Words of Mercy: "Father, Forgive Them" (Luke 23:34)

The final words of someone’s life can be meaningful and powerful. For example, it was just before they died that Joshua called for courage, Deborah prayed for justice, Hannah sang with gratitude, and Stephen invited repentance. It was at the end of their respective ministries that Peter said “guard the church,” Paul said, “preach the word,” and John said, “Come Lord Jesus.”Final words like these can make a big impact. And if that’s true of some of God’s people, how much more is that true of God’s Son? Considered carefully and prayerfully, his laboured words uttered from the cross are those of sympathy and tranquility, of frailty and misery, of prophecy and destiny, and of certainty and victory. They’re meaningful, powerful, and potentially transformational. Through them we encounter the Lord Jesus Christ, majestically adorned in unmatched courage and love, beauty and power.