"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing..."

...these were the word of the Lord himself, Jesus Christ, just after being crucified and right before lots were cast for his clothes. Jesus himself showing his love for the lost.

Not only that, but fast forward just a short amount of time...

One of the criminals crucified with Jesus hurled insults at Jesus and then demanded "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" But what does the other criminal say? He says, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Ah! This man is clearly lost! And since he is lost, he knows of a destination where he belongs, and he knows he cannot get there through his own strength...remember the meaning of lost from the last post? He clearly knows why the Lord had to die; to forgive him of his sins. He freely submits to the lordship, and savior aspect, of Jesus at this point. He seems to understand the "why" behind this death. Unlike Peter, of course...

Rewind...Judas, an entire detachment of soldiers, officials from the chief priests, and Pharisees, come to arrest Jesus. Jesus walks out to them and asks the question, "Who is it you want?" Hmmmm? Let me ponder that for a moment...Ah, but Jesus is smart, is he not? He gets dozens (or more) people to say the name of the son of God, doesn't he? The mob responds by saying, "Jesus of Nazareth." What does Jesus do then? Does he run? No, because this was the cup of the covenant with the Father; that he would be crucified for God's chosen people. What Jesus does is even more astounding.

Jesus, in responding to the mob there to arrest him, simply says, "I am he." Earlier Jesus also claimed that, "I am," and the people tried to kill him then. Jesus says the name of God (I am), and at the same time admits that he is the one they are looking for. And what happens? Yup, these dozens (or more) people get knocked down onto their posteriors!!! When the name of God is spoken by the son of God, there is massive power! Then, Jesus does what I think is one of the most brash things ever...right after knocking these people on their butts simply by stating, "I am," he asks them again, "Who is it you want?" Ha ha ha! He makes them say the name of the son of God again! I'll bet there was some trepidation this time, though! Was this a lesson in the sovereignty of God? You can bet your sweet petunias it was! Jesus, in just a couple of small sentences, gives the best lesson about who is in control of this situation, and who's plan it is for him to die...and it was God's plan, not some fallible man's plan for the death of the Christ, no!

Back to Peter...After Jesus makes the mob say the name of the son of God twice, and answers the mob twice with the name of God Himself, he then demands that the rest of the people present (the disciples) are free to go. What does Peter do with this freedom? Yep, he takes out a sword and cuts off the right ear of the high priest's servant (Malchus). Does Peter not understand what is going on here? Is Peter actually trying to prevent Jesus's arrest? Is Peter actually trying to prevent Jesus's death on the cross? Do we have any evidence for this? Of course we do.

Look to Luke 18:31-34. Clearly, Jesus predicts his own death and the disciples "did not know what he was talking about." The disciples did not know until Pentecost when the spirit came into them. Then also look to Mark 8:31-33. Jesus is predicting his own death and Peter takes the Lord aside to rebuke him, and what does Jesus say to Peter? "Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." Wow! Here you have God, in the personage of the son of God, calling you Satan! Do ya think Peter was feeling a little small and insignificant right about then? No, because he didn't have the prompting of the Holy Spirit until after Pentecost, did he? But Jesus kept Peter around, didn't he? Even though at this point Peter is called Satan by the Lord, Peter is kept around because he is lost. Lost because he has a destination in the body of believers. Not lost because he is doomed to Hell.

My guess? Peter, upon seeing Jesus completely and totally whack the dozens or so men that came to arrest him, took it upon himself to take advantage of their weakness and yet again try to keep Jesus from ever getting to the cross!!! Man!! I'm sure glad that God is in control and not Peter (or Pill for that matter).

The point? Well, readers, the point is that Jesus had an unwavering heart for the lost. Remember, God Himself chose people for Jesus, and it was Jesus' job to not lose one of them. And he did not...and he will not. Jesus, up on the cross dieing, gave himself completely to the salvation of the lost.

As believers we can be quite critical of non-believers...or at least I can. I forget that I once was one. Now, can we discern which non-believers are God's chosen and which are not? No, of course not. Therefore, we are to "gently instruct" "those who oppose" (non-believers) us "in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will" (2 Timothy 2:25-26).

We do not know to whom God will grant repentance. Hopefully God places in front of us the lost, because the lost belong to Him and will repent. But that will not always be the case. In some cases, we do "gently instruct" people, and they never repent. They are not the lost, though, are they? Sometimes we "gently instruct" people and they do not repent while we are still around. But we have sewn the seed, and another is needed to water that seed such that it can grow into full repentance.

We must face all the non-believers as though they could be God's chosen people for repentance.

Father God. You are the Creator of all that is. We see evidence of you in all the universe. The universe itself proclaims your glory and pours forth speech about your greatness, and there is no language on the face of this earth that understands not these things. Oh Lord, that we would stop exchanging the truth of you for a lie. That all would worship you, the Creator, rather than the created things. That all would come to their senses, as you state in your glorious Word, and come to a place of repentance of sins and acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Son and Savior and Lord of all!

Father, I pray that you find your lost sheep and bring them to the fold, for these lost sheep cannot find their own way. You are their Shepherd, and through the preaching of the Word, these sheep will hear and know the voice of their Shepherd and follow your lead to salvation. And there will be rejoicing in Heaven! Just as the woman who, after searching diligently until successful, calls friends to rejoice in the finding of the coin, you and the angels and saints will rejoice when the lost are found. And just as the lost son "came to his senses" (Luke 15:17) and went home, might your lost people come to their senses and quit exchanging the truth of God for a lie...and come home to you!