"FATHER, FORGIVE THEM." 79 Saviour of sinners. It was the intercession of the "one only mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus." It was the prayer of the great High Priest of our profession, who even then was commencing his great intercessory work. But with what emphasis do these words rise from the Saviour's heart at such a time! He was now bearing away the world's transgressions. He was dying as a victim lamb for those very murderers. He was suffering, the just for the unjust, to bring them unto God. Every pang he was enduring was for them: every agony was on their account. It was that even they might not perish that he was thus being bruised for their iniquities. He was presenting to God the great argument-the only satisfying reason why they should be forgiven-even his own dying sacrifice. And not only did his lips plead for forgiveness. Every drop of blood was pleading. Every opened pore was pleading. Every gory wound had a mouth and pleaded, Father, forgive them!" Every groan, every tear, every pang was pleading, in language mightier than words, "Father, 80 "FATHER, FORGIVE THEM." forgive them!" Yes; vain would have been that prayer from the lips of even a dying Saviour, unless by those agonies and that blood he had presented to God an allsatisfying reason why sinners should be forgiven. Thus explaining his prayer by his sacrifice, his intercession by his atonement, we see with what a depth of meaning his words rose to heaven, "Father, forgive them!" As if he had said, "Father, forgive them," because I am bearing the punishment due to their sins. Forgive them, because I am making amends to thy broken laws. Forgive them, because I am repairing the injury done by their transgressions. Forgive them, because I am paying the mighty debt they owe, but could never, never pay. Forgive them, because I take upon me their sins; reckon my merits to their account, and for the sake of these dying agonies, for the sake of this blood, for the sake of all I have done on their behalf, let these sinners live. Oh, where shall the sinner find love like that which is in Jesus, and JESUS ONLY? Chey know not what they do. DOES our Blessed Lord by these words explain away or excuse their guilt? Does he mean to say they were so ignorant of what they were doing as to be scarcely responsible for their acts? No: or why pray for their forgiveness at all? Can it be that his plea does but add intensity to their crimes? "Father, forgive them, for they greatly need that mercy. Theirs is an awful sin; they but little know its real character, its awful guilt. They know not to what a depth of woe it will sink them. They see not with what awful consequences it is connected. They are murdering the Prince of Life, and imbruing their hands in the blood of Thy wellbeloved Son. Oh, forgive them! for no sinners were ever in such a state of guilt and danger. Forgive them, for they are worthy of the lowest place in woe." Or is it a prayer for the ignorant crowd of Jews and soldiers who were led on by 82 THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO. the guilty priests and rulers-by Satan and his agents? Judas knew what he did. Pilate knew what he did. The chief priests knew what they did. They all knew that they were shedding innocent blood. But the multitudes, the rabble, the soldiers, who followed the commands of their leaders, and were the mere tools in the hands of the great, were less guilty, for they knew not what they did. There are some, therefore, for whom the Saviour urges this plea. Poor misguided, but now anxious soul, is this your case? Have you been made the unwary victim of some guiltier rebel against God? Have you gone great lengths in sin? And are you now brought to yourself, and to your God? Then let this be your language; "Yes, my Saviour, and this too I can say, I did it ignorantly, when Thou didst place thyself in my way, and I so basely passed Thee by. I did it ignorantly, when Thou didst woo me to Thee, and I rejected Thee. But thou knewest that I did it ignorantly, and therefore wouldst not be repulsed, but didst return continually and knock at the door, although it was ever THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO. 83 closed against Thee. The more the charm of my sins disappeared, the more didst Thou disclose to me the charms of Thy love; and how could I any longer be in ignorance that to reject Thee was to reject Thy salvation? And thus Thou hast been imparting unto me more and more of the riches of Thy grace; and when Thou didst reveal Thyself to me in all Thy majesty and beauty, then did I yield myself entirely to Thee, for that which I had everywhere sought with unextinguishable ardour have" I truly found in Thee. Thou art too strong, O Lord, and I must yield, The hero in a thousand victories Thou, Entangled in a snare, I vainly thought O constant love, that sought my heart to win, Ah! to whom else, Lord, should I then have gone! |