Text: Luke 23:33-43
32 Two other men, both
criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. 33 When they
came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the
criminals-- one on his right, the other on his left.
34 Jesus said,
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And
they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 35 The people stood
watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others;
let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One."
36 The soldiers also came up and
mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar
37 and said, "If
you are the king of the Jews, save yourself." 38 There was a
written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
39 One of the criminals who hung
there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and
us!" 40 But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you
fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? 41 We
are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man
has done nothing wrong." 42 Then he said, "Jesus, remember
me when you come into your kingdom."
43
Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me
in paradise."
The way in…
Let's start
with a little game of name that quote.
I'll give a quote and you have to name the person, song or movie.
“If I were a
rich man, dadel didal dald die...” (Tevi, Fiddler on the Roof)
“If you will
give me one hamburger today, I will gladly replay you with two hamburgers
tomorrow...” (Whimpy, Popeye)
“If I had a
million dollars...” (Bare Naked Ladies)
“If I were the
king of the fooorrrrest...” (Cowardly
Lion, Wizard of Oz)
Now, what do
each of these quotes have in common?
Yes, the word “if.” If is such a
tiny word. Only “a” and “I” are shorter. Where I'm from some folks feel the need to
stretch the word our from “if” out into “iff'n” as in, “iff'n you'll let me borrow
your truck, then I'll fill it with firewood.”
They do this, I think, because there is so much power in these words
that it feels like two letters is not enough to contain it. If is a powerful word. Few, if any, know this better than Jesus
which our passage this morning reveals.
If you are...
Many things
have happened in threes over the course of Jesus' journey to the cross. Three times Peter denies knowing Jesus. Three times Pilate attempted to release Jesus
but three times the crowd demanded his death.
And now Jesus arrives at Golgotha, a word that means “skull”, where he
is one of three crucified. I imagine few
things make for an easier target than this man lifted up, exposed and unable
even to move his hands to block his face.
He was an easy target. People
could have thrown rotten fruit, even worse, they threw rotten “if's.” First from the religious leaders.
“He saved
others; let him save himself IF he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” Next in line were the soldiers, they'd
already gotten warmed up by beating him and placing a crown of thorns upon his
head. “If you are the king of the
Jews, save yourself.” Finally, as it turns out, even those who were just as
exposed got into the game. One of the
condemned who could not kick or throw a punch was at least able to lob
words. “Aren't you the Christ? Save
yourself and us!” The Greek 'if' is
lost in our English translation, but you can feel it there. It's as if the man is saying, “If you were
the Messiah, you'd save yourself and us.”
If...if...if...only
two letters, such a small word. Sticks
and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me...especially not
little words like “if.” If words are
weapons then 'if' seems like it'd be a pebble, a paper cut or a pin prick. It is little, but what if the pin is dipped
in poison? That's the power of if.
If we are...
You know the
poison of “if.” It's been hurled at
you.
“If you would just pay attention...”
“If you would just eat less...”
“If you were a better father...mother...”
“If you hadn't married him...her...”
“If you'd taken better care of yourself...”
“If you weren't so stupid...”
If...if...if...we've
heard it so often from others sometimes we even hurl it at ourselves.
“If I would just pay attention...”
“If I would just eat less...”
“If I'd been a better father...mother...”
“If I'd never married him...her...”
“If I'd taken better care of myself...”
“If I weren't so stupid...”
Do you see the
poison on the tip of the dart yet? Do
you see how destructive this word can be?
Let's see if we can't look a little closer.
Have we heard this before
This isn't the
first time Jesus has heard the “if's” is it?
Does it sound familiar? Think
back to early March. Think back to when
we began this Lenten journey of the stations of the cross. Do you remember where we began? “Jesus...was led by the Spirit into the
desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil...” And do you remember the nature of those
temptations? Did the devil bring drugs
and alcohol? Did he bring dirty
magazines? Did he try to buy Jesus with
a flashy chariot or jewelry? No, the
devil came with 'if.'
“If you are
the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
All the
authority and splendor of the kingdoms of the world will be yours, “if you
worship me.”
And finally,
“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,” and the angels will
protect you.
If...if...if...I
think we miss the power of these temptations if we think they only appealed to
Jesus' stomach or pride. No, notice
where the if is directed. “If you are
the Son of God...” More than his stomach
or pride, each of these temptations attacks Jesus' identity. If you really are who you say you are, then
you'll be able to do this. Are we not
tempted similarly?
If you were a
good person, then you wouldn't struggle with this.
If you were a
good parent, this wouldn't have happened to your child.
If you were a
good spouse, this wouldn't have happened
to your marriage.
If you're a
good pastor, you're church will get bigger.
Do you see the
poison in the darts yet? Once the devil
brings our identity into question, then we become a rudderless ship tossed
about by the wind and the waves. And
yet, does this poison infect Jesus? Why
not?
Child...beloved...pleased
Think back a
little further, back to January. At the
beginning of this year we read a passage in which John was baptizing in the
Jordan river. Jesus comes to him to be
baptized. And do you remember the words
spoken upon Jesus emergence from the water?
“This is my son, whom I love, with him I am well pleased.”
Notice again
where this affirmation takes place. Is
it at the end of the story after Jesus has been faithful? No. Is
it in the middle after Jesus has proved himself worthy to receive the affirmation of the Father? No.
Not one word of ministry has been spoken by Jesus to this point. No, God doesn't begin with an “if.” God doesn't work in “if's”, God works with
“because.”
Because Jesus
is his beloved son, he can go into the desert for 40 days.
Because Jesus
is God's beloved son, he can proclaim the kingdom of heaven.
Because Jesus
is God's beloved son, he can heal the sick and give sight to the blind.
Because Jesus
is God's beloved son, he can befriend the outcasts, the lepers, the Samaritans
and the tax collectors.
Because Jesus
is God's beloved son, he can pray God's will be done, he can refuse to lift the
sword and he can persevere even when all of those who followed him run
away. Because...
Because...forgive them
Back upon the
cross, the if's are all around. To be
fair, they are valid accusations.
Messiahs, kings, gods are not supposed to get crucified. The very thing that proves you are the
messiah is that you defeat those trying to kill you and others. It seems somewhat fair for the religious
leaders, soldiers and even the criminals to question Jesus' identity by asking
why he doesn't save himself and others.
In fact, his name, the name Yeshua means Yahweh saves. It is the name of Joshua the one that saved
the Hebrew people by leading them to victory over the people in the Promised
Land. Joshua saved thousands of lives,
but this Jesus can't even save himself.
If he were who he says he was, he'd at least be able to do that. This logic is attractive, but it is still so
full of “if's”. When you look closer you'll notice that Jesus has
already worked with because.
“When they
came to the place of the skull, there they crucified him, along with the
criminals – one on his right, the other on his left.” And then Jesus speaks and what does he
say? “Father, forgive them, for they
do not know what they are doing.”
They don't
even know...they pound these nails, they hurl these insults and they even think
they're doing the right thing. Father
forgive them. But does this ignorance
stop with Jesus? If it did, Jesus'
death, as tragic as it is would just be one of millions. No, when Jesus says they don't know what
they're doing, he is saying they/we don't know how we are doing this to one
another. Jesus is on the cross now, but
tomorrow it will be someone else, perhaps even some taunting him. And if not a cross it will be a sword, a
spear or a fist. In fact, it is because
of this crucifying one another that Jesus told the women to weep last week and
the reason Jesus wept for Jerusalem. We
don't know what we are doing and it is resulting in death after death after
death. All which should lead us to hang
our heads in shame, but what does Jesus say?
Father,
forgive them...
Because...
And this
brothers and sisters, is our great because.
Because God has forgiven us, we can forgive one another. Because God calls us children, we can care
for others like children. Because God
loves us, we can love others. Because
God delights in us, we can delight in others.
Because God loved us so much that he was willing to allow us to taunt,
jeer and crucify him, we can love others so much that we might even endure
taunts, jeers and even death.
The apostle
Paul knew the power of this forgiveness.
He was one of those who taunted, mocked and attempted to kill those that
followed Jesus. His identity was wrapped
in hundreds of 'ifs' yet it was shattered with one bright because in which
Jesus forgave him and called him to become who he really was. Love so amazing, so divine would later lead
Paul despite his own mockings, beatings and imprisonments to write, “If we
live, we live to the Lord. If we die, we
die to the Lord. So whether we live or
whether we die, we belong to the Lord.
(Romans 14:8)
And this
brothers and sisters is the great because.
We belong to the Lord.
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