Today, we will start with the 1st of the seven last sayings. It is found in Luke chapter 23 verse 34, But Jesus was saying, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing."] And they cast lots, dividing His garments among themselves.
Jesus' first I AM statement is in John chapter 6, verse 35. Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty.
I have read these verses from the New American Standard Bible.
Luke 23:34 starts with Jesus responding to what has, is, and will happen to him. He has been severely beaten and is enduring ridicule. He was wounded physically, emotionally, and mentally, and his crucifixion was just getting started. They are challenging him in his authority and physical stamina, yet He is praying for His enemies, a model we are to follow. The soldiers had already beaten him severely, and as soldiers would often do-they divided the spoils. The enemy in the flesh, the enemy in the spirit, were claiming a premature victory. But if they knew him, they would know He is the bread of life. He is carrying their sin, sickness, and curse for them. He is the bread of heaven; he came down from heaven by the Father to give life to the world. We who come to him will not hunger or thirst; we will live forever. When we consume the flesh of Jesus, we believe in him, we live in him, and we will never die, according to John 11:25-26. Revelation 7:16 says we will hunger no more... nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat. That is because when we eat the bread of heaven, we labor no more; in Jesus, we are at rest. Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28, "Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." The soldiers and those ridiculing him did not know what they were doing, but they were doing it according to God's plan, as wrong as it was. God showed us an example of praying for those against us even amid crucifixion, and according to His plan, Jesus knew he could pray for them because Jesus knew who He was; when we know who we are, we can pray for those who persecute us. Jesus knew He is the bread of life and some of those who crucified him could come around to eat his flesh and gain eternal life. We should be so full of Jesus' flesh that sleep sets in, that blood flows from our flesh and into our spirit that we do not respond in the flesh but in the spirit, and we are at rest. Just as babies get so full they sleep, we should be so full that we rest in Jesus. Too preoccupied with the fullness of the Bread from Heaven that we pray for those who have wounded us physically, emotionally, and mentally; that although the enemy may challenge our authority or physical stamina, we know our identity is in Jesus Christ, and therefore, we never lose our position and we never grow weak.
So, our challenge for today is to eat the bread of life and be full of the bread that God has provided us, which has come down from heaven. Our response is to pray with a sincere heart, knowing who we are in Christ and that Christ is in us, so pray for those who insult you, abuse you, reject you, neglect you, who do not realize who you are, and even more so, do not know the God you serve!
Share this post