A PORTRAYAL OF SALVATION

The Real Jesus  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  34:22
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Christ's second statement came in response to the request of the dying thief. Before considering Christ's reply, let us first ponder what precipitated them.
Christ’s crucifixion between two thieves fulfilled His Father’s plan. There are no accidents in a world governed by God. The Sovereign God is presiding over this horrific scene, a scene decreed before the world's creation. All that man perpetrated on Golgotha Hill's fulfilled what God's wise counsel planned;
Acts 4:24–28 ESV
And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, “ ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’— for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.
Pilate’s decree, unknown to himself, fulfilled God's eternal decree and prophetic word. Seven hundred years before this Roman officer gave his command, God had declared through Isaiah that his Son should be "numbered with the transgressors."
Isaiah 53:12 ESV
Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.
It is utterly astounding the Holy One of God numbered with the unholy. The finger responsible for inscribing the Law on tablets of stone now counted with the lawless. Yet, this was God's will. Not a single word of God can fall to the ground.
Psalm 119:89 ESV
Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.
Why did God ordain his Son's death in such a manner? A number of answers present themselves for our inquisition.

He was crucified between two thieves so that we might have a vivid and concrete representation of the drama of salvation, namely, the Savior's redemption, the sinner repenting and believing, and the sinner reviling and rejecting.

Another important lesson, which we learn from Christ crucifixion between the two thieves, is

The reality that one received him and the other rejected him.

The two thieves were equally near to Christ. They saw and heard all that transpired during those fateful six hours. Both were notoriously wicked; both were suffering acutely; both were dying, and both urgently needed forgiveness. Yet one of them died in his sins, died as he had lived—hardened and impenitent; while the other repented of his wickedness, believed in Christ, called on him for mercy and went to Paradise.

In the salvation of the dying thief, we have a clear view of victorious grace.

God is the God of all grace, and salvation is entirely by his grace. "By grace, you are saved" (Ephesians 2:8), and it is "by grace" from beginning to end. Grace planned salvation, grace provided salvation, and grace, so works on the hardness of our hearts that it overcomes the stubbornness of our wills, the hostility of their minds, and it makes us willing to receive salvation. We are saved with full consent against our will. Grace begins, grace continues, and grace consummates our salvation.

In the salvation of the dying thief, Scripture reinforces salvation by grace, not works.

The thief had no moral life before his conversion and no life of active service after it. Therefore his salvation can only be explained as a sovereign act of grace.
His salvation reminds us not to rob God of His glory in the salvation of people. Salvation is nothing but God’s matchless grace at work. Let there be no misunderstanding here. God most often uses His people speaking His Word as a means of conversion; he frequently blesses our prayers for those who are lost, but such works do not handcuff God. He is not limited to human instrumentalities. His grace is all-powerful and able to save despite the lack of human instrumentalities or unfavorable circumstances. So it was in the case of the saved thief.
His conversion occurred at a time when to outward appearance Christ had lost all power to save either himself or others. He witnessed Christ sinking beneath the weight of the cross. He knew public opinion was overwhelmingly against him. Crucifixion seemed inconsistent with his Messiah-ship and His condition a stumbling block to the Jews. His crucifixion even caused doubt amongst those who believed in him. Not one of Golgotha's attendees cried out, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" And yet, the thief held on to His Savior despite these obstacles and difficulties to faith. How can we explain the fact that this dying thief took a suffering, bleeding, and crucified man for his God! It is impossible to explain apart from divine intervention and supernatural operation. His faith in Christ was a miracle of grace!
Let me remind us all that his conversion took place before the hours of darkness, before the triumphant cry, before the rending of the temple veil, before the quaking of the earth and the shivering of the rocks, before the centurion's confession. God purposely set his conversion before these things for the magnification of sovereign grace. God designedly chose to save this thief under the most unfavorable circumstances so that no flesh should glory in his presence. God deliberately arranged this combination of adverse conditions and surroundings to teach us that "Salvation is of the Lord;" to teach us not to magnify human instrumentality above divine agency; to show us that every genuine conversion is the direct product of the supernatural operation of the Holy Spirit.
Let us now consider the thief himself, his various utterances, his request of the Savior, and our Lord's response.

Here We See a Representative Sinner.

Matthew 27:44 ESV
And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
On the precipice of eternity, they reviled and mocked him. Human depravity and the inherent evil within each person here today encapsulated in their mocking. If you haven’t experience the miracle of divine grace, then you possess that same hatred in your heart. You may not think so, you may not feel so, and you may not believe so, but that does not alter what is factual.
Jeremiah 17:9 ESV
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
Jeremiah’s words are universal in there application as it describes what every heart is by birth. Scripture declares,
Romans 8:7 ESV
For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
Yet another diagnosis of every descendant of Adam.
Romans 3:22–23 ESV
the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Until we realize our desperate condition, we will not discover our need for a divine Savior. Until we see our total corruption and depravity, we will not run to the great physician. Until we find in this dying thief, a portrayal of ourselves, we will not join Heaven’s choir in singing “amazing grace, how can it be that you my king would die for me!”

Here We See that Man Has to Come to the End of Himself Before He Can Be Saved.

Seeing ourselves as lost sinners is not sufficient. We must admit that our condition is entirely beyond human repair. Unless we see our desperate state, we will not look outside ourselves to the one who can save him.
Man is like the prodigal son, after squandering his substance in riotous living and began to be “in want,” instead of returning to the father, he “went and joined himself to a citizen of that country” and went to the fields to feed swine; in other words, he went to work. Likewise, the aroused sinner, instead of going at once to Christ, tries to work himself into God’s favor. However, he will fare no better than the prodigal
Sinner’s must come to the place of weakness before salvation, and this the dying thief portrays. He was unable to walk the path of righteousness, for there was a nail through either foot. Nor could he perform any good works for there was a nail through either hand. Neither could he turn over a new leaf and live a better life for he was dying.
Sinner’s must be cut off their own workings and be made willing to be saved by Christ; this is the sole prerequisite for salvation.

Here We See the Meaning of Repentance and Faith.

Repentance is a change of mind about sin, a sorrowing for sin, a forsaking of sin. Repentance is the realization of our lost condition; it is the discovery of our ruin; it is the judging of ourselves; it is the owning of our lost estate. Repentance is not so much an intellectual process as it is the conscience active in the presence of God, and this we find here in the case of the thief. First, he says to his companion,
Luke 23:40 ESV
But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
Don’t forget this was the same man who mingled his voice with those who were earlier slandering the Savior. His response serves as evidence of the Holy Spirit’s work upon him. It was not, “Do you not fear punishment,” but “Do you not fear God?” He apprehends God as the judge.
And then, in the second place, he adds,
Luke 23:41 ESV
And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.”
He owns his guilt and embraces his sentence as just. He makes no attempts at extenuation.
Have you taken this position before God? Are you ready to acknowledge that death is your “due?” Christ came into the world to save sinners—who are conscious that they are lost and undone.
The thief’s “repentance toward God” was accompanied by “faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” Earlier I called attention to the sovereignty of God’s grace exhibited in his conversion. Now we turn to another side of the truth, equally necessary to press, a side which is not contradictory to what we have said previously, but rather, complementary and supplementary.
He “believed the truth.” His faith took hold of the word of God. Over the cross was the superscription, “This is Jesus the King of the Jews.” Pilate had placed it there in derision, but it was nevertheless true, and after he had written it, God would not allow him to alter it. There is no doubt that the thief had read it, and divine grace opened the eyes of his understanding to its truth. By faith, he grasped the kingship of Christ, “when you come into your kingdom.” Faith always rests on the written word of God.

Here We See the Saviour-Hood of Christ.

Jesus paid no attention to the reproaches of the crowd. However, the prayer of the contrite and believing thief arrested his attention. Though grappling with the powers of darkness and bearing the heavy load of his people’s guilt, he did not excuse himself from attending to individual needs. You see a sinner can never come to Christ in an unacceptable time.
The penitent thief illustrates Christ’s readiness and power to save sinners. Jesus is no feeble Savior. When the thief cried, “Lord, remember me,” the Savior was in agony on the accursed tree, he had the power to redeem this soul from death and open for him the gates of Paradise! Never doubt or question the infinite sufficiency of the Savior. If a dying Savior could save what about one risen from the tomb?
Low in the grave He lay,
Jesus, my Savior,
Waiting the coming day,
Jesus, my Lord!
Up from the grave He arose,
With a mighty triumph o'er His foes,
He arose a Victor from the dark domain,
And He lives forever, with His saints to reign.
He arose! He arose!
Hallelujah! Christ arose!
The salvation of the dying thief demonstrates that the Lord is willing and able to save all who come to him. If Christ received this penitent, believing thief, then none need despair of a welcome if they will but come to Christ. The Son of Man came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10), and none can sink lower than that. The gospel of Christ is the power of God “to every one that believes” (Romans 1:16). Limit not the grace of God. A Savior is provided for the very “chief of sinners” (1 Tim. 1:15), if only he will believe. Even those who reach the dying hour yet in their sins are not beyond hope.
He came into this world to save sinners, and he left it and went to Paradise accompanied by a saved criminal—the first trophy of his redeeming blood!

Here We See the Destination of the Saved at Death.

“Today” is the emphatic word. In our Lord’s gracious response to the thief’s request, we have a striking illustration of how divine grace exceeds human expectations. The thief prayed that the Lord would remember him in his coming kingdom, but Christ assures him that before that very day had passed, he should be with the Savior. The thief asks to be remembered in an earthly kingdom, but Christ assures him of a place in Paradise. The thief simply asks to be “remembered”, but the Savior declared he should be “with him.” Therefore God does abundantly above all that we ask or think.
Not only does Christ’s reply signify the survival of the soul after the death of the body, but it also tells us that the believer is with him during the interval, which divides death from the resurrection. To make this the more emphatic, Christ prefaced his promise with the solemn but assuring words “Truly I say unto you.” It was this prospect of going to Christ at death which cheered the martyr Stephen in his last hour and therefore did he cry,
Acts 7:59 ESV
And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
It was this blessed expectation which moved the apostle Paul to say, I have a “desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better”
Philippians 1:23 ESV
I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Not unconsciousness in the grave, but with Christ in Paradise is what awaits every believer at death.

Here We See the Longing of the Savior for Fellowship.

In fellowship we reach the climax of grace and the sum of Christian privilege. We cannot go higher than fellowship. God has called us “unto the fellowship of his Son”
1 Corinthians 1:9 ESV
God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
We are often told that we are “saved to serve,” and this is true, but it is only a part of the truth and by no means the most wondrous and blessed part of it. We are saved for fellowship. God had innumerable “servants” before Christ came here to die—the angels ever do his bidding. Christ came not primarily to secure servants but those who should enter into fellowship with him.
That which makes heaven superlatively attractive to the heart of the saint is not that heaven is a place where we shall be delivered from all sorrow and suffering, nor is it that heaven is the place where we shall meet again those we loved in the Lord, nor is it that heaven is the place of golden streets and pearly gates and jasper walls—no, blessed as those things are, heaven without Christ would not be heaven. It is Christ for which a believers heart longs for and pants after—
Psalm 73:25 ESV
Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
Ponder this most amazing thought; heaven will not be heaven to Christ in the highest sense until his redeemed are gathered around him. His heart longs for his saints. To come again and “receive us unto himself” is his joyous expectation and he will not be fully satisfied until he sees the of the travail of his soul.
His heart is set on immediate cohabitation in Paradise upon the death of a soul saved by his precious blood! This is the climax of grace and the sum of Christian blessing.
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