He was born and bred here, went away and actually wrote a book about why he was not going to come back and I'm glad that he was wrong. I'm glad that he came back and I'm glad that he came back to Jackson. He is now the executive director of Mission Mississippi. I'm not saying this just because he's on the roster with us but since taking over the leadership of that important ministry in the city, he has turned in a new and an increasingly fruitful direction. There's great blessings coming from Dolphus's humility and his love for the church and for brothers and sisters and Christ and for the wisdom in which he's giving us leadership. I thought it would be fitting for him to kick off our series tonight since we want to bring the community of Christ black and white together and no one that really has his finger on the pulse of that in this city like Dolphus does. He's a good man and he's an able expositor. I think the best thing that we can say about him is he's our brother in the Lord and for that reason he's more than welcome here. We want to welcome you and we will give our hearts to the Lord and our minds to what you say. Thank you, Dolphus. Thank you so much for the opportunity to be here as you were talking about my book. I ain't coming back. I thought about the fact that several years ago I was traveling from Meridian and I was driving to Birmingham, Alabama and I turned the radio on because I wanted to listen to some music as I traveled but the choices of music to listen to when you travel in and rule Alabama and rule Mississippi is very limited. It was, let me confess something. My year was a night quite used to country western music but not quite but on this day I had no choice. It was either country western music or nothing at all and so I had the privilege of listening to a song that I still remember the song says if heaven ain't like Dixie then I don't want to go. I remember listening to this song and said if heaven ain't like Dixie then I don't want to go and I was saying at that time Lord I'm so glad that heaven is not like Dixie. Otherwise I have some questions about whether or not I want to go but God has done a marvelous work in Dixie and I praise God for what he's doing. The opportunity and privilege is that he's allowing the body of Christ to begin to do some things that's wonderful and unusual. Last weekend I had the privilege of being at first Presbyterian Church for the missions conference and an opportunity to share a number of times at first Presbyterian Church. On yesterday I spoke out at Mississippi College and tonight I get to wonder if the privilege of being with you and whether the light that is. In the word of God as we see the printed in our bulletin let's take a look at the word of God as it's written in our bulletin and let's read it I will read it as you follow along with us. It says when they came to a place called the skull there they crucified him and the criminals one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying father forgive him for they know not what they do and they cast lot divided up his garment among themselves and the people stood by looking on and even the rulers were sneering at him saying he saved others. Wow let him save himself if this is the Christ of God has chosen one and the soldiers also might him coming up to him offering him sour wine and saying if you are the king of the Jews. Now there were also in scripts in above him this is the king of the Jews. Let's pray. Father God in heaven we thank you for this awesome trip that Jesus took to the crawl cross and Lord we praise you for that death and we ask tonight that you will illuminate our hearts and our man as we think about the awesomeness of his death but even in death the mighty prayer of forgiveness. So father I just pray that you will bless us as we share this time together tonight in Jesus name. Amen. You know as I was studying for this it said Palm Sunday to betrayal to crucifixion from triumph to tragedy to victory Palm Sunday where the crowd was celebrating. With Jubilant they were celebrating because they misunderstood and down through the years we as believers have somehow known or at least the world has misunderstood and even we as believers have misunderstood. You see when Jesus spoke of victory they thought about victory and battle and he thought about the triumph of living. When Jesus talked about liberty they thought about political liberty you're going to free us from the Roman when Jesus was thinking about the inner freedom of victory. When Jesus spoke about strength and power they thought about army and they thought about Jesus leading the mighty army and Jesus was thinking about strength of courage. When Jesus spoke of enlarging the borders and greater destinies and conquests of territory that's what they thought about all of those things of him going out and doing victories that way and he thought about it was thinking about barriers falling down and how people can come to know Jesus. When Jesus spoke of treasures they thought about possession Lord how can you help us get more possessions and he was talking about riches of the heart. When Jesus spoke about more abundant life they thought about the change of their personal circumstances that he was thinking about the vitality of the spirit. The Bible says a man's life consists of not in the abundance of the things he possess betrayal what an awesome feeling to be betrayed. From celebration here they were celebrating him and he had to move from the celebration to a sense of betrayal. Well over the next several weeks you will have the privilege of looking at what did Jesus say from the cross as he moved from one level to the next level as he moved from that time of it seems like it was victory it seems like there was celebration and jubilant to a time of rejection and betrayal. I get to wonder for privilege tonight of sharing with you about the first phrase or the first word that he said from the cross and I get to privilege of sharing about that tonight. You know sometimes it's very difficult for us to forgive people isn't it? It's very difficult for us to forgive people when they did a little something to us. It's very difficult even harder when someone pressed and do something a little difficult a little more that somehow knows the cause is more pain. But wow what about the idea for giving somebody when you know you have the power to get them. You know you have the power to get them. It's almost like a little weakling running up to somebody whose six feet six and two hundred seventy five pounds and a little weakling runs up there and starts doing something and the powerful one just catches them on the head and thought it says it's going to be all right. Knowing that they have the power to crush, knowing they have the power to destroy, knowing they have the power to call. Wow what a privilege. What a privilege that we have tonight to listen in on a conversation. The privilege of listening into a conversation of Jesus on the cross and in the midst of his pain he wants to talk to his father. We get the privilege of listening in on this pastor's scripture when the Lord of glory who tabernacle among us and somehow another what did he want to say to a father. At the end of the sun he somehow know the yielding himself to the hands of his enemies as they began to do it. He somehow know that as he was dealing with the fact that he was mocked in the trial and that they kept saying crucify him, crucify him and yet he had the power and the key in his hand. He was made to carry his own cross. He was nailed to the cross and there he hangs and silent and now all of a sudden he's getting ready to speak to the father. What is he going to say? Is he going to call on the angels? Is he going to call because Matthew chapter 26 verse 53 says, Do you not know Peter? You know how Peter did right? Peter saw when Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane. Peter came along and grabbed out his sword and went swiped off the guys ear because he wanted to defend Jesus. And Jesus thought I said to Peter, Peter put your sword away. I don't need your sword. Peter don't you know that I can call on 10,000, 12,000 legions of angels. I can do anything in a time and guess what? The God of glory is just waiting. The God of glory is just waiting for me to call 10,000 legions of angels to my disposal. I can do that in a time I get ready Peter and now the God of glory hanging out on the cross. And if he's hanging there, he began to say some things to his father. He began to say some words and I want to share those tonight. And the first part of this seven last words and he says, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. So the first thing he does is he addresses the father. And he says, Father, if I can just talk to you about this, he addresses him as father. Our Lord Jesus addresses God three times in this whole passage while he's on the cross. He addresses God three times as father. When he first entered his suffering tonight, as we look at it, when he first enters his suffering, he cries out father. When he's enduring the suffering on the pain of the cross, he cries out father. And then when he emerges victoriously, he cries out father. Our Lord was entering his suffering. He spoke to his heavenly father. And listen to this. Don't you know tonight. No matter what your pain is, you can still go to the father. Isn't that something? Isn't that something that we can take away from here tonight that no matter what pain I mean. Sometimes in our pain, we want to lash out. Sometimes in our pain, we want to get back. And sometimes in our pain, we want to do some things but I'm so glad that we have this wonderful marvelous and fantastic example of Jesus hanging on the cross. And he says, I just want to speak to my daddy. Sometimes we say my situation is so bad. I can't talk to God. But let me tell you who you can talk to. You can talk to the father. I can't talk to God. God is somewhere away out there. God is omnipotent. God is all powerful. God is perfect. I can't talk to God. But you know who you can talk to. You can talk to your father. And so he addresses him as father. And Jesus didn't talk about how they were treating him. He didn't talk about all those kind of negative things. He just began to talk to him as a father. I'm sure that you are going through some pain or going through some trouble. And I just want to tell you it's okay to talk to the father. And occasionally when we move around in mission, Mississippi, and we are going throughout the state and we are going through a number of things, there are times I feel discouraged as I come in contact with churches that are not ready to move in Christians who are not ready to move as I come in contact with them. Sometimes I have to in my driving around after saying let me let me talk to my father because he'll listen and he'll understand. The pain can be excruciating but we can talk to the father about a month ago I received a phone call from someone who said to me, my husband is about to go home to be with the Lord. And talk to me about it and say to me about you to do whenever he goes home to be with the Lord, I want you to participate in his general service because we want to do a demonstration of his life of unity and reconciliation while he lived when he goes home to be with Jesus. If you want to have at cross gates church, he happened to be white, the family has to be white at cross gates church, we want to have a demonstration of unity at the service. Well, she called me today and said he went home to be with Jesus. And on Friday there's going to be a funeral service with different people participating even in the midst of her pain. The midst of lostness in the midst of pain, she's able to say father, how do you want me to address it? And I want to tell you that when we're difficult and calm we can say I can fight those difficulties, I ask I can say to my father, how do you want me to address it? This family decided to address it by saying we want to have a kind of home going service that will model out and demonstrate this whole thing of unity and the body of Jesus Christ. So even in death, she says we want to demonstrate and model. And as we were talking on the phone the day I said listen we're praying for you and we are delighted to be a part of that wonderful and marvelous celebration. So no matter what we are, no matter what our circumstances might be, even Jesus demonstrated that hanging out there in pain, he can still talk to his daddy and he could come to the father and lay it out to him. But what we know what he didn't say, he didn't say God sent the angels and let's get him how we want to do it. I tell you that there are times I'm so glad that I don't have God powers. Because there are some people I might want to get rid of. If you had God powers and in front of you there were some buttons of some people and groups of people and that you wouldn't want to get rid of, you had the power to push the button. I'm so glad I don't have God power because there'd be some folks I might be tempted. You know how your hands want to go and do something. I'd be tempted to push that button to get him. I'm so glad that I saved Jesus as he hung out on Calvary and he talked to his father. He addressed him as father and let's just see what he said to father. Number two, he said, I have an appeal I want to give to you father. And listen, he didn't appeal and say, hey, help me out down here. Take me out of my circumstances. He already went to his knees in the garden of Gethsemane and he said, father, as I look ahead and I see the pain is coming. I see the bearing of the sins of the entire world coming out of on me. I see the sins of white people. I see the sins of black people. I see the sins of Asians. I see the sins of Native Americans. I see the sins of all the people bearing down on me. And I don't want to have father to take it away from me. But then he says, but not my will. Isn't that something? Lord, not my will, but your will be done. That's what I want God. I want your will. And now he's praying to the father and he says, I have an appeal I want to give to you. Even in the midst of my pain on this cross, I got an appeal I want to make. And the appeal I want to make is I want to say, father, forgive him, father, forgive him. The Greek in the New Greek New Testament indicates that our Lord repeated this prayer several times. He did, you know how we do those flips that I forgive you? You know how we do it? It started flipped it. Oh, father, forgive him. He said, oh, I'm about to do something to you, separate your foot and you say, oh, forgive me. It was a plea from the heart. Every time they hit the nail on us, every time they drove the nail in his hand or the nail in his witty. When they pulled it took the cross up in the sky and they dropped it down in the holding. And as they were spinning upon him, laughing at him, calling them all kind of names. Father, forgive him. I want you to know that father was willing to hear that appeal. He could have easily prayed, father, judge them how we can sometimes easily say, judge that person over there. How we can easily say that person deserve this, deserve that. I'm so glad that the heart of God is embracing his son, Jesus. It's not like the heart that sometimes comes up and up. Father, judge them. He did not say, father, bring him punishment. He did not say he did not say I will bring punishment on you. I'm a couple of years ago, I was speaking now on the coast. And I was speaking at this church. And then the evening, I was scheduled to drive back from the coast. And I was going to be speaking at First Presbyterian Church. I can use this terminology. And I shared that I said, pray for me. I'll be driving back to Jackson. And I'll be speaking at First Presbyterian Church and the opportunity to do that. And I still remember this lady came to me and she said, go get them. Go get them. Go get them. They need to go get them. I said, you know, I was thrown back. I said, I said, I really appreciate what you're saying, but that's not mission. Mississippi. Mission, Mississippi is not about getting people. Mission, Mississippi is about encouraging people to come together. And she was so anxious for me to go get them. She had to go tell me, go, no, no, no, no, I'm sorry. It's not about you. You see how easy it is for us to jump on van waggers and put somebody up down to make our sales look good. I'm so glad that Jesus didn't say I just want to look good here today. So I'm going to get them. I'm so glad, but he tried out with a sense of, he prayed from his heart of love that they would be forgiven. Why did he pray this prayer? He was full of fill in the word of God, Pope. Jesus was on a mission. Jesus was on a mission. And he was full of fill in the word of God. For it says in Isaiah 53, toy of therefore I will give him a portion among the great and he will be, they will and he will divide the spars with the strong because he poured out his life unto death and was numbered with the transgressor. For he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. Listen at that. Wow. He made in a session for the transgressors. He made in a session for those who were hanging him on the cross and sticking him with spears and driving insults after insults. And sometimes we refuse to accept any kind of insult for the god of understanding that the king of glory hung out on the cross and took all those insults in the Bible says he did it because he was full of fill in the word of God. Well, I wouldn't be great to have a bunch of people who want a full of fill that commitment to the church. It'll be nice to pass to a group of folks who just say to tell me how I can full of fill my commitment. But the Jesus was full of fill in the word of God and for he prayed for the transgressors that they will be forgiven. You know something else he was doing. He was practicing the very message that he preached. He preached forgiveness. Doing the Roman Empire, the Roman worship, revange, revange is the way to go. We live in a culture for revenge is the way to go. They live in a culture for revenge was the way to go. What a testimony because they were expecting him to do something different. The people who stood by the cross was expecting him to do something different and he came out with these words of father forgive them. They must have been shocked when he came out with these words. Our Lord Jesus Christ did not wish to revenge and listen for neither should we. Sometimes we need to go and examine how spiteful we are and how revengeful we are but the King of glory somehow know the demonstrated forgiveness. When I was speaking to Mr. Lipik College I said you know something believers we need to learn how to give each other grace. Once we accept the grace of God in our lives, when we come in contact with somebody that's different than we are, they don't act like we want them to act, don't dress like we want them to dress, don't speak like we want them to speak. When we come in contact with people who are different than we are can we offer them grace. Now you know if you got some teenagers you got to learn some grace. Parents learn some grace without teenagers that he did not, he was preaching forgiveness and he wanted us to have a heart of forgiveness. He prayed father forgive him and so doing he fulfilled the word, he practiced his own message, he practiced forgiveness when he was hanging on the cross, he practiced it. And then the third thing about this is he was carrying out the purpose of his death. Our Lord Jesus was on the cross because God does forgive sinners. Jesus Christ was on the cross because God had ordained that his son would come to this earth and that he was suffer of cruel death on the cross for you and I. Salvation believers is not cheap. The life of the Son of God, as he hung out there he hung out there because his death was the key to forgiveness. His death on the cross was the key to us being able to come to him and be forgiven. We have no problem. We have no problem with giving others if we have a right relationship with our Savior. The word of God here tonight talks about how the Savior on the cross cried out and addressed God as Father. But then when he addressed him he gave him this fantastic appeal and the appeal is Father forgive him. The third thing we want to talk about is the argument. He's getting ready to talk to the Father and not only does he give the appeal forgive him, he's now saying something even deeper. Forgive them for they know not what they do. What a powerful message for they know not what they do. Our Lord not only prayed for forgiveness for his enemies but he argued on that behalf. Here he was on the cross and been a lawyer on the cross. Been a lawyer defending the folk who were cheating him cruelly he was defending them. Father let me give you some reasons why you should forgive them. The first reason he gives is the fact that they are ignorant of this proper. They are ignorant of my person. They are ignorant of who I am. You see they mocked him and they called him the prophet and King they laughed at him. They claimed that if you are the son of God why don't you save yourself and come down and save us. If you are the Christ come down from that cross save yourself. They were ignorant of this person. We can look back over 2,000 years. We got the word of God. We have the word of God. We have a lot of information. These folk had very little information. So he said they are ignorant. They are ignorant of who I am. And there are people you come in contact with every day that you are making judgment on. And you know something a sinner supposed to act like a sinner. Until they come to know Jesus is a savior they are supposed to act the way they act. They are ignorant until they come to the king of blood. Am I talking too loud? I don't want to scare none of y'all. Y'all might not be used to black men talking loud. Y'all okay. Just want to make sure y'all okay. You know sometimes we make a big mistake. We expect Christians act like we expect heathens act like Christians. Bottom line is that way is for that. Until they come to know Jesus. So they were ignorant. And so he gave that out to the father. And then he secondly says they were ignorant of their own action. They were doing this but they were ignorant of their own actions. You see their own actions they didn't realize that they were carrying out the plan that God had laid out.
I mean they were ignorant of the fact that this was God's plan. Look what it says in Psalms 28, his garments long before it happened. They had talked about the fact that they were part of his garment long before it happened in Psalms 69, 21. They gave him billiard a drink prophesied Isaiah 53, 12 that says he was crucified with transgressive. Someone said why didn't they get rid of those seas on the cross? That was a part of God's plan. I thought they were ignorant. They were ignorant of what they were doing. And they were ignorant of their own actions that he laid out for the father. Then number three it says most of all they were ignorant of the enormity of their own senior. That it takes this. It takes this in order for my senior. It takes the death of Jesus in order for my senior to be forgiven. They did not realize what the great sinners they were. The father, my people don't understand. They are ignorant. I am dying for them. They know not what they do. I know what I am doing. I am dying in their own. Their behalf now forgives them. The Archimedes, I want you to forgive them. You know, the stories is told about the lady who was a missionary. A few young people took the stolen van, destroyed it, took everything she had. And when they were arrested she came to the court. And she said to the judge, judge, I want to come visit these young people. And she visited them. She sent gifts to them. She prayed for them. She loved them. Didn't suppose to do that. See the normal way we do it is saying we glad you got caught. And we hope that they keep you in jail forever. And we need to understand this whole area of God reaching out. And there are so many people that we judge all the time. And I do it, please, I do it. And this is a reminder that Jesus was saying that they know not what they do. They don't understand my person. They don't understand the enormity of their singing. They don't even understand why I am doing this to fulfill the Word of God. Well, let me move to the last one as we come to a close tonight. The last one is the answer. We talked about the address. We talked about the appeal. We talked about the argument. And now we come to the answer. The wonderful answer. Peter says in Acts chapter 3 verse 17 and 18, Now brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance. As did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled. And God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets saying that this Christ was suffer. In 1 Timothy 1 and 13 it says Paul says, Even though I was once a black femur and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance in unbelief. Verse 14, they said the grace of our Lord Jesus was poured out on me. The fact of seeing is not altered because men don't know. God does not say because you are ignorant, you are not responsible. Seeing is still seeing whether you are ignorant about it or not. It is still seeing. And it still has the penalty. Seeing is always seeing in God's eyes. Whether men are fully aware of it or not, But God cannot bend the standards of the law. Seeing has to be dealt with. Jesus was dealing with it on the cross. As he hung out. Seeing is always simple. And it does not make men just lift when they do not know what they are doing. See the blood of Christ was on the hands of those who had put him to death. They deserve no mercy. For they did it. They deserve no mercy. But here is the good news of the gospel. Isn't the good news of the gospel? We don't even deserve salvation. We don't deserve the love of God. It says, but the dying Savior saw mercy for them who saw no mercy for him. You think they sat in the nursery with driving those nails in his hand? They were enjoying it. They were doing it hilariously out on the cross. But what did he do? He said, father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. And you know tonight, he's saying the same thing to us. He said, I just love you so much. He didn't say what did you do today? And what did you do last week and bring it all up to me? And what I want to do is get it all. And I want to keep going and I zap you. He's the same. In agony and pain, he is the same. And he reaches out to us in love. What a beautiful picture of our Savior on the cross. And he addresses God and he says, father. And then he says, father, forgive them. And then he says, father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. He says, I love you. And I care about you. And I want you to have a right relationship with me. And I want to say to us tonight, forgiveness is a wonderful, fantastic and marvelous key. If you are feeling tonight that you are not forgiven, the cross is the place to go. Jesus who hung out on the cross and he said, father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. That same Jesus is saying tonight, I am willing to forgive you. And to bring you in right relationship with Jesus. And forgiveness is not cheap. It costs God to watch his son, Jesus. Hang out on the cross of Calvary. Tonight as we listen to those in on the prayer, just listen in on the prayer. He says, father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. Jesus, I read in the words of a song, a song of entitled, He's Sweet I Know. I can't forget, when I was sad, here hanging down and so feeling bad. All I could say, Lord, take my heart. Jesus heard and saved me and gave me a start. Sometimes I'm tired by Satan's snare. My burden seems so hard to bear. I'm talking about whatever I do, but I know I have a savior. He'll make me go through. I have my ticket here in my hand. I'm going to that beautiful land. Sometimes I weave and sometimes I'm moaned, but I'm bound for glory. And I'm going on. He's Sweet I Know. He's Sweet I Know. Dark clouds may rise, and strong winds may blow, but I'll tell the world. Forever I go. I've found the savior, and he's Sweet I Know. And he hung out on Calvary, and even in Diane, Jesus, the King of glory, the one who had the power to call 10,000 leading the angels, cried out to the Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. That same savior is available to every single one of us tonight, because he's Sweet. I know, let's pray. Father, I thank you that Jesus gave a model and a demonstration of something that, Lord, most of us and maybe all of us would be hard pressed to do, to be able to look into the face of the Father, in the midst of his suffering on the cross, and say, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And I just ask to the power of spirit that you will bless these words and truths to the hearts of your people, Lord, that we might leave here known that he is Sweet and that we can be forgiven because of the shared blood of Jesus on the cross of Calvary and Jesus and I, and Jesus and I. Amen.