Good Friday Service by Pastor Jerry Eze: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

He That Is Forgiven Much Loveth Much

They had a problem with the woman with the alabaster box. And Jesus said, "He that is forgiven much loveth much." There are days when your neighbor doesn't understand why you are so grateful. They don't know what the Lord has done for you.

If you are like me, you know you don't deserve it — that it is only by mercy.

The blood did not pay for what you did. He paid for what you will still do. So even before you do it, you are already forgiven.

The Seven Last Words of Jesus on the Cross

If a man was going to die, the very last things he says to his children will be of priority. That is why I am going to discuss the seven last words of Jesus on the cross — what we need to learn from them.

First Word: "Father, Forgive Them"

Luke 23:34 — "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment and cast lots."

Those who were afflicting him did not know the full plan of salvation. Those who were buffeting him, striking him, the soldiers who put those stripes on him — they had hooks on their whips. The hooks entered his body. They drew it across his flesh.

Jesus on the cross understood: I came to save. He said, "Father, these ones don't understand. They don't lay it to their charge — forgive them. This is part of the script."

Number one, learn to see beyond what a situation is presenting. If you are a man in transition, see beyond what is happening now. Jesus did not see only what was happening on the cross — he was on transition from the cross to resurrection.

Servant of God, man of destiny: see beyond now. Don't take decisions because of what is going on now. Don't conclude because of what is going on now. Eyes have not seen, ears have not heard. There is more behind the scene.

You will not be tired because you were disappointed. There is more behind the scene. Don't give up. Don't stop here. Don't shut the door. For I know whom I believe, and I am persuaded. He is able to keep that which I've committed into his hand.

Second Word: "Today You Will Be with Me in Paradise"

Luke 23:43 — "Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise."

One of the malefactors said to Jesus, "Remember me in your paradise." Jesus said: today. Jesus did not ask him questions. He did not review his past. But because the man opened his mouth and said, "Remember me," Jesus said, today.

Understand that matters of the supernatural don't take time. It can happen now. God is opening that door now. God is breaking that yoke now. Somebody shout TODAY.

Third Word: "Woman, Behold Your Son"

John 19:26–27 — When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple standing by whom he loved, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold thy son." Then to the disciple, "Behold thy mother." And from that hour that disciple took her into his own home.

As Jesus was dying on the cross, he looked at John — the disciple who would lay his head on Jesus's chest — and said, "The love I have shown you, show to this woman."

The cross cannot be complete without love. One of the cardinal messages of the cross is love. Love people in a way they will see God. Love people in a way they will go out of your presence speaking in tongues. By this shall all men know you as my disciples — if you have love one for another.

You don't know how you love people until they offend you. Love without any condition.

Fourth Word: "My God, My God, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me"

Matthew 27:46 — "About the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

The weight of sin, the weight of what you and I did — it was on him. Let me say this to you: it is an insult to the majesty of God that he bore what made his Father refuse him, and you are still judging yourself by what he bore. You insult him. You insult the redemptive power.

He doesn't just forgive your sin — he takes away the consequences. It doesn't matter who you are. It doesn't matter where you've been. It doesn't matter what you've done. You are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. You are forgiven.

Fifth Word: "I Thirst"

John 19:28 — "After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst."

The reason he shouted "I thirst" was not because he was thirsty — but that the scripture might be fulfilled. There is something written about you. One of the things he did on the cross was to tell you that everything spoken, every scripture that jumped at you in your quiet time, every word that dropped in your spirit — it will be fulfilled.

"Blessed be the God who has given us rest on every side according to all that he promised. There failed not one word of his good promise."

Before the end of April, you are going to sit down and say, "There failed not one word of his good promise." Not one word of his good promise will fail over your life.

Sixth Word: "It Is Finished"

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."

The only way to understand what "It is finished" means: it is like getting a gift card. Someone gifts you a gift card loaded with more than enough — but you didn't know about it. You go to the store and use your own account, which has insufficient funds. The cashier announces it loudly in front of everyone.

But what if you had that gift card? You bring it out — and it has millions on it. That is what he did. HE SAID, "I HAVE PAID FOR EVERYTHING." Somebody say FULLY PAID.

What about my health? Fully paid. What about my future? Fully paid. Never think you are responsible for yourself on your own. You are Abba's love child. Someone is watching over you jealously.

Seventh Word: "Father, Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit"

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."

Before his body met its end, his spirit moved ahead of him. Anywhere you want your body to reach, let your spirit get there first. Every other thing will align.

The body of Jesus was on the cross, but his spirit was with the Father. In a matter of days, both his body and his spirit had a meeting point.

People of God, no matter where your body is — your body might be ravaged with disease — don't let your spirit stay there. It is the spirit that quickens. The flesh profits nothing. Use the spirit to draw your body out.

This is the reason why the devil wants to break your spirit. If he breaks your spirit, he knows that he has broken your body. Make up your mind: I need to see where my spirit is, and I am not going to let my body remain behind. Move with your spirit ahead of your body.

The seven words on the cross are not just mere words. They are changes in your imagination. They are principles of the kingdom and instructions that transit men.