The perfection of Jesus during his earthly ministry can be shown in many ways. From his physical stature and abilities to his perfect mental capacity, to the beauty of his words and truth of his teachings, he epitomized in every aspect of life that which represented human perfection, that which has been found in no other individual since Adam prior to his falling into sin. Not the least of the evidences of his perfection is how he conducted himself during times of great difficulty and trial. We need look no further than those hours surrounding his crucifixion and ultimate death to gain an appreciation of this aspect of his perfect character. During this time, both the physical and mental anguish of Jesus must have been at an extreme level. Although he had witnessed these things in man's experience with sin, suffering and death for over four thousand years during his pre-human existence as the Logos, yet he had never gone through this type of experience himself since his creation as the only begotten son of God. As much as he could have prepared himself mentally and emotionally for this experience, he could never have had a full appreciation of it until it actually came upon him.

As we contemplate and meditate upon Jesus' experience of crucifixion and death, it would seem to the human mind that during those hours upon the cross he would be focusing attention on his own plight, desperately trying to deal with the physical pain, attempting to keep a sense of sanity in his thoughts, caring little if at all about the people around him, perhaps even holding in contempt and condemnation those who were committing this act of murder against him. A general focus on self would seem to be the rule most would expect to see in someone placed in such a situation. However, what we see in Jesus upon the cross was just the opposite of all these things. He did not focus on self, his pain, anguish, or any such thing. He did not feel sorry for himself in any sense of the word. In the perfection of his thoughts, he in fact found that to focus on others, not himself, brought a sense of peace, comfort, and resolve that could not be attained in any other way. This aspect of his perfect character enabled him to be faithful "even unto the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:8). In harmony with this we see that upon the cross, Jesus, in various ways, actually ministered to those around him and to us, giving lessons of love, hope, and comfort. Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:18 called this "the preaching [logos: word or message] of the cross," and that to those properly exercised thereby it would be "the power of God." Although the actual recorded words of Jesus while on the cross are few compared to that of his prior ministry, yet in each one we find a sermon, a vital lesson that we each should take to heart and apply in ourselves.

The Grace of Forgiveness

Looking first at the phrase "Forgive them," we see that the teaching of forgiveness is of paramount importance in the Scriptures. It is, in fact, a measure of the development of love in the heart of each of God's people. Forgiveness is vital and must become a part of our character, or, quite simply, we will not be found faithful. Jesus in his model prayer said, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors" (Matthew 6:12). However, after concluding the prayer, he continues his thoughts on the importance of forgiveness, saying, "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matthew 6:14,15). Here Jesus lays the matter squarely before us. By nature we are sinners, and the only way we can obtain a standing before God is through his forgiveness of our sins through the merit of Jesus' sacrifice. By our full faith in that merit, and through absolutely no righteousness of our own, God forgives us of our inherited sins and weaknesses, so that we can have a standing before him as "sons." Even after being "justified by faith" (Romans 5:1), we are not actually perfect, but must continue to approach God daily in prayer seeking forgiveness for those things that are amiss in our lives. In short, without God's forgiveness manifested on our behalf, we could have no relationship with him whatsoever. In his words to us, Jesus states that if we are not forgiving toward others, God will not forgive us, hence leaving us with no standing before him at all. Such is the necessity of the grace of forgiveness. It was present in Jesus, and it must be found in us as well.

But do we forgive simply from a motivation of necessity, a feeling that if we don't forgive God won't forgive us? We trust such is not the case with any of the Lord's truly consecrated, for such a motivation is not acceptable to God. True forgiveness must have as its source a sincere attitude of self-less love. It acts upon a heartfelt desire to truly show love and compassion to others, regardless of the words, acts, or deeds they have committed against us. In addition to Jesus, we believe such was the attitude of the deacon Stephen. As he was being stoned to death by an angry mob of Jews, we read: "And he [Stephen] kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge" (Acts 7:60). Only forgiveness grown out of a true Godlike character of love could have prompted such words.

Truly, Jesus' "preaching" of forgiveness upon the cross was an evidence of his own development of love, even for his enemies, and serves as a continuing example to us today. We must develop this highest aspect of love, which Jesus described in his sermon on the mount: "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust . . . Be ye therefore perfect [complete], even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:43-45,48).

 "They Know Not What They Do"

The second part of Jesus message, "for they know not what they do," shows us another aspect of love, that being the quality of mercy. Additionally, we find in these words God's great wisdom in his reckoning of the Jews' responsibility regarding Jesus' death. Although the Jewish leaders themselves stated, "his blood be upon our shoulders," and seemingly took full responsibility for his crucifixion and death, God and Jesus both realized that they truly did not understand what they said, neither did they understand who Jesus really was. God, in his great mercy, had allowed their spiritual eyes to become blinded by the great adversary; God knew they were not in a sufficiently right heart condition to receive his son at that time. What seemed then to be a victory by Satan was in fact nothing less than the great mercy and wisdom of God. Shortly after the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter confirmed this. When speaking of the death of Jesus, he says: "And now, brethren, I wot [know] that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers" (Acts 3:17). The apostle Paul speaks similarly concerning the nation of Israel and God's view toward them at that time: "For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all" (Romans 11:32).

Through the prophet God said, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9). By reckoning the crucifixion of Jesus as being done largely through ignorance and not a willful act with full knowledge, we see the wisdom of God's "higher" ways. God does not judge any individual or group of individuals of his human creation unless and until he sees that they have had a full and complete opportunity, with knowledge, to carry out his will faithfully in their life. He knows that because of the influence of Satan upon fallen mankind for the past six thousand years, they have not been in a position to be fully accountable for their thoughts, words, and actions. That is the reason for the coming kingdom. Then Satan will be bound, unable to have any influence over man. The full light of truth will shine forth as never before in the earth, illuminating man's mind in a way that has not been possible heretofore. Only when these things occur, and man is given a sufficient period of time to learn and develop a heart and mind in harmony with God's plans and purposes, will he be held fully accountable for his character and actions. This time of full light and understanding is described by the prophet Isaiah: "And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering [separation from God's favor] cast over all people, and the vail [of ignorance] that is spread over all nations" (Isaiah 25:7).

The Example Jesus Left

The lesson of Luke 23:34 not only illustrates the perfect character of Jesus and his heavenly Father, but it also gives us great insight into how God's plan is based so fully on the harmonious working of his attributes of love, justice, wisdom, and power. Jesus' "preaching of the cross" provides us, his footstep followers, with an unparalleled example of how we should respond to our own experiences of a similar nature. We, like Jesus, are bearing a cross. We are "crucified with Christ" (Galatians 2:20). May we display in all our experiences, trials, and testings the same love, the same mercy, the same compassion that he showed in his most severe time of difficulty. By doing this we will be counted as fully "baptized into his death" (Romans 6:3), to then be raised as he was to "glory and honor, and immortality" (Romans 2:7).

No doubt in his six hours on the cross he reflected on the better day of the Millennial Kingdom in which his sacrifice would bring all the blessings God intended for mankind, including blessings upon his vilest enemies who plotted the torturous death he was experiencing. But he was also well aware that these enemies were not guiltless tools of the adversary, but were greatly culpable of sin, envy, hatred, and injustice. And he knew that these sins would reap a harvest of bitter punishment in the experiences Judea would pass through in the closing troubles of that nation, just a few years distant.

Further, Jesus was aware this embittered hatred by his enemies also would spawn travesties upon his followers, making their judgment all the more sure. "I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify, and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city, that upon you may come all the righteous blood from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation" (Matthew 23:34-36).

Probably Jesus understood that this Zechariah represented himself, and that his dying words, "The LORD look upon it, and require it" (2 Chronicles 24:22), portended the retributive afflictions to come upon Judea and its leaders. Our Master's loving heart moved him to tears as he wept over Jerusalem a few days earlier, knowing of these coming judgments (Luke 19:42-44). But we doubt the Lord, in his closing hours, would have requested his Heavenly Father to spare his enemies that which he knew must justly come.