We might not have thought of Jesus’ prayers extending to The Cross, but they do. Of the Seven Sayings recorded across the four Gospels, three are petitions sent Heaven-wards. Today’s Holy Nougat introduces us to one of the prayers;
“But Yeshua was saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Then they cast lots, dividing up His clothing.” Luke 23:34 TLV
A few questions for us to ponder
– What was done to Jesus to require the public prayer
– Who was Jesus forgiving
– Are there lessons for us embedded in this prayer
Much had been done to Jesus over the past hours – treated like a criminal, betrayed, arrested, denied thrice, tried, lied on, scourged, spat on, forced to carry the cross, jeered by the crowds, nailed on the cross, given wine for his thirst, and left for dead.
And Jesus was innocent!
Given the litany of wrongs; Jesus’ plea to God could be directed at any or all of those persons. And it would have been sufficient. It could also have been directed at the reprobate/s who were about to gamble for His clothes.
I suspect it also was directed at you and me
The lessons are clear – we are called to forgive those who have wronged us. No matter the size of the offense (ouch!). No matter if we’d just forgiven them and they proceeded to offend yet again. Up until our death.
You see, for Jesus, the ones who committed the wrongs, truly had ZERO clue about what they/us had done. We did not grasp the bigger picture of purpose – this was part of the glory plan AND it offered each of us a teachable moment for us. We just don’t always know what is happening behind the scenes.
And so I reckon, we are called to pray like Jesus. But first, can we identify who it is that we ought to forgive.
