7 Last Words of Jesus from the Cross
Date (5/15/15)
(Week # 7)
Beginning Prayer:
Father God, as this Word goes forth, please send it straight to our hearts, so we will never forget what You did by sending Your Son Jesus to die for our sin. Bless these Words to fall on good grounds, so that all would bring forth good fruit in their season. Thank You for helping us to learn more of You, and Your love for creation. Thank You that I know that He live, and bless all who read these bible studies to know that Jesus live too. In Jesus' Name, we pray, Amen!
Title: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit"
Scripture Reading: Luke 23:46 World English Bible (WEB) "Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!" Having said this, he breathed his last."
Cross References: Numbers 14:8; Psalm 3:6, 20:7, 23:4, 27:3, 46:2; Isaiah 12:2; Habakkuk 3:18
Theme: (The Passion of Christ)
Warm-up Question: Name the events following the crucifixion.
Goal: Yielding to God's Holy Spirit
Let's Study……..
Here Jesus closes with the words of (Psalm 31:5), speaking to the Father. We see his complete trust in the Father. Jesus entered death in the same way he lived each day of his life, offering up his life as the perfect sacrifice and placing himself in God's hands.
Like a trusting child, he turns to the Father and takes the next step. He has bound himself by love, to both God and the human race. Soon he will begin his long-term ministry by demonstrating the fact that human beings survive physical death. Then he will continue to draw to himself, and thus to heaven, everyone he can ... for as long as it takes ... until whosoever will has come.
The seventh word of Jesus is from the Gospel of Luke, and is directed to the Father in heaven, just before He dies. Jesus recalls Psalm 31:5 - "Into thy hands I commend my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God." Luke repeatedly pleads Jesus' innocence: with Pilate (Luke 23:4, 14-15, 22), through Dismas (by legend), the criminal (Luke 23:41), and immediately after His death with the centurion" "Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, "Certainly this man was innocent" (Luke 23:47).
Jesus was obedient to His Father to the end, and his final word before his death on the Cross was a prayer to His Father.
Jesus fulfilled His mission: "They are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received by faith" (Romans 3:24-25). The relationship of Jesus to the Father is revealed in the Gospel of John, for He remarked, "The Father and I are one" (John 10:30), and again, at the Last Supper: "Do you not believe I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works" (John 14:10). And He can return: "I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father" (John 16:28). Jesus practiced what He preached: "Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).
Reading Scripture in another version: Luke 23:46 Amplified Bible (AMP)
"And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit! And with these words, He expired."
Jesus is in the closing moments of His life on the earth after spending 6 hours on the cross. He is exhausted; He is hurt; He is lonely and He is soon to breathe His last.
• He cried out with a loud voice, "Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit." This was the last statement that Luke records in His account and often taught as the last words of the earthly Christ. I tend to lean toward the last words being spoken of in the Gospel of John for reasons that will be identified when we come to the text. Nevertheless, this was definitely in the last moments of His life.
• Notice it was not with a weak voice, but a LOUD VOICE. This is significant because it tells us that He was mustering up last great effort to cry out to God in His hour of need.
• This is a quote from Psalm 31:5 and also happens to be the closing line of the typical Jewish prayer at the end of the night. It was part of the pattern of prayer of entrusting their soul unto God as they planned to slip off into sleep for the night.
• This was also one of the favorite Psalms of the distressed Jew; and if you are reading this right, Jesus most certainly met that qualification. What does a man do while He waits to die on a cross? He reaches out to God.
Listen to some of the lines of this Psalm and try to understand the trust He had in the power of the Father.
Excerpts from Psalm 3:
Verses 1-5 In Thee, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be ashamed; in Thy righteousness deliver me. 2 Incline Thine ear to me, rescue me quickly; be Thou to me a rock of strength, a stronghold to save me. 3 For Thou art my rock and my fortress; for Thy name's sake Thou wilt lead me and guide me. 4 Thou wilt pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me; for Thou art my strength. 5 Into Thy hand I commit my spirit; Thou hast ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth.
Verse 9, "Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body;"
Verses 12-14 I am forgotten as a dead man, out of mind, I am like a broken vessel. 13 For I have heard the slander of many, terror is on every side; while they took counsel together against me, they schemed to take away my life. 14 But as for me, I trust in Thee, O LORD, I say,
"Thou art my God."
Verse 15-16 My times are in Thy hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies, and from those who persecute me. 16 Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant; save me in Thy lovingkindness.
Verse 22 As for me, I said in my alarm, "I am cut off from before Thine eyes"; nevertheless Thou didst hear the voice of my supplications when I cried to Thee.
Verse 24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the LORD.
• It is quite humbling to look at the cross from this perspective. Jesus was entrusting His soul to the Father. He was not bitter; He was not confused;
He was not mumbling. He was trusting in God that He would be delivered!
• Notice that it is Jesus' spirit that He is committing to God. This carries with it an important lesson for our understanding of the afterlife. What is this "spirit" that Jesus was yielding back to God? There are many uses of "spirit" in the Bible. the wind -Hebrews 1:7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. (KJV, NKJV) a breath -II Thessalonians 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: (KJV) personal sentiment -Matt 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. One's intentions -Phil 1:27 Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ; so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; Holy Spirit -Acts 2:38 And Peter {said} to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
• I am persuaded the "spirit" which is referred to in Luke 23:46 is not of the above, but yet another option, the spirit of life. Paul makes the statement in 1Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul revealed that we not only have a body and a soul, but also a spirit. The spirit is not the body or the soul, but what it says, the "spirit". What is the spirit that Paul is referring to?
• The spirit of life is what was God breathed into Adam and made man a living soul. Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Adam was formed out the dust of the ground but had not life until God breathed the spirit of life into him.
• This is the same spirit of life that was driven from all living during the flood.
Gen 7:21-22 "And all flesh that moved on the earth perished, birds and cattle and beasts and every swarming thing that swarms upon the earth, and all mankind; 22 of all that was on the dry land, all in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, died.
• The spirit of life resides in the soul of a man and is the force that energizes the body of mankind. The body cannot live without the spirit of life. We find mention of it in other passages of the Bible.
• I am persuaded this is the same "spirit" that Jesus is entrusting to the Father, the spirit of life. This is the life force that keeps the soul alive after it leaves the body and goes on to Hades, the place of disembodied souls. I also believe this is why it is often synonymous with the soul, for both leave together at the same time. The soul lives forever in torment or blessedness for the spirit of life keeps the soul alive!
Let's talk about praising God:
A vocation of praises: Praising God is a God-appointed calling. Indeed, God has formed for himself a people "that they may proclaim my [God's] praise" (Isaiah 43:21 ; cf. Jeremiah 13:11 ). God's actions, such as Israel's restoration from the exile, are to result in God's "righteousness and praise springing up before all nations" (Isaiah 61:11 ). God has also predestined the church "to the praise of his [God's] glorious grace" (Ephesians 1:6 ; cf. Matt 5:16 ; Ephesians 1:14 ; Philippians 1:11 ; 1 Peter 2:9 ). The future vocation of the redeemed in glory is to sing praise to God and the Lamb (Revelations 4:11 ; 5:12-14 ; 7:12 ). Doxologies are fitting because they capture what God intends for people (Psalm 33:1 ; 147:1 ).
In the light of this calling to praise God, the oft-declared intention, "I will praise you, O God" and the exhortations for others to praise God take on additional meaning. In giving oneself to praise the worshiper declares his or her total alignment with God's purposes. The environment of those gathering for worship, judged by such admonitions, was one of lavish praise to God. Since God is holy and fully good, God is not to be faulted, as some do, for requiring praise of himself. Praise is fitting for what is the highest good, God himself. Praise is both a duty and a delight (Psalm 63:3-8).
Reasons for Praising God:
In addition to being the fulfillment of a calling, praise is prompted by other considerations, chief of which is the unique nature of God (1 Chronicles 29:10-13 ). One genre of the psalms, the hymns, is characterized by an initial summons, such as "Praise the Lord" which is followed by a declaration of praise, introduced by the word "for, " which lists the grounds for offering praise, often God's majesty and mercy. The shortest psalm (117), a hymn, offers a double reason for praise: God's merciful kindness (loyal love) is great, and his truth endures forever. Other hymns point out that God is good ( Ezra 3:10-11 ; Psalm 100:5 ; 135:3 ), or that his ordinances are just ( Psalm 119:164 ), that he remembers his covenant ( Psalm 105:7-8 ), that his love is enduring (Ps. 136), or that he is incomparable ( Psalm 71:19 ). A basic understanding in the hymns, if not in all the psalms, is captured in the theme "The Lord reigns." God's kingship is pronounced both in his majestic power displayed through the creation of the world ( Psalm 29 , 104 ) and in his royal rule, often as deliverer, over his people ( Psalm 47 , 68 , 98 , 114 ). As king, God is judge, warrior, and shepherd. Often too, praise is to the name of God (Psalm 138:2 ; 145:2 ; Isaiah 25:1 ). That name, Yahweh, conveys the notion that God is present to act in salvation (Exodus 6:1-8).
The biblical examples of praise to God, apart from citing his attributes and role, point to God's favors, usually those on a large scale in behalf of Israel. A hymn in the Isaiah collection exhorts, "Sing praise to the Lord for his glorious achievement" ( Isaiah 12:5 ; nab ). Exhortations to praise are sometimes followed by a catalogue of God's actions in Israel's behalf ( Nehemiah 9:5 ; Psalm 68:4-14 ). God's most spectacular action involves the incarnation of Jesus, an event heralded in praises by angels in the heavens and shepherds returning to their fields: "Glory to God in the highest" ( Luke 2:14 Luke 2:20 ). Praise is the legitimate response to God's self-revelation. Personal experiences of God's deliverance and favor also elicit praise ( Psalm 34 ; 102:18 ; 107 ; cf. Dan 2:20-23 ; Rom 7:25 ; the healed paralytic, Luke 5:25 ; Zechariah, Luke 1:68 ; the response at Nain, Luke 7:16 ; and Jesus himself, Matt 11:25 ).
An intimate relationship of a person or a people with God is sufficient reason for praise. A psalmist, captivated by the reality of God's choice of Jacob, exhorts, "Sing praise" ( Psalm 135 ; cf. Rev 19:5 ).
Expressions of Praises: The believing community is both a fitting and frequently mentioned context for praise. The author of Hebrews quotes the psalter: "In the midst of the assembly I will praise you" ( Heb 2:12 ). The audience is enlarged beyond the worshiping community when the worshiper announces, "I will praise you [in the sense of confessing], O Lord, among the nations" ( Psalm 57:9 ), and more enlarged still, "In the presence of angels ["gods" NIV] I will sing my praise" ( Psalm 138:1 ; nab ). While privately spoken praise to God is fitting and right, it is virtually intrinsic to the notion of praise that it be publicly expressed. Indeed, David appointed Levites to ensure the public praise of Israel ( 1 Chron 16:4 ; 1 Chronicles 23:4 1 Chronicles 23:30 ).
The Scriptures offer a language of praise and so are instructive on how expressions of praise might be formulated. Nehemiah leads in praise by saying, "Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. You alone are the Lord" ( Neh 9:5-6a ). The chorister Asaph followed David's cue: "Sing praise to him; tell of his wonderful Acts" ( 1 Chron 16:9 ). Persons intent on cultivating spirituality are often helped, at least initially, by repeating and personalizing such lyrics of praise.
Praise to God in Israel took the form of artfully composed lyrics. A significant number of psalms are identified in their headings as "A Psalm, "a technical term meaning "a song of praise." Israel's expressions of praise to God could include shouts ( Psalm 98:4 ), the plying of musical instruments ( 1 Chronicles 25:3 ; 2 Chronicles 7:6 ; Psalm 144:9 ; 150:1-5 ), making melody ( Psalm 146:2 ), and dancing ( Psalm 149:3 ). A public expression at Jesus' entry into Jerusalem took the form of devotees waving palm branches (Matthew 21:1-11 ). Praise for Israel consisted, in part, of the spoken word, "Open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise" ( Psalm 51:15 ) behind which, however, was a total person committed to praise: "I will praise you, O Lord, with my whole heart" ( Psalm 9:1 ). Such praise is not tainted with bitterness or in other ways qualified but is from someone who is thoroughly thankful.
The Bible speaks also of persons praising or commending others ( Genesis 12:15 ; 49:8 ; Proverbs 31:28 Proverbs 31:30 ; 2 Corinthians 8:18 ). However, it counsels, even warns, about the giving and receiving of praise lest it be for the wrong reasons or be misconstrued ( Psalm 49:18 ; Proverbs 12:8 ; Proverbs 27:2 Proverbs 27:21 ; John 5:44 ).
Unquestionably the Book of the Psalms is centerpiece for any discussion about praise. In it the believer's vocation to praise is wonderfully modeled, so that even laments (one-third of all the psalms) contain elements of praise. As a book of praises, the psalms build to a remarkable crescendo of praise (Psalms. 145-150), in which all creatures are summoned to incessant praise of God, as are the stars and planets in the heavens, and even the angels. I mention praises because of what Jesus has completed for us. This and all He does for us deserve our praises. We must be grateful. We give praises to God for sending His Son Jesus to die for our sins. He made the atonement and it was great and completed.
Reading Scripture in another version: Luke 23:46 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
"Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." Having said this, he breathed his last."
Point of Interest: Atonement:
Questions:
1). Have you put your life and, indeed, your life beyond this life, in God's hands?
2). How do you experience God's salvation through Christ in your life today?
3). What do Psalm 31:5 say concerning Jesus was speaking to God?
4). What did the centurion say about Jesus down at the cross? (Luke 23:47)
5). What is this saying "Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit!" consider to be?
6). Some versions says "commit" and some says "commend" what is the different?
7). What is this "spirit" Jesus was yielding back to God?
8). What is man consisted of?
9). Where do the "spirit of life" lives in man?
10). What is the meaning of praise?
11). What example did Jesus leave concerning Himself?
Ending Prayer:
Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me! Dear Lord Jesus, though my memory isn't what it used to be, I join King David today in giving you praise today for Who you are, and all the good gifts you lavish on us in the gospel. I praise you that irrespective of changes in my brain chemistry, you'll never forget me. This is my great hope and centering peace. But while they are fresh on my heart, here are a few things for which I am especially grateful as this day begins. I praise you for forgiving all my sins—past, present, and future—sins of thought, word, and deed. How staggering a thought! I used to think you forgive only confessed sins, but now I realize I'm probably aware of only 4 percent of my sins. But your blood covers the other 96 percent as well. Praise the Lord, O my soul, for a perfect and complete forgiveness! I praise you for securing, and healing all my diseases—diseases in my body, heart, and mind. Though I wish you would completely heal me before you return, nonetheless, I have this sure hope: The healing I'm already receiving in the gospel will be brought to completion. Praise the Lord, O my soul, for present, ongoing, and a secured complete healing! I praise you for redeeming my life from all pits—the pit of eternal separation from God, the pits others throw me into, the pits I naively fall into, and the pits I foolishly dig for myself! You've bought and brought me out of all pits into your embrace by taking the ultimate "pit" of God's judgment for us on the cross. Praise the Lord, O my soul, for an-all-pit redemption! I praise you for crowning me with your love and compassion. You've taken away all my guilt and you've borne all my shame. My conscience is no longer under the law and condemnation, but under grace and your rejoicing. Praise the Lord, O my soul, for a coronation of mercy and grace! I praise you for satisfying my desires with good things. Lord, I praise you for the smile of my grandson, the kiss of my wife, the taste of dark chocolate, the rainbow you painted on the side of a trout, the recent encouragement from a friend, and the sounds of great music, to name a few. Praise the Lord, O my soul, for a God who takes my desires seriously and satisfies them in countless ways! Lord Jesus, may the unsearchable, innumerable, and inexhaustible riches of the gospel renew me today with youth-like energy, that I may soar like an eagle and live to the praise of your glorious grace! I pray in your holy and loving name, Amen.
Reading: Week # 7 (John 19-21)
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