The Compassionate Savior

MEMORY VERSE: “Therefore Both My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of My Father.” —John 10:17,18

LUKE 22:39-42; 23:33,34a,39-46

JESUS was, and is, a compassionate Savior. He was touched with a feeling of our infirmities. We see his compassion displayed in connection with the death of Lazarus. He sensed the great sorrow of the two sisters, Martha and Mary, and in the shortest verse in the Bible we are told that “Jesus wept.”—John 11:35

Jesus went through deep agony of both mind and body in laying down his life as the Redeemer of mankind from death, yet he never hesitated to do his Father’s will. This is exemplified by his experience in the Garden of Gethsemane a few hours before his crucifixion. He had gone to this retreat after spending the evening with his disciples in the “upper room.” He admonished his disciples to pray lest they enter into temptation, for they were about to face a great test of whether they would continue as his followers.

When he was alone, he kneeled down and prayed, saying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” Regardless of how excruciating the experiences before him might be, Jesus was willing to have his Father’s will be done. He knew that it was his Father’s will for him to die for the sins of the world, and there was no thought of drawing back from this. As our memory verse indicates, he laid down his life voluntarily. He evidently foresaw a cup of ignominy and shame which perhaps he had not previously sensed so fully. But he was willing to drink this cup also, if it were his Father’s will.

Luke 23:33 reminds us that two malefactors, or thieves, were crucified with Jesus. One of these, joining with Jesus’ accusers, “railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.”—vss. 40,41

Deep down in this criminal’s heart there must have been a spark of faith, for he spoke of God and wondered why the somber circumstances of the occasion had not caused the other thief also to think about God. Turning to Jesus, he said, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” It is not necessary to conclude that this thief had a great deal of knowledge concerning Christ’s kingdom. The inscription over Jesus’ cross, stating the nature of the crime for which he was being crucified, said that he was “King of the Jews.” It could well have been this that prompted the thief’s request to be remembered when Jesus came into his kingdom.

The thief’s request was in keeping with the divine plan. Jesus WAS a king, and he would have a kingdom. Through the agencies of that kingdom the lost paradise was to be restored; so Jesus replied, saying, “Verily I say unto thee this day; with me thou shalt be in paradise.” (Rotherham translation) The Common Version translation of Jesus’ promise to the thief is misleading, in that it indicates that the thief and Jesus would be together in paradise the day they both died.

But this was not true. The thief fell asleep in death and will remain in death until the time of the general awakening from death during the thousand years of Christ’s reign. Jesus also went into death and was not raised until the third day. Isaiah prophesied that he poured out his soul unto death, and the Prophet David speaks of Jesus’ soul being in the Bible hell until his resurrection.—Isa. 53:12; Ps. 16:10

Professor Rotherham properly punctuates Jesus’ promise to the thief to show that the “today,” or “this day,” was the day the promise was made, not the time when it would be fulfilled. It was a dark day for Jesus, a day in which it would appear certain from the human standpoint that he would never have a kingdom. But Jesus knew that he would be raised from the dead and that he would return to earth to set up his long-promised kingdom. He knew that the purpose of this kingdom was to restore mankind to life, that they might live forever in a world-wide paradise; so he acknowledged the thief’s request and promised him a share in the blessings of his future kingdom.

The statement in verse 34, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do,” would further denote the compassion of Jesus, as mentioned in the lesson title. However, these words are spurious, not being found in the older Greek manuscripts.

QUESTIONS

Cite some Scripture texts which show that Jesus was a compassionate Savior.

Did Jesus’ prayer in the Garden indicate any unfaithfulness on his part?

Explain the meaning of Jesus’ promise to the thief on the cross.

Did Jesus actually ask that his enemies be forgiven?

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