A Reflection on a Dying Man’s Final Words

In our Sunday morning services, we have been going through the book of Ephesians verse by verse. I am in the habit of not breaking away from the book that we are studying together, so as we come to reflect on Good Friday, I want to take you back to Ephesians 5:1 which says, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.”

Since God is Spirit, He took on flesh and became man so that we can imitate Him in everyday life. I want to highlight briefly three such times in life.

In Times of Trials and Temptations

This struggle of survival, the man, Jesus, wrestled within His flesh began in the Garden of Gethsemane, an ancient garden familiar to Jesus and His disciples; a garden that Jesus frequently went to pray (John 18:2) and a few hours before Jesus was betrayed and subsequently arrested to be tried and crucified.

The temptation that took over the first man, Adam, created in the image of God to imitate God in the Garden of Eden came to haunt the second man, God-man Jesus, too.

The first man, Adam, failed to fulfill God’s Will for him by eating the forbidden fruit. However, the second man, Jesus, said, in Luke 22:42, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.” He surrenders to the will of God.

Application

If we are to imitate Jesus, rather than surrendering to trials and temptations, we will surrender to God.

In Times of Betrayal and Hurt

The gospel writers record that one of Jesus’ disciples, Judas, betrayed Him with a kiss for financial gain. They also record that when Jesus was arrested, His disciples abandoned Him out of fear for their life.

Yet on the cross, as recorded in Luke 23:34, His first statement was, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” That forgiveness was for the Jews and Gentles, friends and foe. If He had not prayed to the Father to forgive us on the cross, the mission God sent Him for would not have been successful.

Application

If we are to imitate Jesus, we ought to learn to forgive, whether friends or foe, because we have been forgiven.

In Times of Loneliness

If you reflect on the last words of Jesus, a dying man who claimed to be both fully man and fully God, you will see His treatment of betrayal, hurt, and abandonment had another dimension— His connection with His Father.

Unlike any other man, Jesus knew He came to die and to die at the hands of the very people He came to rescue from death. This was to please the Father. However, on the cross He felt utterly alone.

In Matthew 27:46, He said, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” Yet, even when He didn’t feel the presence of God, He didn’t doubt, so with the very last words before He took His last breath, in Luke 23:46, He said, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”

Application

If we are to imitate Jesus, we will trust God even when we don’t see His hand reach out to help us in times of trouble.