Sermon Notes

March 9, 2025

In Need of a Savior

Luke 23:35-43

This morning we will continue in our sermon series, “The Final Proclamations” where we will be looking at the last saying of Jesus on the cross. As I was reading, studying, and praying over our text this morning, I couldn’t help but think back to Jesus’ parable of the Sower. The parable is found in all the synoptic Gospels and talks about a farmer who goes out to plant seeds and what happens to these seeds based on the type of soil in which they landed. When Jesus explains this parable, He tells them that the seed is the Word of God, and the different soils are the hearts of man and how they react when confronted with the truth of God’s Word. The truth of this parable was seen throughout the ministry of Jesus as He confronted sinners with the truth of His Word. This was true even as the ministry of Jesus was coming to its pinnacle on the cross. The Word of God, the Logos as John calls Jesus, is fulfilling His mission as He hangs there on the cross dying (Luke 19:10), He is dying to save those who are lost and that would be everyone, including those who were present that day. Even as the Word Himself spoke truth into the lives of those who had gathered that day, those who were present had some very different responses to that truth just as the parable explained. It’s in these varied responses that we see some imperative truths about Jesus, the ultimate need of all mankind, and the absolute standard of how someone can experience the forgiveness of their sins.

The Truth that was Seen - Luke 23:35-38

The crowd watched and the leaders scoffed. “He saved others,” they said, “let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.” The soldiers mocked him, too, by offering him a drink of sour wine. They called out to him, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” A sign was fastened above him with these words: “This is the King of the Jews.”

As the events of that crucifixion day continued, there was a silence that was beginning to fall upon those who had come to Golgotha. The crowds that were recently shouting “Crucify Him!” and “Give us Barabas!” were no longer scoffing. However, as we are told, they were just watching as the horrors of the cross were being played out right before them. Even though the cross was a little quieter, it was far from silent. There were a few who were still shouting their insults at Jesus and the first ones we are told about that are still being loud are the religious leaders. These were the same ones who had started this whole series of events. They bribed Judas into betraying Jesus and had been stirring up the crowds in Jerusalem that day to make sure that Jesus met His doom. They were mighty pleased with what they had done at this point. They knew of what was written in Deuteronomy 21:22-23, that anyone who was hung upon a tree is cursed by God. They had their ideas in their hardened hearts of who the Messiah should be. Therefore, if they could get Jesus to the cross, they were convinced that this would prove that He wasn’t the Messiah because that would prove He was cursed by God. The truth was God’s ways and ideas are not our ways or ideas, and Jesus was exactly where He was supposed to be. Just as it was prophesied in the Old Testament, to fulfill everything God spoke of when He spoke of the Messiah and His mission through the Prophets. The religious leaders were so convinced that their plan had succeeded, that they were having a victory lap, by mocking Jesus as He hung dying. As they hurled insults, little did they know that they were making a powerful testimony to who Jesus truly was and what He had come to do. The religious leaders had this problem often. We see it when they try to come up with a story to explain the empty tomb. The fact that they wanted to come up with an excuse to explain the tomb was indeed empty was a testimony to the truth that the tomb was indeed empty on Resurrection Sunday. Here they testify to the truth that “Jesus saved others”. When they said that Jesus saved others, they were not speaking of Jesus saving people from their sins, but rather they were speaking of saving others in miraculous ways from their present perils. There can be no doubt that the religious leaders had been keeping their eyes on Jesus for quite some time. They watched him from the events that surrounded His birth to His authoritative teaching in the temple when He was just 12 years old. Jesus was on their radar for quite some time. In the last three years, this obsession with Jesus had consumed them. It was leading them to want to kill Jesus, but in that time, they would have observed the miraculous things Jesus had done. Among the things that they would have seen would have been. He healed the lame. They would have seen Him cast out demons, give sight to the blind, and raise the dead. They were not denying that Jesus did these things, but rather, through their scoffing, they were affirming it. This was important because of what Jesus spoke concerning what these miracles were revealing about Him. These miracles were revealing the Kingdom of God that had come (Matthew 12:28). They were revealing Jesus’ glory (John 2:11). They caused others to believe in Jesus (John 2:11) and they revealed His divine identity and authority (John 11:41-42, John 10:38, Mark 2:1-12). These miracles even proved that He was the Messiah spoken of by Old Testament Prophets (Matthew 8:16-17). These miracles were even evidence of Jesus’ mission to seek and save those who were lost (John 20:30-31). These miracles also showed God’s love and compassion for everyone, and that truth was being played out on the cross as John 3:16 was coming to life. So even though the religious leaders thought they were showing others Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because He was hung on a tree, Jesus had them right where He wanted them. They were proclaiming the truth of His ministry and mission.

The religious leaders were not the only voices heard at the cross during that time. Soldiers joined in as well. Their words were also mixed with actions as they offered sour wine to Jesus. This happened just as God had orchestrated because this was exactly what had been predicted in Psalms 69:21. Throughout the crucifixion, God showed that He was still in control, no matter what was happening. We see that time and time again. The events that were being played out on the cross had all been predicted hundreds of years before in scripture. God was proving that He was in control of it all — just as He always is. The insults that the soldiers threw at Jesus were based upon the title that was hung over His head, “This is the King of the Jews”. We are told in a different Gospel that the religious leaders were upset that the title was placed over Jesus' head, but Pilate refused to change it. This might have been just a jab at the religious leaders as well as Jesus, but whatever the reason, the truth about who Jesus was being proclaimed — Jesus is the King. This wasn’t the first time Jesus had been given the title of King of the Jews, the Wise Men proclaimed this as they sought the one promised after following the star many years before. It was a truth that Jesus affirmed when Pilate asked Him directly if He was King of the Jews. However, this is not all that Jesus said in His exchange with Pilate. Not only did He say that He is the King of the Jews, but He said that His Kingdom is not of this world. His Kingdom would be an eternal Kingdom that would not pass away. It would be a Kingdom ruled from the lineage of David, It would be a Kingdom whose King would bring Salvation to the entire world, it is the Kingdom that was predicted in Isaiah 11. Jesus was the King, and that truth was being proclaimed for all to see. Even though the soil of the religious leaders’ and soldiers' hearts did not seem fertile now, God still used it to proclaim the truth about Jesus.

The Need that was Sensed - Luke 23:39

One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!”

The next voice to ring out at the cross was that of one of the criminals. Among the familiar mocking uttered by this criminal, there is also an interesting request that is made. He asks to be saved. Now we will see that this isn’t a plea for forgiveness of sins or even a theologically deep statement by any stretch of the imagination. However, it is still an interesting request even if it’s partially asked tongue in cheek. The criminal had reached the point where He realized that nothing, He could do in his power would physically free him from the punishment that he was enduring. In this helpless moment, he asked for help from The One they mockingly called the Messiah. There was no doubt that those who were nailed to the crosses that day needed physical salvation. The truth is everyone, except Jesus, needed to be saved spiritually. There are moments in all our lives when we come to a point when we realize we can’t help ourselves and we need someone to intervene to save us. Sometimes this is in an emotional sense, sometimes this can be in a physical sense, but no matter who you are or where you come from, we all need a Savior in a spiritual sense because we can’t save ourselves. The Bible tells us that we all have sinned and have fallen short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23). It also tells us that because of that sin, we are headed to death (Romans 6:23). When we come to this knowledge of our sinfulness, we will usually try to correct our sinful behavior by doing good things, but again, the Bible tells us that those good things we do are still not enough to meet God’s perfect standard of righteousness (Titus 3:5, Isaiah 64:6). It’s at this point that we realize our need for someone else to step in and save us from our sin. The only person who can do that is Jesus.

The Savior that was Sent - Luke 23:40-43

But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The second criminal on the cross is probably the most interesting character in the story of the cross outside of Jesus because it’s these 3 verses that see the first person experience salvation through Jesus Christ.

There is a Just God.

The first part of the discourse that is recorded in these verses is directed at the other criminal. One of the thieves asks the other if he fears God because of his sins. The criminal is proclaiming that there is a God and He is perfectly just. When it comes to understanding our need for salvation and our ability to experience Salvation, we must first understand there is a God. This might seem like common sense, but this is an understanding that we all must come to. This is of the utmost importance because if you don’t believe in God, then there can be no moral lawgiver. If there is not a moral lawgiver, then there is no moral law. If there is no moral law then there is no sin and if there is no sin, then there is no need for someone to save us from the consequences of our sins. We are not told for sure how the criminal knew that there was a God, but Romans 1:20 tells us that the creation cries out there is a creator and there is no one who has an excuse for knowing that. The criminal also knew that God was just. The Old Testament shows this time and time again and the criminal probably had some exposure to this truth during his life. This truth is not just revealed in the Old Testament, but we can see it revealed in the New Testament as well. There is a just God who has given us a standard of holiness that we must live up to. We can rest assured that He will judge perfectly based on that standard.

We are sinners.

The criminal that is now speaking, speaks of both of their sins. It’s very possible that both were in cahoots with each other in their crimes, but regardless of whether or not they were together, the fact remains both had been found guilty for a very serious crime and were being justly punished. The first criminal just wanted to be saved from His physical peril. However, the second one knew there was a just God that they were about to face and that he was a sinner who deserved what he was going to get at the hands of God. Understanding our sins and our need for a Savior is a very important step in coming to know Jesus as our Savior. If you don’t recognize that you are a sinner, why would you need a Savior? This criminal knew and we should too — we all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.

Jesus is our only hope.

Once this thief is finished addressing the other criminal, he turns to His only hope — he turns to Jesus. He is not seeking to be saved from the physical punishment that he is experiencing as the first one did. He is seeking Salvation from what is to come at the hands of a righteous and just God. He is not asking for anything great. It’s not like the disciples who wanted a place of honor at the side of Jesus. He just humbly asked to be remembered whenever Jesus comes to His new kingdom. His faith and hope for his eternal destiny was placed in one man and one man alone — His faith was totally in Jesus. Because of His faith, Jesus responded with grace and mercy even in His suffering. While the thief wanted to just be remembered at some time in the future in His kingdom, Jesus responded that it would happen this very day. The thief just wanted to be remembered in that kingdom, but Jesus promised he would be experiencing that paradise with Him by His side. This was the declaration of the King to the newest member of His family. Because of the thief’s faith in Jesus, he was saved by the grace of Jesus.

It’s in this very simple interaction that we see that we are saved by grace through faith, not of anything else (Ephesians 2:8). This is where we can take those who think that you must add grace alone for salvation. Is baptism required for salvation? Go look at the thief. Was he baptized before Jesus promised him? Do you have to get your life in order before Jesus will save you? Did the thief get his life in order? Did the thief have to learn more about Jesus first or must have a perfect understanding? No! No matter what you want to add, you go to the Word of God, and you will see that you are saved by faith in Jesus Christ alone because of His amazing grace.

Those who were still mocking at the cross that day were not good soils in which the seed of God’s word would grow, but there was a criminal whose heart was. The words Jesus spoke and the truth He was living out. It is proof that Jesus was His only hope. He was not only the criminals' only hope, but He was also the religious leaders’ only hope. He was the soldiers’ only hope, and He is our only hope. When we put our faith in Jesus, we can hold on to the truth that the criminal did, that if something were to happen today, we would be with Him in paradise (2 Corinthians 5:8).

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Sermon Notes

In Need of a Savior

Luke 23:35-43

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