Sermon – The Work of the Cross

³² There were also two others, criminals, led with Him to be put to death. ³³ And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left. ³⁴ Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

And they divided His garments and cast lots. ³⁵ And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.”

³⁶ The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, ³⁷ and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.”

³⁸ And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew:

THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

³⁹ Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.”

⁴⁰ But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? ⁴¹ And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴² Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”

⁴³ And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

⁴⁴ Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. ⁴⁵ Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. ⁴⁶ And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’ ” Having said this, He breathed His last.

⁴⁷ So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying, “Certainly this was a righteous Man!”

⁴⁸ And the whole crowd who came together to that sight, seeing what had been done, beat their breasts and returned. ⁴⁹ But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

²³ his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.

⁹ And they sang a new song, saying:

“You are worthy to take the scroll,
And to open its seals;
For You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,

³⁷ And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.

³⁸ Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”

God is good all the time and all the time. Is God is so good you know as we are making our way through Luke we’re nearing the very end of it. Chapter 23 Today’s we’re going to be going so we’re going to have an Easter message in August so nothing wrong with that because every morning is Easter morning remember that song right every morning is Easter morning a message the titled The work of the Cross we’re going to be speaking the crucifixion this morning last week at Army we talked about the haven’t you all pray and we didn’t not ready yet with that extended poll so our openness and prayer the Smalling that us by our heads graces father again we praise you and magnify you we thank you thank you father that you Center spirit to be with us and just pray your spirit would have Lyneham way here today Father I pray that every word spoken would be for your glory for Your Honor I pray that it would plant seeds in the hearts of your people Father I pray that would plant seeds in the hearts that may hear this message that they do not know you that would play to see that they would come to know you father that you would be glorified father that a soul might be saved through the words spoken today that one might come to the knowledge of the cross in the work of the cross and what that means that that it bring salvation it brings redemption to mankind father I just pray again your annoying to Upon the word in it that your name will be lifted high and father just again open our ears in our hearts to receive what you have force in Jesus’ name amen. So his I was preparing is in reading and I opened it up one day and began to read it and I just kind of I’m going to be reading Chapter 23 verses 30 through 32 through 49 and I began to read it very quickly and also enough like a put the brakes on of like wait a minute what does say you know how important commas are. They’re very important because I want this read just to you the way that I read it real quick in my mind there were also 2 other criminals led with him to be put to death. Just because what I just said there were also 2 other criminals led with him no wait a minute wait a minute there were also 2 others comma criminals to lead with him to be put to death because the way I read it there plural quickly it was like there was 2 other criminals it’s meaning Jesus was a criminal so take your time and read the words right I’m talking to myself here. There were 2 others they were criminals that were led away with him to be put to death Karen said laughter is good for the soul right. And when they had come to the place called Calvary there they crucified him and the criminals one on his right hand and the other on the left you know if there ever was a rose between 2 thorns that was the truest case to criminals on each side of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ then Jesus said Father forgive them for they do not know what they do and they divided his garments and cast lots and the people stood looking on but even the rulers with them sneered saying He saved others let him say from self if he is to Christ the chosen of God. The soldiers also mocked him coming in offering him Sauerwein and saying if you are the king of the Jews save yourself I want to pause for a moment my friends he could have saved himself he could have called down $10000.00 legions of angels he could have saved he caught it could’ve gotten in self down all that cross he could have just be strong and all of mankind right there if he wanted to if he wanted to if he chose to but my friends that’s not why he came he did not come to save himself he came to save mankind a man and an inscription also was written over him and letters of Greek Latin and Hebrew This is the king of the Jews then one of the criminals who were hanged blasting him saying if you are the Christ save yourself and us but the other answer and rebuke him saying Do you not even fear God seeing you are under the same condemnation and we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds but this man has done nothing wrong my friends I believe that criminal knew I think he knew I think he recognized that it was God hanging there between them he knew that they were receiving the due reward for their lives for what they have done as we read this morning the wages of sin is death they knew that they were receiving the wages for the life that they had lived because they were criminals that they deserved to die but he knew that this man hanging between them did not deserve to die he knew that he understood that then he said to Jesus Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom and Jesus said to him assuredly I say to you today you would be with me in paradise. Now it was about the 6th hour and there were darkness over the entire darkness over all the earth until the $1000.00 so for 3 hours of darkness over all the earth then the sun was darkened and the veil of the temple was torn in 2 and when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice he said Father into your hands I commit my spear having said this he breathed his last so when disinterring saw what had happened he glorified God saying certainly this was a righteous man and the whole crowd who came together to that sight seeing what had been done beat their breast in return but all his acquaintances and the women who followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things oh this my friends was prophesied in Isaiah just Isaiah 531 verse says Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great and he shall and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he poured out his soul on to death and he was numbered with the transgressors he was number with the transgressors he was hung with criminals right and he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors my friends have you ever stop to consider that the cross the symbol that many Christians wear around their necks Why do they wear a cross around their necks Kerry has one most people wear that cross because it’s a symbol a signifies I’m a Christian I’m a believer I believe in Jesus Christ we have crosses in our churches many to reach out and almost touch 3 right here. 45 you know as we have crosses everywhere. But there we understand that that symbol that we hold dear and near to our hearts was the cruelest torture device known to man and that day the suffering and death of crucifixion on a cross was so intense they would narrow their feet in their hands to the to the cross to the would they would drive these big spikes into their hands and where they drove it in in the jagged skin it would it would begin to swell in the pain would be so intense and especially in a very hot climate with all that swelling in the heat in your sweat and makes it even worse in a an extremely hot climate when you think of that when they drive those nails it actually is into the wrist you think of nerves what the nerves do. They send to your brain that had a I’m hurting here I’m in pain you know put your hand on a hot burner then nerves are going to tell you that is hot don’t touch it someone squeezes your hand something really tight is going to say that hurts that is hot you know I damage a nerve in my elbow once I’m working on a vehicle I smacked the concrete and that rascal hurt for almost a year. I mean it didn’t hurt just not do anything but if I just bump it bump that nerve it’s like it’s shot pain pain in my arm or told my brain that I was hurt in any way what nerves do can you imagine the intense pain of those nails or spikes driven into the hands in the feet not to mention the crown of thorns that was smashed on to Reese head the intense pain right there in is in it’s in is any is head in his mind then not to mention the flogging that he experienced before they took him out to the cross that would with those close in there to just rip the flesh off with his back he was beaten to where he was almost on recognizable and then then he’s hanging on that crawls instead set agony in pain they say that the mind would always become delusional because there is so much pain and hanging there in a way that your body pulling you down suffocating experiencing that it tense pain they say that the victim of a crucifixion would literally die a 1000 deaths it was a cruel So this thing that we hold near and dear was actually cruel torture device but we honored as a symbol Interestingly a Roman citizen was exempt from that type of death because it was considered the death of a slave you know last Sabbath in my message I took a talk about his betrayal stop it on you’d be emotional and he was sold for the price of a slave 30 pieces of silver today we learned that he died the death of a sleigh on a cruel cross. Descriptors revealed to us that those that were hung up on a cross are considered cursed Deuteronomy 2123 says his body shall not remain overnight on the tree but you shall surely bury him that day so that you do not the Fatherland which Lord your God has given you as an inheritance for he who is hanged is a cursed of God So he who is hung on a tree who is hanged is cursed of God in the New Testament Galatians 313 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law having become a curse for us for it is written curses everyone who hangs on a tree so when they nailed him on that cross he became a curse for us for you are not my friends this is the great work of the cross the great work of Jesus Christ upon that cross that he regained us from our sins he became the curse for us redeeming us from our sins the cross has more than one meaning for the believer it is a symbol of the debt that he died but it’s also the symbol of the price that he paid the price that he paid for us as the criminal said we are receiving our due reward my friends were not receiving our due reward because Christ received for us as believers we ought to view the cross as an amazing bridge because sin had completely separated man from God There was a great gulf between man and God But the cross became that bridge by which man can be reunited with God redeemed us the passage spoke of the curtain being torn in the temple the curtain is separated the you had the most holy of holies so that curtain was there that curtain was that. Dividing wall that the average man could not go into God Only the high priests men only once a year could go into the go into God into the holy of holies they say that that veil that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was approximately 30 feet tall and some say that it was about a hand breadstick which is up to maybe 4 inches thick now a lot of people will go into great detail and say you know 2 horses could not have separated that torn apart you know they go into the miraculous of it being torn but my friend the most miraculous thing is is that it was torn it was taken torn apart signifying that man can now go to God that man can now go to God because of the work of the Cross a man I want to read another version from Mark Mark 153-7239 and Jesus cried with a loud voice and gave up the ghost and the veil of the temple was written Twain from top to bottom and when disinterring which stood over against him saw that he saw all that he so cried out and gave up the ghost he said Truly this was the Son of God that separation that thing that kept us from God is now torn in 2 that we can go to God and Revelations 59 and says and they sang a new song saying you are worthy to take the scroll and to open it seals for you were slain hung on a cross and have redeemed us to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people in the nation are friends because he was hung on that cross He redeemed us to God He paid the death that we write the. Verse 38 spoke of the inscription that was written and hung above his head it was written in Greek Latin and Hebrew said this is the king of the Jews. He was put the death my friends for play me to be the king of the Jews so whenever the Roman soldiers made that inscription and put it up there they were basically saying here is your supposed King being executed in public view for all to see thinking that he obviously has lost his kingdom forever because we’re putting in the death but God intended that declaration it was a hung above his head to signify who and what he really was it was not the end of his kingdom but my friends it was only the beginning. When he hung on that cross it was the beginning of His Kingdom and its kingdom is here for those who believe in Jesus Christ in His death and resurrection it dealt the death blow to Satan’s rule and step ruler over this earth it would establish Christ eternal authority over the earth my friends you don’t have to be you are not ruled by Satan if you were a child of God You can say Get behind me say because I’m a child of the Living God Jesus Christ paid my debt and I am his I am sealed for eternity for the saying that average you may know that you have eternal life for God so loved the world that He gave His only gotten son to whoever believes shall not perish but have everlasting life just keep reminding Satan of that every day right he is the king of the Jews but my friends he is also king of the church. And his cross is the way to that crown the crown of righteousness it was written in those 3 languages because it was meant for the all the world not just for the Jews but the Gentiles this marriage is meant for all the world that’s why it was written in those 3 languages and I believe that Jesus Christ revealed in just a few short words how amazing how great his mercy is. When he said Father forgive them for they do not know what they do could you imagine you could I know I can’t can’t even imagine hanging there on a cross and that excruciating pain many would be delusional in looking down at those who drove the nails into his hands and feet looking down at those who said Crucify Him crucify looking down at all those Roman soldiers all those insane Father forgive them for they do not know what they do for those that placed him or neck ROVs he spoke those words not only to them but friends for all because when we are still in our sins he say and Father forgive them for they do not know what they do when we go out and do something we shouldn’t do he was saying Father forgive them for they do not know what they do but my friends once we have repented once we believe on him we’re not to walk that path again says Go and sin no more there’s no more father forgive them thing no no not what to do because we’re to know what we’re doing when we are His right so Jesus on that cross is interceding for centers my friends he’s too interceding for us today he is interceding to the Father even today as we speak His mercy is revealed with his kind words to the fire was hung with him he was crucified with him when he said today you will be with me in paradise when he cried out and said Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom you know if you talk about an 11th hour. Please Will forgiveness be 11th hour and 59 minutes Lord remember me when you come in your kingdom. No it doesn’t matter how long our past was how long any of or past was as long as we would cry out to him before we breathe our very last he’s going to say today you’ll be with me in paradise you will be forgiven if in your heart you truly repent of what do we think about the cross how do we feel about the cross you know thankfully we live in a nation where we have the freedom to worship that we have the freedom that we can wear those crosses around our necks some places they can’t do that many parts of the world they cannot do that we have the freedom to be baptized we have the freedom to come to church and worship how we feel we should come and worship sadly that that’s not the case for millions of people what did one of the greatest Christians ever to live think of the cross Well here’s what he thought he wrote down his opinion and this is the apostle Paul says a plague you’ll find his opinion glacial in chapter 6 verse 14 but God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom the world has been crucified to me and I to the world Paul would not boast in anything but the cross what he meant by that he was declaring very strongly that he trusted in nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified for the pardon of his sin and the salvation of his soul he says let others you know they can look were ever they want for salvation but I will look to nothing but Christ and Him crucified you can look to any other king or any other image you want to make Paul says I will look to nothing but Christ and Him crucified nothing he would rest is salvation all nothing but Christ he would lean on nothing but Christ he would place these hope in nothing but Christ his confidence in nothing but Christ. In the cross of Christ you know there are many things that Paul could have boasted about you know he was shipwrecked 3 times he was stone left for dead beaten he could have boasted in all that he endured for Christ but he didn’t he boasted in one thing the cross of Christ in him crucified he could have boasted of his national privileges that he had because he was a Roman citizen and a Jew but he did not he never boasted of his own works he never boasted of his knowledge Paul was a very learned man a very wise man he didn’t boast of that he only boasted of Christ He boasted that Jesus bore sins he bore the sins of all if Christ had not gone to the cross and suffered in our place had not the just went and died for the unjust my friends there would be no hope there would be no hope for us there would still exist that great gulf between man and God which we could never pass from one side to the other but for the cross his death on the cross my friends delivered us from our sins completely setting us free I found the story story of a chaplain’s of the American soldiers in one of the Nazi prison camps who shared how life was miserable in these camps and how he tried to spread the message of hope the best he could in such a situation he shared that one unforgettable morning a big tough soldier slipped him a message that read The Scotsman wants to see you now chaplain McDonnell carefully walked to the bob war fence that separated the British and American soldiers were met a Scotsman by the name of McNeill shortly before their meeting McNeill to his underground radio to the b.b.c. barely hiding his smile behind his moustache he simply said they have come. He didn’t have to say another word he did not have to it was enough chap in the MacDonald when told every American prisoner they have come that’s all he told them they have come and each one understood the meaning it was June 6th 1900. And the allied forces had begun their invasion of France deliverance my friends was on its way now the excitement of the P.O.W.’s was a static The guards were dumbfounded as why these crazy Americans were whooping it up in the camp after all they were prisoners nothing had changed yet those prisoners knew that everything had changed their rescuers were on the way and they were changed from the inside out by what had transpired my friends these were prisoners of war my friends before Christ we were prisoners of sin they were who put it up because they knew their deliverance was common My friends we should be whooping it up because our deliverer has come a man sitting that make a shout should not make us be as excited as those prisoners were because they were going to be set free we should be that excited because we were set free from our Since we should be whooping it up we should be whooping it up when we worship him and praise him because he is worthy we should be whooping it up and be excited because of that cross because Jesus Christ went to that cross and died for my sins set us free from our prison of sin a man and a man of Christ He has come to make you free in the Word says he set you free. And you shall be free indeed a man.