Lent: 4/7/09
April 7, 2009
Tuesday of Holy Week
Luke 23:32-38
“A Prayer for Forgiveness”
Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.’
– – Luke 23: 34a
There have been many great studies written on Jesus’ words on the cross. Recently, there have been two such books that I have used extensively in the church in preparation for Holy Week. Thank God It’s Friday: Encountering the Seven Last Words from the Cross By Bishop William Willimon and Listening at Golgotha: Jesus Last Words from the Cross by Bishop Peter Storey are excellent resources that force us to reexamine the challenges of Jesus as words that speak to us in our present situations. These texts and others have shaped me such as Enemy Versions of the Gospel and An Idle Tale becomes Good News both written by North Georgia’s own Rev. Dr. Hershel Sheets. My intent in the coming days is not to replace such excellent works, but to move into a more meditative reflection of the words from the Gospels as they meet me in the local Church. This is not intended to be a substitute for careful study of Scripture, but a moment of reflection and worship in the midst of all that has become Holy Week.
Having said this we enter into the climax of the Gospel when words, deeds and attitudes come together on the cross. Today we hear the first of Jesus’ teachings from the cross, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
What does it mean for Jesus to intercede for others as the beginning point for our meditations on the cross? Who is it that Jesus seeks forgiveness for? And how does this prayer of intercession set the tone for everything else that is to follow?
We must note that these words have a history of being difficult for the Church. Most of our Bibles will have this prayer inside of brackets or marked with a footnote. These words have not always been included in every manuscript. These words are hard for us, there are times that we would rather skip over them or omit them entirely. But today we will face them and let them meet us were we are. We will struggle and wrestle refusing to let go until we receive a blessing.
For me the power of these words is a corrective against our tendency to separate the Passion from the entirety of Jesus’ ministry. We sometimes come to view the cross as the “real purpose” of the incarnation. Or at other times we view the crucifixion as an unfortunate accident of history. Both of these blind us to the importance of the events of Holy Week as a result and continuation for Jesus’ ministry. Hanging on the cross, Jesus is still a teacher, preacher and healer. In spite of the severity of the situation, Jesus continues to hold to his message of forgiveness and reconciliation. This is the Sermon on the Mount lived out before our very eyes.
Forgiveness is not something that we do well. We are not comfortable with forgiving or being forgiven. We like to carry around our mental lists of our mistakes and more importantly, we like to remember who has done us wrong. This holding on of wrongs for us is many things, but topping the list is power. We like to remind ourselves of the sins committed against us. I make us feel more righteous and holy. We like to carry old wounds because it helps us remain the victim in our relationships. We like to preserve old hurts because it gives us power over those who have done us wrong. But we are the ones who are being controlled. Forgiveness releases everyone for a new day. True forgiveness breaks the old cycles of revenge and retribution and forces us to move on and makes way for new possibilities and growth.
This day we need forgiveness. We need both to receive and give forgiveness. We are all both the perpetrators and victims of violence in our lives and relationships. We are stuck in the rut of returning evil for evil. We are controlled by the very human desire to get even and restore balance. These words of Jesus have the power to break the power of the machine of death. We do not have to try to get even, when God declares us to be even. We do not have to try to meet one evil with another, when God has rest the scales to zero. This holds great comfort to me. There are hurts that cannot ever be undone. There are wrongs that cannot be set right. Today we are a confronted with a word that will set us free from them all. Forgive. Maybe, we don’t have to wait for justice when grace abounds for all.
I see this in the local church all the time. People are controlled by the past of real or imagined transgressions that keeps us from experiencing the opportunity of today. How many churches suffer because of an argument that happened a generation ago? How many people fail to allow the movement of the Holy Spirit to grow the Church because it would cost them a victory from a time long forgotten? The lack of forgiveness is killing us day by day. We know the way out of our current predicament, but who wants to be the first to offer peace? Who wants to become vulnerable even for the sake of a better tomorrow?
Today, Jesus breaks our impasses and offers preemptive forgiveness to us all. The cycle is broken by the grace of God. My anger is satisfied in Jesus’ suffering. My pain is redeemed in Jesus’ willingness to take it on himself. Everything is different now. How foolish it all has been. God forgives us all, even when we did not know we needed it. Even when we had no idea what we were really doing. Now having been forgiven, we can forgive. The standoff is broken. Let the reconciliation begin…
Let us pray…
Holy God,
Forgive us, as we continue to bump into one another in the darkness of our ignorance.
Forgive us, we have no idea what we are doing.
Forgive us, we have nursed our hurts and injuries.
Forgive us, we have failed to listen to your words.
Forgive us, we have sought to get even.
Forgive us, when we are arrogant and think we are right.
Forgive us, when we are contrite and know that we are wrong.
Forgive us and free us for joyful obedience to your Word.
Father, forgive! Amen.