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Relevant conversations that take you from Surviving to Thriving. Our goal is to encourage and empower you to answer God's call on your life and to be all that He has called you to be. This podcast is all about Faith, Relationships, and Mental Health. We keep it real, practical, & Christ-centered, tune in and be inspired! Host Paul Calcote New episodes every other week.
Real People Real Talk
Good Friday: The Last Seven Words of Jesus
The seven last words of Jesus from the cross aren't just historical statements—they're profound revelations of divine love that continue to transform lives today.
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Even while hanging in agony, Jesus prioritized mercy, establishing the radical standard of forgiveness that defines authentic Christianity. This forgiveness wasn't dependent on the worthiness of his tormentors but flowed from the abundance of divine love. When we struggle to forgive those who've wronged us, these words remind us that forgiveness isn't optional—it's the heartbeat of our faith.
The criminal who found paradise in his final moments teaches us that salvation remains available regardless of our past. Jesus's promise, "Today you will be with me in paradise," dissolves the myth that some people are beyond redemption. His care for his mother from the cross reminds us that Christianity flourishes in community, not isolation. When he cried, "My God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus experienced the ultimate separation so we would never have to, giving sacred dignity to our moments of spiritual darkness.
His declarations "I thirst" and "It is finished" remind us that Christ fully experienced human suffering while completing everything necessary for our salvation. Nothing needs to be added to his perfect sacrifice. And in his final breath—"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit"—Jesus modeled the peaceful surrender that comes from absolute trust in God's goodness.
What makes this Friday "good" isn't the suffering but the love behind it. These seven statements continue to echo across centuries, offering forgiveness to the guilty, hope to the desperate, and community to the isolated. As you reflect on these powerful words today, remember that Sunday is coming—death doesn't get the final word when Jesus is in the story.
Welcome and thanks for tuning in. To Real People, real Talk, relevant conversations that take you from surviving to thriving. This is the podcast that goes there. My name is Paul Calcoat and I'm your host. Now let's talk. Well, happy Good Friday.
Speaker 1:Today we reflect on the profound sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, jesus Christ. As we remember his last moments up there on that cross, we turn our attention to the last seven sayings of Jesus Christ. Each are rich with profound meaning and deeply impactful I must say so myself. These final words. It really capture the heart of Jesus's ministry, his love for humanity and the incredible price that he paid for your redemption and mine. In these sayings we encounter once again the heart of our Lord and Savior, jesus Christ his compassion, his anguish, the fulfillment of prophecy and his ultimate victory over sin and death. Now to saying.
Speaker 1:Number one is found in Luke, chapter 23, verse 34. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. This is a very profound expression of Jesus's mercy. While he was up there hanging on that cross, surrounded by those that mocked him, surrounded by those that tortured him, he still chose to pray for their forgiveness. This final saying. It reveals the depths of Jesus's love and the nature of his divine forgiveness. That's good In this moment. That's good In this moment. Jesus embodies the essence of mercy, literally praying for those that inflicted pain on him. This is a profound act that not only should encourage us, amen, but it should challenge us as well. It should challenge us to consider our own hearts. Uh-oh, getting your business here. Are we willing to forgive those that hurt us? Jesus teaches us in matthew, chapter 6, for if you forgive others, their trespasses, your heavenly father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses. Forgiveness is a very powerful act. It's an act that reflects God's grace in our lives. It's not based on the worthiness of the offender, it's not based on the worthiness of the one that hurt you, but it's based on the overflow of God's love in our hearts. As we reflect on saying number one, which is father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Let us commit to cultivate a spirit of forgiveness so we can extend grace to those that wrong us, just as Jesus extended grace to you, and I, amen. Moving on to saying number two, luke, chapter 23, verse 43. Truly, I say to you today, you would be with me in paradise.
Speaker 1:This second Sam is directed at the repentant criminal hanging beside Jesus. In this moment of humility, in this moment of faith, this criminal acknowledges his guilt and turns to jesus, thus seeking salvation. And jesus response was truly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise. This response, this final saying, offers profound hope. It's a promise that illustrates the boundless grace of our god. No matter your past, no matter your sin, is never too late to turn to Jesus. This criminal, who led a life of sin, found redemption in his final moments. This assures us, this reminds us that salvation is available to all those that seek him even in the last moments, to all those that seek him even in the last moments. But hear the word of the lord today you don't have to wait to your last moment. You can call on jesus today.
Speaker 1:The bible tells us in john 3, 16. For god so loved the world. Right there we see world, you can put your name in there to effect. For god, so love you. But let me read it from the top again for god so love the world. For god, so love you that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. What a love jesus's promise to the criminal. It illustrates and demonstrates the immediacy of god's grace. I feel like right here, the moment that we place our faith in Christ, we are welcome into his presence, we are welcomed into the family of God and we are instantly bestowed salvation, mercy, grace, forgiveness and so much more.
Speaker 1:This saying also challenges us to share the hope of salvation with others. We never know when someone may be on the brink of turning to Christ. We must always be sensitive to the leading, the guiding and the prompting of the Holy Spirit, because our witness can play a crucial role in leading someone to Christ. So let us be bold in sharing our faith, knowing that God's grace is sufficient for all, and that word all means all. Maybe, when you think of a sinner and you may think of an ungodly person or a moral person that may never come to the Lord, you may have a picture of a person in your mind saying man, I tried so many times. I want to encourage you not to give up. Keep being a light, keep loving on them, keep talking about the Lord, because you never know when the gospel is going to penetrate their hearts.
Speaker 1:Moving on to saying number three. That's found in John, chapter 19. And when Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother woman, behold your son. And then he said to the disciple behold your mother. And from that hour the disciple took her to his home. He was saying what does that mean? And I'll tell you.
Speaker 1:In this third saying, jesus is addressing his mother, mary, and the disciple John. Jesus shows his deep concern for his mother's well-being and trusting her care. To jump this moment. As we take a closer look, it really underscores the importance of family and community. Jesus, in his suffering, models for us at Galatia, galatians, chapter six bear one another burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. As Jesus entrusts Mary to John, he emphasizes the significance of relationships in our lives. We are not meant to walk this journey alone. Christianity is not a solo sport. It is a team sport, if you will. We are called to support one another, especially in times of trial and sorrow. The New Testament is full of the one another. Scriptures Pray for one another, bear the burden of one another, and so many more. Furthermore, this saying it challenges us to reflect on our own relationships. Are we attentive to the needs of those around us, not just your household, but those in the household of faith. So in times of struggle, we are called to uplift each other, just as Jesus did with his mother, mary and John.
Speaker 1:Saying number four can be found in Matthew, chapter 27, verse 46. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? This fourth saying is a deep cry of anguish. Jesus is quoting Psalms 22 and expressing the profound sense of abandonment as he feels and bears the weight of humanity's sin. I want you to let that sink in. Jesus is all along on the cross, bearing your sin and my sin, the weight of humanity's sin. In this moment, jesus experiences something that he's never experienced before separation from God that sin brings. His cry reveals the depth of his suffering, the depth of his pain, reminding us that Jesus can fully identify with our pain and with our loneliness.
Speaker 1:The Bible declares in Hebrews 4.15,. We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. This encourages us to bring our own cries of anguish and despair to God. In our times of distress, in those times that we may feel abandoned, we can find solace in knowing that Jesus literally understands all of our struggles and all of our pain. He walks with us in those dark moments, amen. He is right there by our side, in everything that we may be going through, offering us light and love and comfort and hope. So I don't know about you today, but today is definitely a good Friday because of Jesus. Furthermore, this cry from the cross teaches us that it's okay to express our feelings of abandonment and despair. God is big enough to handle it. He's big enough to handle our honest feelings and emotions, and he desires honesty in our relationship with him. So we can bring our doubts, we can bring our fears, we can bring our agonies. We could take it all to god in prayer, trusting that he hears, trusting that he cares for us. Oh so greatly.
Speaker 1:In his fifth saying, jesus simply states two powerful yet profound words I thirst. This statement reflects both the physical suffering and the fulfillment of prophecy. It was foretold in Psalm 69, 21 that he would be given vinegar to drink and in this moment, and in this moment, jesus fulfills the prophecy. However, I thirst also speaks to a deeper spiritual longing. It's in the book of John, chapter seven to be exact, that Jesus invites those that are thirsty to come to him and drink, promising that whoever believes in him will never thirst again, using him will never thirst again.
Speaker 1:This moment, this saying, should challenge us to reflect on our own thirst for the Lord. Are we seeking to satisfy our spiritual hunger in him? Let's be honest here, because God already knows. In this world, in this life, in this culture, it is filled with so many distractions, so many false promises. Yet Jesus offers the only true source of fulfillment and satisfaction. Let us remember that our thirst for meaning, our thirst for purpose, can only be filled, can only be satisfied in Jesus. So, as we encounter the struggles of life, we are invited to come to Jesus, who is a living water and he quenches every thirst and he quenches our deepest longings. This is a reminder that in our spiritual thirst, in every thirst, we must turn to Christ for sustenance.
Speaker 1:And the sixth sin found in John, chapter 19, verse 30 is this it is finished. This is a powerful declaration of completion and victory. With these three short but powerful words, jesus announces to eternity, past, present and future. He announces to all that he has accomplished the work of redemption. His sacrifice on the cross paid the penalty for our sins once and for all. In this moment we see the culmination of God's plan for salvation.
Speaker 1:Listen to this Colossians, chapter 2, verse 13 through 14. And you who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, god made alive together with him, having forgiven us all of our trespasses by counseling the record of debt that stood against us with this legal demands, this, he set aside, nailing it to the cross. Amen and amen again to the word of the Lord. Jesus's declaration reassures us that our sins are forgiven and that we can have a restored relationship with God, the Father. This is the heart of the gospel, the good news, the best news that we are no longer bound by our sin, but we are free through Christ. Oh yes, this is a good Friday. I don't have to die in my sin and you don't have to be bounded by sin because we have been set free by the lamb of God. I repeat this, indeed, is a good Friday, so let us celebrate the victory of the cross. The enemy has been defeated. Let me say that one more time the enemy has been defeated and you already have the victory. You just got to walk it out.
Speaker 1:The Bible says but thanks be to God, who always give us a victory through our Lord and Jesus Christ and another scripture. He always calls us to triumph in Jesus. We have the victory. It is finished. So listen to this, my friend. We are called to share the message of hope with the world, proclaiming that through Christ there is redemption and new life. In these words it is finished. We find assurance that our salvation is complete and that we need not add anything to what Christ has accomplished on our behalf. This declaration invites us to live in the freedom of his grace, because it indeed is finished, of his grace, because it indeed is finished.
Speaker 1:In his seventh and final saying, jesus expresses complete trust in the father by saying father, into your hands I commit my spirit. This statement. It reflects jesus's obedience and surrender to god's will. By, by quoting Psalms 31 5, jesus demonstrated that his death is not a defeat but a faithful return to the father. His last words serve as a model for us and how we should live our lives, trusting God even in the face of death. In 1 Peter 2 23, we learned that he was reviled. Yet he did not revile in return, and when he suffered, he did not threaten but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. This is a powerful and profound reminder for us that we are to entrust our lives into the hands of the Father in all times, and especially in difficult times as we face the uncertainties and the challenges of life. We can find peace in knowing that we are safe in God's embrace. We can commit our worries, our fears and our very lives to him, trusting that he is in control. Lives to him, trusting that he is in control. This final statement encourages us to live in a posture of surrender, recognizing that our lives are not our own but belong to the one that created us.
Speaker 1:So, on this Good Friday, it's a time for reflection how Jesus was on the cross, and it wasn't like that for the disciples. It's, more so, a time of a fear, uncertainty, but we have the benefit of being on this side of the cross. It's a Good Friday because Sunday is coming. So, on this Good Friday, as we reflect on the seven last sayings of Jesus, we are once again reminded of the depth of his love and sacrifice. Each of these sayings, they reveal his heart, offering forgiveness and hope and compassion, and it's a call to trust in him. So may these seven sayings remind you of what Jesus did for you over 2,000 years ago on the cross called Calvary. So happy Friday, my friend. But guess what? Sunday is indeed coming.