As Jesus was dying on the cross for the sins of the world, he prayed for the
salvation of the clamoring mob that was taking his life. He asked, “Father,
forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:24). He did not pray
that God would forgive them without their repentance and against their will.
God has a law of pardon and Jesus was not asking the Father to violate His own
law. Remember friend, when God lays down a law, he expects men and women to
comply with it. If you or I will not submit to and follow his law our prayer,
no matter how sweet and touching, will not be heard; it is abominable to God.
Proverbs 28:9 says, “He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even
his prayer is abomination.” One translation puts it something like this: “If
anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable,” to God.
A few hours before this crucifixion scene Jesus prayed in the garden, “let
this cup pass from me;” but knowing that the will of the Father must always
prevail he finished by saying, “nevertheless not as I will, but as thou
wilt.” Jesus’ request for the Father to forgive his slayers implied that they
respect and obey the will of God. For the prayer on the cross to be
fulfilled, the people must in some way be brought to understand that they had
crucified the Son of God, also to recognize their own sin and desire to be
forgiven. To fail to comply with the divine law has always been sin.
Their learning of the will of God and obeying it are clearly implied in Jesus’
prayer for them. Christ could have simply said, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.”
While in his earthly ministry Jesus had the power to forgive sins. You might
recall that in Luke 5:19-24 the Scripture says that those who had brought the
man with palsy to see Jesus could not enter at the door, “When they could not
find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went
upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the
midst before Jesus.
“And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven
thee. And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this
which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone? But when
Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in
your hearts? Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to
say, Rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power
upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto
thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.”
Although he lived while the Law of Moses was still in effect, Jesus had the
power to forgive sins, and he could say to the thief who was crucified with
him, “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise”– to the man with palsy, “They
sins be forgiven thee” – and to the woman taken in adultery, “Neither do I
condemn thee, go and sin no more.” The Law under which they lived never said,
“He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” It never commanded,
“Repent and be baptized for the remission of sin,” but the Law in effect after
the death, burial and resurrection of the Savior of the world gave these very
commands.
But on the cross as He was dying as the Savior of the whole world, Jesus
looked into the faces of sinners who would live after he was crucified. In
order to gain forgiveness of their sins, these people would need to comply to
the New Law. You see, the Law of Christ or New Testament was not in force
until after He died. In Hebrews 9:15–17 we read, “And for this cause he is
the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption
of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are
called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a
testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For
a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at
all while the testator liveth.”
The people for whom the Lord prayed were not in a condition to be saved at
that time. A great change had to take place in them before they could be
saved. They first had to realize that they were sinners and had to know the
conditions upon which God would save them and be willing to meet those
conditions. It took time for all this to be brought about.
Fifty days after Jesus prayed that prayer his apostles, who were filled with
the Holy Spirit on Pentecost day, preached to the people saying, “Ye men of
Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you
by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you,
as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel
and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified
and slain” (Acts 2:22,23).
In that preaching they were told that this One had been resurrected and that
He was enthroned in David’s seat, “The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my
right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool, and that “that God hath made
that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
The people who believed this gospel message cried out, “Men and brethren, what
shall we do?” They were told, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in
the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the
gift of the Holy Ghost.” Jesus prayer was answered then in all those who
complied to the conditions of salvation stated in the gospel on that day.
That is the only way He saves sinners today.
You see, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not
God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe”
(1 Corinthians 1:21). The preaching of the gospel of Christ is the means by
which God makes known to men His will. Once sinners believe in Jesus as the
resurrected Savior of the world they will gladly confess Him.
We are taught, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and
shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with
the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9,10), and verse 17
says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
The book tells us in Acts 8 about an Ethiopian nobleman who had traveled to
Jerusalem to worship and as he was returning home he was reading from the Old
Testament book of Isaiah the prophet. A preacher of the gospel named Phillip
intercepted him and asked, “Do you understand what you read? And he said, How
can I, except some man should guide me?” (Acts 8:30,31). The passage then
tells us that Phillip, “preached unto him Jesus.” And immediately we are told
that the Ethiopian asked the preacher, “Look, here is water! What is to
prevent me from being baptized?” (Acts 8:36). It is clearly implied that when
“Jesus is preached” baptism for “the remission of sins” is preached.
The Father forgives but it is only on His terms. Forgiveness takes place in
the mind of God when a sinner believes and conforms to His will. He has said,
“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their
iniquities will I remember no more” (Hebrews 8:12). The true people of God
are a forgiving people, but a sinner’s salvation depends upon the forgiveness
of God. When God forgives we must!
