Sermon Sandwich
Sermon Sandwich—The World has Two Reactions to the Cross of Jesus Christ?
Trinity Church, 1589 Hwy 174, Edisto Island, SC 29438
www.trinityedisto.com 843-869-3568
Last Sunday after Pentecost, November 20, 2022
Holy Communion - Renewed Ancient Text; 2019 BCP, p.123
Luke 23:32-43 Sermon Notes
Intro - Christ The King Sunday - Last Sunday after Pentecost
The World has Two Reactions to the Cross of Jesus Christ?
I Corinthians 1:22-23 - 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles
Scandalous - skandalon - that which causes offense and thus arouses opposition.
Moronic - moria - foolishness, folly, absurdity, makes no sense.
1. Moronic - The Romans Soldiers, the Gentiles.
Luke 23:36-37 — 36 The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him vinegar, 37 and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”
2. Scandalous - The Impenitent Thief.
Luke 23:39 - 39 One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
3. Repent and Believe - The Penitent Thief.
What did the Penitent Thief See?
Isaiah 53:4-7 - … yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.
What did the Penitent Thief Hear?
Luke 23:34 - And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”
Repent - change my mind. The Thief became the Penitent Thief. He changed his mind.
Luke 23:40-41 - But the other (Penitent Thief) rebuked him (Impenitent Thief), saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly; for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.”
Believe - trust in Jesus for my salvation.
Luke 23:42 - And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Receive - What did the Penitent Thief Receive? Everything.
Luke 23:43 - And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Paradise - the Present Heaven Believers receive as we pass through death into life.
“Paradise comes from the Persian word pairdaeza, meaning “a walled park” or “enclosed garden.” It was used to describe the great walled gardens of the Persian King Cyrus’s royal palaces. … Oxford Professor Alister McGrath, writes “The idea of a walled garden enclosing a carefully cultivated area of exquisite plants and animals, was the most powerful symbol of paradise available to the human imagination, (Heaven, Randy Alcorn, p. 55-56)