Every year on Good Friday, Christians take time to contemplate the depth of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. He endured a humiliating, bloody death by crucifixion, and it’s important to reflect on what he went through before jumping straight to the good news of Easter and new life.
One way Christians reflect on Good Friday is by reading and meditating on the seven last words of Jesus from the cross. Luke’s account of Jesus’ final moments includes the proclamation, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” (Luke 23:44). This statement is significant because it reveals Jesus’ fulfillment of his God-given task to lay down his life for the world, as he had previously stated in John 10:14-18.
It’s important to note that no one took Jesus’ life from him; it was his choice to lay it down. Jesus even struggled with the weight of this task before his crucifixion, as seen in his intense prayer in Luke 22:39. Despite his initial request for another way, Jesus ultimately submitted to God’s will and went to the cross for us.
What are the 7 words Jesus spoke on the cross?
- In Matthew 27:46, Jesus cried out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” around the ninth hour.
- Luke 23:34 records Jesus’ words, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” By praying for His transgressors, Jesus fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy foretold by Isaiah, confirming His identity as the awaited Messiah.
- Luke 23:43 records Jesus’ promise to one of the guilty men who hung next to Him that day, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Though Jesus was blameless and without sin, He promised that the repentant sinner would join Him in Heaven on that very day.
- In John 19:26-27, Jesus entrusted His mother’s care to the Apostle John when He recognized her standing near the cross, saying, “Dear Woman, here is your son!” and “Here is your mother!” This established a new relationship between His mother and John, with John taking on a son’s duty to care for her.
- In John 19:28, Jesus said, “I am thirsty,” fulfilling the Messianic prophecy from Psalm 69:21. Jesus expressed a natural human need for sustenance and relief, likely due to hours spent in the sun and physical pain, rather than symbolic hunger for righteousness.
- When Jesus said “It is finished” in John 19:30, He declared that the work His Father had sent Him to do was fulfilled, including teaching the Gospel, performing miracles, and achieving reconciliation for His people. He had paid the debt of sin and fulfilled all Old Testament prophecies.
- Jesus willingly gave His life by saying “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” in Luke 23:46. Though He had the authority to remain alive and exert His divine power, Jesus chose to lay down His life as a ransom for the world, fulfilling His plan from before creation.
