As Jesus hung on the cross, His body broken and bleeding, His words were few—but full of meaning and power. In His final sayings, he’s sharing with us that we don’t find despair, but hope.
"His last breaths were not cries of defeat, but they were declarations of victory."
"From the cross, Jesus didn’t whisper despair, but He proclaimed deliverance."
"What looked like the end, was actually the beginning of eternal hope."
Even in death, Jesus was pointing us to life. Of his last seven saying the first thing he says “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
Our hope begins with forgiveness. Even as nails tore His flesh, Jesus offered mercy, and if He forgave them, He can forgive us.
May I tell you that there is no sin that is too great, no problem is to large, and it does not matter what you have done, His love is greater still.
2. “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:43)
Hope is for the repentant. The one thief believed in Jesus, and in an instant, eternity changed. No matter how late it seems, it does not matter what you have done, and how dark life might seem, it’s never too late to turn to Jesus.
Absolutely — that sentence is packed with meaning, and unpacking it can bring out some deep theological truth and pastoral encouragement. Let’s break it down and go deeper:
Here it is. “Hope is for the repentant.”
The lesson here is that us that hope isn't random, but it's found when a heart turns toward Jesus in humble repentance. And may I tell you that repentance is more than saying “I’m sorry.” It’s a heart turning, a change in direction, and a surrendering.
And the beauty of this is that Jesus never turns away a repentant heart. Psalm 51:17 says:
Hope is not earned by our goodness. It is unlocked the moment we confess our need. “The one thief believed in Jesus, and in an instant, it changed his eternity.”
This is one of the most powerful moments in Scripture, because here is a dying criminal, likely guilty of violence and theft, hanging beside Jesus. No opportunity to serve in ministry. No chance to clean up his life. Just a simple faith:
“He didn’t get a second chance to make things right. He didn’t have time to prove his faith with good works. All he had was a dying breath—and he used it to call on Jesus.”
“No record of righteousness. No life left to live differently. Just a desperate heart and a simple cry, and Jesus met him right where he was.”
“He didn’t have time join a church, lead a Bible study, or right his wrongs. But he could believe—and that was enough for grace to flood in.”
He said “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42)
And Jesus responds: “Truly I tell you, today thou shall be with Me in paradise.”
In an instant, this man moved from judgment to grace.
From death to life.
From hopeless, to being heavenly bound.
This moment proves that salvation is not about performance, but about a personal relationship with Jesus. And when we believe, our entire eternity is changed, in a moment.
“No matter how late it seems…”
This speaks to the fear many people carry:
"It’s too late for me."
"I've wasted too many years."
"I’ve gone too far."
The thief on the cross dispute that lie. There is no expiration date on God’s grace. If you have breath in your body, you still have an invitation. “It does not matter what you have done, and how dark life might seem…”
This reminds us that hope is not for the perfect, but it’s for the broken.
Jesus isn’t afraid of your past.
He’s not overwhelmed by your darkness.
He’s not surprised by your sin.
Whether you're young or old, proud or ashamed, far or near, tell your neighbor It is never too late.
The cross reminds us that as long as we can call on the name of Jesus, there is hope. Not because of us, but because of who He is.
“Hope isn’t for the holy—it’s for the humble. The moment the thief believed, eternity opened up widely. So don’t let guilt, fear, or time convince you it’s too late. As long as Jesus is alive—and He is—hope is still on the table.”
3. “Woman, behold your son. Son, behold your mother.” (John 19:26–27), it seems like it was a family affair.
Hope cares for others, even in suffering. Jesus made sure His mother was not left alone. He teaches us that love never stops giving—even when it's hard.
4. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)
Jesus felt abandoned, so you’d never have to be. Just know that in His silence, God was still working. Hope says: Even when I don’t feel Him, He’s still with me.
Spoken around the ninth hour—about 3 PM—after hours of unimaginable suffering, Jesus lifts His voice and cries, not in silence, but with a loud voice:
“Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani?” Which means: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?” At first glance, it sounds like a cry of despair. But it’s so much more. It’s a moment of divine mystery, where the eternal Son of God—perfectly one with the Father—experiences separation, darkness, and the full weight of sin.
This cry is a direct quote from Psalm 22:1. By invoking the first line of the Psalm, Jesus is connecting His suffering to a prophetic Psalm of the Messiah.
“My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me?” But it ends in victory and vindication:
Jesus wasn’t just crying out in pain—He was proclaiming the fulfillment of Scripture, declaring that He is the suffering servant foretold.
On the cross, Jesus didn’t just feel forsaken. In a very real and spiritual sense, He was
experiencing the separation that sin causes—not His sin, but ours.
“God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21.
In that moment, Jesus took upon Himself the total weight of human sin—every lie, every act of hatred, every betrayal, every injustice—and with it, the judgment and separation from God that sin brings.
There was a Cry of Divine Absence—and Unshakable Faith Even in His agony, notice the words Jesus uses:
“My God, My God…”
He Was Forsaken—So You Never Will Be.
Jesus was abandoned for a moment, So we could be accepted forever.
He was cast out, So we could be brought in.
He experienced the silence of God, So we could always have access to the Father.
But then he says “I thirst.” (John 19:28)
The Living Water became thirsty so we might never thirst again. Hope reminds us that He entered our pain fully.
He gets it—and He’s with us in it.
The 6th word says, “It is finished.”
This is not a cry of defeat, but of victory. The work is done. Sin is paid for. Hope doesn’t depend on what we do—it rests on what He has already done.
But then he says in his final word, the 7th word. “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” (Luke 23:46)
Finally, Jesus surrenders in trust. He knew the Father would receive Him—and raise Him. We can place our lives, and our deaths, into God’s hands too.
In Conclusion:
At the cross, hope was not crushed—it was planted. And three days later, it rose again. Whatever we are facing, there is hope in Jesus—hope that forgives us, redeems us, loves us, understands us, completes us, and resurrects.
I’m reminded of a story about hope that a young lady had in a small town, there was a woman named Maria. She had lived most of her life in the shadows of regret, guilt, and pain. Her past was filled with mistakes, broken relationships, and moments she wished she could forget about it all. She tried to outrun the weight of her past—bouncing from one thing to the next—but the guilt always followed her.
But one evening, in the quietness of her small apartment, Maria sat staring at a letter she had written but never sent. It was to the daughter she had abandoned years ago.
The weight of that decision, the pain of the separation, had crushed her spirit. Maria was at the end of her rope—she didn’t know how to make things right, she didn’t know how to turn back the hands of time, or how to repair the years of hurt.
But then, as she sat there, her eyes fell upon an old, weathered beaten Bible that had been passed down to her by her grandmother. The pages were marked with faded ink, filled with notes of comfort, and passages that spoke of God’s love and mercy. She opened the Bible, and her eyes fell upon a verse that changed everything:
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
In that moment, she realized that hope wasn’t about fixing the past, but it was about coming to Jesus—just as she was—and trusting that He could make something new out of the brokenness.
Maria dropped to her knees and prayed. She didn’t have the words to fix the past, but she knew this: Jesus was offering her a future. A future filled with forgiveness, redemption, and healing. The weight of her guilt was lifted, and a sense of peace flooded her heart for the first time in years.
Years later, Maria was able to reconnect with her daughter, not because she had fixed everything, but because she had encountered the hope that Jesus offers to all who are broken, to all who are desperate for change.
So may I tell you to come to the cross—not to mourn, but to receive life. Hope lives here.
“Come to the cross—not with sorrow alone, but with open hands ready to receive new life.”
“Don’t just stand at the cross in grief—step forward in faith, because life is waiting there.”
“The cross isn’t just a place of death—it’s the doorway to resurrection life. Come and liv.”
“Come to the cross—not as an end, but as the beginning of the life you were made for.”
Come to the cross—not to mourn, but to receive life. Hope lives here.
