Sermon Central
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Today You'll Be With Me In Paradise Series
Contributed by Ryan Loyd on Jul 29, 2014 (message contributor)
Summary: Words uttered at the end of a man's life take on extra significance. What did our Lord say in His final moments? And what do they speak to us today?
Luke 23:32-43 NIV
32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.
33 When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals--one on his right, the other on his left.
34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One."
36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar
37 and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself."
38 There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.
39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!"
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence?
41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."
42 Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
Introduction:
Two Thieves, Two Different Perspectives
Have you ever listened to two people describe an event from completely different perspectives?
A car accident, perhaps, or maybe a sporting event…
Their descriptions sound so different that you may wonder if they are talking about the same thing…
We see in the text, Luke recorded something like that in 23:39–41
Two criminals, at the same scene,
On opposite sides of the cross of Christ
One saw another failed opportunity to get himself free from Cross
The other saw and understood that the way of salvation was not to be free from the Cross,
But to be free from sin & inherit life everlasting
The first man died in his sins
The second received forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life
Perspective makes all the difference
I think sometimes we want the Lord to free us from our situations
We want freedom from our circumstance
But we should find our delight in Jesus Christ
And His Salvation
And that is more than enough!
Text Setting:
Three crosses stand on the Hill of Golgotha
A crowd has gathered there to witness all of whats taking place
Not that crucifixion was unusual
But this day is different. An unusual man is being crucified.
Jesus wasn’t an ordinary criminal, Not a thief, not a murderer
But still, there he was on the middle cross
On either side, two men were crucified with him
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence?
41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."
One criminal rebuked the other criminal
Pointing out that they deserved their sentence, but Jesus did not
They were being punished justly,
But Jesus had done nothing wrong
How this one criminal understood this truth isn’t known
Maybe he was familiar with Jesus
Maybe it was all what he witnessed that day
But either way he then said in v 42…
42 Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
And you have to take notice of this criminal’s faith in this moment
There is something about times of crisis
Times of hardship that causes one’s faith to increase
Many people who wouldn’t normally call on Jesus
They do in the hospital, They do in split second before car wreck
And in this man’s crisis, in his dying moment
The criminal had more faith than all of Jesus’ disciples
Although the disciples continued to love Jesus,
their hopes for the kingdom had been shattered
Peter outright denied knowing Jesus
Most of them had gone into hiding
As one follower on Road to Emmaus would say two days later,
“We had hoped that he was the one who would redeem Israel”
But the criminal looked at the man who was dying next to him and said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
By all appearances, the Kingdom was finished
Jesus didn’t take Earthly Throne that they thought He would
But this criminal saw beyond the Cross to the coming glory!
He understood, it’s not an Earthly Kingdom - - It’s Heavenly!
43 Jesus answered him,
"I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Jesus assured him that today—that very day,
After they breathed their last,
The criminal would be with him in paradise.
