Be Sure You Are Saved
Luke 23:33-46
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - May 20, 2007
*I recently ran across some alarming statements from several well-known pastors and evangelists.
-Billy Graham once said that 75-85% of church members are lost.
-Vance Havner estimated that over 65% of church members are lost.
-R.A. Torrey estimated that "only about 10% of church members are saved."
*Bill Bright founded Campus Crusade and was vital in spreading the Jesus Movie. In 1984, Bill Bright said, "Over 50% of the 85 million people in church this morning have never been born again."
*And Dr. J. Harold Smith said, "75% of people that attend church won’t make it to heaven. I won’t be afraid to say 80% won’t make it." (1)
*No one but God really knows how many church members are lost, but these men, much better men than me, were greatly concerned.
*In 2 Corin 13:5 Paul told us to examine ourselves as to whether we are in the faith. “Prove yourselves,” Paul said. In other words: Be sure you are saved.
*The thief on the Cross can help us, because we know for sure that he was saved, and God wants us to be sure.
1. But have you come under conviction for your sins?
*Only one of the thieves crucified with Jesus came under conviction for his sins.
-We see the evidence in vs. 39-41:
39. Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.’’
40. But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
41. "And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.’’
*The thief who was saved saw his sinfulness. There on the cross, he had a total transformation of his heart, and seeing his sinfulness was a big part of the process.
*He wasn’t always this way. A little while before, his heart was just as hard as the thief who railed on Jesus in vs. 39. Matthew 27 tells us that both of the thieves started out with that kind of venom.
*David Jeremiah described the scene in part this way.
-“Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.”
(Matt 27:44)
*[Crucified], dying, muscles quivering, lungs gasping, arms being pulled from sockets, memories seared, minds clouded by pain, these two embittered thieves squandered their last moments by joining their executioners in reviling the only Perfect Man who ever lived.
-Then at noon one thief had a change of heart.
*One thief cursed Him: “Some Messiah you are! Save yourself! Save us!”
*But the other thief said: “Have you no fear of God? You’re getting the same as him. We deserve this, but not him. He did nothing to deserve this”
*Cursing God, cursing the Romans, cursing the Jews, one of the thieves cursed his way into a Christless eternity. What a glimpse of the depravity of man!
*But [the other] thief had an 11th-hour change of heart.
-[He admitted] his guilt as he hung there next to the Savior. (2)
*Have you come under conviction for your sins? Have you faced your guilt?
-Have you admitted your guilt before God?
-Are you willing to say to God, “I deserve my punishment.”?
*This is extremely important, for as Pastor Ken Gehrels once said:
-You see, we’re really not a lot different than that convicted con . . .
*Is there any one of us here who can say with a straight face that they’ve lived a perfect life and always done what God required? Every day?
-Avoided what He wants us to avoid?
-Thought, spoke and did what He desired?
-Kept Him at that central place in life where He belongs?
*Is there anyone here who doesn’t cross the line every single day?
-In God’s eyes, the criminal on the cross and we are exactly the same.
-Eternal justice screams that we need to be condemned to eternal death.
*Have you come under conviction for your sins?
-Are you willing to say to God, “I deserve my punishment.”?
*Gehrels said we need to be willing to come and stand beside that con in front of Jesus’ cross...
-Admitting, up front, no excuses, no dancing around with partial confessions and cover-ups -- but truly admitting all our foul-ups and just plain nasty moments.
*Jesus - here it is. I’ve blown it, big time.
-I have no right to claim admission to the perfect glory of heaven. I know that.
-Please forgive me. Please -- remember me. (3)
*Evangelist Bailey Smith gave some statistics after 30 years of ministry: 57 pastors saved, 69 pastor’s wives, 139 deacons, 171 deacon’s wives and 17 missionaries saved!
*One of those wives Smith told about was 69-years-old, and had doubted her salvation for years. But she was too proud to deal with it. She was afraid jaws would hit the floor.
*Then God spoke to her, “What good is pride in a lake of fire?”
-That gave her the conviction she needed. (4)
2. Have you come under conviction for your sins?
*And are you convinced that Christ is infinitely superior?
*The saved thief was convinced that Jesus was superior in every way. Jesus was no ordinary man. Listen again to the thief’s words in vs. 41:
-“We receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.’’
*The saved thief saw the Lord’s infinite goodness. He had surely heard about the goodness of the Lord during His 3-year ministry, but what made the eternal difference was that he could see the goodness of Christ even on the Cross.
-The Lord’s goodness was seen in a love so strong that it even loves its enemies.
*In the face of the mocking and sneering abuse, in the face of torturous punishment, as Jesus suffered on the Cross, the thief heard Him say in vs. 34:
-"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’’
*D.L. Moody once concluded that this prayer must have been what converted the thief on the Cross. Nothing else could reach him, until he saw the deep love of Jesus. (5)
*It was deep enough to give its life...
-Not for the righteous, but for the unrighteous.
-Not for the good, but for sinners.
-Not just for His friends, but even for His enemies.
*James McCullen compared the Lord’s sacrifice to Secret Service agents and said: In the case of an assassination attempt, it’s their job to throw their body in the path of the bullet in order to save the President.
*Secret Service agents are willing to do such a thing, because they believe that the President is so valuable to our country that he is worth dying for.
-They wouldn’t be willing to take a bullet for just anybody.
*At the cross, the situation was reversed.
-The President of the Universe took a bullet for each of us. (6)
*At the cross, we find out just how valuable we are to God. But the value doesn’t come from our goodness. It comes from the Lord’s infinite goodness and love.
3. Are you convinced that Christ is infinitely superior?
*And are you willing to put your confidence in Christ?
*The saved thief had tremendous confidence in the Lord, and we see it in the request he made in vs. 42: “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”
*What faith! That request was based on faith that Jesus was bigger than the Cross, and even bigger than death. *What faith! There was Jesus still hanging on the Cross, not yet risen from the dead. The stone had not been rolled away, but the saved thief believed that Jesus would live and reign forever. And he trusted that the Lord could save him.
*Ken Gehrels described the request this way:
-Jesus, when you come there, could there be maybe a little corner for me?
-Jesus, when you come there, please don’t abandon me to eternal darkness, to being a wandering soul with no place to go, or a soul in eternal torment.
-Jesus -- mercy! (3)
*This thief trusted that the Lord could save him, and when he heard the Lord’s answer, he trusted that the Lord would save him, because in vs. 43, Jesus said to him: “Surely, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.’’
*And Ken Gehrels said:
-No "Maybe, we’ll see."
-No "Someday."
-No "Why should I?"
-No "Absolutely not!"
*Instead: "Today you will be with me in Paradise."
-An absolute guarantee that would be served up in a moment.
*The convict relaxes. No more is said. No more needs to be said.
-It’s OK. Eternally OK. (3)
*That kind of confidence in Jesus Christ will take you to Heaven.
-And it is the only thing that will get you there.
*As D.L. Moody once said: “The thief had nails through both hands, so that he could not work [his way to Heaven], and a nail through each foot, so that he could not run errands for the Lord. He could not lift a hand or a foot toward his salvation, and yet Christ offered him the gift of God; and he took it. Christ threw him a passport, and took him into Paradise. (7)
*And why: Because this thief trusted in the Lord.
*Bobby Wilson once told me about a lady who played the organ where he went to church. I think her name was Murphy. Mrs. Murphy had been in church for many years, and she could really play the organ. She also had a beautiful voice. Bobby said she could sing like a pro. She was very faithful to her church, a sweet lady. She and her husband were pillars in the community.
*But in spite of all that, Mrs. Murphy was not saved. And she knew it.
*One night during a revival service, she was playing the organ during the invitation. That’s when the Lord asked her two blunt questions:
1-“Are you going to ride this organ bench into hell?”
2-“Do you think [playing the organ] will get you into heaven?”
*Mrs. Murphy mentally asked the Lord: “Who will play?”
-And He told her, “I don’t need anybody playing.”
*So, she got up off of that bench, went over to the preacher, and put her trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord. That is why Mrs. Murphy is in heaven today.
*You must put your confidence in Christ. You must trust in the Lord. God’s Word even describes it as a child-like trust. Mark 10:13-16 in the NLT tells us that,
13. One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch them and bless them, but the disciples told them not to bother him.
14. But when Jesus saw what was happening, he was very displeased with his disciples. He said to them, "Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
15. I assure you, anyone who doesn’t have their kind of faith will never get into the Kingdom of God."
16. Then he took the children into his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.
*And David Hoke says: “Our heart needs to be childlike in its trust. By nature, children are trustful. Now, you can certainly train them to be otherwise, but children have an inborn ability to trust.
*I used to play a little game with my children when they were very young. They used to love to use the bed as a trampoline. Most of us, I suppose, have done that at one time or another. It is great fun.
*Occasionally, I would stand at the end of the bed and ask them to literally dive off into my arms. I would assure them I would catch them and they would not hit the floor. Now, they had never done this before, but did they debate on whether dad would catch them? No. They were trustful. With just the suggestion, they would fling themselves into the air, and in sheer delight land in my arms. (8)
*That’s the kind of trust we need to have in the Lord.
4. Are you willing to put your confidence in Christ?
*And do you have a personal connection with Christ?
*In vs. 43, Jesus told the thief, “Today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
-Not just “Today you will be in Paradise...”
-But “Today you will be WITH ME in Paradise!”
*This wonderful statement reminds us that the heart of Christianity is a relationship: A personal relationship with God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit of the Lord who comes to live in our hearts when we trust in Jesus. When we trust in Jesus, God becomes our Father, our Brother and our Best Friend. So the motto of our church is: “Connecting People with the Love of Jesus.” We really do want to help people get connected with Christ, so that they can be with Him forever.
*Do you have a personal connection with Christ? This is what it means to be saved: To know Him, and to know that what Jesus said in vs. 43 was not just for the saved thief on the cross. Those words are for all who put their trust in Jesus. You can hear Him say: “You will be with me.”
*Ken Gehrels asks: “Where do you want to be forever?
-What better place than with the One who, while He was on earth, had all the time in the world for confused people, hurting people, discouraged people, tired people, snowed-under people, just plain common people.
-All the time in the world... -Loved them, healed them, guided them.
*There’s no place better to be than living eternally with Jesus, and that’s His promise! Believers don’t get stuffed in some small heavenly back room.
-No -- With Him. (3)
*But do you have a personal connection with Christ?
*Max Lucado told the story of a tornado that touched down in West TX near Paul’s home. Paul was only three or four years old.
*At the first hint of trouble his father hustled all the children inside, laid them and their mother on the floor together, and covered them with a mattress. Paul’s dad explained that they would be safe there, but as they waited out the tornado, Paul realized that his father had not climbed under the mattress with them.
*Paul peeked out to discover his dad standing at the window, watching the funnel cloud turn and twist across the prairie. When Paul saw his father by the window, he knew where he wanted to be. He struggled out of his mother’s arms, crawled out from under the mattress, and then ran and wrapped his arms around his dad’s leg.
*Paul recalled that day years later, and he said, "Something told me that the safest place to stand in a storm was next to my father."
*When you trust in Jesus, you get a relationship with the Father that can stand any storm. And on the worst day of your life, the day when you feel like you are nailed to a cross, you will have an eternal, unbreakable connection with Christ.
Conclusion:
*But you must be sure you are saved.
*The proof lies in the answers to these 4 questions:
-Have you come under conviction for your sins?
-Are you convinced that Christ is infinitely superior?
-Are you willing to put your confidence in Christ?
-Do you have a personal connection with Christ?
*You can get that connection right now.
-Just call out to Jesus: “Lord, remember me.”
1. "Saved or Deceived?" - A Series of Studies from The Awakening Hour Television Broadcast with Dr. William R. Crews - Study Number One - (http://www.angelfire.com/va/sovereigngrace/saved.deceived.1.html)
2. Adapted from KERUX ILLUSTRATION COLLECTION - ID Number: 20482 - SOURCE: Baptist Press, http://www.baptistpress.org/ - TITLE: In Search Of Jesus ... At The Cross - AUTHOR: Rev. David Jeremiah - DATE: 3/24/05
3. Adapted from “Words Of Life From The Cross” - "Today You Will Be With Me In Paradise" - A Sermon On: Luke 23:43 - PREPARED BY KEN GEHRELS - PASTOR CALVIN CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH - NEPEAN, ONTARIO
4. Found in SermonCentral sermon: “The Price of Pentecost, pt. 4” by Jerry Shirley - Acts 1:15-26
5. Original source for quote unknown
6. Cross & Crown Sermons - “Forgiveness: the Road Less Traveled” by James McCullen - Luke 23:34, Eph 4:32
7. D. L. Moody, "Day by Day with D.L Moody," Moody Press. (Found on christianglobe.com)
8. J. David Hoke - Mother’s Day 2001 - A Childlike Heart - Mark 10:13-16 - http://www.horizonsnet.org/sermons/sermons.html
9. Max Lucado. IN THE EYE OF THE STORM. (Dallas: Word Publishing, 1991), pp. 201-202. (christianglobe.com - “You Can Face Your Giant” sermon by King Duncan - 1 Sam 17:1-58)
