Luke 23:46 - Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!
Seven Sayings of Jesus on the Cross • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 373 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
In the kitchen of my Grandmother’s house in Comanche, Texas, right above the kitchen sink is a small chalk board that reads “eat what is set before you. - ”. As a kid, I would carry my dishes to the kitchen from the dinning room and see that sign then look at my plate to make sure that I had eaten all my food so as not to disappoint God. I’ve never asked my Grandmother why she put that verse in that place but I assumed it was to put the fear of God into her grandchildren that if they didn’t eat everything on their plate the wrath of God might visit them. Praise be to God…as my family can attest…I rarely had a problem finishing my plate. As a guest in someone’s home it would be rude to turn away or not eat the food they “set before you.” As a host, you would recognize this. Think about all the things that have to happen at your house in order to receive a guest at your home. If your house is dirty, then you clean it. You might even dust off the fancy dishes that you never even use for yourself. But for sure, you don’t plan to serve peanut butter and jelly. As a host, there is a lot of planning and preparation that goes into the food you set for your guests. As a host, in a way, what you set before them is an offering to your guests. If they eat and are satisfied it was a good offering, if your guests stop at whataburger on the way home from your house then it was a bad offering.
“Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”
In our seventh and final saying of the evening we hear the Lord Jesus cry out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”. The word “commit” is the same word we see in , “set”. You could read this, “Father into your hands I set before you my spirit!” The author Luke is wanting us to see that while the world thinks they are putting to death a social and political radical in Jesus what is really happening is Jesus is making an offering to the Father.
In our seventh and final saying of the evening we hear the Lord Jesus cry out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”. The word “commit” is the same word we see in , “set”. You could read this, “Father into your hands I set before you my spirit!” The world wants you to think that what is happening on the cross is a good moral guy died. A social and political threat was silenced by death. But Luke in his gospel wants you to see that an offering is made! Jesus, the son of God, is offers or sets before God the father his spirit.
Two Clues about the Offering of Jesus from Luke
Darkness () - Clue to the reader this is an offering and not an execution.
About the sixth hour, which would be high noon our time, “darkness was over the land until the ninth hour, while the sun’s light failed”. In the old testament, God commissions Moses with the plans to build the tabernacle. Those plans had two rooms, the Holy Place, a longer room, and the Most Holy Place. The entrance to both rooms were covered with a veil or curtain. Inside the first room, the Holy Place, there was a lampstand that would illuminate the room. But inside the Most Holy Place there was no source of light. In Moses receives instructions from God on how the High Priest is to enter the Most Holy Place and it doesn’t tell us that it was dark but using our imagination we know. When you got into a windowless room and pull the curtain and the light source is on the other room it gets dark. Just as the High Priest would experience darkness when entering the Most Holy Place behind the veil so the land experiences darkness as Jesus goes to the cross to offer his sacrifice.
Curtain () - Clue to the reader this offering is for us and not Jesus.
Our next clue from Luke is that offering is for us and not for Jesus. This is a little tricky so stay with me, but as the High Priest enters the Most Holy Place he is surrounded by darkness to make his offering. In , the High Priest would make two offerings. The first one for his own sin and the second one the sins of the people. But Jesus doesn’t need to make an offering for himself as he has never sinned. So how does God, through the author of the Gospels, illustrate to us that this offering is for us and not Jesus? The curtain is torn. The darkness that would cover the High Priest upon his first offering escapes the Most Holy Place and covers the “whole land”, literally, the “whole earth”, or as I would say here the people. It is as if the darkness that should cover Jesus upon entering the Most Holy Place is cast out upon the people to illustrate to the people that all that is happening is for you!
The author of Hebrews tells us in
For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.
Jesus’ first and only sacrifice is for the people of the “whole earth”.
Application
Good Friday is a day of darkness and gloom. Darkness and gloom because the sinless son of God was killed. Darkness and gloom for all people because without the resurrection we remain in our sin. But have hope, sinner, because the darkness that descends on us for our sin is lifted in three days with the resurrection. If you do not know that you’re a sinner and that
One hymn captures this beautifully for us in closing,
Praise the One who breaks the darkness with a liberating light; Praise the One who frees the prisoners, Turning blindness into sight. Praise the One who preached the gospel, Healing every dread disease, calming storms and feeding thousands With the very bread of peace.
Praise the One who blessed the children With a strong yet gentle word; Praise the One who drove out demons With a piercing two-edged sword. Praise the One who brings cool water To the desert’s burning sand; From this well comes living water Quenching thirst in every land.
Praise the one true love incarnate: Christ, who suffered in our place; Jesus died and rose for many That we may know God by grace. Let us sing for joy and gladness, seeing what our God has done. Praise the one redeeming glory; Praise the One who makes us one.