Amy C Walters

The Crucifixion | Luke 23:26-43

In the story of Jesus’ crucifixion, we see an unparalleled example of mercy. Jesus prays for the forgiveness of those who should know better, who even then are in the midst of killing him, who won’t admit that what they’re doing is wrong. But Jesus extends them his amazing mercy.

Whenever you’re studying a Bible story or a passage, a great question to ask yourself is, what does this teach me about God? Where do I see him in this story? 

In this story, as we see everything that Jesus endures and we hear his words, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,” we can’t help but be struck with his incredible mercy. In fact, our key truth is, Jesus is amazingly merciful. We’re starting with the key truth because there’s a lot to unpack about the depths and the extent of this mercy. So let’s dive in. 

First of all, what crimes had been committed against Jesus in the near context of this story? He’s been falsely arrested, falsely accused. He’s been betrayed and denied and mocked. They’ve beaten him, they’ve lied about him, they gave him an unjust sentence, a flogging, and now they are putting him to death. 

These are not small things that Jesus is forgiving. They’re not things that just can be brushed aside as no big deal. 

If you had faced even one of those things, how would you respond? If you’re like me, you would be angry and frustrated. You’d probably be insisting very loudly that they had got it wrong, that you did not deserve this, that you should be released. I would lash out against the people who were doing this to me. I would use it as an excuse to give it right back to them.

But not Jesus. He offers no defense, no rebuttal. Just forgiveness. 

One of the major crimes against Jesus is something that we may not even recognize. He prays, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” I’ve always read this as “forgive them because they just didn’t know. It wasn’t really their fault because they didn’t even realize what they were doing was wrong.” 

But John Piper points out that they need forgiveness because they don’t know what they’re doing. It’s not, forgive them because they’re ignorant. It’s, forgive their ignorance. Their not knowing is the crime. Ignorance is not the reason they should be forgiven, but what they need to be forgiven of.

God had given them everything they needed to recognize the Messiah, and they were still missing it. They had prophecies about Jesus stretching back to the very beginning of time. They had God’s law pointing to the need for a sacrifice and a mediator. They had Jesus’ miracles and teaching and testimony. They had no excuse. 

That reminds me of some things I have been learning in Hosea. One of the major accusations against God’s people is that they don’t know God. Their lack of knowledge is the problem. Hosea 8:12 says, “Were I to write for him my laws, by the ten thousands, they would be regarded as a strange thing.” Even if God gave them ten thousand more laws that revealed who he was and what he desired, that wouldn’t fix the problem. They ignored the covenant and the law he had already given them. 

John Piper preached this passage from Luke 23, on Sanctity of Life Sunday. He argued that we should know that abortion is wrong. We are guilty because we do not know. Or what about how we bemoan that God doesn’t speak to us? We need answers, but he doesn’t give them to us, and yet we haven’t cracked open our Bibles in forever? We are guilty because we do not know. 

But even for all of this, there is forgiveness because Jesus is amazingly merciful.

One of the criminals on the cross seems to have realized this. The first criminal mocks Jesus and demands that Jesus save him. But there’s no acknowledgement of sin, no repentance, no regret for what he’s done. It’s just an expectation that he should be rescued. 

But the second criminal admits that they are getting what their deeds deserved, that he should be punished. 

It’s easy to clean this man up in our imagination, to turn him into one of the good guys. But death by crucifixion was reserved for people who had committed murder, theft, treason, or rebellion. This criminal is not someone you’d want as a next-door neighbor. But even for him, there is forgiveness.

Another notable thing in this story is when Jesus prays for the people’s forgiveness. It’s in the middle of his crucifixion, as they were insulting him and laughing at him, as they were in the middle of committing the very crimes he offers forgiveness for. 

When do we usually forgive people who have wronged us? Not until that person has admitted they were wrong and asked for that forgiveness. We want to know that they feel sorry for what they’ve done. We want to know that they’ll never do it again.

And sometimes, when we’re especially hurt, we don’t want to forgive them right away. We want to hold it over them so that they suffer for the suffering they have caused us. 

My family has had a very difficult last couple of years. We’ve experienced deep hurt and rejection from three different churches. And I have been wrestling with anger and bitterness from it. Just a few weeks ago, I confessed to God that I desire to forgive certain people but I just don’t feel ready yet. 

But Jesus is amazingly merciful. He prays for the forgiveness of his persecutors before the sin is even finished. Just like it says in Romans 5:8, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

Jesus’ forgiveness is unlike ours in many other ways. He doesn’t put conditions on it. I’ll forgive you if…. He doesn’t offer it reluctantly. I guess I’ll forgive you, but only because you seem really sorry for it. Because Jesus is amazingly merciful. 

One more thing from Jesus’ prayer. Did you notice that he doesn’t ask God the Father to forgive them? He tells him. This is another glimpse at Jesus’ divinity, that he and the Father are one, that Jesus is God. No one else could tell the Father to forgive. No one else has that authority. 

But Jesus has already proven that he has the authority to forgive sins. In Luke 5:17-26, some friends lowered a paralyzed man through the ceiling to Jesus. Jesus first forgives him, then heals him. Because Jesus has the authority to forgive sins. And Jesus has the amazing mercy to forgive sins as well. 

So what does this mean for us? 

That we should turn to Jesus for forgiveness, no matter what sin we have committed. If Jesus could forgive that mob for what they had done while they were doing it, he can forgive you. You will never find the limits of his mercy. As long as you are capable of repenting, there is a chance for forgiveness.

As it says in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 

Secondly, those of us who have been forgiven and experienced this amazing mercy are responsible to forgive others as well. Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you.”

It’s only when we experience the deep mercy of Jesus that we can offer that forgiveness to others. Let’s do that in the way that Jesus modeled here, because he has extended that mercy to us.