Upper Path Valley Presbyterian Church

Luke 23:39-43

“Getting Right With God”

Easter Sunday

Rev. Meagan M. Boozer

“One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him (Jesus) and saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Today, on Easter Sunday morning, as we focus on all that God did for us, it’s a great time to think about what we can do to get right with God. Our Christianity, our faith in Jesus as the crucified and risen Savior (which is what makes us Christians) is not just some religious grouping or category to which we belong, our faith in Jesus is about a relationship with God- a relationship between you and the one who gave you life.

The two criminals crucified on either side of Jesus show the extreme contrast between two different groups of people: those who see that it is God who gave them life and who want to be in a relationship with God, and those who do not see.

On the one side there’s a guy who says, “You say you’re God. Prove it.” “Save yourself and us.” “Prove you’re the Messiah.” “Go ahead, prove it.”

It reminds me of the two mission trips we took to New Orleans. Both trips had more women on the team than men. The first time we went, there was some concern (from the people we were helping) about whether all these women could do the hard physical work of gutting houses. No one said it, but part of our mission was “proving” that we could do the work right alongside the men. We were, after all, “valley women.” When we went the second time, with 19 women and only 7 men, again we felt like we had to prove that all us women could do the work. But for me, the real proof of whether we were real “valley women” came on the last day when we found a mother rat and her babies hiding in a disgusting closet full of sopping, stinking belongings. Once the momma rat ran away, something had to be done about all the babies. As this city girl stood outside, creeped out by the thought of creepy crawly things inside, Betty Myers marched into that closet and took those baby rats out of the house. Valley women? We proved it! (All but me!)

The thief beside Jesus said, “Prove it.” “Prove you are really God. Prove you deserve the title, ‘King’. Prove you are more powerful than the people who put us up here on these crosses.”

The ironic thing is that Jesus was proving it- just by willingly remaining on the cross. That was the ultimate act of his strength and his kingship, but the thief didn’t see it. Jesus was a failure as far as he was concerned.

There was a second grader whose name was David. David was bumped while getting on the school bus one morning and suffered a two-inch cut on his cheek. At recess he collided with another boy and lost two teeth. At noon, while sliding on ice, he fell and broke his wrist. Later at the hospital, his father noticed David was clutching a quarter in his good hand. David said, “I found it on the ground when I fell. This is the first quarter I ever found. This sure is my lucky day.”

It’s all in the way you see it.

The thief on the other side of Jesus saw something completely different. Instead of seeing what Jesus wasn’t doing, he saw what Jesus was doing, and at the end of the day, this thief was welcomed into paradise. What was the difference in their responses?

This guy first recognized his own sin. “We are getting what we deserve.” This is the first step to getting right with God: We must recognize and admit our own sinfulness. This establishes our need for a Savior. If we can’t admit we’re sinners, we won’t call out for a Savior. 1 John 1 reminds us, “If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” This guy said, “I deserve punishment. I’ve done wrong. I need help.”

He recognized Jesus’ innocence. “He has done nothing wrong.” The second step to getting right with God is recognized the sinless character of the Savior- because only the sinless, perfect One could save us. 2 Cor. 5:21 declares, “He who had no sin, became sin for us.” Jesus was without sin, yet while we were still sinners, he died for us. (Romans 5)

He spoke in faith, trusting that beyond death on the cross, there would be life with Jesus. The third step to getting right with God is stepping out in faith. This is what the thief did in asking Jesus to remember him when he came into his kingdom. The thief was saying, “I believe you are a king, and that what is happening here is not the end for you, and I believe that if you say so, it won’t be the end for me, either.” He reached out in faith, and at one point in our lives, we must do that same- putting our faith in Jesus Christ.

He received the promise of an eternal relationship with the Lord. The fourth step to getting right with God is receiving the gift that Jesus offers us. “Today, you will be with me in Paradise,” Jesus said. Notice Jesus doesn’t say, “Today, you’ll be with me in Paradise.” It’s all about the relationship. Jesus came to get us back to the One who gave us life.

I read recently that there are three kinds of talkers: An egotist talks to you about him or herself, a gossip talks to you about others, and a brilliant conversationalist talks to you about you. This second thief focused on Jesus- and what a reward he received in return!

There is nothing we can do to earn the gift that was opened for us on Easter morning. No amount of Bible reading, prayer, regular Sunday school or worship attendance, serving on boards or committees, etc., no amount of generous giving, or good living can earn for us the gift that Jesus offers to us in saying, “Today you can be with me in Paradise.” The things that we do for the Lord (Bible reading, prayer, Sunday school and worship attendance, serving, giving, trying to live as God wants us to live, etc.) we do, not because we have to, but we do them out of gratitude for what he has done. Not doing these things at all is like being on “Extreme Home Makeover,” getting an entirely new house from top to bottom, an walking in and living in it without ever saying “Thank you.” That would be rude. It would be absurd considering the size of the gift.

But consider the size of the gift Jesus gave us! Look! See it TODAY! He made it possible for us to know the love that God has for us! He made it possible for us to be seen by God without repulsing God with our sin! Jesus made it possible for us to live really great lives here on earth until we die, and then at the moment our eyes close here in death, Jesus made it possible for our eyes to open right away to the glory of heaven! I don’t know how to say “thank you” to God for all this, other than do my best to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, and to be a committed member of his body here on earth now, which is God’s beloved Church of Jesus Christ.

Getting right with God is more about what we are willing to see, rather than what we are able to do, because the doing should naturally follow if we are willing to see the truth. Do we see that we are sinners? Do we see the sinless nature of Jesus? Do we see beyond the suffering of the cross to the glory of the resurrection kingdom? By faith, do we accept his invitation to be with him in Paradise without needing him to prove to us that there really is such a place?

We can search the whole world over, but we will never find another like Jesus Christ the Lord. His power, and his power alone, can save my wretched soul. His love changes lives, set the captive free, and opens the eyes of those who are willing to see beyond the cross to the empty tomb. His love brings freedom, reconciliation with family and friends, forgiveness, release of anger and bitterness, his love brings joy, his love brings purpose to our lives, and his love brings peace.

His love changed my life. If you let him, his love will change your life, too.

Amen.

Prayer of Commitment:

Lord Jesus, I am sorry for the things I know I have done wrong. (Speak out anything that comes to your mind as you pray.)

Thank you that you died on the cross for me and made it possible for me to have a relationship with my heavenly Father.

Please come into my life, and fill me with your Holy Spirit. I welcome you into my heart, into my mind, into my whole life today. Teach me how to be like you.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

April 16, 2006

Upper Path Valley Presbyterian Church

4-16-2006