Transcript

During World War II, Edward Henry, “Butch” O’Hare was a fighter pilot assigned to an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. One day during the war, Butch’s entire squadron was assigned to carry out a long distance mission.

After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. Because of this, Butch would not have enough fuel to complete the mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to leave formation and return.

As he was returning to the carrier, Butch saw a squadron of Japanese Zeroes heading toward the fleet to attack. And with all the fighter planes now gone, the fleet was almost defenseless. His was the only opportunity to distract and divert them.

Single-handedly, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes and attacked them. Butch shot until all his ammunition was gone. But this didn’t stop his attack.

Then he dove and tried to clip off a wing or tail or anything that would make the enemy planes unfit to fly. Finally, the Japanese squadron took off in another direction, and Butch O’Hare and his fighter, both badly shot up, limped back to the carrier.

He was recognized as a hero and was the first naval aviator ever to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. And Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport is named for him.

Prior to this time, there was a man named Easy Eddie. He worked for Al Capone. The mobster, Al Capone, was notorious for the many illegal things he’d done in Chicago.

Easy Eddie was Al Capone’s lawyer. Because of his skill, he was able to keep Capone out of jail. To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well and gave him a large home.

Easy Eddie had a son. He loved his son and gave him all the best things while he was growing up; clothes, cars, and a good education. And because he loved his son he tried to teach him right from wrong.

But one thing he couldn’t give his son was a good name, and a good example. Easy Eddie decided that this was much more important than all the riches he could give him.

So, he went to the authorities in order to rectify the wrong he had done. But this meant he would have to testify against Al Capone. He knew that by doing so, Capone would do his best to have him killed. And within the year of testifying against Capone, he was shot and killed on a lonely street in Chicago.

Butch O’Hare was Easy Eddie’s son. Because of Eddie’s courageous change of heart, his son Butch was accepted at Annapolis. Eddie’s confession and subsequent death satisfied the admissions panel that the family’s mob connections were severed.

What “Butch” O’Hare became was made possible because someone else paid a great price.

For the believer, all that we have become is because Someone paid a great price. Our Savior died for us, He died for our sins that we might live eternally.

And having trusted the gospel of grace, out of gratitude for Christ’s sacrifice, it is good and right that the believer live a life that brings honor and glory to our Savior.

As 2 Corinthians 5:15 puts it, “And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”

Luke 23:46: “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.”

Christ’s seventh statement from the Cross tells us about His death and how He died.

It’s important to note that Christ did die. He did not swoon, or just faint or lose consciousness only. His death was not an illusion. He actually died.

The Lord had a real human body. He was born. He grew up. He ate, drank, and slept. He felt pain. And He actually died on the Cross. His death was a real death.

In John’s gospel we read how the Roman soldiers checked very carefully to make sure that Christ had died. John 19:33 reads, “But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs.”

In Mark’s gospel, When Joseph of Arimathea came to Pilate to get custody of the Lord’s body to bury it, Mark 15:44-45 reads, “And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.”

The testimony from the Roman soldiers was that Christ died on the Cross. And soldiers, experienced with death on the battlefield, know when a man is dead.

In addition, one of the soldiers pierced the Lord’s side with a spear and blood and water came out, emphasizing that Christ was unquestionably died.

Christ experienced death, and He confronted that enemy with courage and strength as He died for our sins.

In verse 46, we read, “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice.” This cry by our Lord was when He said the words, “It is finished.” The work of redemption was complete.

The Greek words for “loud voice” are “megas” and “phone-ay.” These two Greek words together is what gives us our English word, megaphone. The Lord’s words, “It is finished” were loud, and very clearly heard.

This was a triumphant cry of victory, and our Lord died in victory. To even speak while being crucified was difficult enough, but to cry out loudly would be far more difficult. But our Lord still had the strength to make this loud, conquering cry.

The same word combination of “megas” “phone-ay” is used in Revelation 5:12 to refer to the volume of the praise from the thousands upon thousands of angels who worship the Lord around the throne in heaven:

“Saying with a LOUD VOICE, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.”

Because of what Christ did for us in paying the price for all our sins, He is worthy to be worshipped in this manner and with this loud voice of praise.

After His victory shout of “It is finished,” the Lord said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.” Luke is the only writer to record the very last words of Christ. This last saying from the cross are words of contentment, peace, confidence, and love.

The Lord spoke seven times on the Cross. Seven is the number of completeness and perfection, and the cross was the perfect work of Christ in paying for all our sins.

Seven is also the number of rest in a finished work. In 6 days, God created all things, and on the seventh day He rested. And following the creation, God pronounced it “very good.”

Just as the sixth day brought the work of creation to completion, so the sixth utterance of the Lord, after six hours on the Cross, was, “It is finished.” And the work of the Cross was “very good.”

And like the seventh day was the day of rest, so the seventh saying of the Savior brings Him to the place of rest: the Father’s hands.

We will look at the Lord’s final saying from the Cross step by step. And the first word of the final saying is “Father.”

Three times on the Cross, Christ addressed the Father. His first words from the cross were “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

Six hours later, His fourth word was “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” His seventh word was “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”

You see the separation from the Father by Christ addressing Him as “My God, My God.” He called him, “My God” and not “Father” because in that agonizing moment, the Father turned away from His sin-filled Son as He bore the sin of the world.

But now having made the full payment for sin, now that the work of redemption was finished, there is no separation, and Christ addressed God as “Father” again, the term of endearment and relationship.

The desperation brought on by the Father’s abandonment is over. For a while their communion was broken, but it was broken no longer.

The darkness had passed and the Savior is seen again in communion with the Father when He addressed Him as “Father.” And that communion between the Father and the Son will never, ever be broken again.

With his final words, the Lord quoted Psalm 31:5 and simply added the word “Father” to the front of the quotation. Psalm 31:5 reads, “Into thine hand I commit my spirit.” The Lord applied this Scripture and promise to Himself in this moment.

Psalm 31 is a Psalm of David. In that Psalm you find that he is in distress and suffering. In the midst of that suffering, he wrote, “Into thine hand I commit my spirit.”

He was casting himself totally upon God, committing his spirit into His hands, telling Him “All I can do is commit my heart, my life, my spirit to You and trust You.”

And Christ who suffered at the Cross, like David He expressed His perfect trust in God, casting Himself totally upon Him, and committing His spirit, His all into His hands.

Three times prophecies from the book of Psalms were fulfilled by the Lord’s sayings from the Cross. “My God, My God why hast Thou forsaken Me” is a quote from Psalm 22:1.

“I thirst” was in fulfillment of Psalm 69:21, “In My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink.” And, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit” was a quote from Psalm 31:5.

The Lord fulfilled many Scriptures throughout His life and He did the same in His death.

The Scriptures were on the Lord’s mind at the Cross. And we know He thought of the prophecies concerning the Cross, because John 19:28 tells us, “Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.”

Warren Wiersbe put it well when he wrote, “Our Lord Jesus lived by God’s Word, and if you live by God’s Word, you can die by God’s Word.” And that is what the Savior did in quoting Psalm 31 at His death.

And this teaches us that we need the Scriptures in our hearts so that we can live well AND so we can die well.

As we proceed, the Lord stated, “Father, into thy HANDS.”

Speaking of hands, the Lord said this in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the HANDS of sinners” (Matt. 26:45).

After He rose again, the angels at the tomb reminded the women, “He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into THE HANDS OF SINFUL MEN, and be crucified, and the third day rise again” (Luke 24:6-7).

At Pentecost, Peter addressed His countrymen and stated, “ye have taken, and by WICKED HANDS have crucified and slain” (Acts 2:23).

For around 12 hours or more the Lord had been in the hands of sinners and sinful, wicked men. The hands of sinners took Him in the Garden of Gethsemane and bound Him.

Wicked hands slapped Him in the face and ripped out the hair from His beard. The hands of sinful men scourged Him, and put a crown of thorns on His head. The hands of sinners nailed the Lord to a cross.

But now, as He died, all that is behind Him. Wicked hands have done all they can do. The Lord now commits Himself to His Father’s kind and loving hands.

And you can’t be in better hands than the One Who holds all things in His hands! The hands of the almighty Father are strong and sure.

Christ died confidently knowing where He was going: into the Father’s hands. And for the believer in Christ, we too know where we are going. It surprises some in life when we express that confidence. But it’s based on our knowledge and faith of God’s Word.

When we die, we know and have the assurance we will pass from this life into the hands of our Heavenly Father, into the presence of our Lord and Savior in heaven.

Peter Marshall told the story about a little boy who was suffering from a terminal illness. At first he didn’t understand what was happening to him, but as the months passed, and he had to stay inside while his friends went out to play, the truth dawned on him. Then he began to wonder what death would be like.

One day his mother was reading to him the stirring tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. She read to him of the final glorious battle when so many gallant knights met their death.

She finished and put the book down. The little boy was silent for a moment. Then he asked, “Mom, what is it like to die? Does it hurt?”

Quick tears sprang to her eyes, so she excused herself to go into the kitchen to compose herself. She knew it was a question of deep significance, and she prayed to the Lord in that moment for a good answer.

When she returned to the room, she asked him, “Do you remember when you were a little boy and you would play hard all day? When the evening came you would be so tired that when you came in, you would lie down on Mommy and Daddy’s bed and fall asleep?”

“That was not your bed. That was not where you belonged. But you only stayed there a little while. In the morning, you were surprised to wake up and find yourself in your own bed. You were there because someone that loved you had come and taken care of you.

“During the night while you were sleeping, your father came—with strong arms—and carried you to your own room.”

She told him, “Death is just like that. One night you are very tired and sleepy. We fall asleep and we wake up to find ourselves in another room—our own room where we belong—because the Lord who loves us has come and with strong arms, He has carried us from our home in this world to our home in heaven.”

That is a good explanation of what death is like for the believer.

As we continue, the Lord stated, “Father, into thy hands I COMMEND.” The Lord “commend” means to commit to one’s charge, to deposit, to entrust.

It speaks of depositing something valuable in a safe place or placing something with someone for protection.

It’s like what you might do by taking a will or valuable possessions and putting them in a safe-deposit box. The term conveys a secure sense of trust.

In Acts 14:23, during Paul’s first apostolic journey, they appointed elders in every church in they established in Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia. After this, “they COMMENDED them to the Lord, on whom they believed.”

In Acts 20:32, on his third apostolic journey, Paul told the Ephesian elders, “And now, brethren, I COMMEND you to God, and to the Word of His grace…”

The words “commended” and “commend” in these passages are translated from the same Greek word as “commend” in Luke 23:46.

Paul committed and entrusted these churches and elders and their continued spiritual growth and guidance to the safe-keeping of the Lord and the Word of His grace.

These were the safest, most secure places Paul could possibly commend or commit the spiritual well-being of believers.

Likewise, when the Lord commended His spirit into the Father’s hands, the Father’s hands are infinitely trustworthy, and He was entrusting Himself and committing His spirit into the most secure, safest place of all.

Finishing the phrase, the Lord stated, “Father, into thy hands I commend MY SPIRIT.” Christ committed His spirit into the Father’s keeping.

Scripture reveals that man is a tripartite being, “spirit and soul and body” (1 Thes. 5:23).

And speaking of the spirit, James Stalker writes this: “In the language of Scripture [the spirit] is distinguished even from the soul as the most lofty and exquisite part of the inner man. It is to the rest our nature what the flower is to the plant or what the pearl is to the shell. It is that within us which is specially allied to God and eternity.”

Death is the separation of the spirit from the body. James 2:26 states, “For as the body without the spirit is dead…” And at death, Ecclesiastes 12:7 says, “…and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”

The Lord’s words from the Cross reaffirm our separated but continued existence and consciousness in our spirit when the body is dead and the spirit separates from it. When our time here on earth is over, our bodies die and go into the grave, but our spirit lives on.

D.L. Moody once said, “Someday you will read the papers that D.L. Moody is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now…that which is born of the flesh may die. That which is born of the Spirit will live forever.”

The Lord told the believing thief on the cross beside Him that “Today shalt thou be with Me in paradise.”

So the day the Lord died, we know that His spirit separated from His body and went to paradise in the center of the earth and He stayed there for three days.

We know the Father did faithfully receive the Son’s spirit into His hands, because three days later, the Son’s spirit was rejoined to His body in the tomb, that body was glorified, and God raised Christ from the dead and He walked out of that tomb in power and glory.

And then 40 days later, Christ ascended to the Father in heaven, in body, soul, and spirit. He is currently in heaven at God’s right hand, as the fullness of the Godhead bodily.

For the believer in Christ, we know that when we pass from this life, our spirit will be entrusted into the Father’s safe and sure hands, and we will consciously enter our Savior’s presence in heaven.

And one day our spirits will be rejoined with our bodies at the Rapture, and like Christ, they will be changed, glorified and raised from the dead.

God’s hands provide hope and comfort for believers, but those same hands will also deliver terror and punishment for those who refuse to receive the sacrifice of His Son.

Speaking of God’s hands, Hebrews 10:31 gives the strong warning: “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

To be delivered from the judgment at the hands of the living God, and to have the forgiveness of sins, you just have to trust that Christ died for your sins and rose again.

The last part of Luke 23:46 reads, “and having said thus, He gave up the ghost.” These words literally mean to “breathe one’s last.” The Lord after saying “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit,” took His last breath and died.

But we learn more about Christ’s death in John 19:30: “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”

At the moment of Christ’s death, this verse tells us that our Lord “bowed His head.”

The Lord’s head did not helplessly drop to His chest, it did not fall forward. There was no violent jerk or sudden slump. The Lord was in complete control of His death. And He slowly and calmly lowered and bowed His head.

This was a peaceful act, like slowly lying your head down on a pillow to sleep. Christ did not hang or drop His head in defeat; He bowed it in peace.

Also, John 19:30 says the Lord “gave up the ghost.” Gave up means to deliver, to give over. In Matthew 27:50, it states, “Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.” The phrase “yielded up the ghost” means Christ dismissed or sent away His spirit into the Father’s hands.

In a sense, Christ’s death was like every other death, but in another sense, it was unlike any other death. Christ body really died and His spirit separated from His body and this showed that He is a man.

But unlike every other death, He dismissed His spirit. This distinguished His death from all others. Christ’s birth was unique. His life was unique. And His death was unique. We don’t dismiss our spirit; we don’t have the power or ability to do that.

The word “dismissed” speaks of one who has authority. And like a king might dismiss a servant, this is how the Lord dismissed His spirit at His death.

When Christ died, He dismissed and sent away His spirit with authority by a conscious act of His will. This was something no mere man could accomplish. But Christ did have the power to do that and this showed that He is God.

And this was what the Lord told His disciples in John 10:17-18: “Therefore doth 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.”

When Christ died, He died because He willed Himself to die at the precise moment He wanted it to happen. He sent away His spirit after His work of redemption was finished.

And then He said His last words, breathed His last breath, slowly lowered His head, and dismissed His spirit. He controlled His own dying.

He dismissed His spirit to God the Father and He yielded His body to death on that cross.

And He gave up His life of His own accord. He laid down His life. He died willingly for you and for me. No one took his life from Him. He did this voluntarily and in harmony with His Father’s will.

Out of His amazing love, Christ willingly laid down His life so that we might live. He died in order to pay the full price of redemption, which required blood and death. And so He shed His blood and died in our place.

Christ’s death was a graceful, authoritative departure from the brutality of this world and the crucifixion.

Christ dismissing His spirit made His death unique, but the other thing that makes Christ’s death unique is that He died for our sins. The Word of God teaches that “the wages of sin is death.” But Christ was innocent; He was the sinless, spotless Lamb of God, so death was powerless over Him.

But then at the Cross, He suffered and died. How is that possible? The good news of salvation is that Christ wasn’t dying for His sins. He was dying for your sins and my sins.

Our sins were laid upon Him that He might pay for them by His shed blood. And He died for our sins.

And the gospel of grace tells us to simply believe this truth that Christ died for your sins personally, and rose again the third day, and God will save you from the eternal fires of hell and give you eternal life in heaven. Have you believed?