Andrew Meher: you Luke 23, 34. Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. A plea for the forgiveness of those involved in his crucifixion. Jesus walked the earth fully God and fully man, facing every temptation and trial that each of us still encounter today. He met everyone where they were, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. handling each encounter deeply connected to the father, knowing his identity. Here we see our Lord and Savior turned on by the masses of people, insulted, physically beaten, and sentenced to a criminal's death. He had done nothing wrong and could have decided to change the course of events that day. He openly, intentionally, obediently followed the will of the Father. He knew God's plan had to be fulfilled to restore the right relationship between God and mankind. Jesus stood in his identity and looked to the Father for strength and truth. By filling himself up in continuous connection with God and planted firmly in his identity, his love, compassion, and forgiveness flowed out. Jesus firmly understood his identity comes from who God said he is, one with the Father, Holy Spirit, always connected and deeply loved. He also understood that the people were looking for a superhero. to free them from the current oppression and struggles of their life, to lead them into a grand victory, an easy life here on earth. The Roman government viewed Jesus as a threat to the order of established and oppression that they enforced. Not displaying any traits similar to a king or a leader of that day, Jesus was seen as a counterfeit or a fake ruler, someone trying to act or be a part that didn't match their script. Many of the people that day were blind to the truth. Jesus did not meet their expectations for our Savior, our King, or our brother. When Jesus spoke, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. First, he connected with God, his Father, our Father. When he spoke this request, he interceded on behalf of everyone there that day. He forgave all the offenses, the pain, the lies, the driving forces behind their actions. and their lack of understanding of what the true impact was that they were doing. Later that day we see people present had their eyes open to who he was while he was with them. What if not for Jesus' plea to the Father? Would they have understood freedom and forgiveness? Would we see our Savior, our brother, deeply loves us, freely sacrificing himself for our reunion to God? In the Lord's prayer that Jesus gave us earlier in his ministry, Our father is the first words, the calling out, connecting the family, the honoring the father for who he is above all things, providing our needs. And then here we see forgiveness for our trespasses, the cross displaying the way to forgive others selflessly, obediently with empathy and compassion. Following Jesus's example, standing in our identity with Christ, seeing our big brother say it's okay. I have you covered. Come to me, talk to me, lay that down. We can go home. Louis B. Schmid. is attributed with the phrase, to forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that prisoner was you. I struggle with being blinded by fostering and fostering unforgiveness. Sitting in judgment when the offense a lot of times comes from a place of, for they know not what they do. When the worldviews start to creep into my mind, that is when I start to drift from my God given identity. Pressure, pride, ego. shame, uncomfortable situations, and any other lie tries to take root in my life. This pulls me away from accepting God's free love, his truth, and my given identity, and also from Jesus crying out on my behalf. Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and God in human form, the incarnate word who offers salvation, presenting the message of hope and right relationships with God to the world. I believe this verse. Father forgive them for they know not what they do. Who's spoken out over everyone to the end of time. In that moment I see an example of extending deep full forgiveness. It changes my perspective on how and why I need to forgive. On that day, on that cross, our Lord paid it all, forgave it all, and freed us all. Because he loved me, he set the example and forgave me. Luke 23 43. Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise. For me, it was all about goal setting. Checking the box. endless list that had to be accomplished. Let me tell you about my journey from works to grace. Growing up in our home, it was a performance based equity. You gained value. by your works. I then spent six years studying a faith that was all about works. When I came to Christ, I ended up at a church that was legalistic in nature. They talked about grace. They said it was grace. But they emphasized faith without works instead. It solidified that it would not be enough if I didn't do all the dos and didn't do all the don'ts. It was a burden that was too heavy for me. A burden that wasn't meant for me. could do anything with the right manual. Self-expectations were high. It's great in a perfect world, the world isn't perfect and neither was I. Striving and perfectionism brought resentment, pain, and stress, which brought dis-ease. that almost killed me. An autoimmune disease, four cancer scares, symptoms of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, memory loss, brain fog, uncontrollable muscle movements. My doctor wanted me to retire. I told him that I might be able to take an early retirement in six years. He said, you don't have six years. That's a harsh reality to that I have to mentality. That's what it brought me to. Let's go back a few verses to set the scene. Luke 23, starting at 39. One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, you're the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself and us too while you're at it. But the other criminal protested. Don't you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes. But this man hasn't done anything wrong. First, he recognized something that we all recognize when we seek forgiveness. He acknowledged that he was guilty. of a crime, a sinner. that it was just and fitting that they were in their predicament. Second, he recognized that Jesus was not only innocent, but he was more than just a man. That God himself was directly involved in the situation. Then he said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. He recognized that Jesus had a kingdom and that he was the king of that kingdom. But hanging on the cross wasn't going to be the end. talk about seeing past your circumstances. Jesus replied, I assure you today you will be with me in paradise. What that criminal, what did that criminal have to do to be saved? He wasn't baptized. He didn't read the word every day. He didn't memorize scripture or any other number of disciplines. He simply just talked to Jesus. Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom Now I'm not saying that those things aren't important I'm saying they're not your ticket in He saved us not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. Salvation is not a reward for the good things that we've done, so none of us can boast about it. All that thief could do was hang there until he was no Now I still fall into that rut that I have to do this and I didn't do that. That whole works mindset, it's rooted pretty deep. He knows I'm not perfect. I still suffer from autoimmune, but it has been 11 years since I've had that discussion with my doctor. I'm still here. How? I discovered that I will never do enough because it's not about what I can do. Truthfully, I can't do anything without him anyways. I was without any ability of my own, like the thief hanging there on the cross, unable to do anything, completely and utterly dependent on him. Works as a byproduct of love. We get to, not got to. We desire to do things out of love because He loved us first. We get to love through our works for Him and for others. To the criminal on the cross, Jesus made it clear that He provides the way and only through Him. We can't do it on our own merit. No matter of to-do lists, no matter of good deeds, no matter of striving, no matter, no amount of doing it perfectly. He just hung there, believing beyond his circumstance. When I fall back into that I have to mentality, I look back a decade ago and what that brought me to and what Jesus carried me out of. If you recognize that you are a sinner and you believe Jesus is who he says he is, if you don't breathe another breath, you can believe that his word is true, that he will be with you just as he was with the criminal. Jesus carries our troubles. Have you ever sat in a room where someone you love was hurting and there was nothing you can do to fix it? Good Friday is a day where we stand at the foot of the cross. And when we stand there, we see suffering. We see pain, we see love, we see Jesus. In John 19, 26 to 27, we read. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, dear woman, here is your son. And he said to this disciple, here is your mother. This is a striking moment. Jesus is hanging on the cross, struggling to breathe, carrying the weight of our sin. And yet he pauses to care. He looks at his mother. He looks at his beloved disciple. And he brings them together. Here's our problem. In our deepest pain, we often feel alone. There are moments in life when there is nothing anyone can do to fix what you're going through. I remember being in a hospital watching my daughter go into emergency surgery, holding her hand until the last possible moment. There was nothing I could do but sit and wait. I've sat in ER rooms watching doctors stitch wounds, wrap sprains, cast broken bones, and deliver devastating diagnoses. I've helped my mother through a difficult recovery and sat with friends in seasons of pain. and loss. And in those moments, you realize something. Sometimes, love doesn't fix the pain. It just stays. And that can feel very lonely. Mary stood at the cross watching her son suffer. John stood there watching his friend die. And neither of them could stop it. They could only stay. But here's the beauty of that moment. Jesus does not let them suffer alone. In the midst of his own pain, he creates connection. Dear woman, here is your son. Here is your mother. This is what Jesus taught earlier in Mark 3, 33 to 35. Whoever does the will of my father is my brother, sister, and mother. At the cross, that becomes real. And here's the truth of what we need to hear tonight. Jesus doesn't just carry our sin, he carries our suffering. And he makes sure that we don't carry it alone. At the cross, Jesus creates community where we hold each other up when we don't have the strength to stand. So what does that mean for us? It means when someone is hurting, we don't walk away, we stay. When someone is grieving, we sit beside them. When someone feels alone, we become family. Because sometimes the greatest act of love is simply presence. And maybe tonight, you're the one who feels like Mary. watching someone you love suffer or like John standing in a place you never expected to be. Hear this. You are not alone at the cross. Jesus saw you and he didn't just make a way to save you. He made a way to surround you. Let me say it clearly at the cross. Jesus didn't just die for us, he gave us each other. So tonight, receive his love and reflect his love. Stay with someone, sit with someone, walk with someone, because Jesus stayed for you. On Mark 15, 34, says that at three o'clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, and he cried out, Ali Ali, lemma sevaktani, which means, God, my God, why have you forsaken me? In the final hour of his death, the Bible tells us that at this time the land was basically covered by darkness. he ⁓ cried out and as he hung from the cross, he cried out this common Arabic phrase that was a direct quote from King David found on Psalm 22. The depth and nuance of this phrase emphasizes Jesus' love for us and his understanding of our pain and reflection. As I sit with these words, something that resonates with me is the intensity and the feeling of being forsaken and the fear of being abandoned or left behind and the overwhelming confusion that entraps the human heart to imagine the feeling of hopelessness. Perhaps it doesn't take too long for me or for lot of people to resonate with this feeling. It is not a feeling that we seek out or long for. Yet when it comes to... when it comes to ⁓ wondering if anyone is there at all to hear our cries, ⁓ oftentimes I feel. that it is a feeling that I resonate with a lot. ⁓ After experiencing seizures in my early 20s, ⁓ I often looked away as many EMTs and police officers used to take me away. ⁓ I would spend nights in the hospital wondering why God allowed the seizures to happen. And I sat in loneliness. and the loneliness of my own illness, an illness that was physical. that later also became an emotional illness and a spiritual illness. Sometimes my depression would drive me to seek out unhealthy coping mechanisms and patterns because I couldn't be alone. In many areas of my life, I would lead a double life. And in the quiet moments, the sadness and despair would come. I used to hear the same thought that God does not want to talk to you anymore. Sitting on this passage I can reflect on the Psalm that Jesus cried out to God, Why have you forsaken me? However, unlike myself, Jesus had chosen to enter this moment. not just to carry the weight of sin, but to carry the physical and spiritual pain. And so he was forsaken so that God would not forsake us in that moment of need. And while this phrase brings a lot of confusion, it also brings me a lot of trust that even in the moments when God feels the most distant, he has not forsaken us. because he paid the ultimate price for us. Jesus not only chose to enter this moment as a reminder that He was willing to be forsaken for us, but also He chose to enter this moment. I'm having a hard time reading because I'm trying new content. He also chose to enter this moment to show us that He knows our pain and grief. When Jesus cries out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? He is fully God, fully men in his humanity and his divinity. Jesus was there to show us that he carried the physical and spiritual pain of our sin. But also he showed us that he understood. Jesus gave language to our pain. He resonates with our feelings. He holds space for us in the seasons of confusion when all we have are unanswered questions. And finally, in his last hours, Jesus' faith and devotion remains firm. Great is the need for atonement that Jesus must suffer even though he is innocent. And despite this, Jesus' words are still, my God, my God. There's a lot of nuance and yet so much clarity in this statement that I think only Jesus could have offered so much because only him could have known what to express. Jesus shows through this language that there is a place where the most confusing and earth shattering feelings of despair, isolation, desolation, and shame. He shows us that not only is he present, but that he is intimate with our pain. not just merely an observer, but someone who suffers with us. Thank you. John 19 verse 28. Later, knowing that everything had now been finished and so that scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, I am thirsty. to quote the artist Scott Erickson whose artwork has been on the screens for us tonight, displaying the seven last words of Jesus. ⁓ for I am thirsty. He said, if you stop drinking, you die. If you stop eating, you die. If you stop breathing, you die. If you stop healing, you die. If you stop desiring, you die. If you stop loving, you die. If you stop caring, you die. If you stop being, you die. The thirst is there for a reason. And so these simple words, I am thirsty, they carry a lot of meaning behind them. On the surface we can notice that Jesus was in fact suffering as a human would suffer. John is emphasizing that Jesus suffered in a human body as any other human would suffer. Those who were crucified experienced extreme dehydration because of the brutality of the punishment, the exposure, the blood loss. John begins his book by saying, the word became flesh. And so when he writes that Jesus says, I thirst, he's showing that Jesus is truly suffering in a human body because he was fully man. His thirst is real and he's not pretending. He's experiencing the full depth of human weakness. He was coming to the end of his life and all of us at some point in our lives, will walk along someone as they're coming to the end of their life. And if you know this, you know that this typically isn't a dignified journey. It's a journey to giving up, letting go. It includes the ability to do things yourself, to get a drink. A human life can't be accomplished on its own. And Jesus partook in having someone carry his burden, the literal cross, his thirst, just like we ⁓ will have our burdens carried. just like we will carry other people's burdens, Jesus carries ours because he knows what it's like. And as we look closer into what Jesus is saying here, we can see that even as he was dying on the cross, he is consciously fulfilling scripture in his final moments. Psalm 69 verse 21, David writes, but instead they give me poison for food, they offer me sour wine for my thirst. Jesus is showing that his death is no accident, rather it's a purposeful and in line with God's redemptive plan. As we continue reading in John 19 and verse 29, as it mentions in Psalm 69, a jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it to his lips. This is no accident. Jesus knows the Psalms. He's fulfilling scripture. as he's breathing his final breaths and finally saying it is finished. Even his thirst serves the completion of his mission. Let's look a little deeper. The book of John is full of symbolism, dark and light, water and thirst. Back in John 4, Jesus is with the Samaritan woman at the well. In verse 9, she says, you're a Jew and I'm a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink? Verse 10, Jesus replied, If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you're speaking to, you would ask me and I would give you living water. Further on in chapter seven, verses 37 to 38, Jesus promises living water. On that day of the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, anyone who is thirsty may come to me. Anyone who believes in me may come and drink. For the scriptures declare rivers of living water will flow from his heart. Throughout the book, John is using the images of water and thirst to point to Jesus and how humans can have a physical thirst. And Jesus has living water that can quench our deepest thirst, our spiritual thirst for God. And Jesus uses that physical thirst ⁓ that he knows people have to show them the deep thirst they have for a savior, the thirst for something more, something to save them. So I thirst is a small phrase with the eternal significance. It shows us the Savior who suffers with us, fulfills God's plan for us, and gives himself completely for us. And because he was thirsty, we can come and drink. Because he had carried his burden, because he had his burdens carried, he can carry ours. This verse is from Luke 23, verse 34. Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. My thoughts go to this final act of trust by Jesus in the hands of his father. Jesus always put his trust in God throughout his ministry, during moments of temptation. before his crucifixion and during his crucifixion. And that moment... when he was transported from human spirit to spirit. carrying the world's burdens, sin, shame, and terrible horrific pain. Yet in that moment, he called out, committing his spirit to the Father. My personal sense of this verse is a transition that happens when you read it from heavily burdened life and pain to uplifting relief, peace and tranquility. My thoughts go to moments in my own life when I felt at breaking point with trouble and burdens. Sharing with you one of the moments was a few years back when my father was very ill in the hospital in Florida. My brother was in a hospital in New York City close to death. I had a family member that was doing nothing but creating more issues. And after a very bad day at work, was in my car in rush hour going to New York City to see my brother in the hospital, try to manage his care, and then to go to his apartment to start cleaning up a terrible mess. ⁓ And I was so wrought up and angry, ⁓ unconsolable. It was all about me. Why was I having to do this? Why did I have to be the one to drive and do this? And I was exhausted and I was tired. And I was just ready to give up. was depleted. and I was definitely at the brink. And while I'm driving and I'm clutching the steering wheel in horrific traffic, all of a sudden, I heard a voice inside of me. And the voice said to me, give it up. Give it to me. And all of a sudden I broke down in tears. I'm still driving. And then I started to pray. And as I was praying and still on my way to the city, I felt slowly this lifting of all of this weight on my shoulders, all of the weight on my heart. And I physically physically changed. And at that moment as I drove, I felt lighter and lighter until I actually, believe it or not, reached a point of joy. And when that happened, I realized something really important. And it's a lesson that I'm still learning. Because everything I had to do that day, I continued to do. Nothing changed. The traffic was terrible. I couldn't find parking. I had to go to the hospital. Then I went, I got home. I don't know at what time. But I... totally changed my attitude about it. totally felt differently about it. I felt light. I felt joy. And then I realized that it was important not to go to God after the fact. We, I need to go to God before the fact. And right away, because he's a partner with us. And Jesus knew that hanging on the cross, that God was there, he trusted him. And the transformation that happened just to me was very much like the verse where the lifting and the transformation that. Jesus went through to give us hope and to know that he's with us and that in the difficult seasons that he can lighten that burden and make the impossible very possible and then we can do it even with joy and peace. Thank you. It is finished. John 19. was the final phrase Jesus there is something significant about this phrase as well. There's a word called Tetelestah. And the amazing thing about this word was that it was a word that was uttered when you would have soldiers that would complete a task or a mission. It would be their way of saying victory or hurrah. They would gather around to tell us die, tell us die. It is finished. Another way this word was used, it was for transactions. there would be a debt owed and a payment needs to be made. Once that payment has been made, they would put on the bill of sale or the contracts to Telestei. Debt finished, debt completed, debt is over. What strikes me about this word so heavily is that it's a word that speaks into past, present, and future. If we were to think of it as a way of utilizing it in modern times, we would be receiving a bill in the mail probably from the IRS or for our car insurance company or from the car dealership itself, and it's inquiring for a bill to be paid. And In the midst of paying that bill, we receive another bill back, wondering, my gosh, what is it going to say now? I thought I just paid this just to find out that we actually completed the last payment. And in return, it says, to Telestei, or final payment completed. It was owed. It hasn't been paid. There's no need to inquire about it anymore. I understand this. It makes sense to me. Mostly the part that I understand is the feeling and the weight that comes with carrying debt, carrying burden, growing up, coming from a place that looks much like Patterson, New York, not Patterson, New York, Patterson, New Jersey. From a very young age, I was well acquainted with heaviness and debt. and the fear of the unknown of what's going to happen next, moving from house to house, not knowing where I was going to end up. That feeling was something that became familiar ever since I was a kid to my present day as I presently try to figure out how to navigate this life. That feeling is familiar. Another feeling that's familiar but still hard for me to grasp. is the point in time I have things owed, I have problems that come up, and when it comes to getting these issues resolved, I come up short. And that very familiar fear sinks over me again, the depression, the anxiety, everything of that sort. My natural response is to withdraw within. But then a friend steps in. Then, community step in and instead of saying, hey, I will pay this for you so you could pay me back now, they say, I will cover this and you do not have to worry about it again. Translate that to modern tongue. This is something you owed. You're struggling. I see that. I got you. Don't worry about it. And again, recalling the fear that I know all too well, the way I know all too well, my response is, you sure? Like, this is something, like this is a lot. You sure? And their response is something along the lines of, nah, you good, bro. Don't worry about it. or in ancient tongue, John, to Telestai. Yeah, it's paid for. I got you. Stop inquiring about it. Stop bringing it up. Stop worrying about it. It's paid for. Why do you keep talking about this? We're good. We're cool. and it just helps me understand the framework of Christ that much more so that way when I then look up at the cross to this God that has seen this debt on my life that I have contributed to since I was young, we commonly known as sin. He, on this day that we consider a good Friday, this good funeral day, had decided to say so many years ago, John, there are things in your life that you are going to do that are going to be of your own doing that is going to separate you from me, but don't worry about it. That debt that comes with it, I got you. And again, responding to that familiar fear and anxiety of the things that I wrought in this life, I look up at God and I say, God, you sure? Like, the wages of sin is death. I am not perfect. I make more mistakes than I do good. You sure, God? And he looks. down upon me and lets me know in so many different ways by saying, Tetelestai, stop inquiring about it anymore, John. You're good. And I look back up with him with arms stretched wide, wider than human joints can handle on that cross. And he wraps me in grace, whispering in that final breath, Tetelestai, stop inquiring about it. It's taken care of. And in response, all I can do is tremble. So in this, I wanna leave you with this question. What things, what aspects about your life, whether by your own doing or outside of your own doing that you bear, that you carry, that you hold onto? that God is whispering to you to tell us die. Stop inquiring about it. It's covered. Thank you. The Apostle Peter in his first letter wrote to a church that was experiencing excruciating suffering. Excruciating suffering. They were the lowliest of the low. They were on the margins. They were forced to do horrible, inexplicable things that you never want to speak about. Many of them were slaves in households, the wives of the head of the household who would do whatever they wanted to do to them. This was a weak and suffering and burdened and heavy church. And in the midst of all of that, Peter writes right at the very center of his letter to them, he says, he, Jesus himself, bore our sins. in his body on the cross so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness. And then he says this, by his wounds you have been healed. Jesus carries our troubles. You know, artists have always intuitively known that Jesus carries our troubles, even personally today. They've always understood how to depict Jesus carrying the troubles of our lives. They present Jesus on the cross, not only suffering his death, but also suffering and carrying the troubles of the generation of the artist in question. In 1512 to 1516, Matthias Grunwald ⁓ painted what's called the Eisenheim altarpiece. And this is ⁓ part of the altarpiece that shows Jesus crucified and dying on the cross. But if you look closely, Jesus is not just dying of crucifixion, he's also dying of the plague. There are sores all over his body. This was being painted in the middle of the plague in medieval Europe. And the artist saw Jesus not only bearing the sins of the world, specifically of their moment and time. Jesus carries our trouble. In 1946, Graham Sutherland entitled the painting simply called Crucifixion. It's based on pictures of Holocaust survivors. He contemplated Jesus carrying the troubles of those who were mass murdered across Europe in those years. Jesus carries our troubles. Brazilian sculptor by the name of Guido Roca. produced a statue called the Tortured Christ in 1975. Because in South America in the 70s, there was mass, mass brutal oppression and poverty, and the mass amounts of people across South America were emaciated and starving to death. And Jesus is there carrying the troubles of the people. And finally, most recently, the year 2000, a stained glass installation in a church in Chicago based on a drawing by Tom Feelings shows Christ with his arms outstretched and his body is depicting the cargo hold of a slave ship carrying kidnapped West Africans to a new world. Artists have always seemed to understand that Jesus carries our troubles in our moments in time, not just way back then, but for right now. But so is the church. The early church leader Athanasius wondered out loud about Jesus' death, asking if it was really necessary for him to suffer like this. As you've heard from our speakers tonight, is it really necessary that he go through all this? But Athanasius says that if he had suffered in his own way and chosen his own way of dying, it would have been suspicious, Athanasius says. Maybe he wasn't actually powerful over all forms of trouble and all death. Maybe Jesus was fearful of some kinds of death if he had picked his own way of suffering. But instead, Jesus allows his enemies to choose whatever method of death, whatever suffering they pleased and in doing so, Jesus showed us that there is no trouble that he cannot carry. There is no pain or sorrow or suffering or struggle that he is not willing to bear. And so as you heard tonight, by forgiving, Jesus forgives when we cannot. Jesus carries our trouble by receiving us when we can only hang there useless. Jesus carries our trouble by bringing us into community with each other so that we do not suffer alone. Jesus carries our trouble by giving us language and making space for the sorrow we cannot fully express. Jesus carries our trouble by thirsting with us as humans and leading us to thirst for living water. Jesus carries our trouble by trusting the Father for us when we can barely trust. Jesus carries our trouble by taking all of the debt, the heaviness, and saying to us, you don't owe a thing. I've got it to tell us to. All of the messiness of our lives that we have been contemplating during this Lent season, all of the sin that we have needed to confess, all of the shame that we have been hiding, all of the inexplicable suffering and loss at the walls of life that we have encountered. All of these are invitations to come back to our first love. These are invitations to come to the one who can carry our troubles. God has come among us in Jesus Christ. Not only to simply save us and give us a ticket to heaven as it were, but God has come in Jesus Christ to completely and totally identify and join with the suffering, sin and struggle of humanity. In His body, He bore our sins and by His wounds. you are healed because Jesus carries our troubles. If you were to paint or sculpt Jesus's crucifixion tonight, what suffering or sin or struggle or sorrow would you find yourself depicting Jesus carrying to the cross on your behalf? What is going on in your world or in the world around you or in the lives of your neighbors that you might depict Jesus carrying? since there is no trouble that our Savior cannot carry. We invite you tonight to give him everything and lay it at the foot of the cross.