Crucified Mercy #2

The one who showed such mercy to his enemies mercies to the repentant thief mercies to his mother is the same one dispensing mercy to us in our hour of need as well. Teaching God's people. God's word.

This is the truth pulpit with Don green founding pastor of truth Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio hello again, I build right you know when we look carefully at the seven statements Jesus made from the cross soon becomes apparent that when combined they lay out a blueprint of God's eternal plan of salvation today. Don continues with a series called reflections on our Lord with part two of a message titled, crucified mercy. If you're ready, let's get started. Here is our teacher. With today's lesson from the truth. Pulpit point number two mercy for the repentant mercy for the repentant Christ showed mercy to a repentant sinner at verse 39 of Luke 23 and as you compare Scripture with Scripture as you read all the gospel accounts you realize that short time earlier. Even this repentant thief had been mocking Christ as well and hurling abuse at him.

There was a work in his heart as he as he read the inscription that was above the head of Jesus. This is Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the Jews he read about this king. He saw the way that the king was showing mercy in the spirit of God worked in his heart as well and let's look at this verse 39, one of the criminals who were hanged, there was hurling abuse at him, saying, are you not the Christ, save yourself and us that the other answered and rebuking him said, do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation, and we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our sins. But this man has done nothing wrong and he was saying Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.

Has there ever been a more obviously helpless man calling out to Christ than the thief on the cross. Death was a short time away from him. He was by his own testimony man guilty and worthy of death, he had nothing to offer to Christ whatsoever. He simply understood his sin and called out to Christ and how did Christ respond to him what was the thief doing here. Beloved, do you see it in a positive sense in a confessional sense. He says we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds. He is acknowledging his guilt. He says I am on this cross, and deservedly so. I deserve condemnation and so he has nothing of merit to bring to Christ whatsoever is not in any position to perform any religious rituals is not in any position to do any deeds of mercy, or to give any money to the local synagogue it's over for him as far as what he can do in life and all he has all he had. He hangs there stripped of his clothing as a guilty condemned center and he knows it and he knew his need and so in utter humility. He asks this merciful Christ for something that he knows he does not deserve.

He says Jesus verse 42.

Look at it again with me Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.

You see, the first person singular. Again you see how personal and individual. It is as he's drawing some of his dying breaths. He cries out in Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom and what did Christ do. He responded in mercy. He looked on this one in unspeakable need unspeakable helplessness and with great concern with great kindness. He makes a promise to him. He says to them. Truly I say to you today you shall be with me in paradise and the torture of a guilty conscience. The torture of a body wrapped in pain is suddenly replaced with the shining bright flaming hope of paradise just on the other side of the suffering. Speaking of the thief on the cross and on that day Jesus, as it were, carried that thief into paradise with him. That's mercy that's just an unfathomable mercy now. I always said I'm always mindful that I'm talking to a mixed audience in the sense that many I trust are in Christ. But there are several, if not many who are not.

So it's very important to me as a preacher, however awkward it may make my transitions. It's always important for me to make a distinction into the and to trust the spirit of God to speak to heart and apply the word as it needs to be applied. There were two thieves with Jesus being crucified. Only one of them went to paradise. The other was left in his sins, and it is imperative for you who are not in Christ not to presume on this mercy, not to presume Anna by saying I'll get it eventually. Or or to assume that everybody's going to heaven. That's not true.

Not everyone is going to heaven. In fact, Jesus said, there are few who find the path that leads to life, and so while we are all encouraged by the example of the repentant thief that Christ will receive even the worst of sinners, even in their debt hour of desperation, he will show mercy to the one who calls upon him. There is a warning to the one who doesn't there's there is hope of mercy for the repentant, but there is a warning to the unrepentant that not all are going to be saved and so I encourage you, my friends. I asked by the mercy of God that your eyes would be opened and to realize that you need to come as the repentant thief and not presume that you will not be like the thief that was left in a sense, in the hope for us the promise of us of it all in Scripture is that every sinner who genuinely comes to Christ asking for mercy will receive mercy from his hand in the gospel of John chapter 1 it says as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe on his name. The promises for those who are near and for those who are far away. The promises for those who have carried their guilt for a long time in the promises equally available to the one who is just feeling the first pangs of guilt only now being opened.

You don't need to wait to come until you feel worse about your sins. He certainly shouldn't wait to come to Christ while you try to clean up your life. You can't do that. There's nothing that you can do to make yourself more acceptable to a holy God. You just come to Christ in mercy and and remember that the thief cried out Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom, and the response of Christ was immediate. You will be with me in paradise. What can we say about this except that this is 111 wonderfully merciful Savior that mercy, that fountain of mercy is flowing just as clear and full and bright today as it was back 2000 years ago by nature he is merciful. Mercy is one of the immutable attributes of God. It does not change and so when any sinner comes to Christ asking in repentant faith for mercy. He will find it.

It's a promise from God is a promise of blessing.

I like to say that I like to remind people of that as we preach the gospel and as we warned sinners of their guilt and of coming judgment is not simply a warning of a a cold austere warning that we give. There is there is. Alongside that, this wonderful promise of mercy to those who will come a promise to be believed to promise to be trusted, promise to be received, that Christ shows mercy to every repentant center that comes to him without exception there is none that he turns away.

There is nothing that you have done in your life that hinders you from receiving Christ in his salvation, his blood covers. The file was his blood makes the foulest clean. If we confess our sins he is faithful and righteous to cleanse us from our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness causes merciful. Thirdly, we see his mercy for his mother's mercy for his mother and for this we turn over to the gospel of John chapter 19. John chapter 19 in verse 25 while he was on the cross. Our Lord showed mercy to his widowed mother as she was watching him die. Look at verse 25 with me. You know, the fifth commandment tells God's moral laws the children are to honor their parents. Honor your father and mother for this is right as it says in Ephesians 6 is a comments on it and here we see Christ honoring his own mother. In his dying hour and caring for her, fulfilling the law of God in the time of his deepest anguish. So in verse 25 John chapter 19 we see this, but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's Sr. Mary the wife of Clovis and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus then saw his mother.

Remember he's nailed to a cross, the arms, which no doubt at times held his mother in a loving embrace. As a young child putting his arms around her neck as an adult, perhaps also putting his arms around his mother to show love to her. Now his arms are nailed his hands are nailed I should say and they cannot reach out her to her physically, but his mercy extends urine is in her need. So in verse 26 when Jesus then saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby. He said to his mother woman behold your son.

Then he said to the disciple, behold your mother what was going on there.

Well, Scripture tells us from that hour the disciple took her into his own household she was going to be left without means to provide for herself. Jesus assigns the disciple to care for his mother after he is gone we can hardly imagine what was going through Mary's heart as she watched her son dying in agony. She had an agony of her own.

It was not a redemptive agony. Contrary to what some might say her agony paid for.

Not a single sin.

Only Christ can forgive sin. Mary can't do any of that. She was a sinner herself how to do her agony save anyone when she herself. She said well you know I rejoice in me and my Savior. She needed a Savior herself as the testimony of her own lips testified in the gospel of Luke, but still she was a godly mother. We can only imagine the agony in her heart as she looked on the sun that had been such a blessing to her. AW Pink puts it this way. He said try and read the thoughts and emotions of that mother's heart. Oh, what a sword it was that pierced her sold in never such bliss at a human birth never such sorrow at a human death, and the depth of the humiliation of our Lord we see again, my friends, the height of his mercy as he was crucified.

Pink goes on to say this. Speaking of Christ. He says he thought of her, who loved him, in whom he loved, he thought of her present necessity and provided for her future need by committing her to the care of that disciple who most deeply understood his love.

He thought for Mary at that time in the honor. He gave her was one of the manifestations of his victory over pain and quote. Then he goes on to say later, Pink does engaged as Christ was in a divine transaction, making atonement for all the sins of all his people grappling with the powers of darkness yet amended all he has still the same human tenderness which shows the perfection of the man Jesus Christ."

You see it he suffering physically, he suffering spiritually. He's not simply is not simply resisting the taunts of his enemies. There's a whole demonic realm being unleashed against him as he suffers on the cross and yet he looks beyond his need and sees the need of his mother and cares for her, her need legitimate.

His concern his kindness providing for him in that hour of extremity. You know what a lot of reasons for us to love the Lord Jesus, here's another one is that his his mercies for his people haven't changed and we can rest in him, the one who showed such mercy to his enemies mercies to the repentant thief mercies to his mother is the same one dispensing mercy to us in our hour of need as well. Whether it's physical or spiritual needs, whether it's cleansing from a guilty conscience or the ball needed for a suffering soul in the midst of human conflict and rejection. We can go to our Lord Jesus, and know that we will find mercy. We know that we can go to him and that he will care for us that that that he cares for us.

Isn't that what Scripture says ever so plainly. For example, in first Peter five.

You don't need to turn their casting all your anxiety upon him. Why, because he cares for you. He's concerned for you and I know as you know by direct personal experience at those times of human suffering. At times, cute can make it seem like God is far away. But that's not true that's not the reality. We base it not on what we feel are judged by circumstances that are adverse know we base it on his holy word which tells us he cares for us and he cares for us and we see his mercy and care manifested by the way that he cared for his mother on the cross so we can rest in him and when we go in sorrow and difficulty hardly able to sometimes to form a coherent thought to express our prayers. Sometimes just the tears running down her cheek, giving eloquent testimony to what our town cannot express its in our heart. The Lord understands and the Lord cares. He knows what's on our tongue before we speak. It and so we can rest in him. Jeremiah said this in the book of Lamentations. He said this, I recall to mind. Therefore, I have hope the Lord's lovingkindness is indeed never cease for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning great is your faithfulness in the New Testament it speaks about his sympathetic concern for the needs of his people quoted often because I I needed and I presume you needed to from Hebrews chapter 4. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need and so through these three sayings on the cross we see the great mercy of Christ illustrated for us and as we come to the table with these elements that remind us of his body and his blood, we have another reminder of the great mercy that is shown for us. All my friends don't you understand do you see that we should never speak politely of Christ never speak lightly of his mercy and that there is never legitimate reason to doubt it.

So we are privileged as believers to remember him at the table to remember the mercy that he showed on the cross and the mercy that is shown to us. Therefore, walking through the valley of the shadow of death, or walking through particularly difficult times we look at God's word. We remember the cross and we remember that his mercy is there even if we do not feel it at the moment and we trust in what he is revealed rather than in what we feel and so the bread reminds us of his body. The cup reminds us of his shed blood and before the men, let me just say this to things it will almost sound in opposition to each other.

This table is by reservation only. What I mean by that is that it is limited to those who know the Lord Jesus Christ, who freely and openly confessed their utter helplessness and sinfulness, who freely and openly acknowledge that their hope is in Christ alone and through that confession express a measure of repentance that says I have turned from sand. I am trusting in Christ alone for my salvation.

So when I say reservation only. The state was only for people like that but at the same time it's for every true Christian who does make that confession. If you're Christian, and even if you are not a member of this church, we invite you to share in this table with this it's the Lord's table by truth community churches table. We simply ask you to come in a repentant spirit confessing any known sin in your life to God before we partake of the elements don't take it in an unworthy way as you think about his mercy, we should reflect on the fact that of how how long it would be having seen such a great view of his mercy from his word to take elements that further speak of his mercy.

While we are tightfisted in our rebellion against him. Sometimes it's good for people to stay away from the communion table when they love their sin more than they want repentance.

Better to be away from the table than to be there taking it and mocking the blood of Christ by their rebellion. And yet, for those of us that are repentant and take it in that repentant spirit.

What a moment of joy to remember the mercy that's been shown to us in Christ. If you're not a Christian. We just ask you to let these elements pass don't partake in that which symbolizes something that you have rejected the reality of what you been listening to the truth pulpit with Don Greene and friend, if you've missed any part of today's lesson you can hear it again or share it with a friend simply by going to the truth.

Pulpit.com that's the truth. Pulpit.com now just before we go. Here's Don to tell us about a special upcoming event, let's write Bill, my friend. I want to extend a special invitation to you to join us for a special evening with John MacArthur Tuesday, May 17 on the campus of Northern Kentucky University which is just minutes north of downtown Cincinnati. John will be with us live and in person be wonderful music and warm fellowship with thousands of believers from all over the country. Here's all you need to do to attend. Go to our website by April 30.

Truth community church.org and register for your free tickets. The tickets are no cost to you but you must register to attend. That's May 17 with John MacArthur.

Register by April 30 at our website, truth, community church.org. I look forward to seeing you there.

Thanks Don and friend that brings our time for today to a close by Bill Wright and we hope you can join us again next time. As Don Greene continues teaching God's people. God's word around the truthful