Sermon Audio
March 1, 2015
Today in paradise…
Heavenly Father, Your Son’s Words from the Cross clearly paint a
picture that is after our hearts desire of paradise. Yet, paradise is not a beach somewhere, warm
weather, nor with a drink in one hand and our toes in the sand, but paradise is
to be in Your Holy presence. Enable us
to hear Your offer to each of us as one full of grace that helps us to call on
You in our most desperate need and builds us up for Your Glory and purpose
among all the people here in Goodland.
In Your Holy name we pray. AMEN.
With the last week of cold temperatures and snow to blanket the
winter wheat, there are many who need to imagine the warmth found in
paradise. For some, paradise is a warm
beach somewhere, with a cold drink surrounded by surf, sand and sea air. Others paradise would be a tall stand of
wheat ready for the combine and still others paradise would be a warm fire
place snuggled up in a warm blanket with their sweetheart cuddled next to
them. No matter what our idea of
paradise may be, the truth we find from today’s segment of the Word from the
Cross is that Jesus is offering us this option and opportunity today.
Hear Jesus words for us today, “Truly, I say to you, today you
will be with me in Paradise.” When
Jesus spoke these words while on the Cross, He was hanging next to two of the
most despicable criminals in Jerusalem at that time. Scripture does not clearly identify their crimes,
but for what these two men had done, they had been tried and deserved death on
the cross. But Jesus unlike these two
criminals had not done anything to deserve death, yet shared their fate of
hanging from the Cross.
One of Jesus companions clearly looked upon Jesus as a fellow
criminal and deserving the same fate as he was enduring. But the other knew that Jesus had not done
anything to deserve death. And he pleaded
with Jesus to remember him when he came into His kingdom. Evidently, this criminal had heard some of
what Jesus had taught and believed what Jesus had spoken about. Jesus even under the duress and pain
inflicted by the soldiers, now hanging on the cross spoke these simple 13 words
that were full of promise, forgiveness and the paradise of the future offered
to him and to each of us gathered here this morning.
Jesus promise to this man with the words, “Truly, I say to you, today you
will be with me in Paradise.” was of something that was beyond the
criminals grasp. This man who was nailed
to a cross beside Jesus, was suffering justly for his life, but was given the
greatest promise by Jesus Christ. Jesus
Christ was offering him entrance into paradise.
A promise that would be fulfilled with Jesus very death there on the
Cross beside him. It was a promise that
only the Son of God could offer to him.
The promise would only be fulfilled and occur because of and by Jesus
innocent death on Calvary. For this is
the same promise we have made to each of us as well in our baptism.
Not only were Jesus words of promise, these 13 words, were a
declaration of the forgiveness of sins.
Jesus Christ when He said, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with
me in Paradise.” was declaring this criminal ‘not guilty’, not in the
eyes of man, but in the eyes of God.
Every Jew properly understood that only God could offer forgiveness and
this was in fact what Jesus was offering this criminal. Jesus was offering him, life and salvation
for all eternity. The free gift of grace
Jesus offered while hanging from the Cross takes on new meaning.
The grace given by Jesus would impart the forgiveness this man
needed not only for his earthly mistakes, but especially for the broken
relationship of the vertical, between him and God. Jesus Christ with this promise of forgiveness
conveyed the very gift of grace that was not deserved, but clearly received by
this criminal. But it was not just the
fulfillment of the promise nor a simple declaration of grace, it took on new
meaning with Jesus words, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with
me in Paradise.”
What we sometimes fail to understand is that Jesus Christ with
these 13 words is offering this criminal a future where he thought he had no
future when he was nailed to the cross.
Jesus Christ is clearly giving and offering the greatest gift of
grace. And this same gift of grace God
through His Son, Jesus Christ is offering to each and every one of us here
today. When we hear these simple 13
words, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” God is offering us not only forgiveness, but
life and salvation for each and every one of us no matter what we have done. Just as the criminal didn’t deserve it, we do
not earn it or deserve it either. But God,
out of His divine favor and love offers us eternal life and to be with Him in
paradise. We are offered entrance into
paradise and eternity because God loves us.
That is exactly what the salvation story is all about. It is God showing His love for all of mankind
through His Son Jesus Christ. And when
we come and hear this story, partake of His meal and believe this story and
understand these 13 words are meant for each of us, God changes our
hearts. For these 13 words are full of
promise and forgiveness of the paradise God has prepared for all of mankind,
especially including all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel who hear and believe
Jesus words from the Cross for us this Second Sunday in Lent, “Truly,
I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” AMEN.
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