Luke 23:27-43 November 20, 2016 A+D
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
+ Amen +
This morning, the words of Our Lord from the Cross is our text from the Gospel of Luke, Chapter Twenty-three verse forty-three: “And [Jesus] said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’”. This is our text.
On the last Sunday of the church year, we focus on the last day. Both our own last day, and Judgment Day. In God’s word, we are shown the contrast between the two options for which way this can go for us. In the Bible, God has provided us many examples of contrasts throughout the history of His people, and in the people Jesus encountered and taught about:
Adam and Eve before and after the fall into sin
Cain and Abel
Noah and his family against the entire rest of the population of the earth
Jacob and Esau
Moses and Pharaoh
The Pharisee and the tax collector
The rich man and Lazarus
Mary and Martha
Contrasts of love and hate, light and darkness, wheat and chaff, good and poor stewards, wise and foolish virgins, Christ and antichrist, Paradise… and hell. Ultimately, we are shown the contrast between what is right before God, and what feels right to our sinful desires. Today, we see amid the blood and the pain another contrast.
Crucified on either side of Jesus are two criminals. Crucifixion was a punishment reserved for the absolute worst of the worst for crimes against the state1. The methods of capital punishment in Jesus’ time ran from the most “merciful”, beheading, to being burned alive, to crucifixion. The famous Roman lawyer and writer Cicero called it the “most extreme form of punishment”.2 The Jewish historian Josephus, who witnessed many crucifixions, called it “the most wretched of deaths.”.3 Crucifixion was a slow, extremely painful and brutal way to die as you fought for every breath and eventually succumbed to asphyxiation or drowning as your lungs filled with fluid. Consider now the contrast of the two criminals. To one side of Jesus, the thief who is only thinking of himself. Already suffering upon his cross, he wastes the little breath he can muster to join in the mockery of Jesus. “You’re the Christ! Why don’t you save yourself? And while you’re at it, save us too!”. It sounds as though this man believes in who Jesus is, but he is merely putting voice to the mockery of the sign above Jesus’ head, in the place where the details of a condemned man’s crime is posted: “This is the King of the Jews”. Philip Melanchthon, a contemporary of Luther, reminds us in our Lutheran Confessions that this is not real faith, only knowledge of facts that even the devils have.4 Remember when Jesus started his ministry, and he came upon a man possessed of a demon? The demon recognized Him, even called Him the Christ, the Son of God! But that demon had no more faith in what those names mean and what Jesus can do, than this mocking thief. The impenitent criminal is only looking out for himself, with no remorse for his sins, even as he was being slowly executed for his crimes. It is an almost unimaginable display of selfishness and arrogant disdain for God, in the very presence of God Himself!
In stark contrast, look to the other side of our bruised, beaten, and bleeding Lord; to the other criminal crucified that day. Listen to this condemned and dying man’s confession of faith: “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man had done nothing wrong.” This man rebukes the first criminal, showing that fear of God is the proper attitude toward God, especially when the end of our lives is near. Indeed, keeping the first commandment to fear, love, and trust in God above all things requires true faith, as Martin Luther teaches us in the Large Catechism.5 This man struggling to breathe and clinging to life disavows the other criminal for presuming to speak for the both of them: “save yourself and us!”6. This man in truly remorseful and ashamed for his crimes, and hanging beside the Son of God, he has confessed that he has sinned and been condemned rightly for his actions. Next, he begs forgiveness, asking “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” acknowledging Jesus as God. In Hebrew, the word “remember”7 connotes an active working of a promise made by God. This is a fine example of what it mean to be truly contrite and penitent. Facing eternal death, he not only declares Jesus’ innocence, but rightly recognizes Jesus’ true identity and majesty, and asks for forgiveness. This dying sinner illustrates what true repentance looks like.
To be truly repentant, we must be contrite – that means that our hearts are terrorized when we recognize our sinfulness. We then must confess, which is faith granted by the Holy Spirit that our sin is forgiven on account of Christ’s suffering the punishment for our sin in our place.8
We do the this very thing every time we gather in this place, and confess our sins. We acknowledge that we are sinful by nature. We acknowledge that we have sinned against against God in thought, word, and deed. We acknowledge that we deserve punishment, both in this world, and eternal punishment in the world to come. And we ask for forgiveness and renewal for the sake of Jesus Christ and his work on the Cross. We confess our sins before God and ask forgiveness in response to the great work of Christ for us, just a the penitent criminal responds to the absolution Jesus spoke earlier from the cross, not only to those at the foot of the cross, but to the world: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”.
During this exchange between the hanging criminals, Jesus has been silent. Now he speaks a second time from the Cross: “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”. Jesus is the source of all forgiveness, and offers this to all, even the worst evildoer. Jesus speaks words of true comfort and joy to the world. He comes to make his blessings flow far as the curse [of sin] is found9. Jesus came to die on the cross for this criminal, for you, for me, and for all sinners.
As parents, we often times reply to a request from our children with “we’ll see” or “maybe later”. As children, we usually learn pretty quickly that “maybe later” frequently means “no” and “we’ll see” usually has some strings attached like “we’ll see how well you clean your room” or “we’ll see if you eat all your vegetables”. However, words mean exactly what they say when God says them. We sing in our communion liturgy the words of Psalm 105:42-43, “He recalls his promises, and leads his people forth in joy with shouts of thanksgiving.”. When the Lord makes a promise with man, you can rest assured the promise will be kept to the letter.
Jesus makes no mention of purgatory (the place where you go after you die to “work off” your remaining sins, before you can go to heaven), or of any acts of penance the criminal has to do before he can merit salvation. Jesus makes no mention of a “soul sleep”10 where we rest in our graves until the day of judgment arrives. He tells him “today”! This day. Right now! No line, no waiting. Free admission. When this condemned man breathes his last, he will be with Jesus in heaven at that very second. For us, we can take comfort that in the day of our death, at that very instant, we will look upon the face of our risen Savior in all his glory in heaven.
We are even given a glimpse of what Paradise will be like: As the Prophets wrote of the coming kingdom in Isaiah and Revelation, and which J.S. Bach paraphrased so beautifully in his cantata “Wake, Awake”:
“Awake, calls the voice to us of the watchmen high up in the tower; awake you city of Jerusalem...where are you, wise virgins? The Bridegroom comes, rise up and take your lamps, Alleluia! Make yourselves ready for the wedding...Zion hears the watchmen sing, her heart leaps for joy within her, she wakens and hastily arises. Her glorious friend comes from heaven, strong in mercy, powerful in truth. Now come precious crown, Lord Jesus, the Son of God! Let Gloria be sung to you… No eye has ever perceived, no ear has ever heard such joy like our happiness, eternally in sweet rejoicing!”11
In Revelation, we are shown the kingdom of God, his throne room, and our place in it. Right there in Revelation chapter twenty-two, we see what the Paradise promised to the penitent thief is like. There, we will no longer need the sun, because the radiance of God will light our way. We will enjoy the streets of the new Jerusalem, where the living water flows. We will also be able to eat again from the tree of life, forbidden us since our ancestors Adam and Eve sinfully ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We will truly get to live in Paradise, just as God intended us to do before that fateful day so long ago. A new heaven and a new earth. No more sin. No more pain. No more tears.
Who are we more like: the mocking criminal, or the repentant criminal? The truth is, while we remain in this world, we are both. Sin remains with us always. But we are also made righteous before God because we are connected to Christ and His work on our behalf. What better witness to the truth of our crucified Savior, than the dying criminal trusting in Him, asking and receiving his forgiveness, and hearing from His own lips “Today, you will be with me in paradise!” Is it any wonder that we hear so many stories of people whose eyes are opened to the truth, when they are confronted by their own mortality and wonder what happens next? Jesus tells us exactly that in our text today. Connected to Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension in our baptisms where our old sinful nature is killed, though it remains fighting in us like a wounded animal, we can be confident that His words are true, and we have become his dear children. When we kneel before this altar where He gives us his body and blood to eat and drink for the forgiveness of sins and the strengthening of our faith, we can be confident that His words are true and deliver exactly that. Granted His Holy Spirit through these simple means of water, bread and wine connected to His Word, we are prepared. No longer foolish, but wise. And when our own struggle on this earth is over, we can go to our own deaths in confidence that His words are true, saying “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” And at that moment, we will also be with him in Paradise. Right now. On that day, and for all eternity.
+ Amen +
And now may the peace which surpasses all human understanding keep your hearts and your minds focused on Christ Jesus, today, and every day, until your last day, when you meet Him in Paradise.
+ Amen +
1The Anchor Bible dictionary. New York: Doubleday, 1992. V.1.pp.1207-1210.
2The Anchor Bible dictionary. New York: Doubleday, 1992. V.1.pp.1207-1210.
3The Anchor Bible dictionary. New York: Doubleday, 1992. V.1.pp.1207-1210.
4Ap IV 249.
5LC I 4.
6Lenski, Interpretation of Luke. Special edition reprint, Hendrickson, 2001. p.1141.
7Zakar, see TLSB note p.843.
8AC XII 3-5.
9Joy to the World, v.3 LSB #387.
10Graf, Arthur, Bought With A Price, Springfield, Faith, 1961. pp.101-102.
11Bach, J.S. Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme BWV 140, selected hghlights..