Why did Jesus say, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do". Didn't the father know that they did not know what they were doing? Was not the father willing to forgive? Why was the son willing to forgive and the father not?
God, The Father, has many attributes, but his governing attribute is holiness. All his actions stem from demonstrating holiness or satisfying it. He is the Judge of all the Earth and has demonstrated this by his actions towards the kingdoms of the Earth.
From Jesus' birth until his return to Earth for setting up his kingdom, he personifies mercy and truth. All that he did was to fulfill him seeking and saving that which was lost. The attributes we saw him demonstrate on Earth are the same qualities that he has as our High Priest. The problem we have is that we view him in our relationship as a holy and righteous judge, when he continues to deal with us in meekness, kindness and love. Yes, he continues to hate sin, but he is concerned about helping, healing and empowering us for victory.
With the exception of his dealing with the hypocritical Pharisees, he always dealt with fallen sinners in love and mercy. We must remember that he reaches out to us in this same manner. We no longer need not walk before him in fear. He is there to help, there to pick you up, there to restore and will do all this in love. What a wonderful savior!
No comments:
Post a Comment