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good evening welcome to the house of the Lord and ask you to turn your Bibles please to Psalm 22 Psalm 22 to prepare our hearts to worship this evening being the Lord's Supper this is a very pertinent part in Psalm that caused us to think of the Lord Jesus Christ so Psalm chapter 22 to the chief musician set to the deer of the dawn a psalm of David my God my God why have you forsaken me why are you so far from helping me and from the words of my groaning oh my god I cry in the daytime but you do not hear and in the night season and AM NOT silent but you are wholly enthroned in the praises of Israel our fathers trusted in you they trusted and you delivered them they cried to you and were delivered they trusted in you and were not ashamed but I am a woman and sorry excuse me but I'm a worm and no man a reproach of men and despised by the people all those who see me ridicule me they shoot out the lip they shake the head saying he trusted in the Lord let him rescue him let him deliver him since he delights in him but you are he who took me out of the womb you made me trust while on my mother's breasts I was cast upon you from birth from my mother's womb you have been my God be not far from me for trouble is near for there is none to help many bulls have surrounded me strong Bulls of Bashan have encircled me they gape at me with their mouths like a raging and roaring lion I'm poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint my heart is like wax it is melted within me my strength is dried up like a potsherd and my tongue clings to my jaws you have brought me to the dust of death for dogs have surrounded me the congregation of the wicked has enclosed me they pierced my hands and my feet I can count all my bones they look and stare at me they divide my garments them and for my clothing they cast lots but you Oh Lord do not be far from me all my strength hasten to help me deliver me from the sword my precious life from the power of the dog saved me from the lion's mouth and from the horns of the wild oxen you have answered me I will declare your name to my brethren in the midst of the assembly I will praise you you who feared the Lord praise him all you descendants of Jacob glorify him and fear him all you offspring of Israel for he has not despised nor poured the affliction of the afflicted nor has he hidden his face from him but when he cried to him he heard my praise shall be of you in the great assembly I will pay my vows before those who fear Him the poor shall eat and be satisfied those who seek Him will praise the Lord let your heart live forever all the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord and all the families of the nations shall worship before you for the kingdom is the Lord's and He rules over the nation's all the prosperous of the earth shall eat and worship all those who go down to the dust shall bow before him even he who cannot keep himself alive a posterity shall serve Him he will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation they will come and declare his righteousness to a people who will be born that he has done this Amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to to respond to that in him chapter one I'm sorryi him one in psy 181 188 him number 188 and I'll ask you Stan [Music] [Music] [Music] Oh [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] exceeded let's go to God in prayer and ask his blessing to be upon our meeting time here this evening that's great our gracious and our loving Heavenly Father we come into your holy presence now through your son the Lord Jesus Christ and how grateful we our Father for the fact that we have such a savior as your son the Lord Jesus Christ the one who left heaven who left the throne in heaven where he was worshiped where he was praised where he was adored and where he came to this earth in order to be spat upon and scourged and and and hated and rebuked and and bought throughout throughout his life he had fathered how we praise you that he was obedient even in this lower world he was obedient to his parents he was obedient to you so that ultimately when he offered up his life as this as a sacrifice as an atonement for our sins it was truly it was it was a perfect atonement it was a perfect sacrifice and how grateful you are Father for your son the Lord Jesus Christ and as we gather here as the as they as the church elect as we gather as as individuals as a as a local church here in Chilliwack this evening to remember and celebrate the Lord's Supper we pray Lord that you would be pleased to Tabernacle with us here this evening cause us Lord to rejoice in our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ we pray that he might be that he might be proclaimed from this pulpit this evening that we might worship you that we might be worshippers of you that we would declare that the Lord that the Lord Jesus Christ is Lord of lords and King of Kings and how we pray Lord that you would be pleased to Tabernacle here with us this evening cause us to be worshippers of you we do pray we thank you Lord that you are a kind guy that you are good God a gracious God you've given to us health and strength to gather here this evening you've kept us safe over the past week so we can gather to gather back together now in the Lord's house for a second time to to to praise you to worship you here this in this place this evening so learn how we pray that you would be pleased to bless us as a local church caused us to to to enjoy that unity of the Spirit here in this place we do pray Lord that you would also bless the Blessed the church plant that we desire to see come out of this Bible study and sri Lord we pray your rich blessing to be upon that as well as its in its as its it's just its beginnings that Lord you would be pleased to to plant a church there somewhere in the in the somewhere else of the Lower Mainland in that South Surrey area this be your will we thank you that Mike and Jessica can be with us a and that you return them home safely to us we praise you for that and we pray Lord that you would just be pleased to direct us in the future in regards to how that how that work might that might continue and how it might might might might bring praise and honor and glory to you we pray there would be many yet to be called your children in that part of in that look part of the Lower Mainland that you would that you would save a number to come in and be a part of that church and the Lord you would be pleased to to bless it and own it bless their Baba slay this coming week we pray Lord that they might meet together and enjoy fellowship enjoy the Word of God the Word of God opened up and the Lord you would knit those hearts together and cause it to be a to be a church in in in the future we do pray Lord we thank you that the Lord Jesus Christ is head up the church and Lord you you are head not just of our local church here or the churches in the Lower Mainland but all around this earth father we praise you that you are you have a people a peculiar people named after you and those who are meeting together even even in this day to bring worship and praise to you we pray Lord that you would bless those who are still yet meeting to bring worship to you we pray Lord that you would bless them with a sense of fellowship with you with a sense of your greatness and your awesomeness your power in their midst we pray Lord that you would be pleased even to save individuals Lord we think of the persecuted church how we pray Lord that you would bless them caused them to to to bear up under the persecution we know that you have a purpose in all things and so even in this Lord we pray that your purposes might be accomplished whether it be for the gospel to go forward in prisons in in local communities from house to house we pray Lord that you would be pleased to protect those who are your children cause the Church of Jesus Christ to be raised up upon the blood of the martyrs as as the the enemy of our souls the enemy of the church seeks to stamp the church out we know Lord that it may well be that you desire to to raise up churches in these very districts in these very areas where where the gospel is so hated so Lord we pray that you would that you would move hearts and cause those who who hate you to become lovers of you just as the Apostle Paul who once persecuted the church who stood by and watch watch Christians be be persecuted even to the point of death and yet Father you reach down in mercy and saved him how we pray Lord that you would be pleased yet to save many more in these in these persecuting countries and so Lord as we gather together to remember the Lord's Supper this evening we pray that you would bless the preacher bless past reporters strengthen him enable him Lord to - to - to know your aid and your help your spirit helping him to deliver your word from this pulpit here hedge him in protect him father and give to us a time of fellowship in the word of God this evening we pray lo that you would be pleased - - to sanctify your people here in this place this night cause us to to love Christ cause us to be made and molded into the image of your son the Lord Jesus Christ so that we can go out into the world as as true disciples of Christ giving it giving a sweet aroma to those around of ones who walk with Christ and know Christ as their Lord and Savior and so where we pray your blessing upon this meeting time here this evening and it's in Jesus precious name we pray amen please turn with me in your hymn books to the second hymn which is him number 2 - 3 m number 223 and I'll ask you to stand [Music] [Music] Oh see good evening everyone and turn in your Bibles to Luke 23 please Luke chapter 23 we're going to begin reading in verse 26 our focus will be on verse 38 to verse 43 so we observe the occasion concerning the prints of life and the penitent thief companions on this day of crucifixion Luke 23 beginning in verse 26 the word of God now as they led him away they laid hold of a certain man Simon a Cyrenian who was coming from the country and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus and a great multitude of the people followed him and women who also mourned and lamented him but Jesus turning to them said daughters of Jerusalem do not weep for me but weep for yourselves and for your children for indeed the days are coming in which they will say blessed are the barren who excuse me blessed are the barren wombs that never bore and breasts which never nursed then they will begin to say to the mountains fall on us and to the hills cover us for if they do these things in the Greenwood what will be done in the dry there were also two others criminals led with him to be put to death 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 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 save himself if he is the Christ the chosen of God the soldiers also mocked him coming and offering him sour wine and saying if you are the King of the Jews save yourself and an inscription also was written over him in of Greek Latin and Hebrew this is the king of the Jews then one of the criminals who were hanged blaspheme him saying if you are the Christ save yourself and us but the other answering rebuked 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 then he said to Jesus Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom and Jesus said to him assurance a to you today you will be with me in paradise amen well let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you now for this time in your word we rejoice in this exercise of worship the preaching of your word and once again we would ask for your help once again we would ask for the blessings of your condescending grace and mercy as we worship you in this way we do pray that you would help preacher in the pulpit to proclaim rightly the things of your truth and Lord God once again that for those in the pews this evening that you would strengthen your saints that you would save sinners and Lord God that the exercise of worship now and as we continue would be unto the praise of your glorious grace and Lord God that we would give to you all honor and all praise we do pray in the name of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ amen well an old nineteenth-century commentator wrote these words with respect to this occasion of the prince of life and the penitent thief he wrote the story of the penitent thief has sometimes being considered the most surprising the most suggestive the most instructive incidents in all the gospel narratives in the salvation of one of the thieves vital theology finds one of its finest demonstrations see what the what this occasion of the prince of life and the penitent thief does is it jettisons from our contemplations any notions of the truth of sacrament ology that we need a interceding earthly priest in order to bring us between in order to bring favor between us God that we need some intermediary agency in order to wash away the transgressions of our sins it it jettisons from our contemplations any notions that salvation is not solely and alone by grace through faith in Jesus Christ at jettisons from our contemplations any notions that we can merit everlasting life by the doing of good deeds that somehow we commend ourselves to God by the exercise of by the exercise of good works and obedience to the law it to use the same language jettisons from our contemplations any notions that there is a purgatory that there is a limbus patch room that there is some sort of intermediator intermediary state where one must go prior to entering heaven such a state where he must by his own purging x' do away with the stain of sin no this sets before us vital theology in its finest demonstration that salvation is by grace through faith in Christ and that as seen with this thief those who are saved are saved solely and alone by virtue of the doing and the dying and the rising again of the prints of life Jesus Christ the just and in him is our only hope we want to look at the verses 38 to 243 here Luke 23 48 excuse me Luke 23 38 to 43 and we're going to look at four things and we'll proceed through these things as we go but those four things we want to observe our first the telling inscription secondly the cursed robber the thirdly the dying thief and fourthly the comforting Christ and so first I want us to observe the telling inscription notice verse 38 and an inscription also was written over him in letters of Greek Latin and Hebrew this is the King of the Jews at first we want to note that this reflects an accusation when one was crucified they received something written as we see in this case an inscription written in Greek Latin and Hebrew they received something written that disclosed the reason for their condemnation now we know of Christ we know of course at Christ is holy harmless and undefiled he is sinless he is that perfect Lamb of God without blemish and without spot but with respect to these two parties of persons the unbelieving Jews and the unbelieving Romans conspiring together to bring an end to the life of the prince of life we see that the accusation or this inscription this is the King of the Jews reflects the accusation that was against him and if you want we can read some historical context that isn't taken up so much here and Luke 23 but it is in the parallel account in John 19 and you can turn there with me to John 19 why do we have this inscription as an accusation this is the king of the Jews but very often what would happen is if you see somebody doing their march to their crucifixion they would have perhaps someone preceding them with a sign upon which was written the accusation for their condemnation their criminality perhaps it was they were adorned with that accusation the inscription was upon their person in the case of Christ it's attached and it's affixed to the cross but we see with respect to of course the false accusation that he is in somehow that he is somehow seditious or that he is somehow usurping or that he is somehow criminally liable for his actions against Caesar these sorts of things notice John 19 beginning in verse 10 then Pilate said to him are you not speaking to me do you not know that I have power to crucify you and power to release you jesus answered you could have no power at all against me unless it had been given you from above therefore the one who delivered me to you has the greater sin it just paused for a moment don't you love the the response of our Lord Jesus Christ there that particular point you see Pilate assumes to himself too much power and too much esteem are you not speaking to me do you not know that I have power to crucify you and power to release you in Christ answers beautifully you could have no power at all against me unless it had been given you from above this is sort of a four pilot a Nebuchadnezzar type event although pilot isn't cast out into the wilderness to eat grass like Nebuchadnezzar nevertheless he's humbled by the words of the sovereign Christ here who from his lips that only ever speak Verity answers with strength no power could be given to you unless it had been given you from above beautiful but moving on verse 12 then from then on Pilate sought to release him but the Jews cried out saying if you let this man go you are not Caesars friend whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar you see the Jews are playing at this as that which should condemn the Christ they're playing at this and they're they're playing at pilots Caesar loyal heartstrings here if you will by saying if you let this man go you are not Caesars friend whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar now reading on when Pilate therefore heard that saying he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the pavement but in Hebrew gabbatha now it was the preparation day of the Passover and about the sixth hour and he said to the Jews behold your king but they cried out away with him away with him crucify him Pilate said to them shall I crucify your king the chief priest answered we have no king but Caesar then he delivered him to them to be crucified then they took Jesus and led him away so getting back to Luke 23 here we see that there is this accusation that is behind the inscription this the accusation against Christ Christ is as the Jews would say in another gospel account don't say this is the king of the Jews but that he said he was the King of the Jews in order to incite the charges of sedition against this Christ and charges against Caesar all of that to come back to this Christ of course is innocent any accusation against the Son of God is absolutely false but the crime for which he was being crucified is seen in this inscription must be noted here perhaps this is in view and we get to Colossians chapter 2 and we read with regards to the the perfect saving work of Christ is no blood that the blood of Jesus Christ cleansing us from all iniquity we see Paul using there in Colossians chapter 2 the language of Christ having taken away the handwriting which was against us having nailed it to the cross some have drawn a connection to this you see he bore an inscription that our inscription might be taken away he bore upon his cross an inscription the king of the Jews he bore these charges he bore these accusations of course falsely and of course beyond this is the reality of God according to his determined plan and foreknowledge sending the son of his love to the cross to bear the iniquities of his people but nevertheless Christ bore an inscription that we might have ours taken away and notice the title this is the King of the Jews while it may be fuel for mockery by the Jews and the words chosen by Pilate by virtue of his discussion with Christ and the unbelieving Jews it is nevertheless true this is the King of the Jews you see that was their Messiah that was their king what they confess in mockery what they confess by this inscription though not believing it is nevertheless true they are putting to death the king of the Jews they are putting to death their very God and king upon Calvary's cross it's absolute madness that was their Messiah that was their king this is something that is recognized at the outset of Christ's earthly ministry there's an account or some language and on Chapter one by Nathaniel and Jesus saw Nathanael John 147 coming toward him and said of him behold an Israelite indeed in whom is no deceit Nathanael said to him how do you know me jesus answered and said before Philip called you when you were under the fig tree I saw you Nathanael answered and said to him rabbi you are the son of God you are the king of Israel see the confession of the believer is you are the son of God you are the king of Israel and so this is the King of the Jews though again bearing the marks of Jewish mockery and bearing the unbelieving marks of a pilot who was writing this upon the inscription based upon his conversation with Christ and based upon his conversation with the unbelieving Jews nevertheless this is a blessed truth this is the Messiah this is the king this is the son of God remember that the Old Testament anticipates this doesn't it that the one who would be the Redeemer of Israel is God Most High and he is everlasting king at prophecy in Micah 5 in chapter 2 those words given to Bethlehem Ephrathah though you are the littlest among the thousands of Judah yet out of you I will bring forth one to me who will be ruler in Israel whose goings forth are from old from everlasting this is the one who was brought forth to be ruler in Israel this is the king of the Jews and Steve read tonight Psalm 22 the psalm of the Cross we see the progression I mean the Psalms and their entirety are the prayers of the Messiah the prayers of Christ the words of truth we have in Psalm 22 what's been called the psalm of the Cross we see there clearly the language of crucifixion prophesied a thousand years before the crucifixion by David we see in Psalm 23 following upon the heels of the crucifixion we have the the the psalm of the the psalm of the crook the shepherd's crook he is our Shepherd we shall not want he leads us he leads us into green pastures and in all that glorious language concerning Christ as as our Shepherd then when we get to Psalm 24 we have the the Psalm of the crown we see the King of glory who is this King of glory this is the king of glory this is the king of the Jews our blessed and our glorious Savior with regards to the inscription Melito of Sardis a bishop in the 2nd century wrote these words and and by the way the two it's stuff like this that should chase away the conspiracy theories that the deity of Jesus Christ was forced on the church in the 4th century by the Roman Emperor Constantine his absolute madness I read this morning a quote from Marcy anise Arista T's who was in 1/2 from 126 ad an Athenian philosopher converted by by God by the Christian Proclamation in Athens and if I read later if I read more in that quote he acknowledges that this Jesus the Son of God is that God that came down from heaven and took upon himself flesh by way of the Hebrew virgin 126 ad the confession of the deity of Christ here we have Milito only a couple handfuls or a few handfuls of decades later writing these words and it's at the point getting back to Luke 23 and the thief on the cross and the inscription here notice and thus he was lifted up upon the tree speaking not of the thief but of the prints of life Jesus Christ and an inscription was affixed identifying the one who had been murdered who was he it is painful to tell but it is more dreadful not to tell the one who hung the earth in space is himself hanged the Lord is insulted God has been murdered the king of Israel has been destroyed by the right hand of Israel of course that that language God God is murdered or God has been murdered God can't be murdered but by virtue of the hypostatic union christ taking to himself man's nature Milito can speak with propriety using that language just the way that paul can speak in the book of Acts saying God purchased us with his own blood or the Church of Christ with his own blood but back to this point this title this is the king of the Jews is absolutely right this is the sovereign one this is the Christ this is god this is the king of Israel and notice the madness with respect to the inscription at the point of these Jews and Romans putting to death the king of the Jews putting to death the very creator and upholder of all things who took to himself man's nature putting to death the very promised king of Israel the madness of it the gross injustice of it this is the one this is their God this is their Lord this is the one who condescended by way of covenant to give them blessings to give them to give them favor to condescend and mercy and eternal loving-kindness to show forth his glorious perfections pouring out his bounty upon them giving them the Oracles of God and showing forth his faithfulness and his his covenant 'el faithfulness what a gross injustice Milito would go on to write why o israel did you do this strange injustice you dishonored the one who honored you you held in contempt the one who held you in esteem you killed the one who made you to live why did you do this so Israel Oh frightful murder Oh unheard-of injustice this is the king of the Jews as we observe the Lord's Supper tonight what's an application that we can take away from this at the point of remembrance is that we partake of the Lord's Supper not only then in the Lord's Supper in a special way but each and everyday to be sure as well remember your king remember that it is the mark of human nature even with our remaining corruption as the redeemed sons and daughters of God to be found marked by a languor and a coldness on spiritual things and with a respect to the remembrance of our Christ that's why we have the Lord's Supper that's why the Lord's Supper is given to us one of the reasons why is because we're so prone to wander so prone to leave the god that we love and with this we come back to a remembrance and a reflection upon our King upon our Christ upon the Son of God who came into this world sinners to save the human heart is is drawn to pomp and power that's the sort of King that we like you know our human minds and our human curiosities in our our human you know Inklings we were drawing after a kings of pomp and power and no doubt Christ as that he rises again the third day he's exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high he's given glory Dominion in a kingdom but you see we are to cast our eyes upon a bloodied and battered Messiah our eyes of faith were to cast our eyes upon this king of the Jews and remember him you see because yes he's altogether lovely and chief among 10,000 and his resplendent glory exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high but to us who are his people he's also altogether lovely to us when he's when he's a crying when he's a crying and a forlorn in the Garden of Gethsemane when he's grieving in the Garden of Gethsemane he's altogether lovely to us and here battered and bruised upon Calvary's cross a bloody mess upon this jib it of execution we are to remember him and he is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000 moving on then to the curse that robber notice what we have in verse 39 verse 39 the cursed robber then one of the criminal who were hanged blaspheme him saying if you are the Christ save yourself and us notice that his last breath or to his last breath he is unrepentant and opposes Christ isn't this doesn't this picture for us the sinfulness and the depravity of the human heart he's crucified upon a cross this cursed robber he himself is a bloody and a crucified mess he is being put to death for actually being one who is deserved of death who does deserve the punishment that he is getting as that as the the dying thief will say next err or will say later we receive the due reward of our deeds this one is being crucified he is very near death and yet he breathes out in wicked blasphemy if you are the Christ save yourself and us make no mistake this isn't a this isn't an honest and a wholesome pleading for salvation it's not that's not what the cursed robber is breathing out here why mean we already have Luke's commentary Luke's narrative then one of the criminals who were hanged blaspheme him saying this language that he says here this language that he speaks if you are the Christ save yourself and us is obviously not then an honest pleading for salvation it is simply to echo those who beforehand said in verse 37 if you are the King of the Jews save yourself and previously to that in verse 35 he saved others let him save himself if he is the Christ the chosen of God you know perhaps it is in the the heart and the mind of this cursed this cursed robber to to side with the crowd in the hopes that perhaps the the faintest chance of of the Romans alleviating his punishment might be in the coughing but in the very least we know or we should mount up from that supposition to the reality that it is blasphemy that he speaks and it probably carries the same tone of revealing and mockery as the others who are gathered in the crowd looking at Christ upon the cross this is a reviling this is a mockery and this is their King this is their Messiah this is the Promised One who came to bring deliverance to Israel and to Gentiles who are afar off the blasphemy to his last breath he is unrepentant and opposes Christ have a look at a passage in the book of Revelation with me if you will Revelation 16 is there we have something else that ought to cause us to marvel like this occasion of the courser draw at the wickedness and the sinfulness of men when even faced with doom and certain judgment notice in Revelation 16 beginning in verse 8 then the fourth angel this is revelation 16 8 then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the Sun and power was given to him to scorch men with fire and men were scorched with great heat and they blaspheme the name of God who has power over these plagues and they did not repent and give him glory this is the fourth angel pouring out the fourth Bowl there had already been judgments previously prior to the fourth the first the second in the and the third and even upon this fourth judgment even upon this fourth righteous judgment poured out by the god of perfect holiness in justice nevertheless these men scorched with great heat blaspheme the name of God note who has power over these plagues not only do they blaspheme God but this is the one who has power over the plagues to stop them and yet nevertheless they blaspheme him and they did not repent in give him glory we ought to draw a line of relevance to our passage back in Luke 23 here when when faced with crucifixion with and when faced with the penal sanctions of the civil magistrate unto very death this one blasphemes Christ if you are the Christ save yourself and us now this ought to have some echoes as well I'm not sure if you remember but back when I was preaching on Matthew 4 and that occasion there in the wilderness where the the fearsome lion of the pit and the lion of the tribe of Judah that is the devil and the Christ go toe-to-toe in single combat in the wilderness and one emerges victorious and it isn't the devil it is Christ who emerges victorious and some of the the daggers of the devil there in that wilderness episode are the same things that the thief here spews out from the cross not the dying thief not the blessed thief but the curse of robber he takes the same tact as the devil perhaps even animated by Satan himself if you are the Christ save yourself and us remember the words of the devil in the wilderness if you are the son of God turn these stones into bread he repeats the same sort of language in the next temptation or in the last if you are the or if you are the son of God cast yourself down because as it is written he has given his angels charge over him the thief is as if here animated by the devil perhaps a last-ditch effort we don't know what the devil knows we don't know the propositional content of his satanic mind is he perhaps making a last-ditch effort at preventing the crucifixion in the Matthew 4 that the idea there is perhaps that the devil is trying to stymie to to try and stymie the Messianic work of the mediator the Lord Jesus Christ and seeking to tempt him away from from being obedient to God seeking to do a repeat of his damage done to the first Adam perhaps here the devil himself is animais the curse at robber but what we do know is that the cursor drawbar blasphemes the glorious king of the Jews Jesus Christ our Lord and he is wicked and sinful and unrepentant as he opposes our glorious Christ before we move on to point number three what can we take away from this as a point of application again with the Lord's Supper before us as we look forward to partaking of it and it being an act of remembrance we are to remember our former state we make a mistake and and I would submit we make a gray a grave one and we assume too much to ourselves if we think ourselves better than this curse at robber when we were before we met were met by divine and condescending grace we were no better than this Kirstin robber I think a modern Hemnes gets it right when he wrote ashamed I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers you see a reflection upon our pre converted state a reflection upon our sinfulness when reigning sin was our lot and when the wrath of God abideth on us when we were the sons of disobedience and children of Wrath just as the others we had that reality that we called out with mocking voices among the scoffers and we would have been just like this cursed robber crying out if you are the Christ save yourself and us not out of some honest and wholesome pleading for salvation but out of reviling and mockery remember your former state we were once a curse at robber but now having been brought in by grace we are like this one now that we move on to the dying thief the blessed thief verses 40 to 42 we want to acknowledge first that he acknowledges that is the dying thief acknowledges the necessity of the fear of God and rebukes the cursed robber for the lack of it notice what he says here in verse 40 but the other that is the other robber the other thief answering rebuked him saying do you not even fear God seeing you are under the same condemnation you know he he is he's sort of answering the question that we might be brought to at the point of Revelation 16:9 do do you do you not even fear God you've just been the recipients of four bowls of Wrath poured out you've just been the recipients of divine judgment and wholesome and right the wholesome severity of the divine magistrate has poured out his wrath upon you and after the fourth time you're still blaspheming him knowing that this one has the power to stop these plagues and your unrepentant do you not even fear God these words of the thief are absolutely amazing because remember what you know let alone when we're when we're not on when we're not under travail under physical affliction like this thief would be upon in the midst of crucifixion were we're all about ourselves but upon the cross he takes occasion not to just not to just wallow in the loss wallow in the misery wallow in the shame of the cross but he takes occasion to defend the very honor of God and this Christ beside whom he is crucified saying do you not even fear God the beautiful response by this thief now remember at this point this thief is converted in parallel accounts we have the reality that both robbers that both thieves reviled Christ that both thieves blaspheme him at some point on this blessed occasion of the crucifixion this solemn occasion as well at some point God by His grace reached down to this dying thief and brought him forth from deadness and in sin to life in Christ and he says here do you not even fear God seeing that you are under the same condemnation he acknowledges sin and the due penalty for sin notice the language in 41 and we indeed justly that is we indeed receive condemnation we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds you know that's a that's a refreshing statement by a sinner saved by grace it's a refreshing statement you see it's it's the case it's the nature of men that we want to blame shift we want to lie and say we we are you know we have done nothing wrong we're caught in sin when we're found out in sin that's sort of one response well it wasn't me or the other responses to blame shift or minimize or or you know try to try to wiggle out of it one way or another rather than simply owning it like this dying thief who is a model of of human honesty under the regenerating power of the Holy Ghost and we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds he acknowledges sin and the due penalty for sin he realizes that God is holy that he has a law that we have violated that he has violated and that the Just Desserts for such violation are the condemnation of the law penal sanctions penalty it's wonderful for we receive the due reward of our deeds he acknowledges it he owns it he knows he confesses his iniquity before God and he confesses his iniquity even before this rebel robber as well he confesses the innocence of Christ their companion upon the cross notice the language here continuing in verse 41 but this man has done nothing wrong you see I think we we do minimize the the knowledge and we minimize what this thief knew and what this thief confessed prior to his death and his interest entrance into paradise see it's a common it's a common you know sort of tact or it's a you know a mark of our modern era or watered-down Christianity to to do just that water down Christianity let's just boil it down to the the most minimum amount of propositions possible there's a mere Christianity movement you know can can we not again just all get along there's so many of us out there so many you know denominations associations approaches to Christianity can we not just boil it down to the lowest common denominator I mean come on the thief on the cross what did he really know what did he really know I mean it's just a you know it's three versus what what could he have known I I would submit that he knows a lot and that he knew a lot remember he acknowledges the necessity of the fear of God and he acknowledges it to the point where he has the wherewithal to rebuke the curse and robber for having no fear of God and blaspheming Christ he acknowledges sin and the due penalty for it that would reflect or that would you know have in the back as supporting reality's a God of holiness the divine law that that God of holiness demands and the penal sanction for the laws violation he knew a lot not only that but he confesses now the innocence of Christ their companion he says but this man has done nothing wrong you know this this whole event this whole occasion was prophesied by Isaiah you can turn to Isaiah 53 and no doubt that probably knew I was going to go there at some point but the language with respect to these robbers is there and the language with respect to what this dying thief confesses that is the innocence of Christ it is their notice in Isaiah 53 excuse me Isaiah 53 beginning in verse 7 he was oppressed and he was afflicted yet he opened not his mouth he was led as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before it's Shearer's is silent so he opened not his mouth he was taken from prison and from judgment and who will declare his generation for he was cut off from the land of the living for the transgression of my people he was stricken and they made his grave with the wicked but with the rich at his death because he had done no violence nor was any deceit in his mouth you see that language there with respect to the confession by this dying thief this blessed thief that this man is innocent this man has done nothing wrong he has done no violence nor was any deceit in his mouth and then notice verse 12 therefore I will divide him a portion with the great and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he poured out his soul unto death and he was numbered with the transgressors and he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors he was numbered with the transgressors he was set up upon Calvary's cross and had two transgressors as companions and so this dying thief who no doubt would have taken in the some truth proclaimed to whatever degree being sure a zealot there in Jerusalem no doubt he would have come into contact with the Old Testament Scriptures perhaps and this occasion upon Calvary's crossed the Spirit of God is caught as it is rousing his spirit within him to cast reflection upon nuggets of truth proclaimed and he's reflecting back upon the reality that Isaiah prophesied concerning this one who had done no violence nor was any deceit in his mouth he had done nothing wrong he confesses next the Lord well actually before we move on let's let's just pause for a moment this man had done nothing wrong this was beforehand confessed by Pilate himself when he says I have found no fault in this man and when he says again later on I have found no reason for death in him there was there at there though an unbelieving confession of him guiltlessness but Christ was sinless Christ was wholly harmless and undefiled another application is we take this take and eat this bread and take and drink this cup is to remember to reflect upon the fact that the Christ that we remember is the only one that was ever innocent and and without sin you know we we know nothing but sin in this lower world as we deal with one another that sin everyone sins we we we traffic in a world of sin we don't bump up against anyone who is holy harmless and undefiled we don't bump up against anyone who is separate from sinners in in the perfection of his obedience and guiltlessness we don't bump up against anyone who is like a like a lamb without blemish and without spot I I think sometimes it perhaps it's it's hard for us to to wrap our minds around this because we just don't come into contact with this but Christ this man has done nothing wrong he was innocent he was sinless Adam had thrust us into sin and depravity by his disobedience yet by this one man who only ever perfected obedience who only ever was obedient to the law of God every jot and tiddle there was no jot and tiddle we're in Christ broke the law of God but at each and every point of the way it was his will to do the the will of his father or was his meat to do the will of the Father who sent him and he never failed in doing that this man has done nothing wrong absolutely beautiful next he confesses that is the dying thief he confesses the lordship of Christ and pleads for remembrance notice verse 42 then he said to Jesus Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom he confesses the lordship of Christ and he pleads for remembrance unlike the cursed robber who isn't confessing the lordship of Christ he's only revealing and mocking and saying if you are the Christ save yourself and us this blessed and dying thief says Lord confessing the lordship of Christ and what follows after that is a repetition of the acknowledgement in the confession of his lordship remember me when you come into your kingdom he recognizes that this Christ has a kingdom that this Christ perhaps not perhaps but that this Christ is the one of Daniel 7 who ascends to the Ancient of Days and is given glory Dominion and a kingdom this one is the one of Isaiah 9:6 that child that is born that Sunnat that is given the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called wonderful counselor mighty God everlasting father Prince of Peace and of the increase of his government there will be no end he has a kingdom this king this glorious one this Jesus this Lord I love this you know we noted a number of minutes ago that this thief is converted this thief having just at some point earlier having blaspheme Christ having reviled and mocked him God has pulled him forth from the darkness of sin to life in Christ and he's now the son of God he's now the brother of Christ he's now the saved of Christ and the Cyril of Jerusalem makes these remarks I love these these comments what power o robber led thee to the light what taught thee or who taught thee to worship that despised man thy companion on the cross o light eternal which gives light to them that are in darkness make no mistake you see we don't have the language and perhaps this is for a designed reason which I may offer up in a moment but you see we don't have this this elevated narrative of the conquering power and the grace of God ripping down at the heavens open and light down a voice coming from heaven thou art now my son o dying thief I think what we're supposed to be brought to here is the reality that God's Amazing Grace is seen in the silent course of events where a sinner is brought from a blasphemer to a confessor of Christ you see we are not to seek after and we reflect upon our lives we are not to plague our selves to try and find some penetrating moment where the heavens opened and like Saul on the on the road to Damascus we're just knocked off of our horses and and there's this amazing conversion event make no mistake it is amazing grace it is sovereign and victorious grace but you see sometimes it is the simple report that were brought from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of the son of God's love were brought like the this dying thief from blasphemy to glorying in this blessed Christ and so an application at this particular report point remember when by grace you came to know Christ it was there was a time perhaps you know the day perhaps you only know the month or perhaps you only know the year perhaps you know those of us out there in the midst to a Spurgeon said whose hair is whitened by the sunlight of heaven it's hard for you to remember the day in which God pulled you from the darkness of of sin to light in life in Christ but you see remember when by grace you came to know Christ remember that blessed time remember in the very least that you were once without hope and without strength in the world but God reached down and by His grace and for his glory brought you into the kingdom of the son of his love now notice lastly we have the comforting Christ the comforting Christ and Jesus said to him assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in Paradise Christ brings words of highest comfort to the dying thief says it you know he's saying it's as if he's saying for about a moment longer endure the nails for but a moment longer endure the pain endure the wicked sneering and or the shame because assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise it's in that glorious something that blessed you know it brings much comfort not only to the thief you know i none of us will most likely be crucified for crimes or in a in an act of martyrdom some of us will endure some of us will incur affliction trial suffering however that may providentially come upon us perhaps we observe family members believers struggling with the horrors of cancer some sort of some sort of a disease we have these blessed words of comfort that come to us endure the affliction and or the suffering because assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise Christ bring words Christ brings words of highest comfort to the dying thief as well as we look to close here Christ communicates the certainty of the dying thief's salvation he says I say to you today you will be with me in paradise but this is introduced by an amen this is introduced by an assuredly assuredly I say to you you know perhaps when others say that assuredly and certainly and I promise those sorts of things there's a possibility that it won't come to pass or that it's not true but you see from the words of the Word of God from the words of Christ himself who only and ever spoke Verity that really is true assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise Christ communicates the certainty of the dying thief salvation this assuredly brings with it the weight of divine promise the weight of divine promise you see our perseverance our assurance does not depend upon our own free will but upon the immutability of the decree of election flowing from the unchangeable love of God the Father divine promise is in view behind this assuredly and not only divine promise but the very thing that Christ was working out at this very time the perfection of his merits the perfection of his righteousness the perfection of his blood what is behind this assuredly what is behind this Amen what is behind the certainty it is divine promise the very character in nature and the very integrity of Father Son and Holy Spirit is behind this and the very act of perfect salvation the shedding of blood and the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ this assuredly brings with it the weight of glorious promise I love these words of cereal as we move to one more application and then we pray Cyril says this connecting Adam and Christ he says Adam by the tree fell away thou by the tree art brought into paradise he's speaking here as if he's speaking as Christ Christ's intercourse on this day of crucifixion that means communication with discussion with this Christ's intercourse with the thief on this day of crucifixion he says assuredly I say to you two today you will be with me in paradise and so Cyril periphrastic Lee speaking as Christ says that this is Christ speaking to the thief Adam by the tree fell away thou by the tree art brought into paradise and this is true for each and every one of us by one tree and that is by Adams fall in the gardens so many years ago that we are thrust into sin and depravity by Adam by the tree fell away and so all of his progeny that includes us afterwards we fell away and yet by Christ on this tree yet by that tree art we all brought into paradise blessed truth our Savior our king our Christ our God and so finally an application at this particular point remember that the word of the Savior to the dying thief are our words the words of the Savior to the dying thief are our words they were spoken peculiarly to the thief but I would submit that just as Thomas's words are on the day of the resurrection thou art or that the the Sunday after the resurrection thou art the Christ the Son of the Living God or my Lord and my god so to the words of Christ to the thief are ours assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise not this day because hopefully none of us die on the way back to church way back from church but these words when that day comes our hours and remember that these words cannot be snatched away from us these words cannot be stolen away these words cannot be kidnapped from the reality of our own salvation but they are abiding and they rest upon certain promise and the blood and on the righteousness of Jesus Christ they are our words blessed truth and glorious reality see ourselves here in this thief this dying thief not the cursed robber but having been brought from that state as cursed robbers were now like this dying thief this blessed thief who rests not upon his own deeds of righteousness done and holiness of heart but rests solely and alone upon the perfection of the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ let us pray Heavenly Father we thank you for your word we thank you for this account of Jesus Christ the Prince of life and the penitent thief we pray Lord God that you would cause us to reflect with great joy upon the doing in the day the rising again of the Son of God our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ the King of the Jews we do pray Lord God as we now observe the Lord's Supper that you would help us to do so solemnly with great joy we do pray that you be with us as we observe this ordinance and that the risen Christ would by his spirit strengthen us in the inner man and we pray that we would be nourished that we would be strengthened and that we would be all the more conformed to the image of of the Son of God and we do pray that you would continue to be with us in worship and we pray in Christ's precious name Amen well you can turn with me to Matthew 26 Matthew chapter 26 where we have the Lord Jesus Christ instituting the Lord's Supper on the night in which he was betrayed this is an ordinance that was not to die off with the age of the Apostles but the Lord's Supper rather is an institution of of our Christ it is an ordinance of the New Testament ordained by him to be observed in his churches unto the end of the world we tonight here are doing that which Christ commanded so many years ago Matthew 26 what I'm going to read very briefly is the account leading up to the institution of the Lord's Supper we'll make some comments and then we'll have the brothers come up to pass out first the bread this is Matthew 26 beginning in verse 17 now on the first day of the Feast of the unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus saying to him where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover and he said go into the city to a certain man and say to him the teacher says my time is at hand I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples so the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and they prepared the Passover when evening had come he sat down with the twelve now as they were eating he said assuredly I say to you one of you will betray me and they were exceedingly sorrowful and each of them began to say to him Lord as it I he answered and said he who dipped his hand with me in the dish will betray me the son of man indeed goes just just as it is written of him but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed it would have been good for that man if he had not been born then Judas who was betraying him answered and said rabbi is it I he said to him you have said it amen just very briefly we we are to marvel in a good way that this isn't a haphazard institution of the Lord's Supper oh great isn't it you know lucky that it fell on the within the observance of the Passover no this is by divine design that that particular meal that pointed forward to Christ or first off that particular meal that pointed back to the exodus and called the Israelites in remembrance to reflect upon their exodus their deliverance physically from out of bondage in Egypt it also pointed forward to this one who would now Institute the Lord's Supper Christ is our Passover sacrifice he is our Passover who has been sacrificed for us so Christ anticipating that and again by divine design and by divine decree he Institute's the Lord's Supper in the midst of the Passover meal the Passover ultimately foreshadowed the Passover lamb the Lord Jesus Christ who would shed his effectual blood for the remission for the forgiveness of sins and so it's right and it's providential and it's glorious that the Lamb of God is instituting a the Lord's Supper in the context of the Passover celebration now as we take the bread and as we drink the wine remember that this is an ordinance for Christians only if you're not a Christian here tonight you're not to take of the bread and take of the wine if you're hungry and if you're thirsty I believe there's some food upstairs so we can find something for you but this is a solemn matter and this is a serious matter this is an ordinance that as will find is instituted by Christ for believers only and it is for believers who are living consistent with their profession if you're a Christian tonight and harboring sin and you are not repentant you have not repented of that sin but you're holding on to it for whatever reason you are not to take now remember and I say this every time and hopefully it never gets old and hopefully that you see it as true we have forgiveness with God that he may be feared and so if you are harboring sin repent of your sin if you haven't repented if you're remaining in penitent at a particular point repent find forgiveness immediately with God there is no biblically prescribed season of self-flagellation and walking up mountains with sacks of tires there is immediately the reality that when we sin we have an advocate with the father Jesus Christ the righteous who himself is the propitiation for our sins and in him we fly and we fly quickly forsaking our sand and knowing the blessed reality of forgiveness that he is secured by his shed blood the the bread and the wine remain bread and wine not only to the outward senses but also with respect to the reality of the things we reject the Roman Catholic blasphemy of transubstantiation the bread does not change into the body blood and divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ nor does the wine change into the blood of Jesus Christ but rather these remain what they are they are consecrated from a common use unto a holy use here in the Lord's Supper but they remain what they are and in that emblems of the broken body and the shed blood of Christ we are ingesting bread and we are ingesting wine and yet just as sure as those physical elements are to our physical senses so too is the grace of God so too is the the empowering Spirit of Christ to our souls who strengthens us in our faith as we walk in him the the the language of the gospel of of John at this particular point very briefly and the brothers can come out to to pass out the bread but in John chapter 6 we have this wonderful language with respect to eating and drinking I am the bread of if he who comes to me shall never hunger and he who believes in Me shall never thirst these reflect that true that in Christ we have our meat in Christ we have our drink well if the brothers could come up and pass out the bread a reminder that when we get to the wine the juice is in the outer ring the first hymn that we're going to sing this evening is hymn 192 you can stay seated and we'll sing one ninety two to a familiar tune [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you [Music] you [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] in Matthew 26 at verse 26 we read and as they were eating Jesus took bread blessed and broke it and gave it to the disciples and said take eat this is my body let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you for the fact that we can now take of this bread we rejoice in what it represents and we thank you knowing that it represents the broken body of the Lord Jesus Christ that upon Calvary's cross he bore in his own body our sins upon that tree that we having died to sin might live for righteousness and we thank you for his death upon the cross we know that we are not saved by our own deeds of righteousness but solely and alone by the deeds of Christ and we thank you for that work of obedience upon Calvary's cross wearing he took the punishment do all those who believe we pray now that as we partake we would reflect with great joy upon the doing the dining and the rising again of the Son of God we pray in his most precious name Amen let's take together you can stay seated and turn in your hymn books as the brothers come up to pass out the wine a reminder that the juice is in the outer ring the law we're going to sing hymn number 186 that's 186 you can stay seated [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] in Matthew 26 we continue reading at verse 27 then he took the cup and gave thanks and gave it to them saying drink from it all of you for this is my blood of the new covenant which is shed for many for the remission of sins but I say to you I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my father's Kingdom and when they had sung a hymn they went out to the Mount of Olives amen let us pray Heavenly Father we thank you now that we can take of this wine we rejoice and what it represents the blood of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ so we free as we reflect upon the biblical witness as it testifies to this fact without the without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin we know that there is no hope and there is no strength than anything unless we are covered by the blood of the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ only there in do we find the forgiveness and the remission of sins and we thank you that having been found having been saved by virtue of the shed blood of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ and so receiving the forgiveness of sins we thank you that we can now partake of this emblem this symbol and we do pray that we would as we take and and even after as we focus and as we as we continue in worship Lord that we would reflect with great joy upon the shed blood of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ and it's in his name that we pray amen let's take together well let's stand together and sing a familiar tune and when we gather together for the Lord's Supper 175 Man of Sorrows what a name for the Son of God who came let's stand and sing together 175 [Music] Oh [Music] [Music] now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you complete in every good work to do his will working in you what is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory for ever and ever amen the heavenly father go with us now we rejoice in the fact that we were able to gather on the Lord's Day Sabbath to worship Father Son and Holy Spirit and to reflect upon the riches and the excellencies of Jesus Christ we do pray that you go with us into this upcoming week that having been saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone we would by your aid seek to live in light of our calling of our calling by grace that we would live in light of so glorious a gospel and we do just pray that you would strengthen us by your spirit to do so and that we might even throughout this week each and every day rejoice and reflect upon the glories of our Savior his doing his dying his rising again so do go with us now and bring us back again in a week's time to do this all again that we might render unto you the honor and the praise that is due your Most High name and we pray in the name of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ amen well please be seated we'll have a brief time of Prayer and then when the piano is finished you're dismissed