physical consequences. Her hair turned gray and white. She had trouble eating. She had trouble sleeping. Doctors said harm was being done to the blood vessels inside her body—had blood was changing—and these changes were causing tiny tears in the walls of her blood vessels. The risk that her physical heart would stop was increasing little by little—because she could not find it in her heart to forgive! Do you know how that feels? Do you have in your heart anger, bitterness, resentment—a refusal to forgive? Look at the cross! See how great Jesus’ forgiving love is for you and for me! See how Jesus prayed for those cold and callused Roman soldiers who literally pounded nails through his hands and feet. See how Jesus washes away all our sins. Then know that Jesus can and will make you strong enough to pray for those who hurt you, too. Love one another and forgive one another—even as Jesus has forgiven us!

When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciples whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son, “and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” John 19:26,27a It was just a few days after Christmas that we read from the Gospel of St. Luke—the words of a little grandpa with a white beard—holding the little Lord Jesus in the Temple Courts. Words spoken to Mary—Jesus’ mother. Simeon said, “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thought of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” Luke 2:34,35 Those words of prophesy and promise came true as Jesus died on the cross! Where were the disciples—the fishermen who all said—“We will not deny you or abandon you. We will all die before that happens!” Where were they? They were all hiding! They had all abandoned Jesus—except the disciple John—there beside Jesus’ mother. How helpless Mary must have felt. How it tears at a mother’s heart—to see her son hurt in any way. Jesus was suffering from the beatings, the scourging—the thorns, the nails, the thirst. And there was nothing Mary could do to ease his pain. The fact is everything Jesus was doing—was for her—for her and for me and for you. Jesus endured the pain deep in his heart—on account of our sins. Jesus spoke to his mother—at the beginning of his public ministry—at the wedding at Cana. And he speaks to her again—at the end—as he accomplishes what he came to do. In this time of most terrible pain—Jesus is the perfect Son of Man—looking after his earthly mom—even as he washes away the sins of the whole world!

Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43 Jesus was put to death between two robbers—two criminals—two malefactors—literally “evil doers”! Here was guilty by association. Here was fulfillment of what Isaiah wrote some 650 years earlier—he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. Isaiah 53:12b Of all the scenes in the movie The Passion of the Christ I was struck by the two thieves dying—one on each side of Jesus. While Jesus suffered quietly—like a sheep—quiet while it is being led to the slaughter—the thieves cried out. There was an almost maniac madness as they screamed at Jesus—“Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!” Luke 23:39 It is entirely understandable—that people helplessly suffering unbearable pain should cry out. In frustration—they lash out at anyone—everyone. Here in Jesus was the perfect target! The thieves mock and ridicule Jesus and he does not curse them in return. Slowly but surely one of the thieves stops piling on Jesus. Eventually he even sticks up for Jesus. With a truly repentant heart he asks Jesus to remember him when Jesus comes into his kingdom. What peace of mind must have filled this thief’s heart—as Jesus promised him a place in heaven by grace through faith. The place Jesus promised is not rivers of honey and wine—not a place with 72 pretty ladies forever hugs and kisses. The place Jesus promised is a place where there is no more death or mourning or crying or pain—for the old order of things has passed away. In Heaven Jesus will make everything new! Everything new! I love new bath towels—thick, soft, huge! Take a shower with raspberry body wash—peaches and cream shampoo—conditioner that smells like fresh baked vanilla cookies. And then this new bath towel—so soft. A new shaver—three maybe four blades! New socks. New shoes—the leather so soft and supple and shiny! A new silk tie—the first time you tie it! A new you! Go to the doctor and have a complete check up—and they make a list of all the things that are less than perfect about you. They print them out—all the chemicals in your blood—where they are and where they could be! Imagine in Heaven—everything new! Maybe today—maybe today—we will be with Jesus!

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” How painful is this cry from Jesus’ lips? It is impossible for us to ever understand how horrible the hurt—as Jesus feels the white hot holy anger of His Father—on account of all our sins. There is a man in an earthly prison in Texas—accused of committing a triple homicide! They say this man is so terribly ashamed of what he has done—he has scratched his eyes—done irreparable harm to his eyes—in sadness and grief! Do you know what that feels like? To do something so terrible you want to hit yourself and hurt yourself—to do physical harm to yourself you are so ashamed? They say people who have done unspeakable things—when they are at last caught and confronted and confess what they have done—have actually rolled on the floor crying and pulling out their hair! The most horrible hurt Jesus suffered on the cross was the guilt of every murder, every rape, every act of prostitution, every abuse of drugs and alcohol, every battered spouse, every neglected and abused child, every animal abused, every robbery, every theft, every lie! Jesus took responsibility for mass murderers—for people like Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Pol Pot who piled up skulls in the killing fields of Cambodia—for all the John Wayne Gacys and Ted Bundies and Jeffrey Dahmers—the killer in Calfornia and the Bind, Torture and Kill serial rapist and murderer in Kansas City. Jesus bore the blame for all the times we sit here in church in our fine suits and silk ties and shiny shoes and thank God we are not like those people you read about in the papers! The suffering Jesus endured was so horrible he cried out to his father—why, oh why have you forsaken me? Jesus knew! He knew it was because of my sins that he suffered. It was horrible beyond words. It was my fault! We are without excuse! We are forgiven!

Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” John 19:28 Have you ever been nervous—or tired—or distracted—and you forgot something? I can tell you from experience—that it can happen—if you are nervous—trying to share God’s Word with God’s people—and you are afraid your own sinfulness might get in the way. I have forgotten a word or two—a sentence or two—almost missed a whole paragraph—so I put it in—where I had not originally intended to. Have you gotten to the grocery store—and forgot the most important thing you were supposed to get? We make these mistakes because we are sin-full! Jesus—in the middle of his horrible suffering did not forget anything! So that the Scripture would be fulfilled—the promise written down by King David—hundreds of years earlier—in Psalm 69 “They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst!” Psalm 69:21 would now be fulfilled! The soldiers putting Jesus to death often had a jar of sour wine, vinegar and water there—in case they got thirsty—what with their horrible job of executing people. When Jesus of Nazareth—true man and true God called out very simply, “I thirst!”—they took a sponge—soaked it with wine—put the sponge on the stalk a little stubby branch of a hyssop plant—a shrub—a scrubby bush—and lifted it to Jesus lips—so he could bite on it—and get a swallow this most bitter drink! There are 150 Psalms. How many do we know? “The LORD is my Shepherd…” “I will lift up my eyes to the hills…” “Bless the LORD, O my soul, all that is within me bless his holy name…” “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful…” Read the Psalms—read Isaiah and Jeremiah. See how again and again and again the LORD promised that Jesus would save us. Read the Gospels and see how again and again Jesus did everything His Father promised to save us. This Holy Week—read your Bible! Jesus will make your faith stronger! Jesus’ thirst kept God’s promise that our Savior would be thirsty! Our spiritual thirst will be quenched by the living water of God’s Word!

He said, “It is finished.” John 19:30b It is completed! The work of paying for all our sins was finished! The thirty three year flawless life—without any sin—and the tortured suffering—in our place was finished! The sins of the world atoned for! When I was little—I used to watch Superman! “Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap a tall building in a single bound! Look up in the sky. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No—it’s Superman!” Bullets would bounce off his chest! He could break thick steel doors off their hinges. He could bend steel bars and pick up cars. But the neatest thing Superman could do? Without doubt that would have to be fly around the earth so fast that it actually makes the earth begin to spin backwards—actually backing up time—to undo something horribly painfully wrong! Do you have things in your past that you regret? Do you have regrets? Do you have remorse—this nagging sadness—a scab that you keep picking off so that there’s a terrible scar? If we passed out paper and a pencil and said write down, “Even though it happened a long time ago—I still have terrible guilt about…could you fill in the blank? Is there something in the past that you feel terrible regret and remorse for? Is there one thing in the past you would undo if you could—or would you make a bullet list? Are there all kinds of sins and mistakes from the past that bother you? Are you dragging with you this potato sack full of potatoes of guilt? The precious Good Friday good news is Jesus finished paying for all your sins. If you said horrible hurtful words to your spouse or your children in frustration and anger that caused them terrible heartache—Jesus washed that away. If you lied to your parents—if you abused drugs and alcohol and got in terrible trouble with the police—Jesus washed that away. If you had hugs and kisses with a whole bunch of people you weren’t married to—Jesus washed that away, too. If you hit people and hurt them. If you watched dirty movies—did filthy things that would make your face burn with shame if anybody ever found out—Jesus washed those sins away, too. Jesus finished the work of redeeming you—buying you back from all your sins. If Jesus said it is finished—it is finished! It would be wrong for us to continue to beat ourselves up with guilt and embarrassment—when Jesus says we are forgiven! Jesus said, “It is finished!” End of discussion!

Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. Luke 23:46 I like to watch M*A*S*H—a TV program about Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals at the front—during the Korean Conflict. Sometimes M*A*S*H is pretty funny. Much of times it’s not! I remember one episode—where a soldier is horribly wounded. He will not survive—but the whole point of the program—is to keep him alive long enough that he won’t die on Christmas! They don’t want every Christmas to be tainted by the sadness of his death! Well, try as hard as they can—the soldier dies—while it’s still Christmas. Major Margaret Houlihan says—“It never ceases to amaze me. One moment you are alive. The next minute you aren’t. There are no bells, no whistles. No flashing lights. You are just dead!” It wasn’t so quiet when Jesus died. God’s Word says, “At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus sad the earthquake and all that had happened they were terrified and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” Matthew 27:51-54