Monday Musings: Words from the Cross – “Father Forgive Them”
“Father Forgive Them”
“Words from the Cross” is the name given to the Lenten journey we take together this year at St. Paul. On Ash Wednesday and the succeeding Sundays both the Children’s Message and the Sermon will reflect upon the seven sayings Jesus speaks from the cross before he succumbs to crucifixion. On Thursday evenings following a simple meal in the social hall, we assemble in the sanctuary for Holden Evening Prayer. At these services, Vicar Kimberly will guide us into a deeper experience of communion with God and community with each other. We also make available “The Thorn” a devotional book offering daily Lenten meditations and space to record personal reflections.
To this array of tools enriching your spiritual practice during Lent, I offer “Monday Musing.” As the name implies, my intention is to post a weekly riff on a topic upon which I have recently given much reflection, that is, what steps does one take to more fully experience the life in Christ? In tandem with this inquiry, I wonder how does one live as an “ambassador of the Anointed One” with speech and deeds “done in the name of the Lord Jesus”? (2 Cor. 4:14-21, Col. 3:17).
Tenebrae – The Horror & Brutality of Crucifixion
Tenebrae worship on Good Friday evening transports the worshipper to Golgotha and the execution of Jesus. I find myself shaken by the sights, sounds, and readings that accompany the service. I ponder the passion of Jesus, the theology of the cross, and how God marks my life (like all the baptized) with the sign of the cross. At Tenebrae a candle gets extinguished after each reading and the sanctuary darkens. Midway through the service a large cross gets dragged down the center aisle. After placing it upon the chancel steps, the workman takes out a metal mallet and drives three steel spikes into the wood. Each strike reverberates throughout the sanctuary. An assistant then helps to lift the cross and drop it into place. The thump startles and holds attention. The lector reads:
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots to divide his clothing. And the people stood by watching, but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!” (Luke 23:33-34).
Tenebrae reveals the stark reality of crucifixion. While it does not portray the macabre circus-like atmosphere that characterized a Roman crucifixion in lands the empire occupied, the “mind’s eye” witnesses the horrible spectacle of men writhing in pain, struggling to breath, and slowing surrendering to death. And we wonder whether the man Jesus knew that through his yielding to the torment of this tortuous death, God the Father secures the redemption of humanity. Did Jesus realize that what will arise (literally) is God’s victory over the powers of sin and death and evil.
No matter whether he understood, Jesus speaks, “Father, forgive them…” I believe those words address both those present that horrible day, and all who read the account. With this musing, I share with you two truths and a lie that surface as I ponder this absolution.
The First Truth
The first truth is this: Repentance is an act born from sorrow that opens one’s life to the divine love that already surrounds us.
Remembering conversations and classes on the topic of repentance, I would say most folks consider repentance as the religious act necessary to avoid divine retribution. Such a view is part of the legacy early Puritan immigrants pass down to us. They see a God who is filled with wrath toward those who fail to acknowledge wrongful acts emanating from sin-laden hearts. And yes, there is an aspect of Old Testament writings called the Deuteronomic code that seems to indicate God rewards good works and punishes evil works. But when we reexamine such texts through the Gospel lens, we see God’s intent is to rescue wayward humans from the consequences of sin. Even when sin persists and the consequences occur, God acts to bring persons back into right relationships. I think of Jeremiah walking through the rubble that was once Jerusalem. Around him is the terrible aftermath of the Babylonian invasion. The rulers did not heed prophet Jeremiah’s warning. Yet, amid the carnage and destruction Jeremiah exclaims, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases… Great is your faithfulness” (Lament. 3:22-23).
God’s desire is to forgive and restore. God wants the person, group, or nation realize the folly of life apart from God’s design and purpose. According to the psalmist God acts with compassion to remove us from our transgression and such desires provoking sinful thoughts, words, or deeds:
As the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far he removes our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion for his children,
so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him (Psalm 103:12-13).
Moreover, the gospel lens we put on is ground according to the specifications Jesus gives to Nicodemus when the rabbi struggles to bring together his understanding of the Hebrew scripture with the teaching Jesus presents:
For God so loved the cosmos as to give the Son, the only one, so that everyone having faith in him might not perish but have the life of the Age. For God sent the Son into the cosmos not that might pass judgment on the cosmos, but that the cosmos might be saved through him (John 3:16-17, Hart).
This does not void the prophetic role given to the church. We continue to name sin and present the truth that life apart the divine plan for human life and relationships will incur consequences. But I suggest, that along with stern warning regarding perils awaiting the unrepentant, the church proclaims good news. We reveal how through cross and resurrection God defeats the power of sin, death, and evil. We want all to know about this love that awaits when persons turn to the Lord – there is forgiveness, restoration, and community. The prophetic word warns, the gospel welcomes.
Gospel writer Mark opens his account with Jesus giving an invitation. After introducing John the Baptizer and identifying his role in the divine drama, Mark reports how Jesus appears in the Galilee region proclaiming the message:
“The right time has come… and the Kingdom of God is near! Turn away from your sins and believe the Good News!” (Mark 1:14-15, GNT).
Jesus declares that through his appearance God commences the movement of his Kingdom on earth and makes possible turning away from sin. The word we translate to turn away or repent is metanoia. It conveys the need to change one’s mind as in choosing a different life direction. So, the act of repentance is turning from thoughts, words, deeds that cause sorrow, and turning toward love that already awaits. We do this “because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore, all have died.” (2 Cor. 5:15, NRSV).
Repentance is an act born from sorrow that opens one’s life to love that already surrounds us.
The Second Truth
The second truth is this: Repentance is the opening act of God’s good work to “Renovate the Heart.”
Each Sunday our liturgy clearly and simply states this truth: “I have sinned against God and neighbor through my own fault – in thought, and word, and deed, in what I have done and what I left undone …”
On Ash Wednesday our confession includes statements where we admit to specific ways of having fallen short of the life God wants for us (Rom. 3:23). Then following our confession, an absolution declares that God grants forgiveness through Jesus Christ, his death on the cross and God raising him from the dead.
But it is well for us to realize our Lord offers more than forgiveness. That more is what philosopher and Christian writer Dallas Willard calls the Renovation of the Heart (Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2002).
For unless there is a change of heart from which arose those desires formed from self-serving motivations, we will repeat the same behavior. The result is our bemoaning like apostle Paul:
For the desire to do the good lies close at hand, but not the ability. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do (Rom. 7:18-19, NRSV).
King David understands the requisite need for heart change when he wilts under prophet Nathan’s accusation (2 Samuel 12:1-13). Going beyond his confession to adultery and arranging for Uriah’s death, David writes this psalm appealing to God:
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).
And when the Pharisees rail against the disciples for not following the hygiene laws prior to eating, Jesus tells them:
It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles… (For) what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions … (Matt. 15:11,18-19).
So… when we receive God’s gracious declaration of forgiveness, what further steps do we then take to open ourselves to the Spirit’s good work of heart renovation?
Historically, Lent is the season when new converts to Christianity prepare for their baptism, and those who already are communicants adopt disciplines to help them be more attentive to God’s Word and spiritual formation. Here are some disciplines which might help you enter the divine work of heart renovation:
- The use of a daily devotional book and maybe make it a family practice. St. Paul distributes copies of the devotional, “The Thorn.”
- The ancient practices of fasting – self-denial of certain foods or refraining from eating an entire meal – helps persons to focus on how God provides “our daily bread”, and on the full extent of Jesus self-denial so that we may receive salvation.
- Writing in a journal helps some focus attention to the “voice of God” addressing them amid other distracting thoughts.
- Setting aside Thursday evenings for mid-week worship can help experience the presence of God within community.
- Those participating in the St. Paul Prayer Workshop may consider making use of a prayer form that differs from what you usually practice. The change helps to keep mind focused and ears attuned.
- Silent contemplation is a discipline that feels awkward at first, but with daily practice it sensitizes awareness to God’s loving presence and God’s good work to renovate our hearts.
- And for those feeling an urge to “do something”, Lent provides opportunity to acquaint yourself with groups within the congregation and the community doing works of compassion.
Friends, whatever discipline you choose to practice, do not begrudge the extra time imposed on an already busy schedule, or the giving up of that which you enjoy. Rather, welcome the discipline as a portal through which you enter greater realization of whose you are, the love that frees you from bondage to sin, and the good works prepared for you (Eph. 2:8-10).
I encourage you to make repentance and absolution the first step towards the love that already surrounds you, the starting point in your desire for God to create in you a “clean heart and right spirit.” Here is one further suggestion. Over these forty days in Lent begin each morning reciting the psalmist’s prayer which invites the Spirit of God to continue heart renovation now begun:
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24).
Repentance is the opening act of God’s good work to “Renovate the Heart.”
The Lie
Now, let me mention the lie that deceives too many folks into believing they are beyond being loved and valued. The lie gets expressed variously but the essential meaning is, “God can’t love me because of all the wrong I have done!”
Even a brief survey of the gospels and other New Testament writings makes it clear that “… one has died for all; therefore, all have died” (2 Cor. 5:15). Consider:
- The child of the Roman officer whom Jesus healed,
- The woman caught in adultery whom Jesus protects and forgives,
- The thief on the cross whom Jesus welcomes into paradise,
- The soldier standing guard at the crucifixion who comes to faith,
- Peter who betrays Jesus then receives instruction to “feed my sheep” (John 21:17),
- Paul who leads a movement to persecute followers of Jesus becoming lead evangelist and teacher during those first post-resurrection decades.
No person is beyond the love of God revealed through Jesus who is the Christ and Savior.
A Concluding Promise
Because of God’s love for humanity, a love that formed the cosmos, a love that breathed life into Adam, a love manifested in Jesus who suffered death on the cross from our sin, and who was raised from the dead to set us free from bondage to sin,
… yes, on account of this love for you and me, we are brought to awareness of our sin and step into that love that already envelopes us. We do so with the confidence so well expressed by the disciple John:
If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9, NRSV).
Even as we live our days amid the swirl of violence and prejudice, greed and poverty, God makes it possible for us to live as “ambassadors of Christ’s love”. This love wants more for us than wiping away the guilt and shame of sin. God wants to enable us to live with the kind of heart originally intended when God formed the first humans. Through the gracious gifts of forgiveness of sin and the ongoing work of heart renovation, God makes it possible for us to offer a different witness than that which the world has become accustomed. Yes, our witness is not perfect, but each day we continue turning toward and stepping into the love that envelopes us. And we do so with a firm grasp upon this promise:
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns (Phil.1:6, NLT).