Luke 23:32, 39-43

 

Jesus our beloved God is hanging from the cross dying and he is offering paradise to a thief.  Paradise.  Beautiful, sacred, lush.  A place that draws you in and welcomes you.  I flash to the Bahamas – pristine, glorious, crystal water-filled and warm.  You might envision a grove of redwoods and majestic mountains; or the simplicity of the desert or the power and serenity of the ocean.  Yet those are worldly places not what Jesus is offering.  Jesus is sharing something even more wonderful.  Paradise is an old Persian word that means “enclosure,” which suggests safety.  In Greek, parádeisos means garden and harkens back to God’s garden, the Garden of Eden.  Paradise then is what God intended, purposed for the world.  Paradise is the realm of God, both in the beginning and in the end.  Revelation speaks of paradise as well, “I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God” (2:7b).  Paradise is a life-giving place, a place of growth and fruition.  Paul also speaks of paradise alluding to a heavenly kind of experience (2 Cor. 12:4).

 

So Jesus is promising the paradise of God, coming into the presence of God, into the place where God dwells.  At first I was drawn towards the idea of being taken to paradise, better than that is the promise that Jesus will be with you and with me and in this holy realm of God.  I think it would be paradise simply to be with Jesus in whatever landscape that involved.

 

Last week we experienced Jesus granting forgiveness to those who nailed him to the cross, when he declared, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).  His first thought from the cross was to forgive.  He prayed and poured out forgiveness to his persecutors and beyond.  Because of what Christ did on the cross we are able to forgive people who don’t deserve our forgiveness.

 

Jesus’ first thought was forgiveness and the second was like it.  When Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in Paradise,” he is forgiving a thief, a common criminal.  This thief is granted precious forgiveness and welcomed into Paradise!  There is a part of me that says hang on a minute- I want paradise to be only for the good people, not common criminals.  But I quickly realize if the promise was based on what one deserves then you and I would never experience paradise.  Now I am so grateful God, Jesus, welcomed this criminal into paradise so you and I will enter there as well.  So while Christ is hanging from the cross between two criminals, we see the span of human nature and the magnitude of God’s grace.

 

Have you ever noticed suffering brings out people’s true colors?  There are two ways to respond to suffering.  First we can blame God and say, “If you are such a loving and powerful God, why am I in this awful mess?”  Or we can acknowledge our sinfulness and cry out for mercy and help in our time of desperation.  The world is full of people who rail against God in their self-righteous manner; people who assume that the world owes them and that God, the Creator, is there to make their life smooth.  There are, however, a few who turn to God and humble themselves in their time of crisis.  In their heart of hearts they know God owes them nothing; God’s goodness is spurred by God’s nature, not by our worthiness.  So that all the good you or I get from God is truly a gift of grace and mercy and not from our merit.

 

These two thieves personify this distinction.  As Christ is being crucified between two thieves we see this distinction.  On either side of him we see the dichotomy of human nature, even though they share many commonalities.  Both are suffering on the cross, both are guilty, both see the sign over Jesus’ head, “King of the Jews” and both just heard Jesus say “Father forgive them for they know not what they do?”  These two men, these two thieves, respond oh so differently.

 

The first thief scoffs at Jesus, because at this moment everything is about him.  He questions Jesus’ power in the hope of saving himself.  He has no sense of right or wrong, praise or blame, only a desire to save his earthly skin.  He has no spirit of brokenness, or sense of guilt or humility.  Just the attitude of, “Jesus what can you do to save me?”  This desperate search for self preservation brings to light the passage from 1 Corinthians, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1:18).

The second thief searched for God.  We have no indication of his previous life, only that in this moment, while taking his final breath, he fears God.  He admitted his wrong and accepted the consequence of his criminal behavior.  Yet he also sees that Jesus is innocent and unjustly condemned.   He recognized Jesus’ kingship and all the thief wants is to be remembered.  Not saved, not taken from his cross, simply remembered.  From his humble position he is able to enter into the grace of God, a conversation with Christ.

 

A conversation Jesus wants to have with you.  Whatever mistake you have made, whatever regret you have, Jesus forgives you and welcomes you into paradise.  This paradise is a place where you are right with God, a place of grace.  No matter what you have done, whatever crime you have committed, if you are in a humble place seeking God, you will be forgiven.

 

Jesus promised paradise to this thief.  It is a paradise that spans beyond time and space into the eternity of God; a heavenly paradise, perfect in every way.  Yet we are not hanging from a cross about to die, we have life to live.  As we live our life finding a place of sanctuary is a way of tasting this paradise before God calls us home.  Paradise is heavenly and eternal.  Sanctuary is a sacred space for God within this world.   You can be a sanctuary; this church can be a sanctuary.  Right now, Christ invites you to the sanctuary of his table, a holy building of his church, a sacred moment with God.  When you come to Christ’s table it is like dipping your toe in the crystal waters of paradise anticipating all that Jesus has promised you when you get to be with him in paradise.

 

At table, Christ feeds you as encouragement to be faithful to him.

At table, Christ pours out his blood to wash away your sins.

Live in sanctuary with God until Jesus calls you home saying,

“Today you will be with me in paradise.” Amen.