Intro:
The last words said by a person who is about to die can show what their main concerns are and what their character is like. For example, there was a shop owner who was lying in his bed, and he almost died. His wife and children were around him. With his eyes closed, he said their names: Mey Ling, my wife, and my children: Cen-Cen, Ting-Ting, and Ling-Ling. They all answered: "I'm here, Pa." Hearing that, in a soft voice, he said: "If you are all here, who is looking after our shop?" What do you think is this man's main concern? Money! His business! He should be happy that in the last moments of his life, he was surrounded by all his family members.
Today, we will learn seven words that Jesus spoke on the cross before He breathed His last breath. From what Jesus said at the end of His life, we can see His character, mission, and concerns.
These are the Seven Last Words of Jesus:
I. Luke 23:33-34 --"When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Imagine this: You are accused by several people of having committed a crime that you never committed. You have tried to explain to these people that this is not true. But instead, they slap you, spit on you, torture you, and will kill you. How do you feel? Jesus experienced that.
Throughout His life, He never committed a crime or harmed other people. On the contrary, He always helps people who suffer, whether because they are sick, possessed by demons, excluded from society, or in danger, and free of people who are shackled by sin. He always teaches about love! But now He was tortured and sentenced to death in a ruthless way, namely by crucifixion. What was His attitude toward those who crucified Him? Instead of being angry, hating, and cursing, He prayed that His Father would forgive their sins. Jesus is a Man of forgiveness! He practiced what He taught: Jesus was the same in life and death. -- "But to you who are listening, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them." (Luke 6:27-29).
Application: Jesus wants us to forgive our enemies or those who have hurt us or brought us damages (financial, physical, or reputation). It’s not easy to forgive them. Two days ago, we heard the news about the shooting in Moscow. Indeed, it is hard to forgive those shooters/terrorists. But Jesus calls us to follow His steps. May God help us!
II. Luke 23:39-43 -- "One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!" But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."
Even when it would have been understandable to focus on His pain and heartache, Jesus remembered His mission that He came "to seek and to save the lost." (Luke 19:10). With his last breath, Jesus was living out his mission or purpose in life. He is a Man with a mission! How about us? Sometimes, our love for the world or the problems that we face can make us lose our perspective and forget the purposes of our lives.
III. John 19:25-27 –" Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, "Woman, here is your son," and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home." Jesus always thought about others, even when He was in so much pain and suffering. He is a Man of Compassion! Matthew 9:36 says: "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." Before He died, He showed compassion to His mother and one of His disciples, John. He knew that His mother would have physical needs that must be addressed, and John would have emotional needs. May God help us have compassion for others even when we are in difficult situations.
IV. Matthew 27:45-46 -- "From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. About three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" (which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"). There is an unfathomable mystery here. Jesus was both God and man united in one divine Person. In all eternity, the Father and the Son had been one. He could not suffer and die with respect to His deity. But He could suffer the agony of separation from the Father and actually die physically concerning His humanity. When Jesus was hung on the cross, He bore the sins of humans; He carried the wrath of God for the sins of the whole world. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." At that point, the Son was separated from the holy Father so that we can have a relationship with God. Jesus is the Man who suffers for our sake!
Application: What have we done to express our gratitude for His sacrifice? Are we willing to dedicate our time, talent, and treasure to God and His Kingdom?
V. John 19:28-29 – "Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips." Jesus was a fully human being who could feel pain and thirst. That is why He can feel the weakness and suffering we experience. The Book of Hebrews says: " For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin." (Hebrews 4:15).
VI. John 19:30 -- "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit." One can only say it is finished if he knows where he is going. Jesus understood His destiny and could enter it in total faith. Illustration: Before slipping into a coma and dying nine days later, Sir Winston Churchill, the statesman who is famous for his commencement address of "Never give up!" died on January 24, 1965, with his last words. "I'm bored with it all." Sounds like he gave up, didn’t he? His last words were very different from Jesus!
VII. Luke 23:44-46 – "It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last." With his last breath, Jesus was committed to remaining in submission to the Father. A reflection of His total trust in the Father. A demonstration of the kind of faith we should live in.
After Jesus completed His mission, He knew where He would go, which is going back to His Father. He left this world in peace, with no fear or regret. With full confidence, He surrendered Himself completely to the Father.
Jesus' last words were very different from many world figures. For example, Thomas Payne was the leading deistic writer in the American colonies. At the end of his life, he cried out: "Stay with me, for God's sake; I cannot bear to be left alone, O God, help me! O God, what have I done to suffer so much?" What will happen to me after this? ... Oh God, help me! …No, don't go; stay with me! Send any child to live with me because I'm on the edge of Hell alone here. If the Devil had an agent, I would be his agent." Or the last words of Robert Ingersoll: "O God, if there is a God, save my soul if I have a soul, from hell, if there is a hell!"
The last seven words of Jesus show how He was indeed incarnated as fully Human, yet sinless. He is a person who is loving and caring. His life until the end showed that what He taught and His statements that He was the Son of God, the Messiah or Savior of the world were truly proven. We are grateful to have a God like Him, who is willing to become a human being, who provides an example of life that is so beautiful and perfect that He is even willing to sacrifice extraordinary suffering so that we can obtain salvation or eternal life.
May God help us to follow Jesus’s example and be faithful until the end of our lives. Amen!
