Luke 23:22-42

Has anyone tried booking a holiday with lastminute.com ever?

! Anybody do that? And did it work? Did you get a holiday? Did you get there?

! It's possible to leave things to the last minute, isn't it, including holidays.

And, as we'll see, more important things as well.

As Paul said, Sue and I went down to Devon and looked after a church there for about five years.

And the first person who was saved, the first person who became a Christian there,

because our church secretary befriended him and explained the gospel about Jesus to him,

was a man called Norman.

Six weeks later, Norman died in St. Vincent's Nursing Home in Plymouth.

And this guy, Norman, had had a reputation for being rather a nasty, selfish piece of work.

And he died after six weeks, having become a Christian.

And I was asked to take his funeral, and as is normal, when you take a funeral,

you go around and you talk to the family beforehand.

And I was quite surprised, or I shouldn't have been, and I was amazed to hear about how his family said

this man, Norman, had changed utterly in the last six weeks of his life, and changed for the better.

Lastminute.com, or what?

In particular, his attitude, and that's a key word for this morning,

his attitude to the death of the Lord Jesus Christ had changed.

His attitude to Jesus totally had changed.

But particularly to Jesus' death on the cross.

Why else would a previously irreligious and ungodly man choose a hymn for his own funeral

with the words,

I love that old cross,

where the dearest and best

for a world of lost sinners

was slain.

And I believe that it was because Norman

had met

the Lord Jesus Christ

right at the very end of his life,

and that's rather like what happened

to one of the thieves, the criminals,

who died with the Lord Jesus

on the cross

in Luke chapter 23,

Luke 23 · chapter mention

on page 884

of your pew Bibles,

your chair Bibles,

your church Bibles.

Do keep that passage open,

we're going to look at

what happened.

I mentioned earlier about how

Norman's attitude to Jesus

had changed.

And as Jesus was dying on the cross,

having been crucified there,

in verse 32 and verse 33

of our passage,

Luke chapter 23,

Luke 23 · chapter mention

there were lots of different attitudes

to Jesus.

And some of those attitudes

were dire,

they were really awful

attitudes to Jesus.

So let's look at what was going on,

and compare their attitudes to him,

with his own attitude

to them,

as well,

indeed to us.

Let's look at some careless

attitudes

to the Lord Jesus

in verses 32 to 39.

So there were all these attitudes around.

In verse 32,

we discover that there were

two other men,

both of them criminals,

who were also

led out

with Jesus

to be

crucified.

And they came to this place

called

the skull,

and they crucified

all three of them there.

So it's Jesus

with the criminals,

traditionally known as

the two thieves,

of course.

There was Jesus crucified

on a cross in the middle,

and on his left

and on his right

were two

actual

criminals,

traditionally known

as thieves.

And whereas Jesus

in verse 34

says,

Father,

forgive them,

for they do not know

what they're doing,

he's actually praying

God's blessing

on those Roman soldiers

who were actually

at that point in time

crucifying

Jesus Christ,

the Son of God.

That was Jesus'

attitude to them.

What was their

attitude to Jesus?

Well,

if you carry on

reading in verse 34,

you discover that

they divided up

his clothes

by casting

lots.

In other words,

they cared more

about Jesus'

clothes

than they did

about Jesus.

Now,

that has got to be

a fairly

disgusting attitude

to the Lord Jesus,

hasn't it?

By any standards.

Contrast that

with Jesus'

attitude to them,

to the Roman soldiers.

Mercy,

kindness,

and forgiveness

as he prays,

Father,

forgive them.

That's amazing,

isn't it?

Then,

in verse 35,

we see that there

were people

standing there

watching Jesus

dying on the cross.

And the Jewish

rulers were there

and they sneered

at Jesus

and they said,

he saved others.

Ha, ha, ha.

They were mocking,

you see.

Let him save

himself.

If he could save

others,

let him save himself.

They thought that had

quite a pleasant

symmetry to it.

They thought they were

being a little bit

clever there,

you know.

They were mocking him.

If he saved others,

let him save himself.

If he is God's Messiah,

the chosen one.

And those Jewish

scribes and

Pharisees were sure

that if Jesus

was now dying,

he could not

possibly be

God's Messiah.

What kind of

Messiah would end

his life in such

ugly failure

according to them.

And it's interesting

that the Greek word

for saved,

as in he saved

others,

is the same

as the one

that's used for

healed as well.

So presumably

they knew about

Jesus' healing

miracles.

So when they say

he saved others,

they probably mean

he healed others.

Let him save

himself,

you see.

So they thought

they were being

clever.

They even knew

Greek.

They did,

of course.

And then there

were the soldiers

in verse 36.

They came up

to Jesus

and mocked him.

Everybody seems

to want to mock

Jesus as he

dies on the cross.

They offer him

some wine vinegar,

which was probably

bitter or sour

or gone off

as part of the

mockery.

And they said

the same sort of

thing.

If you are the

king of the Jews,

like the sign

over your head

says,

the king of the

Jews,

if you are the

king of the Jews,

save yourself.

The same sort

of mockery.

And you know,

Jesus could have

saved himself.

Have a look on

your handout

at the quotation

there from

Matthew 26,

Matthew 26:53

verse 53.

Matthew records

that Jesus says,

do you think

I cannot call

on my father

and he will

at once put

at my disposal

more than

twelve legion

of angels?

Jesus could

have saved

himself.

He could have

asked angels

to do it for him,

couldn't he,

in fact.

But Jesus

goes on

and he says,

but how then

would the

scriptures

be fulfilled?

It had to

happen

in this

way.

In other

words,

Jesus

had

to die

for God's

plan of

salvation

to work.

And then we

get to the

criminals that I

mentioned,

the traditional

thieves who

were there on

Jesus'

left and

right.

One of them,

let's say it's

the one on

the left,

in verse 39.

One of those

criminals who

hung their

whole insults

at him,

railed at him,

it says in

your church

Bibles.

Aren't you the

Messiah?

And then he

comes up with

the same thing

as the others

who have

insulted Jesus.

Save yourself

and us.

Now that's

slightly different,

isn't it?

Save yourself,

Jesus,

and us.

And the

and is

important there,

you know,

because that

was the one

thing that

Jesus could

not do.

He could

not both

save himself

and other

people.

And this

is very

important.

You see,

he could

turn water

into wine.

He could

calm storms.

He could

feed 5,000

people just

like that.

He could

raise Lazarus

from the

dead.

He could

heal thousands

of people,

but he

could not

save himself

and other

people.

You see,

Jesus had

to stay

on that

cross and

die so

that you

and me

and many

others can

escape hell

so that we

can be saved.

Jesus had

to be

unsaved,

didn't he?

saved.

And we

must not

be like

the soldiers

or the

Jewish leaders

or any

of the

other

mockers.

You must

not be

like that

because you

understand

now,

if you

didn't

understand

before,

why Jesus

had to

die and

why he

could not

have been

saved.

He could

not save

himself

so that

you

can be

saved.

you

perhaps

heard that

people say

that the

single event

that defined

the 20th

century was

the

Holocaust

when

something like

7 million

people died

seemingly

pointlessly.

Well,

you know,

the event

that defined

not just

the 20th

century,

the event

that defined

the whole

of time

and indeed

all of

eternity,

that event

is Jesus

dying on

the cross

to save

others.

And we

must make

sure that

we do

not have

a mocking

wrong

or even

just a

careless

attitude

to Jesus

dying on

the cross.

So we've

looked at

some careless

attitudes

to Jesus

and careless

attitudes

to him

dying on

the cross,

haven't we?

Obviously we

now need to

look and see

if we can

find in this

passage a

right attitude

to Jesus

and his

deaths,

don't we?

Let's look

at verses

40 to

42.

What then

is the

right attitude

for us

to have

to Jesus

dying on

the cross?

Well in

verse 40

we discover

that the

other criminal,

so we've

had the

first one

on my

left,

the other

one,

the second

one,

say,

on Jesus'

right,

rebukes

the first

criminal,

says,

don't you

mock him,

don't you

fear God,

since you

and I

are both

under the

same

sentence

of death.

And although

one dying

thief had

had a

very bad

attitude to

Jesus,

even insulting

him in

verse 39,

and the

other one

did at

first as

well,

we understand

from the

other

gospels,

yet this

other one

says in

verse 41,

we are

being punished

justly,

for we are

getting what

our deeds

deserve,

that this

man has

done,

this man

Jesus,

has done

nothing wrong.

Now what

kind of

attitude is

this second

thief showing

us to

the Lord

Jesus?

What kind

of attitude

is that?

It's an

attitude of

humility,

is it not?

It's an

attitude of

awareness of

his sin.

It's an

attitude of

awareness of

justice,

God's justice,

I think,

too,

isn't it?

And we

know that

because in

verse 42,

then he

says,

Jesus,

he somehow

turns himself

and addresses

Jesus.

Jesus,

remember me

when you

come into

your kingdom.

So,

in addition to

his attitude

of humility,

awareness of

sin,

and awareness

of God's

justice,

this second

criminal,

second thief,

also has an

awareness that

Jesus is the

saviour,

that Jesus is

the king.

The sign

above Jesus'

head said

so.

In verse 38,

the king

of the

Jews.

And somehow

he knows

that the

only one

who can

save him

now from

God's

justice,

from all

his sin

and

criminality,

the only

one who

can save

him now

is Jesus.

And you

know perhaps

that Jesus'

name itself

means God

saves.

So he

turns to

him and

says,

Jesus,

God saves,

remember me

when you

come into

your kingdom.

them.

And so he

urgently wants

to be saved

and he

urgently wants

to make

the knowledge

that he

has been

saved,

that he

will be

forgiven,

that he

is forgiven,

personal.

And so he

doesn't just

say,

Jesus,

remember,

he says,

Jesus,

remember me,

doesn't he?

You notice that

little word,

Jesus,

remember me.

And somehow,

I suppose,

by the working

of the Holy

Spirit in his

heart and what

he's previously

heard and

understood,

he now

understands

that Jesus

was dying

so that his

sins,

this career

thief's sins

could be

forgiven.

And that is

the right

attitude for

him to

model and

for us to

have as well,

isn't it?

We must have

that same

humble,

urgent,

personal,

trusting

attitude to

Jesus and

especially to

Jesus dying

on the

cross.

Have you

got that

kind of

attitude to

Jesus and

his death

on the

cross?

We've

looked at

bad attitudes

to Jesus,

haven't we?

We've

looked at

the right

attitude that

this second

thief,

criminal,

exhibited

towards Jesus.

Thirdly,

then,

look specifically

at verse

43 and

we'll see

Jesus'

promise to

this dying

criminal,

Jesus'

promise to

all of us

in this

room,

in fact.

So,

verse 43,

then.

How do we

know that

the second

thief,

criminal,

on the

cross,

who had

lived his

whole life

in sin,

at that

very last

moment,

lastminute.com

you might

say,

was saved

by Jesus.

How do we

know he

was saved

by Jesus?

Well,

we know it

because of

verse 43.

Jesus somehow

turns to him

and he answers

him and he

says,

truly,

amen,

I tell you,

today,

you will

be with

me in

paradise,

not just

on holiday,

but in

paradise,

in heaven,

you see.

And so right

at the end

of his life,

this second

criminal turns

to Jesus

and says,

save me in

effect,

doesn't he?

And Jesus

somehow turns

to him and

he saves him,

doesn't he?

He makes this

amazing promise.

Truly,

I tell you,

today,

you will

be with

me in

paradise,

the very

opposite of

dying on

a cross.

And that

happened right

at the end

of this man's

life,

didn't it?

Right at the

end,

lastminute.com.

Now the

Bible also

warns us,

do you remember

what it says

in Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes 12:1

chapter 12

verse 1?

Very wise

advice is

given to us,

and indeed

not just

advice,

but a

command,

remember

your

creator

in the

days of

your youth,

before the

days of

trouble

come.

I bet that

thief wished

he'd taken

notice of

that advice,

that wisdom

earlier.

But,

we have

Luke chapter

Luke 23 · chapter mention

23,

don't we?

And God

has given

us this

thief on

the cross,

this criminal,

to teach

us that we

can be

saved,

we can

be forgiven,

whatever

our past

lives have

been like,

and even if

we don't

have any

future

life to

speak of

less as

well.

And it's

an amazing

thing,

isn't it,

that every

now and

then,

God shows

his mercy

to someone

foolishly

late in

life.

Now,

I'm not

recommending it,

God has

to have

to have

a lot of

things.

But,

it does happen

sometimes.

And I hope

that was what

happened to

Norman in

Devon that I

told you about

at the beginning

of this message.

God had

mercy on him

very late

in his life.

I also had

two granddads,

one was called

Darby Grandad,

one was called

London Grandad,

I'll leave you to

work out why.

And it seems

that London Grandad,

my London Grandad,

also turned to

the Lord Jesus

Christ in

repentance,

more or less,

on his very

deathbed.

So,

that seems

to be what's

happened to

Norman in

Devon,

the thief on

the cross,

and even my

London Grandad.

And you say,

well,

what exactly

happened at

these last

moments in

people's lives?

Well,

let's look at

what happened

to this second

thief,

as in

verse 43

and verse

42 of our

passage.

And I need

a big book,

a big black

book,

to do with a

much heavier,

more sinister

coloured book

really than

this one,

I think.

Two things

happened in

verse 43.

One is this,

God took

that criminal,

that second

thief's

worthless,

sinful life.

All his bad

record of

everything he'd

done.

and he gave

it to

Jesus.

That's the

first thing.

All his sin

was transferred

to Jesus,

who at that

very moment

was dying,

paying for it

on the cross.

And there

was a second

thing I said.

Yes,

the other

thing,

the second

thing that

God did at

that moment

in his

justice was

he took

Jesus'

perfect life,

he took

all Jesus'

innocence

and his

perfect record,

and he gave

that to

this second

thief on

the cross.

Those two

things happened.

And Jesus

has promised

to you,

right now in

fact,

is that if you

humbly cry

out to him,

remember me,

even from in

heaven,

where Jesus is

now,

he will take

you to be

with him

in paradise

if you die

before Sunday

lunch today,

or if you

die in 80

years'

time.

It doesn't

really matter,

does it?

But Jesus

can and will

do the same

for you if

you turn to

Jesus like

that thief

did.

Jesus,

remember me.

You put

your trust

in him.

So,

in conclusion

then,

that really

raises three

things.

Here's the

first one.

Excuse me.

Maybe you

have had a

rather mocking,

dare I say,

or at least

a careless

attitude to

Jesus and

his blood-bought

salvation.

Maybe that's

you this

morning.

Maybe you

sniggered when

you saw a

car bumper

sticker that

said something

like,

Jesus saves,

but Harry

Kane scores

on the

rebound.

I think

that's roughly

up to date,

isn't it?

Maybe you

laughed at

that.

Well,

that means

that you

have a

careless,

perhaps even

a mocking

attitude to

Jesus and

his salvation.

But,

you know,

your attitude

to Jesus,

especially to

his saving

death,

is the

most important

thing.

Nothing

matters more.

that's the

first thing.

Secondly,

maybe you've

not quite

had the

confidence to

trust Jesus

personally,

so you're

certainly not

mocking Jesus,

you're not

taking his

death on the

cross lightly,

but you have

somehow not

yet relied on

him, you

have somehow

not yet cried

out to him,

Jesus,

remember me

and save me.

Maybe you're a

little bit like

the audience

of one

Charles Blondin

who was

actually French,

I think his

name is

Charles Blondin,

he had an

audience in

1859,

see the

picture,

see what he's

doing there?

The picture's on

your handouts

as well.

He's crossing

the Niagara Falls

because he is a

tightrope

walker,

and he's doing

it with a

wheelbarrow in

front of him

as well,

and the

crowd is

oohing and

aahing as

he stops in

the middle and

pretends

nearly to

fall off

and that

kind of

thing.

And he

gets to the

other side

where the

audience are.

There's

Charles Blondin,

Charles Blondin,

and he says,

do you believe

I can carry a

person across

the Niagara Falls

in this

wheelbarrow?

Now no doubt

some people

kept very

quiet at that

point,

because they

could see

where this

was going.

But there

were others

who were just

there for the

entertainment,

and they said,

yes,

yes,

you were the

greatest

tightrope

walker there

ever was.

Okay,

says Mr.

Blondin,

or his

manager did,

get into

the wheelbarrow.

And nobody

did,

at least on

that occasion

anyway,

because they

lacked the

confidence to

trust Monsieur

Blondin.

Personally,

you see,

they somehow

weren't quite

prepared to

put their

bodies where

their mouths

were,

sort of

thing.

Now,

the thief

on the

cross was

not like

that at

all.

And the

thief on

the cross

is in

the Bible

to give

you and

me complete

confidence

that even

if we cry

out at the

very last

moment with

a life of

sin behind

us and

nothing else,

Jesus,

remember me,

that not only

can he save

you,

but he will.

He promises

to save you,

you see.

Even today,

if you

died,

you would

be with

him in

paradise.

If you

died before

lunch,

you would

go straight

to be with

Jesus.

And the

question has

to be,

are you

ready to

get into

Jesus'

wheelbarrow,

so to

speak?

And thirdly,

then,

maybe you

understand what

Jesus did

when he

deliberately

sacrificed

himself on

the cross.

maybe you

are actually

ready to

make Jesus'

salvation

personal for

yourself.

In which

case,

with that

dying thief,

I urge you

to say,

I urge you

to pray,

Jesus,

remember me,

Jesus,

forgive me,

save me,

I'm sorry I

left it till

now,

but I

remember there's

another verse

in the Bible

that says that

now is the

day of salvation,

so please,

save me,

now,

and then I

will live

the rest

of my

life for

you.

It might

be short,

or I

might die

in 80

years.

That's

what we

need to

pray,

isn't it?

Should we

do that

right now?