Giving Yourself More Fully to God
Scripture — Luke 23:44 (NRSV)
It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun’s light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” Having said this, he breathed his last. When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, “Certainly this man was innocent.” And when all the crowds who had gathered there for this spectacle saw what had taken place, they returned home, beating their breasts. But all his acquaintances, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
Focus
Just before Jesus died on the cross, he quoted a portion of Psalm 31, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” He had done all that the Father had called him to do, and now he was giving himself fully and finally to the Father. As we face such uncertain times, as we continue to face challenges that feel overwhelming, we are encouraged to echo the words of Jesus, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” We find freedom and hope when we give to God all that we are, seeking God’s kingdom above everything else.
Devotion
Today is Wednesday of Holy Week, the last week of Lent, and a week in which our thoughts are more and more focused on the death of Jesus on Good Friday. On the cross, Jesus said very little, and what he said is traditionally represented as his “seven last words.” Two of these “words” of Jesus were quotations from the Psalms. Earlier, Jesus echoed Psalm 22:1, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” to express his anguish (see Mark 15:34). Later, Jesus borrowed from Psalm 31:5, which appears in Luke 23:46 as “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
By praying this portion of Psalm 31, Jesus was putting his post-mortem future in the hands of his Heavenly Father. It was as if he was saying, “Whatever happens to me after I die is your responsibility, Father. I trust you.”
But when we look carefully at the Psalm Jesus quoted, we see that more is going on here than what at first meets the eye. Psalm 31 begins with a cry for divine help:
In you, O LORD, I seek refuge;
do not let me ever be put to shame;
in your righteousness deliver me (Psalm 31:1).
But then this psalm mixes asking for God’s deliverance with a confession of God’s strength and faithfulness:
Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God (Psalm 31:5).
By the end, Psalm 31 offers praise for God’s salvation:
Blessed be the LORD,
for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me
when I was beset as a city under siege (Psalm 31:21).
By quoting a portion of Psalm 31, therefore, Jesus not only entrusted his future to his Father but also implied that he would be delivered and exonerated. Jesus surely knew the full truth of Psalm 31. He understood that God would not deliver him from crucifixion. But beyond this horrific death lay something marvelous. “Into your hand I commit my spirit” points back to the familiar suffering of David in Psalm 31 and forward to the resurrection of Jesus. Thus, the final word of Jesus from the cross foreshadows the coming victory and joy of Easter.
We live in uncertain, challenging times. Conflict and violence are on the rise in our world. AI could be a great help or a great hindrance to our flourishing. Or maybe both, at once. Energy and climate crises loom. In the United States, political polarization and division can leave us discouraged and hopeless. Many of us face painfully difficult times in our families, schools, workplaces, churches, and communities.
In times like these, the last word of Jesus is particularly relevant, encouraging, and challenging. Though we will do our best to mend our world and to help its people to flourish, in the end, we all pray as did Jesus, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” If we have put our trust in Jesus, then we belong to God both now and forever. We experience this truth as we give to God all that we are each day.
So, as we reflect on Jesus’s death during Holy Week, may we echo his words as we pray, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit. I give you all that I am.”
Reflect
How do you deal with the uncertainties associated with the crisis in our world today?
Have you put your life and, indeed, your life beyond this life, in God’s hands?
How do you experience God’s salvation through Christ in your life today?
Act
Set aside some time to examine your life. Have you given all that you are to God? Do you trust God fully? Or, like most people, are you holding back in some ways? Talk with God about what you discover through your examination.
Pray
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.
See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all. Amen.
(Hymn by Isaac Watts, 1707)
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the High Calling archive, hosted by the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: When You Feel Far Away From God.
Mark D. Roberts
Senior Fellow
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Fellow for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders, and t...