Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last.

1) What irony is present in Jesus “calling out”?
This is the second time on the cross that Jesus is noted as having “called out” in a loud voice. The first time was when He said, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) Though God the Father was forced to forsake Jesus as He “took on” the penalty for our sin, and their relationship was severed, that reality didn’t stop Jesus from calling aloud, “Father”. Their relationship had not been restored yet, but Jesus had taken on the role of our mediator, adopting us as sons and daughters of God, granting us access to call out “Abba, Father” through Jesus taking our place. As Jesus surrendered His spirit, we were receiving a new one, a spirit of sonship. (Romans 8:15)

2) What exactly is a “spirit” and why did Jesus “give it up”?
A “spirit” is here used for the same word as “soul”. It encompasses our humanity, our emotions, will, passions, grief, joy, and reason. It’s what makes us “us”, it’s the DNA of our hearts. This is not the Holy Spirit, the 3^rd person of the Trinity in this passage, rather it is referencing Jesus’s human soul. Jesus gave up His Spirit willingly, not by force, for He was still 100% God and could have easily freed Himself from the cross and avoided dying altogether. He yielded it, submitting to God’s plan for the salvation of mankind. Every soul is eternal and will never die, where each soul spends that eternity is the big question. Jesus surrendered His soul to God, trusting Him for its safe-keeping in Heaven with Him, and also trusting that God would return it to Jesus on the third day when He rose from the dead.

3) Why did Jesus exert His last fleeting energy to cry out this phrase?
Christ’s purpose in coming to earth was to make restitution for our sin. To quite literally take our place, take our punishment, and offer up His own sinless life as an atonement for our wretched sins. He called out to the Father because He was making an offering for sin (Isaiah 53:10) of His own perfect soul. He was calling out to the Judge, trusting that He would accept Christ’s flawless sacrifice in place of the sacrifice we could never make because we are utterly imperfect.

1) What irony is present in Jesus “calling out”?
We are each born with a sin nature. It automatically enslaves us to Death, chaining us up with only the appearance of freedom sometimes. We are entangled in sin, wrapped in fear, driven by pride, and we have no way out of that vicious cycle of sin. But because Christ offers to be our Mediator, the one who stands between us, with out putrid sins, and the perfectly holy Almighty God, we are offered freedom from everything dictated by the sin nature. Fear is gone, condemnation has no place, hope is assured, life is abundant, we are freed by love! Which “spirit” rules your heart? Sin and Death or the victorious Life offered by Jesus Christ?

2) How does my “spirit” and its destination affect my everyday life?
Unlike every other human being, Jesus knew exactly when and how He would die. Because He was God, His life was His to lie down at His discretion and then to pick back up. (John 10:18) As Jesus’s body was seconds from death, He yielded His spirit into God’s hands. Our future is uncertain. Car accidents happen often and disease rips at our bodies, we don’t know when our physical bodies will die and when our eternal soul will be separated through death, but we can choose where our soul will spend that eternity. Safe in the hands of God or dying an eternal death, utterly separated from life and the abundant fullness of God’s presence in Hell. What’s holding you back from crossing that line of faith and being “all in” with God? If you’d like to explore your thoughts or questions, send us an email!

3) Why did Jesus exert His last fleeting energy to cry out this phrase?
In giving up His spirit, Jesus was giving us an example to follow. Will we trust God, calling out to Him as “Father”, expecting Him to safeguard our souls for eternity when our bodies die? Will we trust the finished work of Jesus on the cross to be enough to cover for all our imperfections?

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