Quote from Forum Archives on April 20, 2002, 6:51 pm

Posted by: jmichaelwalls <jmichaelwalls@...>

THE THREE CROSSES
Luke 23:32-33, 39-43
Introduction: This is one of the scenes from Calvary. You can hear three
voices at this scene. Each of the men who were dying on these crosses
spoke. When most people think of a cross, they think of some piece of
jewelry that adorns clothing or the neck of the person wearing it. If
that is your thought of a cross, then Calvary is not close to your mind.
The thought that should come to a person's mind when they hear about a
cross is that instrument of death in which they crucified our precious
Lord and Saviour.
Crucifixion was not just a Roman custom. The ancient Greeks used it some
but the Romans perfected this form of capital punishment. History records
numerous of mass crucifixions by the Roman government. When the slaves of
Rome revolted against the Roman government and the revolt was over
thrown, the road to Roman was littered on both sides with massive
crucifixion. Some people thinks that capital punishment is not a
deterrent should study history much closer. The slaves never revolted
against Rome again.
It usually took up to three days for most men to die on a cross. (It is
interesting to note that the Roman government did not crucify women.) For
a man to breathe on a cross, he literally had to pull himself up for a
breath.
There were seven sayings on the cross that were uttered by the Lord
Jesus. He had to almost spit the words out. Why? He had been beaten
within an inch of His life in Pilate's judgment hall. In addition to
having his beard plucked out. This was in addition to having a crown of
thorns literal beaten into His skull. I am told that these thorns are
about as long as our fingers and as thick as a pencil. They cause
infections to develop and swelling. (Remember that thorns are part of the
curse in the Garden of Eden from the Lord.) It is very possible that the
head of Christ is two or three times its normal size. (It is interesting
to note that you do not see this in those so-called pictures of Jesus.)
Let me get back to the scourging. The Romans used a whip, which had nine
tails. It was called a cat of nine tails. In the end of each of these
tails was rock, bone or metal so it could inflict the greatest amount of
pain and punishment to the one who was being scourged. The Jewish people
could scourge a man but the Romans only allowed them to scourge a man
with thirty-nine lashes. (The Jews were not allowed to inflict capital
punishment. It was only the Roman government who was occupying the
country who could put a man to death.) The Jews do not beat Jesus but the
Roman soldiers. They were masters of this torture. They would put the man
with his hands and arms over his head and attach them to a post. Then
they would take that cat of nine tails with the bone, metal and rock in
them and literal rip the flesh off the back and part around the chest
from a man. Most men could not survive this. But this man whom they are
whipping is no ordinary man. He is God manifested in the flesh. We do not
know how many lashes Christ received. There are some things I do know.
1. He survived the unsurviable.
2. He did it all for me. Each drop of blood was shed for even. When the
Saviour bowed his head and died, He did it all for me.
I was listening to Erwin Lutzer this week. He was asking the question why
Christ cried "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Part of his
answer was real blessing to me. Jesus was not guilty of any of the sins
that we find in our Bibles. But He was representative of our sins.
Regardless what sin it may have been. In the eyes of God, Jesus
represents every child pornographer that has ever lived or is living.
Jesus represented every adulterer that has ever lived or is living. He
representative of every drunkard, sodomite, whore, dope addict, thief,
liar and any other you may be able to name. God viewed him as the worst
of the worst. He became sin for us. Why? He did it all for me. Each drop
of blood was shed for even me. O' When the Saviour bowed his head and
died, He did it all for me.
Thanks to Calvary, I am not the man I used to be. Thanks to Calvary,
things are different than before.
Christ suffered all those atrocities that I might escape the pain and
punishment for my sins in hell. Not for me only, but for the sins of the
whole world. There is enough power in the blood of Christ's death to save
the whole world and make it. Today if you have never asked Christ to save
you, today should be the day of salvation for you.
In these next few minutes, I want to take a look at the three crosses.
Christ's cross is in the midst of them according to John 19:18. History
tells us that the one in the middle was considered the worst criminal
being punished. Each person in this room today is represented by one of
the two other crosses.
Let me label these three crosses real quick and then proceed to Calvary
for a look at the three crosses. The cross on which Christ died is the
cross of Redemption. He is dying for sin. One of the crosses is a cross
of rejection. This man is dying in sin. The other cross is the cross of
reception. This man is dying to sin. Journey with me now to Calvary.
I. THE CROSS OF REJECTION
Vs. 39
"And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If
thou be Christ, save thyself and us."
We see many things in this verse. This man reveals a lot about himself.
We see wishful manifestation and a wrong motive. This man was not
interested in Christ coming off the cross. He is just interested in his
own hide. He did not even care if his partner in crime on the other cross
would get off the cross. He wants to escape the pain. He wants to escape
this sentence of death.
We see a warped message "If thou be Christ". It is almost impossible that
folks could not know that Jesus was the Christ, the promised one from the
Lord. His entire death is following all the prophecies of the Old
Testament to the letter. Let me give you just one. Matthew 27:46
"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli,
Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me?"
These words are literally ripped from the pages of the Old Testament.
Psalm 22:1
"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
This is just one of the prophecies that were fulfilled that day. Christ
fulfilled thirty-three prophecies on the fateful, wonderful day. Surely
someone besides a Roman centurion realizes this is the Son of God. But
the crowd is out for blood. The religious leaders wanted this
troublemaker, Jesus Christ, to die.
The thief’s message is warped because it is full of doubt. There are
people in this room and throughout the world who have the same warped
message. They doubt that Jesus is who He says He is. They doubt that He
could save them. They doubt that He is the God of the universe. That is
that partially that keeps them from being saved.
We see a woeful misery. He is putting Christ in the same category as
himself. He thinks that Christ is nothing but a mere man. This made him
misery. It also shows a lack of humility. He has made no admission of
guilt. He is only sorry he is caught. He is not sorry that he has sinned
against God and man.
2 Corinthians 7:10
"For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of:
but the sorrow of the world worketh death."
James 1:15
"Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it
is finished, bringeth forth death."
Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Galatians 6:7
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that
shall he also reap."
His lack of humility is seen in one word. It is the word "railed". It
means to speak evil of or to use insolent and reproachable language. He
does not realize whom he is talking. One day, he will look into this same
man and will give an account to Him. He will eternally regret these words
and language to Christ. He will heard his words for eternally. It will
and has been part of his torment.
The difference between this man and many people who are living today is
that he believes that Jesus is the Lord of all ages. Many folks sit back
and doubt and are skeptical that Jesus was and is indeed the Christ.
II. THE CROSS OF RECEPTION
Vs. 40-42
"But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God,
seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we
receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing
amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into
thy kingdom."
We see the scriptural fear.
Proverbs 1:7
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise
wisdom and instruction."
He knew the Lord controlled his destiny. He knew that the Lord knew all
about him and his life. He knew that the Lord would judge him. He did not
want blasphemy on his record. He feared the Lord. The term fear means
several things. One of them is to reverence and to treat with honor or
reverential obedience.
We see the scriptural finality. He knew he was condemned. We see it the
words "seeing thou art in the same condemnation".
John 3:18-19
"He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is
condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only
begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come
into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their
deeds were evil."
He knows that hell awaits him. He knows that he deserves to go to hell.
We see the scriptural finding.
Vs. 42
"And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy
kingdom."
He acknowledged that he was a sinner.
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God"
Acknowledging one is a sinner is the first step to salvation. Until you
realized you are a sinner, you will and I repeat, will never be saved.
You have sinned against a Holy and Righteous God. The reason why the
Pharisees never submitted to repentance under John the Baptist’s ministry
was they thought they were not sinners.
Everyone is equally sinners. We are as sinful as the child pornographers,
the murderers, the adulterous people, the drunkards, the whores, the dope
fiends and even the Hitlers of this world. Not only is the ground at the
cross equal for all men but the sinfulness of all men is also equal. If
you are not a sinner, then you do not need a Saviour.
He acknowledged that he needed a Saviour. When he asked Christ to come
into his life, he knew he could not save himself.
Ephesians 2:8-9
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it
is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."
He was sorry for his sin. He was turning to the only one who could do
something about it. He had "godly sorrow". 2 Corinthians 7:10
"For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of:
but the sorrow of the world worketh death."
Look carefully at his statement. He calls Jesus Lord. If your Bible does
not read that way, there is something wrong with your Bible. JESUS IS
LORD. Romans 10:13
"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
3. He wants mercy. He does not ask to come off the cross. He knows he is
going to pay for the consequence of his crime. He wants mercy in the next
life. John 6:37b
"him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out"
John 1:12
"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of
God, even to them that believe on his name"
THE CROSS OF REDEMPTION
Vs. 43
"And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be
with me in paradise."
The word "redeem" means to buy back. Christ died to buy us back from the
devil. He redeems us the slave market of sin. He redeems us from the
eternal damnation of the lake of fire. Romans 3:24
"Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus:"
Galatians 3:13
"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse
for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree"
Colossians 1:14
"In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of
sins"
We are just as guilty as that thief is. We need that Saviour that thief
needed. Today you could have this redemption.
Jesus gives him the greatest good news that any one could ever hear. "To
day shalt thou be with me in paradise."
It is this cross that everyone needs to go. It is the Christ of this
cross who died for our sins that we need. He took our penalty of sin that
we would not have to die and pay for our sin in hell. You and I can not
ever redeem ourselves from sin. We need Jesus.
No one else in this world can give that type of guarantee of eternal
life. Only Jesus can tell you for sure that you are going to hell.
Conclusion: Which one of the outside crosses is yours? Is the cross of
rejection yours? Is the cross of reception yours? It could be yours
today. You could be saved today.
2 Corinthians 6:2
"For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of
salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time;
behold, now is the day of salvation."
I have made reference to a song that I feel will make a great ending of
this message.
He Did It All For Me
VERSE 1
Once a man whom we know
As the Son of God
Hung upon a cruel tree
He suffered pain
As no mortal man
He took my place
He did it all for me
CHORUS
He did it all for me
Each drop of blood
He shed for even me
When the Savior cried
Bowed His head and died
Oh praise the Lord
He did it all for me
VERSE 2
When I step just inside
Those gates of pearl
And the Master's face I see
I'll gladly kneel
At His nailed pierced feet
Oh praise the Lord
He did it all for me
REPEAT CHORUS
TAG
Oh praise the Lord
He did it all for me.

Pastor Mike Walls
Freedom Baptist Church Smithfield, NC
All scriptures are King James Bible
Isa. 41:10