As you come together, please do not forget to uphold each other’s commitment to daily walking with Jesus through prayer, Bible reading, and reflection upon the sins that we will offer to Christ upon the cross. Remind the members to help each other by writing these sins down, and by praying for each other during the week. It requires commitment, prayer, and help from God and each other to honestly face our sins, record them, and be willing to lay them upon Jesus and turn from them to newness of life.
This is the second lesson on forgiveness. In this lesson, we will read three passages from Scripture. The last one is quite long. There will be no planned discussion after that reading. We will simply end the meeting with a prayer. As we read, listen to the passages. You will not be asked to study them carefully although we will mention certain important points. The Lord will open your mind and heart as you listen to the words. Let him speak to you. You will remember what he wants you to remember. Let us begin with this prayer.
Almighty and ever-living God, we give you great thanks for the work of your blessed Son upon the cross. Open up our hearts to his redeeming work, that we may, even in this life be lifted up into your presence, to hear your words and see your face. All this we ask in the name of the One who died that we might live, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
This is a very important lesson. All lessons from God’s Word are important, but this one lies at the very heart of the Christian faith. We must know, and know with all our hearts, what God did for us upon the cross. We will consider three passages. We will return to these passages again and again in subsequent lessons. We will consider 12:1-30, Isaiah 52:13-53:12, and Luke 22:7-24:49.
Let us give thanks to the Lord Jesus who spoke these words, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will." (Luke 10:21).
Exodus 12:1-30
Before reading Exodus 12:1-30 aloud, let someone read the following points to help us notice certain ideas as we read.
1. As mentioned in the previous lesson, God delivered his people from slavery in Egypt. He did so through the leadership of Moses and a series of plagues, of which the killing of the Egyptian first born was the last and tenth plague. After that, the king of Egypt begged Moses to lead the people out of Egypt.
2. As previous chapters in Exodus make clear, these plagues occurred because the Pharaoh refused to obey the Word of the Lord given to him by Moses. The plagues, culminating in the tenth plague, were the judgment of God (Exodus 12:12), or what Scripture calls the wrath of God. It is God’s righteous anger against disobedience. All disobedience not only hurts our relationship to God, but also hurts us and other people. God’s laws were made for our good, and when we transgress, we begin to destroy ourselves.
3. The whole of Scripture makes clear, however, that the people of Israel, and we ourselves, are also disobedient. Among other things, we have not obeyed the Ten Commandments. We are subject to the wrath of God and its consequences are suffering and death.
4. For the tenth plague, however, the judgment of God was averted by the death of a sacrificial lamb whose blood Israel placed upon the door frames of their houses. The sentence of death that should have fallen upon Israel for her sins fell upon the Passover lamb. Without the lamb, Israel’s firstborn would have been killed by the destroyer that passed through the land of Egypt (Exodus 12:23).
5. The people were commanded to remember the Passover each year with the Passover meal. As we shall see from the passage in Luke, this is the meal that Jesus celebrated with his disciples on the night he was betrayed.
6. Scripture, from beginning to end, teaches that all people have been disobedient to God, cast out of his presence, subject to sin and death, and under the judgment of God. The death of a lamb averted death for a moment. Israel escaped from Egypt, but many died in the desert, and later, the remainder died in the promised land. Although the Passover lamb averted death for the moment, the effect of the animal’s sacrifice was limited. An animal cannot fully atone for human sin. Only a sinless person can do so.
7. Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Jesus died in our place. The judgment and wrath of God that should have fallen on us, fell on him. Because of Christ, we have eternal life. By virtue of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, death has no power over us if we receive his gift in faith.
With these ideas in mind, please read Exodus 12:1-30 aloud so that all may listen. After the reading, we will listen to the passage from Isaiah.
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Let us now consider Isaiah 52:13-53:12. In the New Testament, this passage was often used to refer to Jesus Christ, his cross and resurrection. For example, this Isaiah passage is quoted in Matthew 8:16-17, Luke 22:37, John 12:38, Romans 10:16, Acts 8:32-33, Romans 15:20-21, 1 Peter 2:22-25. As you read this passage, you will notice these points.
1. The servant of the Lord will act wisely. He will be lifted up and highly exalted. This refers to Jesus’ resurrection. This exaltation, however, will only occur after he has been disfigured and marred beyond human likeness. This refers to his crucifixion.
2. He will "sprinkle many nations," an atonement similar to that of the lamb’s blood sprinkled on the door posts. This work will be seen by the nations. We are among those nations.
3. According to Isaiah, the Lord Jesus was despised, rejected, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows. He was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, and punished that we might have peace. By his wounds we are healed. The Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all. He was cut off from the land of the living, and in his death, he was assigned a grave with the wicked. He gave his life as a guilt offering, and he justified many by bearing their sins. He suffered these things, yet he was innocent. He had done no violence, nor was there deceit in his mouth.
4. After his suffering, he was exalted, seeing the light of life, his days prolonged, dividing the spoils with the strong and having a portion among the great. These lines refer to Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, his being seated at the right hand of God.
5. The suffering of the servant was understood as the will of God. It was the Lord’s will to crush him. It was the Lord who laid upon him the iniquity of us all. The servant was afflicted, stricken, and smitten by God. The wrath of God fell upon him.
6. As a result of the sin, iniquity, and punishment that was laid upon Jesus, those who follow Jesus are delivered from the crushing weight of sin and guilt. They are justified, healed, set free from sorrow, and put at peace with God and each other.
Now read Isaiah 52:13-53:12 aloud and notice what God has done in Jesus Christ. Once that is read, we will read Luke 22:7-24:49
Luke 22:7-24:49
1. As you read Luke 22:7-24:49 you will notice several things. First, Jesus celebrates the Passover with his disciples. During the meal, he tells his disciples that he, like the Passover Lamb, will die that they might live. As disciples, we also receive the blessing of Jesus’ death for our sake.
2. According to the New Testament, the entire passage, culminating in the resurrection, is understood as a sacrifice in which the wrath of God is poured out upon Jesus who dies in our place.
3. The crucifixion is seen as the triumph of Satan. It is his time. Satan entered Judas and all those who worked together to kill Christ. By the power of Christ’s resurrection, however, Satan was defeated.
4. As seen in the Isaiah passage, God placed our sins upon Jesus. This happened as he received the lies, the blows, the betrayals, and the torment of the cross. Although we were not physically present at the crucifixion, it was our sins that put him there because God chose Jesus to bear our sins. Our actions crucified Christ long ago and our actions are represented in Luke by the betrayal of the disciples, the blows of those who beat him, the howls of the crowd, and the false judgments of the authorities.
5. Jesus forgave all who sinned against him (Luke 23:34), and by Christ’s sacrifice, God forgives all our sins. Nothing can remain upon us, not the guilt, not the power to repeat the sins, and not the shame. We need to pray that we fully receive this great gift.
6. By the power of Jesus’ resurrection we are given a new life with God. Our sorrows, our wounds, our troubles, and even our deaths, have no power over us. He has carried our infirmities and sorrows, his punishment is our peace, and by his wounds we are healed. Nothing can stand against us, not our own sins, they are forgiven, not the sins of others, we forgive them, not the devil, he has been defeated. Nothing can stand before the amazing love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. We need to hold to this in faith and live thankfully. Let us pray.
O Lord Jesus, we are not worthy to even hear what you have done for us. Please open our hearts that we might with tears hear what you have done that we might know and love you forever. Amen.
At this point, read Luke 22:7-24:49 aloud.
After the reading, our meeting is over. Please do not forget to pray for each other. Continue to work on your sins. Please bring your list of sins to the next meeting. We will place them on the cross at that time. Someone will need to make a cross of wood and bring a hammer and nails so we can nail our sins into the body of our Lord Jesus. Bring that to the next meeting as well. Let us say the final prayer together.
Lord, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised; For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see, a Light to enlighten the nations, and the glory of your people Israel (Luke 2:29-32).
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
The Rev. Robert J. Sanders, Ph.D.
February, 2013
