Today we gather in this sanctuary to continue on our Lenten journey that we began on Ash Wednesday.

I want to share some thoughts and reflections from what historically has been designated as the First Word--from the Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ from the cross.

It should not come as a surprise to anyone that the first word from the cross deals with the real life issue of forgiveness, and really what is being implied here is forgiveness of our sins. This was the whole reason behind Christ''s coming to earth as one of us.

St. Jerome was one of the distinguished church fathers who helped to guide the Church in matters of faith and the Bible. He translated the Ancient Greek manuscripts into Latin to help put the Bible in the language of the people. He wanted the people to read and know the Bible. He lived in the actual town of Bethlehem for a time to get a feel of how Jesus lived during his earthly journey among us. The rich oral traditions of the church share how St. Jerome, while living in Bethlehem, had a dream that Jesus visited him. The dream was so powerful and convincing that St. Jerome rounded up all his material blessings and offered them to Jesus. He heard the Lord declare: "I do not want your possessions." So being a good church leader, he offered all his money to Jesus. Jesus once again declared, "I do not want your money." Finally, in desperation, St. Jerome cried out "Jesus, what do you want from me?" Jesus simply replied, "Give me your sins. That is what I came for--I came to take away your sin. Give me your sin."

The gospel of Saint Matthew announces Christ''s entrance into human history with these words, found in Chapter 1:21 - "She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."

The gospel of Saint Mark declares, "For the Son of Man also came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many."

The gospel of Saint Luke declares, "For to you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." As we ponder the meaning of the cross, we can see why we are tempted to keep the baby in the manger and not allow Him to climb out onto the cross. It is a painful thing to watch our Savior die on a cross for sins He never committed!

The Book of Revelation takes us even further back in history than the birth of Jesus, "to declare that Jesus Christ was the Lamb slain before the creation of the world for our salvation." Can you even begin to imagine the incredible sense of time that God has?

We also know from the Old Testament that the prophet Isaiah spoke of one who would be "numbered with the transgressors."

It is thought that perhaps Jesus spoke this first word as the nails were being driven into his hands and feet. To think that Jesus actually prayed for those who were performing this task is beyond my comprehension: "Father, forgive them!"

Most everyone gathered here today remembers how the world watched in dismay when the Exxon Valdez dumped most of its crude oil into the Prince William Sound in Alaska. We all had our noses out of joint because of the destruction caused by such a careless act. However, the Nightly News put it in proper perspective one night when it reported that American do-it-yourselfers annually dump 193 million gallons of motor oil in storm drains and back alleys. That is nearly 15 times the amount of oil spilled in Alaska.

It happens far too often. We see someone else''s sin as a "major sin and major moral failure or breakdown--but fail to see the sin in our own back alleys." However, Jesus knew that everybody had sinned and fallen short--and thus he cries out in his first word from the cross, "Father, forgive them"--not Father, forgive only the small portion who have had major sins in their lives. Forgive them all. All sin is contrary to the nature and character of God. Give Jesus your sins--not just your neighbors''.

The paradox is this: How can a God who declares that he is going to punish sin--forgive us? How can God be reconciled to sinners? How can God remain holy, righteous, and just--and yet forgive sin and sinners.

How can humankind be forgiven? It would have to be God''s idea. Martin Luther said, "Christ became what he was not--"Sin"--in order that we might become what we were not--"The Righteousness of God."

Charles Haddon Spurgeon, writing on our verse from Luke 23:34, states: "Christ prays for you when you do not pray for yourselves." "Father, forgive them" was a prayer offered by Jesus for those who had never sought forgiveness for themselves. Oh, what encouragement this ought to give everyone. Yes, the prayer that Jesus offered some 2,000 years ago is still the same prayer that Christ would offer at this very moment for us today in this place.

Please remember, Christ did not die on the cross for the perfect.

Christ did not die for the Godly.

Christ did not die for the Good.

If Christ would have died for the perfect, the Godly, and the good, there would be no hope for our souls today. However, since he died for the imperfect and the un-Godly, there is hope for all of us.

I realize that sometimes we feel that the most important barometer of a church''s success is that of finances. However, the cross instructs us that forgiving and being forgiven is the most important dimension of the church''s life. I believe that the greatest danger to the Christian church is that we become an institution without the incarnational love of God expressed in Jesus Christ. It is so easy to become cold and calculating to the point that the image of our Lord is also one that is very cool and cold. The greatest message that the church has to offer is that God has provided a way out of sin and guilt through the gift of forgiveness.

Max Lucado tells of the first time he was privileged to see with his own eyes the famous Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. No magazine picture he had ever viewed in his childhood came close to capturing this impressive work of art. However, when he got close to the statue he noticed two things about it. First, Christ had no eyes. He thought, "What kind of Christ was this that refused to see the masses of people below it?" Then he noticed the other detail: The statue also had a stone heart. What kind of redeemer is this that has a heart made of stone? The statue was held together by concrete and mortar but with no love or passion. Then Max Lucado makes a revealing statement about his discovery: "This is exactly the kind of redeemer most people want and have." (1)

Stone statues may be fine for art work and artistic expression, but they do very poorly when it comes to representing Christ and his church to people who are hurting and suffering and are caught in a vicious cycle of despair and disappointment. However, there is something so powerful about the Lenten season that even the stone churches and their people are moved to tears. Even the church can stop pushing papers long enough to share the passion that our Lord had for people. The passion of Jesus was so strong that not even a stone tomb could contain His love. On Palm Sunday, even the stones would have cried out in praise if the people had not.

In a lonely cemetery in New York City, there is one grave that is marked by a headstone containing just one word--"Forgiven." The source for that word begins with our Savior''s cry from the cross today. It is his cry from the cross--not from the comfortable Hilton Hotel in Jerusalem. I am thankful that the Savior who loved us enough to go to the cross did not do so with a cold glance, but with great feeling and a prayer of petition to His heavenly father.

There is a story which says that Jesus once entered a room where a group of clergy was drinking coffee. He looked at the clergy sitting around the table and said "A new commandment I give to you, that you should love your neighbor as yourself."

The Methodist asked, "Is that moral?"

The Roman Catholic inquired, "Is it sacramental?"

The Episcopalian wanted to know, "Is it liturgical?"

The Baptist wondered, "Is it Biblical?"

The Lutheran said, "Is it Reformed?"

The Pentecostal asked, "Is it ecstatic?"

And the Presbyterian wanted to know, "Is it decent and in order?"

And the legend says that Jesus shook his head as he left the room and said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Yes, the cross demonstrates that God put his idea of forgiveness into action, not into a law book. The cross demonstrates that God knew exactly what he was doing.

The artist William Holman Hunt once painted what I believe to be one of the most insightful pictures concerning the mission of our Lord Jesus Christ. The work depicts a carpenter''s shop in Nazareth. Jesus is standing by a wooden trestle on which he has just placed his saw. Lifting his eyes towards heaven, Jesus stretches and raises both arms above his head. The sunlight coming through the open door casts a dark shadow in the form of a cross on the wall behind him, making his tool rack appear as a horizontal bar on which his hands have been fastened. The tools look like the nails and the mallet used to nail him to the cross. Make no mistake about it--the cross cast its shadow over Jesus from his first moment on earth. Someone once picked up on that truth and wrote: "Whenever you have the choice of two roads, take the road on which the shadow of the cross falls."

Yes, God knew that the human race needed forgiveness.

Some of you know of the famous story concerning Jim Eliot and the four other missionaries who were killed by the Auca Indians, the very people they went to share the love of Christ with. However, other missionaries followed in their footsteps and were successful in converting many of the natives to the Christian faith. The most amazing part of the story occurred when the son of the pilot who flew the first missionaries to the island in 1956 was baptized by the very man who had tragically killed his own father. Instead of buying a gun and taking his revenge, he joined God''s team and continued the missionary witness that his father had given his life for. You can only forgive like that when you have stood at the foot of the cross.

Yes, we often do hold onto grudges and desires for vengeance like they were valued treasure--but it is a type of treasure that will bury us without hope or love.

Perhaps some of you have heard about a woman who was rushed to the emergency room because she was quite ill. After a battery of tests, the resident on duty told her "I have both good news and bad news. The good news is that I have found out why you are ill. The bad news is that you have an advanced case of rabies, for which there is no treatment or cure." The woman was pained at first, but she quickly became resigned and asked the doctor for a pad of paper. Then she began to cover the pages with writing very quickly. The doctor was understandably curious and asked if she was writing her last will and testament. The woman replied, "No, I am not drafting my will--I am writing down the names of my relatives I want to bite before I die." It is a safe assumption that this woman had not stood at the foot of the cross. Her witness was not a reflection of God''s forgiving love. Which one of these two individuals, the woman or the pilot''s son, best describes where you are on your journey with the reality of forgiveness?

On the wall in my office here at the church is a plaque that a confirmation class in Reading, Pa., gave me. Let me read you what it says:

"How much do you love me," I asked Jesus.

And Jesus said, "This much."

Then He spread His arms on the Cross...

And died for me!

Yes, the cross is God''s proof that He loves us completely. The cross is God''s proof that our forgiveness is made complete by this plea and cry of Jesus from the cross. The Lord would say to you today the same thing he did to St. Jerome: "Give me your sins."

Amen and amen.