Jesus Loves Murderers
Luke 23:33-34
Skip Heitzig
Luke 23 (NKJV™) | |
33 | And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left. |
34 | Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots. |
New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.
A Jewish proverb reads, "Blood that has been shed does not rest." And yet there is rest that is possible for even the worst murderers of all time—those who killed Jesus Christ—if they would be willing to receive it. In two verses of Scripture, we will examine how Jesus loves murderers, even those who murdered Him.
Jesus loves people—all people: prostitutes, drug addicts, abusers—and you. This profound truth is at the very heart of the gospel. Jesus loves the unlovable and touches the untouchable, and during His time on earth, He was compassionate and merciful toward people from all walks of life. What would it be like if you personally encountered Him? Join Pastor Skip Heitzig in this series to learn more about God's radical love for you and fall more in love with the living Savior.
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In 1976, New York City was terrorized by David Berkowitz, a serial killer known as the Son of Sam. He was caught and sentenced to six consecutive life sentences—365 years. A decade into his imprisonment, Berkowitz's heart was touched after reading a Gideons Bible another inmate gave him. One night, while reading Psalm 34, he got on his knees and cried out to Jesus Christ to forgive him. Today, still imprisoned, he leads a ministry that reaches out to inmates with emotional issues. When Skip was speaking in New York several years ago, he learned that Berkowitz listens to him on the radio and had asked Skip to visit him. What Skip saw was a man transformed by the gospel who now refers to himself as the Son of Hope. His story is a powerful testimony that Jesus loves murderers.
The first crime ever committed was a homicide (Cain and Abel), and it's been a problem since. A UN report said that 437,000 people were murdered worldwide in 2012. Intentional killing is among the leading causes of death in America. But virtually everyone has gotten away with murder: Jesus said even our anger toward others is enough to put us in danger of judgment (see Matthew 5:21-22).
Murder begins not in the hands but the heart, not with an act but an attitude. The worst murder in human history—the killing of the Son of God—began with such an attitude. On the divine side, it was the ultimate sacrifice for all of humankind. But on the human side, it was the ultimate crime, a flagrant violation of the sixth commandment.
As we look at the murder of Jesus, we see the most evil act ever perpetrated by human hands—the sinless Son of Man betrayed, tortured, and crucified. This crucifixion was a conspiracy of the Pharisees and state-sanctioned terrorism by the Romans, designed to be the most painful and intimidating of deaths. The Roman orator Cicero said that there was no fitting word to describe so horrible a deed. The Romans had crucified 30,000 people in Judea alone in Jesus' time. No victim of human injustice was ever more innocent than Jesus, and yet He was murdered like a criminal. Of course, God's redemptive purpose was in it, and it is so like God to bring the greatest good out of the worst evil. When have you seen God bring good out of evil? Read Isaiah 53. Discuss what stands out to you, especially when it comes to the power and reach of God's forgiveness.
It was on the cross that we see the full power of the mercy of Jesus (see Luke 23:34). While nailed to the cross, Jesus made seven short statements, which Warren Wiersbe called "windows that enable us to…see the heart of the Savior and the heart of the gospel." While Jesus was doing the greatest work on earth, He uttered the greatest words heard on earth. His first statement was the most shocking: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do" (Luke 23:34). It's one thing to say that Jesus loves murderers; it's another for Him to say it of His own murderers. At his birth, there had been no room for Him; when He was a toddler, Herod sought to kill Him; throughout His ministry, religious leaders plotted to slander and murder Him; at His trial, the crowds cried out for His crucifixion. And we get upset when someone cuts us off on the freeway! The verb tense in this verse indicates that Jesus kept saying, "Father, forgive them." As the soldiers stripped and beat Him, as He was laid on the cross, as He was nailed down, as He was lifted up—"Father, forgive them." Who is the most unlikely person you know who has received God's forgiveness? What does their story tell you about God's mercy?
In 1993, sixteen-year-old Oshea Israel murdered a twenty-year-old man, the only son of a woman named Mary Johnson. Ms. Johnson visited Israel in prison because she wanted to forgive as Christ did. By the end of her visit, he was overcome with emotion and hugged her. As she left, she thought, I just hugged the man who murdered my son. All the bitterness in her heart fled, and today Israel is out of prison and the two are neighbors. Jesus' prayer was like that mother's hug, and it shows us three things: Jesus was fulfilling Scripture (see Isaiah 53), His prayer was consistent with His nature, and forgiveness is the greatest need of the human heart. Mary Johnson said, "Unforgiveness is like cancer. It will eat you from the inside out." When has your heart been callous toward others? How can prayer soften it? When Jesus entered into suffering, prayer was His first reaction. How often is it yours?
Finally, let's look at the motive of Jesus: "for they do not know what they do" (Luke 23:34). Now, everyone involved in Jesus' trial and murder knew it was wrong, so Jesus' prayer must mean that they didn't know His identity. It wasn't until Jesus died and there was darkness and an earthquake that one centurion said, "Truly this Man was the Son of God!" (Mark 15:39). And while the crowd knew the reality of their crime, they didn't know its enormity. In their spiritual darkness, they didn't grasp that they were killing the Light of the World. But ignorance is by no means innocence. Pleading ignorance to the identity of Jesus and the enormity of what He accomplished on the cross is no excuse.
Jesus' prayer—"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do"—was answered: first in the repentant thief on the cross, then in the centurion, then again at Pentecost when 3,000 people were saved, and on down through the centuries. And while obedience to Jesus is the proof of a changed heart, God stands ready to forgive any and all who would ask for forgiveness. In a letter to Skip, David Berkowitz said, "I became a cruel killer and threw away my life and destroyed the lives of others. Now, I've discovered that Christ is my answer and my hope." Has Jesus' prayer been answered in you?
Adapted from Pastor Skip’s teaching
The BIG Idea
Mankind’s greatest need—forgiveness—is God’s greatest accomplishment.
Figures referenced: Cicero, Warren Wiersbe
Latin/Greek/Hebrew words: calvarium, kranion, Golgotha
Cross references: Genesis 4; Exodus 20:13; Isaiah 53:10, 12; Matthew 5:21-22; 9:2; 12:14; 17:22-23; 26:59-61; Mark 2:5; 14:55-59; 15:39; Luke 5:20; 7:36-50; 23:13-23, 33-34, 43, 47; John 3:16; 10:18; 19:6; Acts 2:23, 41; 6:7; 17:30; 1 Corinthians 2:8
Date | Title | Watch | Listen | Notes | Share | Save | Buy | |
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6/28/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves People, BUT... Romans 2:1-11 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary In this last message of our series Jesus Loves People, we want to bring equilibrium to the series itself. It’s true that God loves people. It’s equally true that He hates evil and the practice of it. Today we want to show how both the wrath of God and the love of God are integral parts of the nature of God Himself. This is crucial so that we don’t distort Him to the world and mislead people eternally. Let’s consider three requirements for representing the God who loves people. |
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6/7/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Addicts Luke 4; Matthew 11 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary When a person ingests a substance or engages in an activity that provides temporary pleasure and then such acts become compulsive and interfere with ordinary life responsibilities, he or she is said to be an addict. Addictive behavior is widespread and is one of the reasons many addicts turn to Christ for help. Jesus has a special message for them and a special plan to help them. As the body of Christ to our generation, shouldn’t the church be part of that plan? |
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5/17/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Terrorists Acts 9:1-16 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary One magazine noted that "religious terrorism is the communism of the 21st century, the most serious international threat to human rights." I am aware that the title of this sermon is a strange one, and it's even stranger to think we should be told to love terrorists. Today we consider the stark reality of terror in our world and what a proper biblical response to it is, and we see the conversion of a terrorist who became Christianity's most celebrated cleric. |
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5/3/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Criminals Luke 23:33-43 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary A lengthy seventeen-year study in Washington, D.C. by psychiatrist Samuel Yochelson shows that crime cannot be traced to environment, poverty, or oppression but to people making wrong moral choices. Corresponding to that is another report showing that the lack of proper moral training by parents has a direct correlation to crime, especially to children in their formative years. But when parents and their offspring fail, Jesus can step in to rescue. |
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4/19/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Prostitutes Luke 7:36-50 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary It was Blaise Pascal who noted, "There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus." In our text today, we find a woman, the city prostitute who acutely felt the need to have the vacuum of her heart filled. She discovered that Jesus loved her with a wholesome love—the kind of love every woman is searching for. |
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4/12/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Atheists John 18:28-38 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary Yes, Jesus loves people who don't believe in Him or who aren't sure what they think about Him. Pontius Pilate was the cynical Roman governor of the district of Judea. He was unsympathetic to religious Jews and religion itself. He had no room for the superstitious claims of prophets, priests, or would-be messiahs. He was a secular pragmatist concerned about Roman order and personal advancement. Pilate also represents how Jesus loved and handled atheists—and how we should. |
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3/29/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Traitors Matthew 26 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a traitor as "one who betrays another's trust or is false to an obligation or duty." On this Palm Sunday, I've chosen to consider in contrast the two traitors seen side by side in the New Testament accounts of the Passion of Christ. Though we may see some similarities in Judas and Peter, they are separated by one giant factor—the cross of Jesus Christ, the one thing that still offends most people. |
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3/22/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Haters Matthew 5:43-46;Luke 9:51-56 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary One of the worst things to ever hear or say are the words "I hate you." And since Jesus is the One who God sent to show love to the world, how He handled haters is significant. Today we will explore and hopefully apply two important lessons. Hatred can flow in two directions: hatred towards you and hatred from you. Jesus shows us what to do about both. Get ready by turning to two passages: Matthew 5 and Luke 9. |
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3/15/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Homosexuals - Part 2 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary Be assured that I didn't select the topics in this series because I am equating homosexuals with murderers; nor am I suggesting that addicts or homeless people are to be seen the same as terrorists. It’s simply that the church has historically been unkind to these groups, and we believe it is time to make the statement that Jesus loves all people. In today’s text, we see it clearly: everyone has some kind of past, and everyone can be freed from sin. |
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3/8/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Homosexuals - Part 1 John 8:1-11 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary There is not a hotter or more controversial subject being discussed today in our country than homosexuality. Voices are loud and tempers run hot whenever this subject is mentioned. Although the text before us doesn’t deal specifically with homosexuality, it does show us how Jesus approached a woman caught in sexual sin and what He had to say to those who were quick to condemn her. |
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2/8/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves the Broken John 5:1-16 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary Just about everyone who has ever lived has experienced a broken heart to some degree or another. But then there are others who have been affected so adversely by events in their lives that they can be described as broken people. We can respond by questioning why God allows bad things to happen or by loving the broken in His name and thus being part of the solution. |
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2/1/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves Doubters Matthew 11; John 20 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary Jesus never turned away the questions of a sincere searcher. I have personally wrestled with issues of faith and doubt on a number of occasions. Oswald Chambers quipped, "Doubt is not always a sign that a man is wrong; it may be a sign that he is thinking." Today we will see how Jesus loved two doubters—both of whom were friends of His. |
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1/25/2015 completed
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Jesus Loves People Mark 10:21;Philippians 1:8-10 Skip Heitzig |
Info Message Summary Welcome to our new weekend series, Jesus Loves People! For the next many weeks, we will observe how Jesus' love for people was displayed and conveyed to a cross section of society. We will see Him as He loves the most religiously devout folks to the weak and doubting, from the prostitutes to the priests, from the bewildered to the brokenhearted. We will marvel at His love for thieves, murderers, and atheists. In each message, we will consider how we as God's people can show authentic love to people within each group. |
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