Luke 23:32-43 Easter is about Forgiveness

 

Easter is about forgiveness! Forgiveness is the center of the Christian life. We are a forgiven people called to forgive others. Forgiveness is that excellent idea everyone wants to get behind until it is our turn to forgive. Easter is the celebration of divine forgiveness. At Freedom, we celebrate Easter or the forgiveness of sins every Sunday. With the Apostle’s Creed, we confess “I believe in the forgiveness of sins.” After we confess our sins, God assures us that our sins are forgiven in Christ. When we rejoice in the forgiveness of sin, we celebrate Easter! God forgives us because of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Jesus took our punishment by dying. God shows there is no punishment left to pay by raising Jesus from the dead. As we look at Luke 22:32–43, we will see that there is confusion about Jesus’ death. Secondly, we will see that Jesus came to die to forgive our sins. Thirdly, we will look at the implication of the forgiveness of sins, we will be with Jesus in paradise. 

SIOS: (1) There is confusion about Easter, (2) but we can know for sure that Jesus died and was raised for the forgiveness of sins so (3) that we can be with him in Paradise!

1. There is confusion about the death of Christ (Luke 23:35–39)

Growing up in a secular home, I believed Easter was a combination of Jesus died on the cross and was raised from the dead, and stomach aches. Stomach aches because I ate too much chocolate! In a general way, Jesus’ death burial, and resurrection cause confusion as much in our day, as it did in Jesus’. Jesus’ death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins are not self-evident. It makes sense that many do not believe it happened and try to explain it away. Even as students of the Bible, we may find that there is a lot we do not know. Was there another way than for a Father to send his Son to die? How does the death of one man lead to the forgiveness of sins for others? Why is it that we benefit from Jesus’ atoning death upon believing? At what point did Jesus pay for sin? Was it when he was on the cross and said “It is finished?” after dying, or when he was raised from the dead? What was Jesus doing for three days? Did he really go to Hell? It is okay not to have it all figured out since it is complicated. Often the Bible is not as clear as we wished, on matters we get curious about. The Bible teaches everything we need to know (Deut 29:29).

Our passage shows that people were already confused when Jesus was on the cross. In Luke 23:35–39 we read that (1) the rulers sneered at Jesus, saying “he saves others, let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” (2) then the soldiers said “if you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” (3) V.39 one of the criminals by his side “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!” There are hints of mockery in these statements and confusion. Jesus on the cross seems so out of step with the rest of his ministry. If Jesus was who he said he was no one fathomed that he could possibly appear helpless on a cross dying between two criminals. The biggest element of confusion in the three statements by the witnesses is that they are telling Jesus to get off the cross. Surely some hoped to witness a miracle, since they may have known that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, walked on water, and multiplied bread and fish. Wanting Jesus to get off the cross contradicts Jesus’ teachings. He repeatedly warned his disciples that he would suffer, die, and rise from the dead. He even told Peter that preventing his death was doing the work of the devil in Matt 16. Jesus had to die, but no one seemed to be aware. This great confusion about Jesus’ death was prophesied by Isaiah.

In Isa 53, a person who would be an Israelite was to die to save his people. We read, first in v.3 that this individual would be despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering… v.4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. Isaiah’s prophecy is that people would look at Jesus and assume that rather than being God’s anointed, his Christ or Messiah, they would misunderstand Jesus’ crucifixion as a cursed death that led to nothing.

2. Jesus had to die and be raised for the forgiveness of our sins (Luke 23:34)

Isaiah 53 not only foresaw the confusion about Jesus’ death but also identified the result. There can be no confusion among us concerning the meaning of Jesus’ death, even if we cannot answer some less important questions. Isaiah 53 reads, “… upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” Jesus offers the forgiveness of sins. The Jews had the OT foreseeing this event. The disciples heard Jesus’ own testimony over and over. One of these occasions was at the last supper. In Matt 26:28, Jesus explains that the wine is his blood, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. This is the meaning of Easter that Paul describes as being of most importance, it is the Gospel that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” It is great news that Jesus did not save himself or get off that cross.

In our passage, Jesus reveals his agenda. In Luke 23:34, Jesus says: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” These words Jesus utters are among the most powerful in the Bible. He utters these words on behalf of those who are killing him and mocking him. Jesus forgives his killers. He shows love towards his enemies. We can have a lot of concerns in life. They can be financial, medical, or relational. Jesus came to solve our greatest problem, which is spiritual. We are all sinners. Our sin separates us from God. Jesus came to die for the forgiveness of sin. He makes it clear in this passage that he even wants to forgive his killers, declaring that no one is beyond the love of God. God’s grace is greater than our sin (Rom 5:20). Some are tempted to ask, how could God save a sinner like me? But our salvation has nothing to do with how much of a sinner we are, but how gracious God is. Easter is about divine forgiveness, but we read in the Bible that the kind of radical forgiveness we see on the cross is not reserved to Christ alone.

With the New Covenant, God’s Spirit empowers us to love like Jesus. In Acts 7, when Stephen finishes his speech and is being stoned, before dying in Acts 7:60, Stephen says: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” These words echo Jesus’ words on the cross. These are stuning words and they are the mark of the Christian church. Radical forgiveness to others flows out from the radical forgiveness Jesus has shown us on the cross. Dylan Roof is a white supremacist who entered a church, he killed people. At his trial the families of the victim forgave him. In 2018, a police officer, Amber Guyger went home. But she entered the wrong apartment. She thought a stranger was in her home and shot him. She shot the man who lived in that apartment who was minding his own business eating ice cream while watching TV. At her trial, the victim’s brother, a Christian said – “I love you and I forgive you.” It’s what Christians do. We forgive like our savior, even when people harm those we love the most. When we went through membership renewals two years ago, I had the privilege of hearing everyone’s Christian testimonies. I was sitting with GM. Part of her testimony is that she had a twelve-year-old son who was run over by a truck. Gayle told me, she cannot really explain how, but she was able to forgive the driver straight away. She also knew that she had to talk to that driver and tell him that she forgave him. She knew that he would live with trauma from the accident and she wanted to bless the man who had a role in taking her little boy away from her. This is not just what super Christians do, this is what you do. Jesus offers forgiveness. Those who understand they are forgiven are able to forgive others. That’s what Christians do.

You may be in the midst of a bad situation. You may be feeling anger or even hatred toward someone. Life is a journey. God does not expect perfection right from the beginning. We will only be truly sanctified, made perfectly Holy on the other side of death, or after Jesus returns. Forgiveness can be a process, but it is not optional. After the Lord’s prayer, Jesus says, unless you forgive, my father in heaven will not forgive you. If you ever think God does not know what he’s asking, know that he does, this is what Easter is all about. God takes forgiveness so seriously that he even sacrificed his only son to forgive our sins. I’m assuming that some of you in this room may hold grudges. I am assuming that you have a parent or a sibling who has told you hurtful things that have wrecked your relationship. In an ideal world, when someone hurts you, you can approach them and show them how they hurt you. They will respond by embracing you, and apologizing, and promising to try hard to be more sensitive. Forgiveness and apologizing are hard. We cannot control whether those who have hurt us will apologize, or those we have hurt will accept our apology. Paul tells us in Rom 12:18, “as long as it depends on us, live at peace with all people.”

3. The forgiveness of Easter makes a way for us to be with Christ in paradise (Luke 23:40–43)

Normally I go out of my way to stress emphatically that the Christian message is not about having one good thought toward God a long time ago which guarantees you a one-way ticket to heaven when you die. I stress that God saves us to live as his saved people, to fulfill his will for the world, which is the Great Commission. We make disciples who make disciples. However, our passage makes it clear that it is also good for us to look forward to what comes after this life. It is good to long for paradise which is where we will be with Jesus for eternity for the full enjoyment of his presence in a disembodied state after death, and with our glorified bodies in the New Heavens and New Earth after Christ’s return. In our passage, one of the criminals on Jesus’s side acknowledges his sin and recognizes that his sin deserves punishment. He recognizes that Jesus is innocent, Savior and King. He tells Jesus, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus tells him “today, you will be with me in paradise.”

If you are trying to witness to a friend or family member, Luke 23:40–43 really lays out how to be saved. Admit you are a sinner, believe Jesus is the Son of God, and commit to serving him as King of your life. The forgiveness that we receive through the events of Easter changes everything. This life we currently live is the worst phase of our existence. No matter what comes our way we can look forward to being in paradise with Jesus. It will be a time of unprecedented bliss! Among others, David Powell is someone I am really looking forward to seeing again.

With the joy of paradise laid out before us, I want to make one more appeal to you to forgive others. Often in life, to do hard things we need motivation. If you do your homework, you will get ice cream. In Hebrews 12:2, we read that Jesus endured the cross for the joy that was set before him, knowing he would soon be by his Father’s side. With the promise of the reward of paradise by Jesus’ side, we can endure our cross of forgiving others. Another potential blessing is a restored relationship even if there is no guaranteed. The promise of paradise with Jesus is guaranteed. Forgiving others is not a work that earns you points to get into heaven, but it is the kingdom attitude we are called to practice when we contemplate the meaning of Easter. 

There is confusion about Jesus’ death, but we can know that he died for the forgiveness of sins. For the guaranteed joy of paradise set before us, we are called to live lives of confession and radical forgiveness.