Sermon Page

I don’t like to admit it, but during my college days I was hooked on a soap opera. This obsession went as far as scheduling classes around the time that it aired on the television. Looking back at those times, I think that it was the unexpected twists in the ongoing plot that kept me coming back for more. If we look carefully at the last week of Jesus’ life we will see many unexpected events and twists in the story but unlike the soap opera these events were real and actually took place. Let’s start with Palm Sunday. Jesus had spent three years teaching and preaching throughout the region and never are we told that he used anything other than His feet for transportation but on this day two of His disciples are told to find two donkeys for Him to ride on. On Thursday of that first Holy Week Judas, who is one of His disciples and closest followers betrays Him for thirty pieces of silver. On that same night before dawn Jesus’ faithful disciple Peter denies Him three times. One of the strangest twists is that it is likely that some of the people who praised Jesus as he rode into Jerusalem on Sunday were the same people who cried out to crucify Him on Friday. There are other unexpected events that occurred during that first Holy Week, but the one that I want to focus on at this time is the confession of one of the criminals who hung on a cross next to Jesus.

If we were to compose a list of all the characters who were involved in that first Holy Week and then I asked you to choose one of the characters who would be most likely to make a confession of faith, I think that it would be safe to say that the criminal on the cross would not be the choice selected by many of you. The Bible doesn’t give us any information about this man other than he is a criminal who received the death sentence for his crime. We don’t know what crime(s) that he has committed, we don’t know his personal background, and we don’t even know if he has ever heard of the teachings of Jesus.

What we do know is that he truly repents of his sin there on the cross. He first admits his sin. He says, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly…” His saying that he justly deserved the sentence of condemnation is a confession of guilt and sinfulness. Secondly, he makes it right. Again he says, “And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds;” This criminal makes it right by accepting his sentence which was death by crucifixion. Lastly, the third element of true repentance is trusting in God. The criminal shows his trust in these words from the cross, “Do you not fear God” and “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And in these words, the criminal not only shows trust in the Lord but also shows great understanding. He realizes that Jesus’ kingdom was not an earthly kingdom, not even Jesus’ closest followers understood this.

Jesus responds to the criminal with these words, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” What reassuring words for this criminal who was so close to death. How comforting to know that he would that very day be with Jesus in paradise. This paradise wouldn’t be like anything that this criminal would have ever seen. This paradise would be spending eternity in the presence of God. It would be like the restoration of the Garden of Eden but better because this would be a heavenly paradise and not an earthly one. This would be a paradise beyond anything that this man could dream.

You know, as I think about this story of the criminal on the cross again, maybe this whole story isn’t as surprising as I first thought! Jesus did die for the sins of the whole world. This not only includes your sins and my sins but also the sins of every criminal that ever walked this earth. And we have a lot in common with that criminal. Like that criminal we are all sinners. Now we probably haven’t committed the same kinds of sins that he did, but all sins are the same in the eyes of God. All sins, whether seemingly minor slip ups or major offenses, are sins against God. Like that criminal, we too have been sentenced to death because of our sin; for the wages of sin is death. We also have the opportunity, like that criminal, for true repentance. And when we come before our God with truly repentant hearts Jesus speaks to us and says, “Truly I say to you on the day when you breath your last you will be with me in paradise.” Thank you dearest Jesus. Amen.