By the time Jesus was nailed to the cross, He had already been betrayed, unjustly accused, mocked, ridiculed, denied, abandoned by His own, and savagely beaten. In fact, Jesus was beaten far worse than most criminals because of the hatred of the religious leaders. It’s amazing that He even made it to the cross. Most people, having suffered like Him, would have died long before ever making it to Golgotha. You would think that those witnessing this horrible atrocity would have felt some sort of sorrow. But that’s not what happened (except for His few followers that were present at the cross). The mockery, ridicule, and hatred continued. The place of crucifixion was in a public place, which always added to the shame. Scripture tells us that those who passed by jeered at him. Many of the people watching laughed at Him. The Roman soldiers divided up His garments in mockery. And initially both criminals hanging next to Him degraded Him.
Crucifixion was reserved for the worst of sinners. It was designed to inflict the most pain imaginable. Jesus, the sinless Man of God, was sentenced to this horrible death out of jealousy, envy, and hatred of the Jewish leaders. This was the death they wanted for Him. He hung there for six grueling hours. Speaking was VERY difficult, but He was able to say seven things from the cross. Every word has GREAT meaning for us. Jesus was aware of all the things people were saying and the wickedness in their hearts, yet, He said, “Father forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”
Let me get real here. Honest! The people showing contempt for Him are reminiscent of you and me. He knows every word we’ve spoken in opposition to Him, every act done in disobedience to His will, and every time we have balked at His love. We may not know when those things happened, but trust me, they have. Yet He forgave us! Are we deserving of such mercy? Such grace? No! Yet He continues to forgive us and draw us closer to Him. Oh, how thankful I am.
I’m not sure what hurt you’ve been carrying around? What pain has been inflicted upon you? What terrible words your mind keeps replaying? What injustice has been unleashed on you? But here’s the thing… you will never know freedom if you continue to let these things take ahold of your heard. You will always be in bondage. Forgiveness isn’t for the perpetrator (because they don’t deserve it)… it’s for you, for your freedom. We don’t deserve Jesus’ forgiveness either. Yet He gave it. And He continues to give it every day. But you might think… I know this is true. And I want to forgive. But I can’t do it. I just can’t. To this I would say, begin slowly. Begin at the place where chains are broken… at the cross. Go there! And then let Jesus do the rest for you. Let Him help you. These words Jesus spoke from the place of death, while His blood poured out, are powerful. Hope this encourages you today.