You Get What You Deserve
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Opening: Welcome everyone in house and online. Talk about EASTER. How it is such and awesome day and why
Talk about things Jesus never said. Certain Bibles show words of Jesus in red. However, many well meaning people in church misquote Jesus. Though they are trying to help, this often leads to confusion.
Some funny things Jesus did not say
YOLO
As often as you gather together, eat Reese and Cadbury Creme Eggs, Peeps, and chocolate covered bunnies in remembrance of me.
Come follow me, and no one will fight or argue before you arrive at Easter services at church. (Expand and act out)
Introduction: Are you burdened by guilt?
Types of guilt:
food guilt most prominent guilt felt. Over 29% of what we eat makes us feel guilty. Man, feels guilty 20 mins, women longer.
Mom guilt - Moms feel like they never measure up to others
General Guilt: I don’t help people enough, I don’t check on family enough
Spiritual Guilt: Don’t pray enough, read enough, give enough, tried to save your marriage but it still failed. I still battle sin (expound)
A time when the pastors felt guilty. Tell story of Craig Groshel when he had people over who would not leave. Tell a story about you.
Give a brief context of Jesus’ Kingship: crown, ride, and then the cross for a “throne”
Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.
When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left.
How many people were on the cross? 3. Pay attention to that for later
What Jesus did NOT say about sin and guilt: “You get what you deserve!” Jesus did not get what he deserved. He hung on a cross. The crucifixion was the most painful, spiritually shameful, and expensive form of execution available. It was reserved for the worst of the worst criminals. The word excruciating means “out of cross.” Ex- means out, crucitating means cross. It was shameful as they hung you naked on the cross to further humiliate you. Even the Bible talks about it:
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.”
Here is how a Crucifixion would start: First you would be scourged. They would take a whip, with glass, nails, bone shards woven into it, take off your shirt and whip you with it 39 times across your back until your skin is ripped, organs may be exposed, blood loss was sure to bring shock. Then as you somewhat recovered or compensated, you were forced to carry your on cross. They would then take stakes 7” and drive them through your wrist and ankles. Talk about breathing like this, having to push itself yourself up. As far as expense, sometimes those who were hung on the cross would live up to 4 days. You had the expense of a minimum of 4 guards to stay the entire time they were alive.
Many often died from suffocation, exhaustion, battling the scorching hear, or from madness. If you were still alive on the 4th day, as an act of mercy, the Roman guards would take clubs and hit you knees until they broke so you were no longer able to push up and breathe.
The crucifixion was the most painful, spiritually shameful, and expensive form of execution available. This was reserved for the worst criminals, those who broke significant laws and committed significant crimes.
The 2 criminals next to Jesus, they had not committed a misdemeanor. They had to have committed horrible crimes to be there.
But here is Jesus in the middle. Not deserving what He is getting. Being spit on, cursed, and looked up to Heaven and He prayed.
What He did not pray was (remind them we preached on the humility and love of Jesus last week.) Send a thousand angels to take care of them. God give them some horrible disease. God strike them down right now. Let me get on facebook and post something horrible. What would you pray?
What did he pray? Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
This arrogant, prideful, very guilty man who saw no need for mercy, grace, or need for a savior. But the second criminal rebuked the first one.
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Expound on what the second criminal recognized. Getting* what he deserved.
Talk about some common statements: audience participation:
What goes around…
Your past will come back to…..
If you make your bed you……..
These are all different ways to say: “You're going to get what you deserve” Do you ever like someone who gets what they deserve. Expound (speeders, etc) Most of us like when others get what they deserve, but do not like when we do.
Revisit and read Luke 23:41-42. Break down what the 2nd criminal said.
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Jesus did not say to him: Nah, think of what you did. Or sorry, I really never liked you anyways. Or, your hopeless. Nope buddy sorry, your going to hell where there is worm never dies and there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. Act like the criminal was at the Sermon on the Mount (on his phone, or FB, or playing a game, watching something more important. You had your chance but you missed it. I would like to but I can’t forgive your sins, you went too far, it's too late. You have no hope. It is just too late for you.
Here is what he did say and who he said it to him. He said it to a person who could not do a single good work because his hands were spiked to the cross. He could not turn over a new life as his feet were bound. He could not go to church, give an offering, get baptised, go through the warm up and the walk, he could not do a single thing to earn right standing with God. (Neither can you through your circumstances are different)
But Jesus looked at this sinful, criminal, guilty, but repentant man and said
Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Here is what Jesus said: Your sins will be forgiven, even though you can’t earn it or there is nothing you can do to deserve it, I will show you grace and be with Me in paradise. But wait a minute. That’s not fair. He didn’t deserve that.
Let me tell you what I don’t deserve. Tell my story of hope. I was dead on the inside. No hope, no joy, no love. DEAD!
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
“Jesus did not come just to make bad people good. Jesus came to make dead people alive.”
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
not by works, so that no one can boast.
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Jesus made dead people live. Imagine what it was like for the second criminal to hear those words. Some of you are hearing them this morning.
Imagine if you would that the guards heard this and decided to let the second criminal down. Sure he would have wounds but they would heal. What do you think his life would be devoted to? I would dare to say to the man who died so he could live. There would never be a day he didn’t think about what Jesus did for Him.
By His grace I am saved. His story is my story. His story is your story. Go into what Jesus did. So excuse me if I live passionately for Him, I am aware of the fact I did not get what I deserved.
He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.
How many people were hanging on the Cross? 3
Numbers have meaning.
1 - unity and the oneness of God
4 - the Earth
5- grace
7 - perfection
6- less than perfection, man, Satan (666)
8 - New Beginnings
10 - Testing
40 - Trials
The Number 3 - always mean completeness or wholeness. It is completed. It is fully done. God in 3 forms - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are seen as triune beings - body, soul, and spirit. God is seen with 3 qualities :omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient. In Revelations God is described as “was, and is, and is to come. God’s grace shows itself in 3 forms: justifying, sanctifying, glorifying grace. In the OT there are 3 patriarch father: Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. .The tabernacle has 3 sections, the outer court, the inner court, and the holy of holies. The angels cried out to God 3 times “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.” Daniel prayed 3 times a day.. Jonah was in the belly of the whale 3 days. In the NT, the Apostle Paul was blinded for 3 days. He prayed 3 times for the thorn that tormented. He was stranded on Malta 3 months after being shipwrecked. There were 3 wisemen who brought Jesus 3 gifts at His birth. At the age of 12 he was separated from his parents for 3 days. His earthly ministry lasted 3 years. He was tempted 3 times in the wilderness by Satan. 3 disciples in his inner circle. Peter denied Jesus 3 times. God spoke to Jesus audibly 3x. Jesus raised 3 people from the dead; Lazarus, Jairo’s’ daughter, widows son. Jesus prayed 3x in the garden, and tradition says He fell 3 times while carrying the cross.
There were 3 men hanging that day on the cross. Above Jesus was a sign that said “King of the Jews” written in 3 languages Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. Jesus was placed on the cross at the 3rd hour of the day. At the 9th hour, which is 3 pm he declared 3 words of victory “It is FINISHED.” After that, the earth shook and darkness fell across the land for 3 hours. For 2 days nothing, no hope. BUT ON 3RD DAY….EXPOUND
IT IS FINISHED. IT IS COMPLETED. THE STONE WAS ROLLED AWAY. THE WORK JESUS HAD WAS COMPLETED. THAT IS THE REASON HE COULD LOOK AT THE CRIMINAL, AT ME, AND AT YOU NO MATTER WHAT WE HAVE DONE AND GIVE US THE GRACE THAT ONLY HE CAN GIVE. THAT IS WHY A REPENTANT PERSON CAN LOOK AT JESUS CHRIST AND RECEIVE GRACE INSTEAD OF WHAT WE DESERVE.
Repentant heart is the key to unlock His grace. Nothing we can do, only something we can give.
NOTHING to earn His forgiveness & declare “your sins are forgiven.”
Call to action for Christians: Live in the reality of grace
Call to salvation: Confess your sins and guilt, and believe He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.