Thief on the Cross

The Romans were very good at crucifixions. Once you were on the “tree” you would be dead soon. Jesus was crucified along with two really bad guys. Luke 23.39-43 tells of the conversation between the robbers while on their own crosses. One bad guy was angry at Jesus. He echoed mockers in the crowd watching the spectacle who wanted the supposed messiah to come down off that pole and save himself and show he truly was the Son of God. The mockers did not expect it to happen; they were just making fun of the man.

But the other bad guy had some understanding of who Jesus really was and some hope in what he might really do. He rebuked his partner’s bad attitude. He recognized his own sinful nature, admitting that he was getting what he deserved. He recognized the righteousness of Jesus and knew He did not deserve this punishment. He must have been impressed that Jesus could ask His father to forgive those who were treating him unfairly. And, in asking for mercy, he acknowledged Jesus as his king, saying “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He heard what some consider to be the most glorious promise in the Bible, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”

The good news is that no matter how close you are to death or how you have lived your life to-date, God can call you to himself just like Jesus attracted the thief on the cross to himself. Right now, it is not too late to ask for salvation.

Ahab

Even the worst of sinners can repent and be saved. Ahab, one of the bad kings of Israel, was a real creep. 1 Kings 21.25 tells us that no one “sold himself to do evil in the sight of the Lord like Ahab.” He was a spineless, selfish, and self-indulgent schemer. His wife, the infamous Jezebel, was even worse. She not only brought Baal worship to Israel, she tried to wipe out the worship of Yahweh.

Their “crowning” crime was to arrange for false accusations and murder of the innocent Naboth (and later, Naboth’s heirs) just so they could take control of neighbor Naboth’s vineyard and turn it into a vegetable garden. God sent the prophet Elijah to pronounce condemnation on Ahab and Jezebel – an awful, just, vindicating punishment that included dogs eating some heirs and birds of the air eating others. They deserved it.

But Ahab repented. He did the standard forgiveness-asking undertakings of the times: tore his clothes, covered himself with ashes, fasted, put on sackcloth. God was impressed enough with the humility shown by Ahab that he postponed the punishment. (1Kings 21.27-29) We don’t know how long or how real the repentance was; we do know Ahab’s life ended three years later in battle and “dogs licked up his blood” that was washed out of the chariot where he was wounded (1Kings22.38). This was “according to the word of the LORD that he had spoken.”

Like Naboth, Jesus Christ was also falsely accused by scheming people with evil intent. Many of the Pharisees, clerics, and Sadducees formed an unholy alliance to see how they could get rid of Him. Like God had pardoned Ahab, Jesus showed a forgiving spirit at his crucifixion, when he asked His Father to “forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

The good news is that no matter how bad we have been, how malicious our misdeeds, how abysmal our actions, God’s mercy and forgiveness can cover our sin if we repent and believe.

In The Right Places

The followers of “The Way” in the first seven chapters of Acts learned how to do church. They were taught regularly by wise leaders. They prayed and saw answers to prayer. They shared with those who were needy. They witnessed to non-believers through their words and their actions. They experienced an explosion of church growth. They participated in church administration and personnel matters. Best of all, they were believers in the Son of God.

They also had bonus events to build their faith. The apostles were regularly doing miracles. Church discipline was administered with abrupt finality on Ananias and Sappira. Apostles were jailed and then miraculously set free. At his speech and stoning, Stephen saw a vision of the Lord, and all who were there saw his face “like the face of an angel.”

Then everything changed. The Jewish leaders had enough and began persecuting church members, so that most were forced to flee for their lives. Where did they go? All over Judea and Samaria. What did they take with them? How to do church; how to be witnesses; how to live as believers of Jesus Christ. God was actively directing and amplifying his promised plan as announced at the Ascension. The witnesses would certainly tell the good news – Jesus was a righteous man who was crucified, dead and buried, and then rose again from the dead; those who believe in him would have eternal life. In addition, the church members would be able to testify and teach about how a community of faith can grow together – teaching, prayer, sharing, leadership, discipline.

It must have been a huge hardship to go from a comfortable, joyful, contented community in Jerusalem to life on the run and settling in some rural or small village neighborhood. But the believers told their stories and shared what they had learned. They were not all eyewitnesses of the risen savior, but they were all eyewitnesses of the peace and blessings He bestows. And the kingdom grows.

See yesterday’s post for a related message on At The Right Time.

At The Right Time

Romans 5.6 has an intriguing clue about God’s redemption plan. Out of all the moments in creation, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” What made 2000 years ago the right time for Jesus to die? Remember that after the resurrection, the plan was for believers to be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. They had to get to those places, they had to speak what they knew, and it would be great if the people they talked to had some context. And indeed, all things were ready.

The Romans were in charge. They had built excellent roads. Their brutal enforcement of laws, as illustrated by the flogging and crucifixion of Jesus, made robbers think twice about robbing – the roads and sea lanes were safe. The Greeks had been around before the Romans and spread their language widely. Most people could speak Greek as well as their native language. The Jewish religion with a monotheistic (one God) base was well established in Judea and had spread as Jews were dispersed all over the world by captivity and persecution. So there you have it – the witnesses for Christ could travel safely, they could talk to the people they met, and they knew to look for the Jewish synagogue when they arrived in a new place.

God is such a good planner! We know from the Bible that he promised to give the apostles the right words to say through the Holy Spirit (Mark 13.11). And we can see from history that He also arranged for safe and timely road trips, provided straightforward verbal communication, and placed people to be witnessed to in the entire world. Wow. As the A-Team leader says, “I love it when a plan comes together.”

Read the first chapter of The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, by Jean-Baptistie Sawadogo and Marcia A Munger for a fuller development of the right time.

See tomorrow’s post for a related message, “In the Right Places”.

Champions Vs Almost-Champions

My sister-in-law coached several volleyball teams to state championships in Michigan, and several teams that came close. I once asked her what the difference was between the champions and the almost champions. Her reply had a gospel ring to it. She said the champions were better at focusing on the next play after making an error. Everyone makes mistakes in sports – a flubbed set, a bad spike, a serve too long or short in volleyball; a missed layup or errant pass in basketball; a dropped pass or missed field goal in football. A champion has a short memory for mistakes and is able to focus on the next play in the game.

The refocusing is good, as is striving to do better on the next play, but there is nothing any player can do to eliminate the statistics on missed serves, shots or field goals. Similarly, we all make mistakes in life: we are mean to others; we don’t keep our word; we lie, cheat and steal; our minds are filled with hatred and lustful thoughts; we take great pride in our own achievements and fail to honor the creator of the whole universe who gave us the tools to do those good things. We can refocus after making mistakes and strive to do better next time, but there is nothing we can do to eliminate the stain caused by our sinful actions. In the eyes of a holy and just God, the guilt of our sins must be paid for. The good news of Jesus Christ is that his death on the cross brings a substitution and redemption. Christ pays the penalty for our sins and washes us whiter than snow when we believe in Him (John 3.16). Champions in eternal life are those who acknowledge their sin by repenting and accept the gift of salvation by believing.

Doxology

One of the great benefits of knowing that Jesus Christ made a substitution for us on the cross, taking our sins onto himself and giving to us his righteousness so that we might be sons and daughters of God is that the joy of that fact bubbles over at surprising times. The righteous man meditates on the word, the word is wonderful, the righteous man is overwhelmed with joy and amazement. Check out Paul in 1Timothy 6.11-16. He is ramping up and getting excited about the way his disciple Timothy ought to live. Avoid all these bad things! Do all these good things! Remember that all those to whom you confessed your faith know you are capable of great things. And you know that God and Jesus are with you right now, and Jesus will come back at just the right time…

And then, all of a sudden, Paul is just so overcome by all of the great things that Jesus has done and will be doing, that he breaks into a delightful doxology – a description of the grandeur of God –

“ …he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.”

Paul does not miss a beat. His interlude in the spirit ends and he lands back in advice mode – this time about how to deal with rich folks. But for that short sentence, Paul is sharing a brief glimpse of what heaven will be like – the re-created heaven on earth, in the presence of THE King, the One True God, the only Sovereign, whose unapproachable light will be all the lamp that is needed.

Of First Importance

One of the earliest creeds, as recorded in 1 Corinthians 15:3-6, testifies to both the scriptural and historical integrity of the gospel.

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.”

Two events are key – Jesus died and he rose again. Both happened according to the scriptures, which roots them in the understanding of the One True God of the Israelites. If “the scriptures” is referring to just one passage, it might be the afflicted lamb of Isaiah 53. But what a glorious realization it is that ALL of the Old Testament that points to the Messiah – the redeemer; prophet, priest, and king; the promised seed and blessing; the great I AM – all are achieved in Jesus. He himself claims to be the fulfillment of all the law and the prophets as He miraculously opened the minds of His disciples to understand the scriptures (Luke 24.44-47).

Just as the whole of God’s recorded plan points to these two events, real-life proofs anchor them in history. When Jesus died, he was buried. You don’t bury live people; He was dead. He was a real person, and he really died. Then Jesus astonishingly rose from being dead. The proof was that he appeared not only to his best friends but also to hundreds more. He rose from the dead, he is alive, and the Corinthians were invited to interview any of hundreds of eye witnesses who saw and talked to Him. It’s the truth.

Why Gospel Messages?

We leak. We forget. We lose focus. Regularly preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to yourself is a good way to stop being robbed of joy by the pressures and weeds of everyday life. Preach it strong; repeat if many times every day. The good news is meant to inspire gratitude, obedience, worship, and praise!

The guidelines for A. Knapp Gospel Messages are

The message must be Berean-worthy. Those noble men in Acts 17.11 would examine the Scriptures to see if the new information were so. Like Paul’s gospel presentations, these messages need to fit with the Bible, both Old and New Testaments.
Each gospel message should clearly tie to Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Each message should be short-ish, between 250-350 words.

How might a quick gospel presentations be used?

– I fit them into my daily devotions. I start with the Lord’s Prayer or some other recognition of the Lord’s magnificence, which should and sometimes does lead to confession of sin. One of my best ways of accepting the forgiveness offered for confession is then to preach the gospel to myself, which naturally leads to lifting up a several friends and relatives who have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

– The phrase “elevator pitch” is a marketing concept for covering the basics of your product in about the time it takes for an average elevator ride. Marketers say to always be prepared, think about how to convey excitement, keep the material fresh, adjust the message to the listener – good advice for anyone who needs to be wise as a serpent and gentle as a dove.

– Use the gospel when visiting the sick, elderly or hurting while doing elder-type work

– Be alert during conversations. Phrases or thoughts will remind you of a “story” about the gospel.

– Memorize some passages, creeds, catechism questions and answers, hymns, or gospel messages to mull over in your heart and mind, especially when your smart phone has no signal.