His Native Condition; Gracious Transformation

Introduction: The Dying Thief as a Case Study of Grace

0:04 For several months, our attention has been riveted upon the tremendous and profound statements of the Apostle Paul found in Ephesians 2, verses 1 to 10, in which the Apostle describes the great transformation which grace brings to pass in the lives of all who are the children of God. And he does it, as you well know, those who have been here through these past months, the Apostle accomplishes this description by way of a vivid contrast to what the Ephesians were, verses 1 to 3, and what they had now become by the grace of God, verses 4 to 10. Having completed that series of expositions, I have begun, and probably will carry this on through the better part of the summer, to turn to other portions of the Word of God, which give to us vivid demonstrations of the Lord, the Lord actually doing what Paul describes in Ephesians 2, verses 1 to 10. The Apostle gives, as it were, the theory, the description of the work of God in changing sinners from sons of darkness to sons of light, in Ephesians 2. But then elsewhere in the Scriptures, we have actual case histories in which we draw near and behold the Lord doing this mighty work of creating men anew

1:33 in Christ. For three Lord's Day mornings, we studied the record of the conversion of the Philippian jailer as the first illustrative case of this work of God. This morning, and then God willing this evening, and then, I trust, concluding the study next Lord's Day morning, we shall look at the second of these amazing examples of God's work in transforming sinners from the state of death into spiritual life. And I refer...

2:05 I refer to the Lord's work in the conversion of the dying thief. The record of this is found in Luke chapter 23, and I shall read this morning verses 32 through 43. Luke chapter 23, verses 32 to 43. At this point in the narrative, our Lord has been brought to the place of execution.

2:34 Verse 32, And there were also two others. Malefactors led with him to be put to death. And when they came unto the place which is called the skull, there they crucified him. And the malefactors, one on the right hand and the other on the left.

2:54 And Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And parting his garments among them, they cast lots. And the people stood beholding. And the rulers of the world said, And the rulers also scoffed at him, saying, He saved others.

3:13 Let him save himself. If this is the Christ of God, his chosen. And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, offering him vinegar and saying, If thou art the king of the Jews, save thyself. And there was also a superscription over him.

3:34 This is the king of the Jews. And one of the malefactors that were hanged, railed on him, saying, Art not thou the Christ? Save thyself and us. But the other answered, and rebuking him, said, Dost not thou even fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation, and we indeed justly?

3:59 For we receive the due reward of our deeds. But this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said, Jesus, remember me. And when thou comest in thy kingdom.

4:15 And he said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today thou shalt be with me in paradise.

4:27 I can do no better in introducing our studies in this profoundly moving portion of the word of God than to read the words with which James Buchanan, a Scottish preacher of another day, begins his exposition of this passage, in which he says the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus was so ordered as to furnish a striking illustration at once of the depth of his abasement and the certainty of his reward. To enhance the agony and the shame of his death, our Lord was crucified between two thieves, being numbered with the transgressors, placed on the same, level in public view, with men whose lives had been justly forfeited on account of their crimes, and subjected in his last moments to the painful spectacle of their sufferings. But to demonstrate the certainty of his reward, to make it manifest that the joy that was set before him and for which he endured the cross, despising the shame, would be realized, and to give him as it were a pledge in his hand that he should see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied, one of the thieves who suffered along with him

5:56 was suddenly converted. And in the lowest depths of the Redeemer's humiliation, in the darkest hour of the power of darkness, when Satan's policy seemed to be crowned with complete success, this immortal soul, chclockwise with dismal bloodACTIVE INHERITANCE was snatched as a brand from the burning and given to Christ as a pledge of his triumph and the first fruits of a glorious harvest. Then I make want to say Halloween while others Mواqed and reviled him. And when his chosen disciples stood aloof, the dying malefactor relented, his conscience awoke, his heart was touched.

6:40 And amidst the ridicule and the execrations and blasphemies of that awful failed man, hour, one solitary voice was heard which spake of a kingdom, of a Lord, in accents of faith, penitence, and prayer. And how must that voice have gladdened the Savior's heart and imparted to our Lord in the midst of His bitterest agony a foretaste, as it were, of the joy set before Him, exhibiting as it did a proof of the efficacy of His death, the faithfulness of God's covenant promise, and the certainty of His reward. Believing, as the Scripture says, that the men who crucified our Lord were gathered together to do whatsoever God's counsel had foreordained to come to pass, all of the circumstances surrounding the death of our Lord were to be fulfilled. Lord are ordered by divine wisdom and with divine intention to demonstrate tremendous spiritual realities. And as Buchanan has given us the clue, the fact that our Lord is numbered

7:57 with the transgressors and contrary to the artwork depicting the cross, hangs in stark nakedness and the shame of that nakedness, hangs not with a halo about his head, but bloody and ugly and bruised as the off-scouring of all things, showing in this public way the posture that he now assumes before the tribunal of God. He takes the place of the guilty one. He is exposed to the wrath, to the anathema of Almighty God because of the his position as sin-bearer. Yet the circumstances were so ordered that in that very scene in which there is this terrible, this frightening display of the guilty one, Christ the sin-bearer, there is this amazing record of Christ the mighty Savior snatching, as it were, in the very moment of his agony, this soul from the clutches of the enemy. And bringing him home to paradise with himself. And the clue to any proper interpretation of this passage, the interpretive key is to

9:18 be found in the final words in which our Lord indicates that this man had come to the exercises of true repentance in faith. This man had been born of the Spirit, for unless a man is born of the Spirit, he cannot see nor enter the kingdom of God. This is the key to knowing that the Lord has made this reality, and that this man could not have been born of the Spirit in the early years of his life. The proof of this is that the Lord has made this reality, and it kingdom, Jesus says, today thou shalt be with me in paradise, indicating that our Lord pronounces the man a saved man. And because our Lord pronounces him a saved man, we are therefore warranted to read into this very sketchy account of this dialogue between the Lord Jesus and the dying thief, the remarks of the dying thief to his fellow thief, we are warranted to read into those words. Better yet, to see in the words themselves, not to read into them, but to see in the words themselves the actings of true repentance and true faith. To see in those words expressions of the impartation of divine life. Had our Lord not

10:32 given us this clear and final statement, today thou shalt be with me in paradise, if all we had to work with was the record of this thief rebuking his fellow thief and his plea, remember me, we would have to say we don't know what the ultimate issue was. For those words could simply be viewed from a very human standpoint as a man who is trying to relieve the fellow sufferer's agonies and rebukes this man. His remember me could be no expression of true faith, but because our Lord himself says this man will enter paradise with me. He has experienced the new birth. He has come to repentance and faith. We are warranted to see in the record the expressions of divine life, the actings of repentance and faith. And this is the key that I am using.

The Native Spiritual Condition of the Dying Thief

11:32 In the exposition of the passage, and I thought I needed to pause for a moment to show that it is right so to do. As we think our way through the passage, we shall first of all consider what the passage tells us about the native spiritual condition of the dying thief. Secondly, the gracious spiritual transformation of the dying thief. And thirdly, the powerful spiritual lessons contained in the narrative of his conversion. First of all then, the native spiritual condition of the dying thief. The scripture calls him a malefactor. Luke 23 and verse 32. And there were also two others malefactors. Now the English word malefactor is one of those words that comes over almost

12:29 completely from the Latin, made up of two Latin words. And the English word malefactor is one of the Latin words. One means evil and the other means doer. So it is a description of a man who is so committed to evil that his primary characteristic is that of an evil doer. The nature of the evil is clearly defined for us in Matthew chapter 27 and verse 38. These two are called robbers or thieves. So the nature of the evil is clearly defined for us in Matthew chapter 27 and verse 38. The nature of the evil doing was that of robbery or of thievery. But since death was not the penalty for theft alone, under Jewish or, my present understanding, under Roman law, these two men were probably, and I can only say probably, two men were probably guilty of sins similar to that of Barabbas. In their thievery they were involved in insurrection and murder. Both of which were punishable by death. But be that as it may, the scriptures call this man and his companion malefactors, evil doers, they are thieves. Now what specific things does this tell us about

13:52 his native spiritual condition? Well it tells us first of all that he was a defiant rebel against the law of God. What he saw, he desired. What he desired, he took. And probably was willing to take even at the expense of another man's life. And when a man is so consumed by covetousness that what he sees he desires and what he desires he takes even to the destruction of human life, that man is a defiant rebel against the law of God. That he was not framed, he himself admits in the narrative, when rebuking his fellow thief, he says, we are here justly, we receive the due reward of our deeds. So he wasn't framed. He wasn't unjustly condemned to die. He

14:53 admits that in his whole pattern of life prior to this hour, he was marked by defiant rebellion against the law of God. God's commandment, thou shalt not steal, meant nothing to him. When conscience would scream, he simply stifled the voice of conscience. He trampled underfoot the law of God given in scripture, the law of God written upon his own heart, the voice of conscience. He became a commentary on the truth of Psalm 14, the man who lived saying in his heart, there is no God, is filled with evil works.

15:35 The second thing we know about his character is that he was not only a defiant rebel against the law of God, he was, at the beginning of this narrative, an irreligious, hardened sinner in the very face of God. How do we know that? Well, look carefully, please, at Matthew chapter 27 and verse 44. In the parallel accounts in Matthew chapter 27 and verse 44, we are reading the following words, perhaps we should back up to verses 41 and following, in like manner also the chief priest mocking him with the scribes and elders said, he saved others, himself he cannot save, he is the king of Israel, let him now come down from the cross and we'll believe on him. He trusted on God, let him deliver him now, if he desires him, for he said, I am the son of God, and the robbers, plural, also that were crucified with him, cast upon him the blood of Christ, the blood of Jesus. He was the king of Israel, the same reproach. And you have almost the identical words in Mark 15 and verse 32.

16:48 Now some, viewing this apparent discrepancy, have said, well, just as the passage says later on that the soldiers put a sponge on a reed, and it was obvious it didn't take three or four soldiers to put a sponge on a reed, but soldiers is used to describe that this activity came from the rank of the soldiers when Matthew and Mark tell us that the thieves cast the same in his teeth. It simply means from the quarter of the thieves, it could be one or two of them. However, another interpretation is possible and is warranted by the language, and I prefer it,

17:27 that at the beginning of the crucifixion of Christ, this man, listening to the taunting and to the jeering and to the mockery of the chief priest and the Pharisees, taking his clue, joins his companion in the process in suffering and manifests that at this point he is full of this irreligious hardened state of mind and heart that he is utterly indifferent to the death of Jesus Christ, to who Christ is, to why Christ is there upon the cross. And this position is taken by many responsible commentators, and I would simply stand with them, that here is a picture of a man who in his nature and in his spiritual condition was not only a defiant rebel against the law of God, but an irreligious hardened sinner before the face of God. Here he is standing, hanging on the very brink of hell, just a few hours away from standing in the presence of the God who made him. And what does he do? He knocks that God in the person of Jesus Christ.

18:39 He shows a concern for nothing but sparing his own hide. If you are Christ, save yourself, but for one reason, because if you get down from the cross, then you can get me down. For what purpose?

18:51 That he might go back to the same lifestyle in which what he sees, he desires, and what he desires, he takes, fearing neither God nor man.

19:02 Now that's not a very pretty picture of this man in his native spiritual condition.

19:08 The terminology used by him with reference to the coming of the kingdom, the terminology used by our Lord with reference to paradise, sea, sea, and the sea, seems conclusively to indicate that this man was a Jew, that he was not a rude. And being a Jew, he had no doubt heard of Jesus of Nazareth. Perhaps he had even seen some of his miracles. But whatever his previous acquaintance had been with Jesus Christ, at the beginning of the narrative, we find him an irreligious, hardened, impenitent sinner in the very face of God.

19:42 The third thing about his native spiritual condition is this. He was not only a defiant rebel, an irreligious sinner, but he was a condemned sinner before the power of Almighty God.

19:58 Was it only his countrymen and the Roman government who were aware of his conduct and stirred to action against him? No. The Word of God says that the eyes of the Lord are in every place beholding the evil and the good. The Scripture tells us that God himself hates all works of evil.

20:18 He hates all works of iniquity. But God himself is stirred with righteous anger against those who violate his law. And later on, he comes to own this when he says, we are here justly. He saw that in the activity of the government in putting him to death for his crimes, there was an expression of the justness of the moral government of Almighty God.

20:43 This is why he acquiesces in his death. Because he sees that Almighty God is kind to him. He has constituted a law of the soul that sinneth. It shall die.

20:53 And he knows that the nature of his crimes are such that Almighty God has the right to decree that human government shall take his life.

21:04 Now, this is not a very pretty picture, is it? But may I suggest it's simply Ephesians 2, 1 to 3 in picture form. You hath he made alive who were dead in your trespasses and sins. What a picture of a man in spiritual death.

21:21 Moments away from physical death, no fear of God or of eternity casting taunts into the ears of the Son of God among whom we also once had our conversation walking according to the course of this world. The Apostle says according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh among the sons of disobedience, we were fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature children of wrath. There's the picture. Defy and revel against the law of God.

The Universal Native Spiritual Condition

21:55 Irreligious, hardened sinner before the face of God. A condemned sinner before the bar or court of God. Are you tempted to congratulate yourself and say, I'm glad that's not me. Oh, my friend, before you too quickly congratulate yourself, there's a tremendous similarity between the dying thief in his native spiritual condition and you and me in our native spiritual condition.

22:27 Because the scriptures tell us that all of us by nature are defiant rebels against the law of God. Romans 8, 7. The carnal mind is enmity against God. It is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be so that they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

22:45 But you say, Mr. Martin, I've never been a defiant rebel against God's law as was that man. I've never committed crimes worthy of death. Oh, listen, my friend, listen.

22:55 What commandment did he break? Well, we know he broke at least the commandment thou shalt not steal. Probably broke the commandment thou shalt do no murder. Commandments that touch our relationship to our fellow men.

23:08 If you remember in the days of his flesh someone asked the Lord Jesus what is the great commandment? What is the first and the great commandment? What did Jesus answer? He said, the first and great commandment is this.

23:20 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and mind soul and strength. Now follow me closely. If loving God with all of our being is the first, the primary, the fundamental, the most vital commandment, what is the greatest sin?

23:43 Is it not to be found in breaking the greatest commandment?

23:48 The greater the commandment, the greater degree of sin in breaking it.

23:54 Every one of us by nature is a defiant rebel against God. Against the law of God because not one of us by nature loves the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. We love ourselves and we serve ourselves. And though our self-service may not take the manifestations that it did with this man, thievery, murder, or adultery, or fornication, or these grosser sins, do you think the sins are any less heinous when they are more directly against God and no more known only to God?

24:33 When you refuse to give to God the honor that He demands of you, do you think God regards that with indifference? When you make a God of your own desires, a God of your own notions, a God of your own opinions,

24:49 you and I by nature are defiant rebels against His Holy Law. That's the statement of Holy Scripture. All we like sheep have gone astray. We've turned every one of us to His own way and no man can turn to His own way but at the expense of walking in God's way which is the way of bringing glory to Him.

25:12 There is a parallel in that by nature we with this man are irreligious and hardened sinners before the face of God. Oh, again you say, wait a minute, I've never openly mocked as this man did. Ah, but listen, my friend, what's worse? What's worse?

25:28 For a man openly to mock and join in the chorus of unbelieving apostate religious leaders or to do as some of you have done, listen, listen, in this place or in other places of worship, Jesus Christ has been set before you, some of you week after week, month after month, some of you boys, girls, men, women in this building, upstairs, some of you downstairs, listen, Jesus Christ is set before you as we saw in the adult class this morning in all the glory of His person as a perfect Savior. In His person there is everything needed. To make Him an able Savior of sinners. Christ has been set before you in the perfection of His work, in His death, His burial, His resurrection, His passing back into the presence of the Father seated at the right hand, able and willing to receive all who come unto God by Him. And you've been entreated to look to the Son of God, to cast yourself upon the Lord Jesus Christ, to trust in Him as your only and true Savior. And what if you've done?

26:43 You've turned away with indifference.

26:47 You've gone on in your unbelief. You've continued to live and walk and think in terms that can only be described as indifference to the Son of God. Is not that making mockery of His dying love to sinners? Is not that making mockery of the sincere offer of His mercy in the preaching of the Gospel?

27:12 Is not that making mockery of His of all that is sacred and holy with reference to the blessed Son of God, the only Savior of sinners? You, like this man by nature, are an irreligious and a hardened sinner in the face of God. For the hardness of the human heart is nowhere more clearly manifested than in its refusal to embrace a gracious and an almighty Savior.

27:42 It is hardness of heart for a man to look at the law of God and say, I do not fear the law of God. I'll do as I please. What is it that will cause him to gaze full face into the picture that is given to us in Scripture of God incarnate in Jesus Christ,

28:02 trembling, heaving, sighing, groaning beneath the weight of human sin and to turn away with indifference and say, that's not for me.

28:17 Nothing but a hard, impenitent sinner can face the sight of Christ crucified and turn away with indifference.

28:28 Like this man, your native spiritual condition is one in which you too are condemned. You are a condemned sinner before the bar of eternal justice. The Scripture says, he that believeth not is condemned already. John 3 and verse 18.

28:45 He that believeth not the wrath of God abideth upon him already. John 3, 36. So you see, there are tremendous parallels between the dying thief and each one of us in terms, first of all, of the native spiritual condition.

Introduction to the Gracious Transformation

29:02 Now let us move to the second area of our study this morning. The gracious transformation of the dying thief. There he is, a defiant rebel,

29:16 an impenitent, unbelieving sinner under the wrath of God. And yet, the final words of Christ to him are, today thou shalt be with me in paradise. What in the world happened to change all of this? Well, there was a gracious transformation of the dying thief.

29:36 And we want to consider this morning, we'll begin to consider that transformation. And let me say, as I introduce this element of the study, when you're teaching, you've got to have point one, point two, point three. At least you better have. Do you want anybody to learn anything?

29:50 Now this does not mean that the transformation occurred from 17 after one until 22 minutes until two, this part, and then from two. No, no. Don't in any way conjure up in your mind that I am saying that these elements of the transformation occurred first one, then two, then three, then four, all in some kind of a time sequence. No, no.

30:14 When God is bringing the man out of darkness into light, there is an interplay, a confluence, an interpenetration of many things that take him from the lost state and into the saved state. But I can't teach that way, so I've got to try to separate the strands, you see. But there's no special significance in the order in which they are separated or the terminology, so let's get the substance, get the picture, all right? The gracious transformation of the dying thing.

30:45 And we're going to address ourselves to three questions. You'll only get probably the first this morning. How did it come to pass? Secondly, what are the evidences that it was real?

30:56 And thirdly, what means did God use to produce it? How did this transformation come to pass? Secondly, what are the evidences that it was a real transformation? And thirdly, what means were used to produce it?

How the Transformation Came to Pass: Truth and the Holy Spirit

31:10 All right? The first element then, under the gracious transformation, how did the transformation come to pass? Well, it came to pass as it always does, by the truth of God operating on the mind of a sinner, under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit. Now, mark this down.

31:36 When God transforms sinners into saints, it is always by means of truth applied to the mind under the influence and power of the Holy Spirit. Of His own will we are begotten, James says, by the word of truth. Peter says, being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God. And there are two fundamental truths that the Spirit of God brought home to the mind and heart of this dying thief.

Spirit-Wrought Revelation of His True Condition

32:11 Number one, he was given a spirit-wrought revelation of his true condition before God. He was given a spirit-wrought revelation of his true condition before God. And number two, he was given a spirit-wrought revelation of and coming of the Son of God. He was given a spirit-wrought revelation of his true condition before God.

32:35 He was given a spirit-wrought revelation of his true condition before God. Notice carefully the wording in verse 40. When he rebukes his fellow thief, notice the words that he uses. But the other answered and rebuking him, said, Dost thou not even fear God, seeing thou art in the same condition as I am?

32:56 He said, I am not in the same condition as you are. I am not in the same condition as you are. I am not in the same condition as you are. I am not in the same condition as you are.

33:09 I am not in the same condition as you are. There is no condemnation. You see what he is saying? He is saying, how can you continue to mock this man?

33:25 He dies in innocence. You and I die in our guilt. And dying of your temporal life. You're saying, if he's the Christ, why doesn't he save himself and the both of us?

33:38 But my friend, listen. You're looking at this whole situation in terms of the realities that meet the eye. I now view it in terms of those spiritual realities that do not meet the physical eye. Oh, my dying thief friend, the moment you pass out of this life, you're going to stand before God and you'll answer for your crimes at the power of God.

34:03 It's not the Roman government that you ought to fear who's put you upon the cross. Nor should your concern be the power of this man possibly to get you down off the cross. Man, you're hung up on a worse cross. You're hung up upon the cross of divine judgment.

34:20 You're impaled by the law of God as guilty. Man, don't you fear God? In asking that question and giving the rebuke, this is a rebuke and a reflection that this dying thief had received a spirit-wrought revelation of his own true condition before God. Notice in the subsequent request, he doesn't say a thing about his temporal well-being.

34:45 He doesn't ask that the Lord would save him and then get him down from the cross. He doesn't even ask the Lord Jesus for the alleviation of his present pains. And my friend, remember, this was a man hanging on a cross who was thinking these thoughts. With his whole body one concert of screaming, howling pain.

35:09 Yet the Spirit so bears down upon him with his true condition that he says, my true condition is not to be realized in that message coming from the nerves where the nails are impaling me upon the cross. No, no. No, my true condition, my true dilemma is coming from that which I see in the Bible. I see of my condition before the God of the universe.

35:35 I'm accountable to that God. I now stand in his presence. I need acquittal by that God. And temporal concerns were swept away as he says in essence, I'm his creature.

35:49 I'm answerable to him. I've broken his law. I tremble at the thought that I'm answerable to that God. Oh, my fellow thief, do I even use you, God?

35:59 See you're in the same condemnation. You're about to die. And you're dying for crimes you really deserve to die for.

36:09 And an amazing thing that in the midst of all that physical pain with no evangelist standing at the foot of the cross to preach, as we'll see in a subsequent lesson, God uses as his preacher the taunting marks of unbelieving people. But they have enough of the truth coupled with the inscription over his head that the Spirit of God takes these little elements of truth and out of them forges an arrow and sends it right to the heart of that man. And he's brought to a revelation of his true condition before Almighty God. My friend, as with the thief, so with us.

36:51 By whatever fragments of scriptural truth from whatever source, whether from formal faithful preaching, whether from the mocking taunts of unbelievers, God will gather the fragments of his truth. And of them he will form an arrow that will pierce your heart and show you your true condition before Almighty God as his creature, his creature accountable to him, his creature standing in guilt before him. And in the light of that accountability, in your ill preparedness to meet him in death, you too will fear God as did this man and begin to be concerned not with your external and your temporal affairs. Crying out to God somehow to bail you out of the mess you're in, be it physically, financially, domestically, whatever it is. No, no, nobody's in worse straits than a man hanging on a cross.

37:55 If anyone would justify someone looking to Christ for some temporal benefit, it's a man hanging on a cross. There's not a word of anything temporal.

38:08 My friend, when you see your true condition, before Almighty God, I don't care what your problems are. You may have the most shrewdly like woman in all the world that you're tied to for life.

38:20 And when you said for better or for worse, you didn't know that that's what the worse was, but you got it.

38:27 And we may laugh, but there are few things that are more like a literal hell on earth. The man that must live with a recalcitrant, sour, bitter woman, or a woman that must live with a sour, bitter, self-centered, ungodly man, that turns your home into a living hell. But my friend, listen. Whatever the pains of that domestic situation are, whatever the pains of your circumstances, whatever physical maladies you may have, listen.

38:56 Your greatest problem is the problem that arises out of your accountability to Almighty God. And the fact that you've broken His law, the fact that you've trampled under foot His authority, the fact that you're not ready to meet Him in judgment, you'll never become a Christian until the Spirit through the Word makes that the most pressing, burning issue to your heart.

Spirit-Wrought Revelation of and Confidence in the Son of God

39:26 How did the transformation come to pass? It came to pass, first of all, when God gave to this man a spirit-wrought revelation of his true condition before God. But then secondly, he was given a spirit-wrought revelation of and confidence in the Son of God. And this is the most delightful part of the ministry this morning.

39:51 How did this come to pass? Well, you will notice if you compare the three gospel accounts that the taunts of the scribes and the Pharisees and the soldiers focused on three specific things. First of all, the taunts focused upon the person of Christ. Turn to Matthew chapter 27.

40:13 His person as the Son of God was the first object of their taunting.

40:23 Matthew 27, verses 39 and 40. And they that pass by railed on him, wagging their heads and saying, quoting from our Lord's words recorded in John 2, Thou that destroyest the temple and buildest it in three days, save thyself, if thou art the Son of God, come down from the cross in like manner also, the chief priest mocking him with the scribes and elders said. All right? See the first area?

40:55 The first area of taunt? If thou be the Son of God. Verse 43. He trusted in God.

41:02 Let him deliver him now, if he desireth him. For he said, I am the Son of God.

41:09 You see, this was a taunt directed at our Lord's claims about the uniqueness of his person. When Jesus claimed to be the Son of God in the presence of Jews, they understood precisely what his claim was. He was claiming to share in the divine essence. You remember John 10?

41:26 They took up stones to kill him because he said, I am the Son of God, making himself equal to God.

41:36 The concept was in claiming to be God's unique Son that he shared in the divine essence. Who is Jesus of Nazareth? His claim was, I am God incarnate. They taunt him at that very point.

41:51 Keep that in mind. Second area of taunt is his position.

41:55 His position as King of Israel and Messiah of Israel. Matthew 27, 42.

42:03 He saved others. Himself he cannot save. He is the King of Israel. You see?

42:09 Second claim. He is the King of Israel. Let him now come down from the cross and we will believe on him. And in the Luke 23 passage we have a similar account.

42:21 Luke 23, verses 36 and 37. And he said unto them, I'm sorry, 23, verses 36 and 37. And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, offering him vinegar and saying, If thou art the King of the Jews, save thyself. Verse 39, And one of the malefactors that were hanged railed on him, saying, Art not thou the Christ, that is, the Messiah?

42:48 Save thyself. Here is a taunt directed not so much at his person, Son of God, but his position, King of Israel and Messiah. The promised one, upon whom, told he would rest the government of the world. The one who was the judge of the world.

43:05 The one who would come in the end times to establish his kingdom throughout the earth. This is the taunt. And in Mark 15, you find the two things joined together in one verse. Mark 15, and I believe it's verse 72, if my notes are correct.

43:29 There is no 72, so it would have to be 32. Let the Christ, the Messiah, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross that we may see and believe. So there is this fusion of the concept of the King of Israel being the anointed one. And then the third area of taunt was with reference to his purpose.

43:52 His person, Son of God. His position, King and Messiah. Thirdly, his purpose. Look at Luke 23,

44:02 and in verses 33 to 39, four times the word, save, is used.

44:10 Verse 33.

44:12 I'm sorry, verse 35. And the people stood beholding, and the rulers scoffed at him, saying, He saved others. Let him save himself. Verse 37.

44:25 The soldiers mocked him, coming to him, offering him vinegar, and saying, If thou art the King of the Jews, save thyself. Verse 39. And one of the malefactors that were hanged on him railed, saying, Art not thou the Christ? Save thyself.

44:38 Four times they throw up into his face this word, save. You go around claiming to be Savior. Deliverer. All right, if you're such a great deliverer, show your stuff.

44:54 Do what you said you came to do. You said when you were alive and everything was going well, the Son of Man has come to seek and to save. You say your purpose is one of deliverance? You claim to be able to deliver men from sin, from death, from hell?

45:11 Scratch yourself, Mr. Savior. Go ahead and show you've got what you claim to have. This is taunting our Lord with reference to the purpose for which he came.

Embracing Christ's Person, Position, and Purpose

45:23 You got the three things now? Taunting, his person, Son of God, his position, King and Messiah, his purpose, to save. But now the marvelous thing in this passage is that at the three points of their taunt, the Holy Spirit gives them a revelation of the sufficiency of Christ to the thief that causes his heart to run out to him, to embrace him as Son of God, King of Israel, and Savior of sinners. Look at it.

45:54 With reference to his person. Look at it. This transformation came not alone because he saw his true condition, but he had a spirit-wrought revelation of and confidence in the Son of God. Verse 40, But the other answering rebuked him and said, Dost not thou even fear God?

46:11 Seen thou art in the same condemnation? We indeed justly, we receive the due reward of our deeds, but this man hath done nothing literally out of place.

46:25 Now you put yourself in his position. You've seen this man put upon an instrument of execution just like yourself. And you know that nobody's put in that posture but those that are guilty of terrible crimes.

46:43 And yet, as we shall see in a subsequent study, in the light of our Lord's conduct and attitude in those hours, those first hours upon the cross, this man saw something that caused him to say, He has done nothing amiss, nothing out of place. And he declares without any reservation his absolute innocence, indicating that this is no mere man who hangs next to me here. And then when he does this, and this to me is the most amazing thing in the passage, when he says to this one, though I am guilty, I die justly and I fear that God before whom I must soon stand and I know that my crimes have not been essentially and primarily against the Roman government and against my fellow countrymen but against the God of the universe. He says to this man who's done nothing out of place, if you will but think upon me, I'll be fully prepared for the final day of judgment. And when you return to establish your kingdom, if I but have a place in your thoughts, I'll be all right. Remember me.

47:51 What kind of man is it who just by thinking upon you can fit you to stand in the presence of the God of the universe? He himself is no mere man. He is the Son of God. He is God the Son.

48:06 And Spurgeon has a most perceptive comment on this very point, saying, in addition to thus praying, you will see that the thief adores and worships Jesus for he says, Lord, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom. The petition is worded as if he felt, only let Christ think of me and it is enough. Let him but remember me and the thought of his mind will be effectual for everything that I shall need in the world to come. This is to impute Godhead to Christ.

48:37 If a man casts his all upon the mere memory of a person, he must have a very high esteem of that person.

48:46 If to be remembered by the Lord Jesus is all that this man asks or desires, he pays to the Lord great honor. I think that there was about his prayer a worship equal to the eternal hallelujahs of Cherubim and Seraphim. There was in it a glorification of his Lord which is not excelled even by the endless symphonies of angelic spirits who surround the throne. Thou hast well done.

49:14 There came to his heart a revelation that this is the Son of God. Though they mock and taunt him and remember this was in all likelihood a Jew to whom the concept Son of God was clear. This is God the Son and he gives his word tacit admission to this. I place all of the concerns of my entire eternity in the hands of the one who dies in glory and blood.

49:41 Why? He had a spiritual sight of who he was as to his person. Secondly, he had a spiritual understanding of his position. They taunt him.

49:51 Are you Messiah? Are you King? Prove your stuff. And while he dies under the Roman king, while he dies in the eyes of the Jews, an imposter Messiah notices prayer.

50:05 Lord or Jesus, remember me not if you possibly have a kingdom. Lord, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom. What an expression of faith. He sees in the bleeding form of this one called by his peers a fake Messiah jeered by the Romans as no true king.

50:32 He says, A, you are a king. B, you have a kingdom. C, that kingdom shall yet be manifested at the end of the age. And when you come as king to manifest the kingdom in its full dimension, Lord, as the head of that kingdom, if you will but stretch out the scepter and welcome me, all is well.

50:55 You are Messiah. You are king. And then, bless God, there was a spirit-wrought revelation of and confidence in the Son of God at the third point of their taunting. You're such a big-shot Savior.

51:09 You say your purpose is to save people. Show your stuff. And it's as though the thief takes the words out of their mouth and said, Yes, I'll have him show his stuff. Lord, remember me.

51:20 You get it? It takes or fuel for his faith the taunting of the enemies of Christ. Lord, remember me. Me, the natively rebellious, hard, impenitent sinner who up to a few moments ago from this very mouth that now pleads to you as God the Son and Messiah and King mocked you and taunted you.

51:42 Lord, remember me. And in your remembrance there is virtue enough to blot out the sin. There is virtue enough to change the nature. Virtue enough to do everything.

51:53 It's necessary to fit me for the everlasting kingdom to be manifested at the last day. And not only does he believe Christ is able to save, he believes he's willing or he never would have asked. There's some people I know that are very well able to buy me three cars if I needed them, buy me a home, do anything. But I never ask them because I know there's not an ounce of willingness in them.

52:18 And you don't even bother to ask. And you see, sometimes you kids, you have problems. You know, Mom and Dad may be able, to give you something you need, but you're not quite sure whether they're willing, so you've got to feel them out. Right?

52:32 But he doesn't even feel out the Lord Jesus.

52:35 He beholds in him, and we'll see later how. Let me just give you the hint. When he heard the Lord Jesus say to the very ones who put him on the cross, while he and his buddy, no doubt, are pouring out all the foul oaths that they've learned through the years upon the ones who execute them, the first words that come from his lips when the cross is implanted, God forgive.

53:02 The Spirit of God brings back. Here's a revelation of the heart of the man next to me. He's a forgiving Savior who delights in mercy.

53:12 And he came to a spirit-wrought revelation of and confidence in the Lord Jesus as his own Savior. How did the transformation come to pass? The same way it comes to pass in everyone else whom the Lord saves. Here was the spirit-wrought conviction of his true conviction.

53:30 The spirit-wrought revelation.

Conclusion: The Efficacy of the Gospel

53:35 And my time is gone. I'm sorry. The subject has so caught my own spirit I just didn't look at the clock. I'm terribly sorry.

53:43 My friend, has the Holy Spirit done for you what he did for the dying feet? Ah, listen, listen, listen. If God takes those little fragments and makes them effectual to the salvation of that man, what will your condemnation be if you have the full, free proclamation of the gospel to the world? I don't know.

54:02 I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know.

54:03 I don't know. I don't know. From the base of the whole revelation of God in Scripture, not having to draw some inferences from those who stand before you mocking and taunting the Son of God, but from preachers who love him and extol him and proclaim him to you. Oh, what hell of hells must be prepared for those who turn away from the display of Christ crucified that is given in the preaching of the gospel and child of God.

54:33 Do you see yourself there? And can you say this morning, yes, the world still mocks and thumps and, Son of God, can it be? Can you say from that inner shrine place of the heart the Lord Jesus has been revealed in his essential Godhood and you love him as Son of God? Has he been revealed as true Messiah and King?

55:01 Not King of some earthly quasi political of every kind of a mixed-up kingdom, but the mediatorial King who is bringing rebel sinners to bow before his gracious sector as the Spirit revealed in his Savior.

55:23 He's also tied together. I'm tempted to want to preach the next two sermons because it's also tied together. But listen, listen, listen, listen. If the Lord Jesus says today you'll be with me and on the basis of the gospel faith exercised with such fragmentary knowledge and such inadequate preaching the Lord as it were leaps to demonstrate his willingness to receive the vilest of sinners who doesn't even have a day to work out his salvation.

55:52 He doesn't even have a day to show his love to Christ. As one man said the only instrument with which he can show his love to Christ is his tongue. Everyone else is impaled and rendered inoperative.

56:07 My friend, if being saved has anything to do with it, with our performance this man never could have made it.

56:13 It's one of the most amazing displays of salvation by grace alone. Today with me on what basis?

56:21 On the basis of what the following paragraph teaches. Darkly shrouded the heavens from the third to the sixth to the ninth hour. How can that vile, wretched, off-caste of humanity enter paradise with the Holy Son of God? Because the Holy Son of God bear every last ounce of the wrath of God due to his sin and having borne it he entered with as much perfection in his standing before God as the Apostle Paul did after serving the Lord Jesus for years.

56:58 That's the gospel we preach. Have you embraced it? Have you embraced the Savior? Well, may the Lord write upon our hearts these precious stories.