The Death of the Innocent (Good Friday 2024)

This Good Friday evening, as we remember the sacrifice of your Son,

please humble the pride of man and exalt the mercy of Christ.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

On Sundays, we normally ask you to stand for the reading of God's Word,

but you've been standing a lot for the reading of Scripture, so I'm just going to read for us here.

Luke 23, verses 32 to 49.

Luke 23:32–49

Two others who were criminals were led away to be put to death with Jesus.

And when they came to the place that is called the Skull,

there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on His right and one on His left.

And Jesus said,

Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.

And they cast lots to divide His garments.

And the people stood by, watching.

But the rulers scoffed at Him, saying,

He saved others, let Him save Himself.

If He is the Christ of God, His chosen one.

The soldiers also mocked Him,

coming up and offering Him sour wine and saying,

If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.

There was also an inscription over Him,

This is the King of the Jews.

One of the criminals who were hanged,

railed at Him, saying,

Are you not the Christ?

Save yourself and us.

But the other rebuked Him, saying,

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 has done nothing wrong.

And he said,

Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.

And he said to him,

Truly, I say to you,

Today you will be with me in paradise.

It was now about the sixth hour,

and there was darkness over the whole land

until the ninth hour,

while the sun's light failed.

And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said,

Father,

Father,

into your hands I commit my spirit.

And having said this,

he breathed his last.

Now, when the centurion saw what had taken place,

he praised God, saying,

Certainly this man was innocent.

And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle,

when they saw what had taken place,

returned home beating their breasts.

And all his acquaintances and the woman who had followed him from Galilee

stood at a distance watching these things.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

Many of us in this city are accustomed to success.

But what would you do if you're in a situation where,

no matter how hard you try,

you just are not good enough?

Your best has always been enough.

Until now.

You have an impregnable wall to climb.

You have an impassable chasm to cross.

You have an insurmountable debt to repay.

What would you do?

When it comes to our spiritual life,

that is the unfortunate situation that we all find ourselves in.

We are guilty sinners before a holy God.

And our best is not good enough.

But this passage teaches us that

the good news of Good Friday

is this, that innocent Jesus

was unjustly condemned

so that guilty sinners

might be mercifully saved.

And we're going to look at how the innocent

goes to the cross

and then how the criminal goes to paradise.

Throughout this book,

Luke emphasizes the innocence of Jesus.

In the narrative of Jesus' suffering and death

in chapter 23, Luke tells us

six times total

that Jesus was in fact innocent.

Three times,

the governor,

the Roman governor,

Pontius Pilate himself,

makes this confession.

He says that he finds no guilt in Jesus.

King Herod also concurs with him.

And then in our passage tonight,

one of the criminals

who is crucified next to Jesus

says to the other criminal

in verse 41 and 42,

We are under the sentence of condemnation

justly,

for we are receiving the due reward

of our deeds.

But this man has done nothing wrong.

And finally,

in verse 47,

the Roman centurion

who sees the manner of Jesus' death

and the cosmic phenomena

that surround it

concludes,

Certainly,

this man was innocent.

Innocent Jesus

was unjustly condemned.

This is the most heinous evil,

the most egregious injustice

that mankind has ever perpetrated.

Because Jesus is the Christ,

the Messianic King,

who is worthy of our allegiance.

Because Jesus is the Son of God,

the second person of the Trinity,

the one by whom all things were created,

to whom we owe our very existence,

and who is infinitely worthy

of our worship.

And yet,

He was condemned

even though Jesus is the Savior

who came to save the world

and not to condemn the world.

The world condemned Him

who came to save them.

How wrong is it for people

to kill the one who gives them life?

How wrong is it

for people to treat Jesus

like a criminal

when He is in fact

the rightful King?

And that's not the only thing

that is unjust

about the situation.

Because whenever there is

a miscarriage of justice like this,

there is a dual injustice.

For example,

on March 4th of this year,

Ronald Johnson

was exonerated and released

after spending 34 years in jail.

He was wrongfully convicted

of murdering Joseph Goldsby

based solely on

the false testimony

of two witnesses.

Just think of

the injustice of it all.

He was 27 years old

when he was jailed,

and now he is 61 years old.

The prime years of his life

are gone.

But that's not the only injustice.

Somebody did murder

Joseph Goldsby,

and that murderer went free

because Ronald Johnson

went to jail.

It is not only unjust

that the innocent

is wrongly punished,

it is also unjust

that someone who is guilty

goes unpunished

as a result of it.

But in Jesus' case,

he wasn't

unjustly condemned

and executed

against his will.

Jesus went to the cross

willingly.

As he says in John 10, 18,

he laid his own life down.

Why?

Because

it was the only way

that guilty sinners

can be mercifully saved.

So in this case,

it's not an injustice

that the guilty go free.

It's a mercy.

In the language of the Old Testament

sacrificial system,

Jesus is the Lamb of God

who takes away

the sin of the world.

And one of the requirements

for a sacrificial lamb

was that he be blameless.

So 1 Peter 1

tells us that

Christians have been ransomed

from their sinful ways

with the precious blood

of Christ

like that of a lamb

without blemish.

Only an unblemished lamb,

an innocent one,

is worthy to be slain

as the atoning sacrifice

for sin.

That's why Hebrews 4, 15

confirms that

in every respect,

Jesus was tempted

as we are,

yet without sin.

1 John 3, 5

confirms that

Jesus appeared

in order to take away sins

and in him

there is no sin.

The unjust condemnation

of innocent Jesus

is the only way

that guilty sinners

like you and me

can be mercifully saved.

We see Jesus' role

as the sacrificial lamb

in several details

of this passage.

In verses 32 to 33,

we are told that

Jesus is led away

that's led away

outside of the city

to the place

that is called

the skull

in order to be put to death.

The sin offering

that was offered

on the Day of Atonement

once a year

in the Old Testament times

was not burned

inside the temple

like the other sacrifices.

That sin offering

was burned

outside the camp.

Likewise,

to be the atoning sacrifice

for the sins

of his people,

Jesus went

outside the camp

to be crucified.

Hebrews 13, 11, 12

makes this connection

explicitly.

for the bodies

of those animals

whose blood

is brought into

the holy places

by the high priest

as a sacrifice

for sin

are burned

outside the camp.

So,

Jesus also

suffered

outside the gate

in order to

sanctify the people

through his own blood.

Outside the camp

is where

criminals

sentenced to death

were dragged out

for execution.

we see that

in Leviticus 24, 14

and 1 Kings 21, 13.

That's where

we deserve to go.

We are all

guilty sinners

who have rebelled

against our God

and Creator.

We may not have

murdered anyone

but we have all

murdered in our hearts

by harboring

hateful anger

against someone else.

We may not have

committed physical adultery

or fornication

though some of us

have done that

but we have all

committed adultery

of the heart

by lusting

after someone.

We may not have

stolen anything

from anyone

though some of us

have done that too

but we have all

stolen things

in our hearts

through envy.

We have been

prideful

and self-righteous

which is to spit

in the face of God

in whose presence

there is no space

for even an ounce

of pride

and self-righteousness.

We deserve

to be dragged out

outside the camp

but instead

Jesus is led

outside the camp

as if he

were a cause

of defilement

to be killed

alongside two

other criminals

but Jesus

is innocent.

He is killed

outside the camp

because he is

the ultimate

sin offering

for the day

of atonement

because he is

the divinely

appointed substitute

for guilty sinners.

After being

taken outside

the camp

it says in

verse 33

that Jesus

is crucified.

Two thousand

years of

Christian history

has desensitized

us to the shame

and the offensiveness

of the cross

but to Roman

and Jewish

sensibilities

crucifixion

was a particularly

abominable way

to die.

For the Romans

crucifixion

was a form

of cruel

and unusual

punishment.

It was a form

of torture

and execution

combined

into one.

The Romans

had perfected

several other

ways to

efficiently

kill people

and execute

people

but they used

crucifixion

for special

cases

for low life

criminals

and enemies

of the state.

for example

they would

crucify

those guilty

of treason

in order to

make a spectacle

of them

in order to

send a message

a gruesome

warning to

others who

might attempt

the same.

For the Jews

also there was

a great stigma

and reproach

attached to

being hanged

on a tree

because Deuteronomy

21-23

taught that a man

who is killed

by being hanged

on a tree

is cursed

by God

and that's

precisely the

language that

Luke uses

here in

chapter 23

verse 39

where he

says

uses the word

hanged

to describe

those who are

being crucified.

It's the same

word that Luke

uses in his

sequel to the

Gospel of Luke

in the book of

Acts

in Acts 530

and Acts 1039

when he recounts

that people put

Jesus to death

quote

by hanging him

on a tree.

this language

is making

an explicit

connection

to the

Deuteronomy

21-23

Jesus

the blessed

one

was accursed.

Christ

redeemed us

from the curse

of the law

by becoming

a curse

for us.

For our

sake

God made

him to be

sin

who knew

no sin

so in him

we might

become

the righteousness

of God.

Jesus

faced

the damnation

of the cross

so that we

might meet

God's

salvation.

He bore

the wrath

of God

on the cross

so that we

might receive

the mercy

of God.

His

condemnation

on the cross

is our

justification.

His bondage

on the cross

is our

freedom

and his

death

on the cross

is our

eternal

life.

This is

the scandal

the scandalous

injustice

of the cross.

Innocent

Jesus

was unjustly

condemned

so that

guilty

sinners

might be

mercifully

saved.

It's so

wrong.

It's so

scandalous.

It's so

unjust

but it's

so

breathtakingly

beautiful

and so

wondrously

glorious

because

that's

how we

are saved.

That's

why we

call

Jesus'

execution

day

Good

Friday.

It was

a bad

and terrible

day

on all

accounts

but it

was a

good

day

for

sinners

like you

and me

who

trust in

Jesus.

And one

such

sinner

was a

criminal

that was

crucified

alongside

Jesus.

There were

actually

two

criminals

one to

Jesus'

right

and the

other

to his

left

and the

word

that is

translated

criminal

here

is a

word

that

means

robber

a

bandit

revolutionary

or

insurrectionist.

it's

the

same

word

that

is

used

to

describe

Barabbas

in

John

18

40.

And as

we saw

earlier

in Luke

23

in one

of the

scripture

readings,

Barabbas

was

specifically

described

as a

rebel

who

had

committed

murder

in the

insurrection.

So

these

two

criminals

that

are

crucified

alongside

Jesus

are

no

petty

thieves.

They've

done

something

to merit

a

capital

sentence,

perhaps

even

murder

and

insurrection.

They're

not

good

people.

And

one of

the

criminals

is

arrogant

and

irreverent

even

as

his

very

life

is

ebbing

away.

He

joins

the

scoffing

of

rulers

and

the

soldiers

and

rails

at

Jesus

in

verse

39.

Are

you

not

the

Christ?

Save

yourself

and

us.

His

words

are

dripping

with

bitter

sarcasm

and

he's

kicking

Jesus

when

he

is

down

on

the

ground.

Even

a

criminal

on

death

row

who

is

in

the

process

of

being

executed

thinks

he can

take a

dig

at

Jesus.

The

word

rail

in

Greek

is

the

word

from

which

we

get

the

English

word

blaspheme.

It

means

to

slander

someone,

to speak

against,

revile,

and to

defame

someone in

a way that

damages

their reputation

and name.

Instead of

recognizing

Jesus for who

he really

is as the

Christ,

as the

Savior,

this criminal

stabs Jesus

with his

cutting

irony.

But

the second

criminal

steps in

to defend

Jesus

and

he rebukes

the other

criminal

in

verses

40

and

41.

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

has

done

nothing

wrong.

This

is a

humble

admission

of guilt.

This

criminal,

unlike

the first

one,

acknowledges

that his

punishment

is just

and that

it is

what he

deserves.

But he

notes that

Jesus has

done

nothing

wrong.

And then

in verse

42,

the criminal

turns to

Jesus and

says,

Jesus,

remember me

when you

come into

your kingdom.

It's

really an

audacious

request

because he's

a criminal

on death

row.

He really

has nothing

to commend

him.

I mean,

what has

he ever

done for

Jesus?

what's

his

ticket

into

the

kingdom?

But it

expresses his

humble faith

in Jesus.

There's not

a lot of

specifics

here.

His

request

is vague

probably

because his

understanding

of Jesus

is also

vague.

But he

seems to

have overheard

people ridiculing

Jesus as

the Christ.

And he

can see the

mocking inscription

over Jesus'

head,

this is

the king

of the

Jews.

And he

believes it.

So even

though he

doesn't know

how or

when Jesus

will come

into his

kingdom,

but when

he does,

the criminal

asks,

Jesus,

remember

me.

And Jesus'

response in

verse 43 is

even more

shocking than

the criminal's

request.

Truly,

I say to

you,

today you

will be

with me

in paradise.

Christ.

Jesus says,

truly,

I say to

you,

that's the

expression,

amen,

verily,

truly,

I say to

you.

Jesus doesn't

say to

him,

maybe,

I'll think

about it.

He says,

truly,

I say to

you,

I assure

you,

I promise

you,

I give

you my

word.

and Jesus

doesn't

say,

well,

after a

thousand

years,

maybe I'll

bring you

to a

kingdom.

He says,

today you

will be

with me

in paradise.

The word

today is a

significant

theological

term throughout

the gospel

of Luke

because he

uses it

repeatedly

throughout

the gospel

to highlight

the fact

that the

window of

opportunity

for your

salvation

is not

tomorrow,

it's

today.

This very

moment,

this evening

if you are

here,

you're not

here by

coincidence.

You are

here by

the ordaining

of the

sovereign

God.

And this

may be

your hour

of salvation.

Today,

you might

hear the

assurance

that this

criminal

heard from

Jesus.

the

criminal

asked to

be with

Jesus in

his kingdom

and Jesus

promises that

he will be

with him

in paradise.

Jesus'

kingdom will

not be a

small,

measly,

earthly

kingdom in

a Middle

Eastern

desert.

It will

be a

paradise,

prophesied

of in

Isaiah 51

3 when

God makes

Israel's

wilderness

like Eden,

her desert

like the

garden of

the Lord.

This

criminal is

hanging on

a cross

atop

an open

hill

in the

scorching

Middle

Eastern

sun,

parched

by the

dry air,

gasping

for breath.

Jesus assures

him that

he will

not be

for long.

Today,

you will

be with

me in

paradise.

It's a

promise of

eternal

life,

of the

water of

life that

flows in

that paradise

that we

see in

Revelation.

salvation.

It's where

the tree

of life

is that

gives eternal

life which

is in

the paradise

of God.

Jesus'

response is

staggering

because it

goes so far

beyond what

this criminal

deserves.

The

crucifixion

was what

this criminal

deserved,

not

paradise.

The Bible

teaches that

at the end

of the world

when Christ

returns,

he will

judge

everyone

according to

what they

have done.

But what

good works

does this

criminal have

to show

for himself?

Nothing.

If he is

like Barabbas,

he is a

murderer

and an

insurrectionist.

His record

is against

him.

He has

no good

works

to merit

paradise.

not only

that,

when people

come to

faith in

Jesus,

they are

supposed to

be

baptized.

That's the

normal course

by which a

person becomes

a Christian.

But this

criminal has

no chance

to go

through even

that

initiatory

rite of

conversion.

this is a

deathbed

conversion if

there ever

was one.

Well then,

did this

criminal at

least have

good

theology?

Almost

certainly

not.

Imagine if

Jesus

administered a

little theology

exam on the

cross.

you said,

remember me

when you

come into

your kingdom.

Well,

here's

question number

one.

Will I

bring about

an earthly

kingdom or

a heavenly

kingdom?

Your choice,

A,

B,

or both

A and

B?

You can

just imagine

his blank

stare.

Question

number two,

when exactly

will my

kingdom come?

Is it

already here

or not

yet?

Will I

establish a

millennial

reign here

on earth

or reign

through the

church?

And the

criminal

goes,

I don't

know.

This

criminal

would have

flunked all

the tests.

But he

knew two

things.

He knew

that he

was a

sinner.

And he

knew that

Jesus could

save him.

And that

was

enough.

Throughout

the entire

Gospel of

Luke,

neither

angelic

beings nor

human beings

address Jesus

simply by

his name,

as this

criminal does.

Jesus.

They

call him

with

exalted

titles,

Jesus of

Nazareth,

the Holy

One of

God.

They

call him

Jesus,

Son of

the Most

High God.

They

call him

Jesus,

Master.

They

call him

Jesus,

Son of

David.

But this

criminal simply

calls him

Jesus,

which means

the Lord

saves.

And that's

the only

thing that

commends

this criminal

to the

paradise or

kingdom of

God.

The only

thing that

he trusts

Jesus,

that Jesus

remembers

him.

This is,

at the

simplest level,

what repentance

and faith

look like.

First,

the criminal

confessed his

sin.

We are under

the sentence

of condemnation.

condemnation

justly.

For we are

receiving the

due reward

of our

deeds.

That's

repentance.

Do you

know that

that is

what you

deserve?

Death.

Condemnation.

And then

there's the

turning away,

after turning

away from

sin,

secondly,

there is

the criminal

putting his

faith in

Jesus.

Jesus,

remember me

when you

come into

your kingdom.

that's

faith.

It's as

simple as

that.

This

criminal had

nothing going

for him

but this,

that Jesus

remembered

him.

Please,

don't hear

what I'm

not saying.

I'm not

saying that

doing good

works

doesn't

matter.

I'm not

saying that

baptism

doesn't

matter.

matter.

I'm not

saying that

theology

doesn't

matter.

As

theologian

J.I.

Packer

writes in

his book

Keep in

Step with

the Spirit,

nor do I

suggest that

ignorance and

error are

unimportant for

spiritual health

so long as

one has an

honest heart

and a genuine

passion for

God.

It is

certain that

God blesses

believers

precisely and

invariably by

blessing to

them something

of his

truth.

And that

misbelief as

such is in

its own

nature spiritually

barren and

destructive.

Yet,

anyone who

deals with

souls will

again and

again be

amazed at

the gracious

generosity with

which God

blesses to

needy ones

what looks

to us like

a very tiny

needle of

truth hidden

amid whole

haystacks of

mental error.

As I have

said,

countless

sinners truly

experience the

saving grace of

Jesus Christ and

the transforming

power of the

Holy Spirit while

their notions

about both are

erratic and

largely incorrect.

Where indeed

would any of

us be if

God's blessing

had been

withheld till

all our

notions were

right?

every Christian

without

exception

experiences far

more in the

way of mercy

and help than

the quality of

his notions

warrant.

That is the

heart of God.

Even when he

sees only a

very tiny

needle of

truth hidden

amidst a

whole haystack

of mental

error,

God blesses

us on

account of

that truth.

I don't

know what

kind of

sinner you

are.

Maybe you've

done things

in life that

you never

dare share

with anyone.

I don't

know what

kind of good

works you

have done.

Certainly

they are

inadequate in

light of

God's perfect

standard.

I don't

know the

ins and

outs of

your

theology.

it may

be full

of errors

of various

kinds.

But this

day,

2,000 years

ago,

innocent

Jesus was

unjustly

condemned

so that

guilty

sinners

like you

and me

might be

mercifully

saved.

so will

you join

me this

evening in

simply

saying,

Jesus,

remember

me.

Jesus,

remember

me.

me.

Father,

grant every

single man

and woman,

children,

here in

this room

that simple

faith that

says,

Jesus,

remember

me.

In the

precious name

of Jesus,

we pray.

Amen.