In the name of Christ Jesus, dear fellow redeemed people of God,

Throughout this Lenten season, we have pondered our Savior's passion. This evening, we find our Savior on the cross. And the lesson we learn is this:

Matthew 27:39-42 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads {40} and saying, "You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!"

There were probably hundreds of thousands of people in Jerusalem for the Passover. Some of these people were passing by when Jesus was hanging on the cross. These passers by decided to mock Jesus and insult him. They were "shaking their heads" perhaps like this, and saying "save yourself!" They urged Jesus to "Come down from the cross" and prove that he was the Son of God. Can't you almost hear the insults? They taunted him. They ridiculed him. And these were only people passing by!

This reminds us that when our Savior went to the cross, there was no one encouraging him. No one urging him on! There was no one cheering him, no one thanking or praising him.

{41} In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. {42} "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him."...

You might expect this from the Jewish leaders. They joined in the mockery. They said that Jesus could not save himself. They mocked his kingship. They challenged him saying, "If he comes down from the cross, we'll believe in him!"

Listen closely to these comments. Can you hear the voice of Satan? He was the one who was always saying, "Do this, if you are the Son of God." Now we hear the same talk from the Jewish leaders. Do you think there was a connection there? There certainly was!

Luke 23:35-43 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One."

Now we switch to St. Luke's inspired account, and some of these words may be parallel to those we've read from St. Matthew's pen. Some of the people stood watching the crucifixion process. They and the Jewish rulers made fun of Jesus saying, "Let him save himself, if he is the Christ." If he's really the Messiah, they said, he would come down.

This really had to hurt. I mean, they only said this because they did not have a clue as to what the Messiah was coming to do! The Messiah was to be the Savior from sin! It is only because they completely misunderstood the Old Testament prophecy that they said these words. They "sneered" at Jesus this way.

{36} The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar {37} and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself." {38} There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Even the Roman soldiers joined in this mocking refrain. There was written notice above Jesus' head. It was customary to put a notice above the head of the crucified person indicating what crime the criminal had committed. It might say, "Murder," or "Rebellion." In the case of Jesus, it said "This is the King of the Jews." He had committed no crime. The soldiers mocked him anyway, saying, "save yourself!"

{39} One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!"

Even the criminal next to him joined in this mocking refrain. "Save yourself! Prove that you are the Christ! Save yourself and us!" But listen closely. Can you hear the voice of Satan behind all of this mockery from the passers-by, and the Jewish leaders, and the people watching, and the Roman soldiers, and even from the criminal dying right next to Jesus? Satan and the forces of evil taunted and mocked the Son of God here as he was saving us from sin.

Now, let's PONDER this. Jesus COULD have come down from the cross. There is no doubt about that. He could have used his omnipotence as God. He could walk on water and raise the dead. He certainly could get down from this cross. He could have called more than "twelve legions of angels" (Mt 26:53) to defeat the Romans and carry him down. He could have done it in many different ways. Jesus COULD have come down from the cross.

So, then, why WOULDN'T he? The answer is simply that Jesus was there to save you and me, and not himself. He was even dying for people who were mocking him! Jesus was dying on that cross to pay for all sin. If Jesus had come down from that cross, the people might have been impressed, but we would not have been saved. He would have been saved, but we would be eternally condemned. If Jesus did not stay up on that cross and pay the full ransom price for our sins, we would not be going to heaven. So, Jesus endured this mockery and stayed there even through the taunting and mockery. He could have come down, but he wouldn't - all to save us! Jesus had lived a perfect life for us. Here he was dying on this cross to save you and me from sin. Let us praise Jesus that he stayed on that cross and saved us! Let us marvel tonight and worship him -- each and every one of us - because JESUS SAVED ME - NOT HIMSELF!

{40} But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? {41} We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." {42} Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

The "other criminal" recognized his own sin. He said, "We are punished justly." He recognized that he was only getting what he deserved. But, then he said something special. He said, "This man has done nothing wrong." He recognized that Jesus was innocent. But then, in verse 42, like a bright light that begins to shine in darkness, his faith begins to shine forth. He said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Through hearing the words of our Savior, he now believed in Jesus. God created faith in his heart. He looked to Jesus for salvation. He believed that Jesus had a kingdom, a kingdom that was not of this world. He asked that Jesus would remember him. This was faith talking. In the midst of Satan's work, Jesus made a believer out of one of them.

{43} Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."

These words are really special! Jesus told this criminal that, despite his many sins, he would be in paradise with Jesus. With that one word, "today," Jesus said that on this very day, when this criminal closed his eyes in death, his soul would depart to be with Jesus in paradise. This man would be in heaven on this very day.

This verse tells us what happens to believers when they die! Their souls go straight to heaven. They do not linger around here, hovering and watching over us. They go to be with Jesus in paradise. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth." You can trust these words. This is "the truth." Jesus knew that when he died, on this very day, his soul would be in heaven, and this believing criminal would be there with him. May these words comfort you when a believing loved one dies. At death, the believer's soul goes straight to that perfect place we call heaven. May these words comfort you when you may be dying also. When you die, believing in Jesus, you will go straight to heaven too. There is no doubt about it! Jesus said, "I tell you the truth." What a blessing it is when believers go to enjoy "paradise." Paradise comes from a root that means "park" or "garden." We just call it "heaven." Paradise, or heaven, is a world that is free from sin, death, and the power of the devil, a world that has no pain, sorrow, sickness, or trouble. The only reason we can go there is that Jesus stayed on that cross, and saved us, and not himself! May we worship him forever! Amen.