IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD
Luke 23:43
”And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."
INTRODUCTION:
Humor Illustration:
Two Christians lived very healthy lives. When they died, they went to heaven. As they walked along, marveling at the paradise around them, one of the men turned to the other and said, “Wow. I never imagined heaven was would be good as this!” “Yeah,” agreed the other. “And just think, if we hadn’t eaten all that oat bran we could have gotten here ten year sooner.”
The word "Paradise" is a Persian word meaning "a walled garden". When a Persian king wished to do one of his subjects a very special honour he made him a “companion of the garden” and he was chosen to walk in the royal garden with the king. It was more than immortality that Jesus promised the penitent thief. He promised the honoured place of a companion of the garden in the courts of heaven. "You will be with me" said Jesus.
In Luke 23:43 Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”
I know that some day most of us will see each other in very place of God is heaven.
In our text today, God gave us 3 wonderful truths about his offered salvation, the TRUTH that will bring us to heaven, TO CLAIM OUR INHERITANCE in His very own place.
FIRST, GOD HAS COME TO MEET US WHERE WE ARE
It wasn’t by accident that those men were in that place in the presence of Jesus. It wasn’t by accident that Jesus was crucified in the middle of these two men - it was the divine plan of God. God arrange the meeting of Jesus with these two men:
Mark 15:25-28 “Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him. And the inscription of His accusation was written above: THE KING OF THE JEWS. With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left. So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."
Perhaps this was the first time these men had an opportunity to experience the presence of God. But when they needed Him most, there He was. Right in the midst of them. Reaching out to them. One thief dying on the cross took advantage of God’s closeness ... “Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."
God also speaks through Prophet Isaiah: “I bring My righteousness near it shall not be far off, My salvation shall not linger.” (46:13a)
In the routine of your life and in the crisis of your life, God is near to you. He is your hope in the midst of all that happens in your life. God places Himself there so that you my experience His salvation, His comfort, His love and His passion for you.
SECOND, GOD ACCEPTS US JUST AS WE ARE
The thief hanging on the cross was still a thief when he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” -- but he was no longer a thief when Jesus said to him, “Today you will be with Me in paradise.”
Isaiah 55:6,7a Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
There is a transformation that takes place in the presence of God. What has been isn’t what always has to be. The despair and helpless-ness melts away in the presence of God. The problems that confront our lives become possibilities. The fear that sometimes grips us melts into fortitude in the presence of God. And the filth of sin is washed away in the presence of Jesus:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
Apostle Paul also told us: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17
FINALLY, GOD WILL SAVE ANYONE WHO WILL CALL UPON HIM
Illustration:
A man once asked a lifeguard, “How can you hear a person drowning when all these people are making these noise on the beach-talking, yelling, whistling, etc.? The lifeguard said, “I’ve been at this job for 20 years and I haven’t let one person go on distress. My ears are turned toward those in distress calling my help.”
Two thieves hung upon the cross beside Jesus. One thief asked Jesus to help him remember and he was saved.
Isaiah 55:6,7 Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.
The other thief, although he knew who Jesus was, never asked Him for salvation and because of his decision he is right now crying out for mercy in hell.
But what about the routine of our lives – how many of us live in daily torment, living as though we have no hope, when all we have to do is to call upon Jesus and thus be delivered?
You see, salvation isn’t something the believer will get, salvation is something the believer possesses. Even in the midst of life, God’s desire is to save you – to give you reason for hope, to help you to know that He isn’t only your hope for tomorrow, He is also your hope right now.
Illustration:
A young and devoted church elder once claimed to have had a vision of Jesus. His pastor decided to test his truthfulness and ordered that the next time she had a vision he should ask Christ what his primary sin had been before he became a pastor.
Some months later the elder returned and the pastor asked if she had asked Christ the question, to which he affirmed that he had. "And what did he say?" the pastor asked, apprehensively.
"Christ said..." and the leader paused a moment... "He said, ‘I don’t remember. ’"
We have a God who not only forgives but also forgets!
CONCLUSION:
Let me share you some “Famous Last Words” in history.
1. Entrepreneur, P. T. Barnum, d. 1891, his last word is “How were the receipts today at Madison Square Garden?”
2. John Barrymore, actor, May 29, 1942 “Die? I should say not, dear fellow. No Barrymore would allow such a conventional thing to happen to him.”
3. Humphrey Bogart, actor, d. January 14, 1957 “I should never have switched from Scotch to Martinis.”
4. Sir Winston Churchill, the statesman who is famous for his commencement address of “Never give up!” died January 24, 1965 with this last words. “I’m bored with it all.” Sounds like he gave up!
5. The revolutionary communist, Karl Marx, died in 1883 with these last words… “Go on, get out.”
6. Thomas A Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, d.1170 “I am ready to die for my Lord, that in my blood the Church may obtain liberty and peace.”
7. But there is one man in history whose last words not only tell us a great deal about him, but also tell us a great deal of HOPE for our lives. 2000 years ago a man, Jesus of Nazareth hung dying on a cross for the sins of the whole world said, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Illustration:
It was February 1941, Auschwitz, Poland. Maximilian Kolbe was a Franciscan priest put in the infamous death camp for helping Jews escape Nazi terrorism. Months went by and in desperation an escape took place. The camp rule was enforced. Ten people would be rounded up randomly and herded into a cell where they would die of starvation and exposure as a lesson against future escape attempts. Names were called. A Polish Jew Frandishek Gasovnachek was called. He cried, "Wait, I have a wife and children!" Kolbe stepped forward and said, "I will take his place."
Kolbe was marched into the cell with nine others where he managed to live until August 14.
This story was chronicled on an NBC news special several years ago. Gasovnachek, by this time 82, was shown telling this story while tears streamed down his cheeks. A mobile camera followed him around his little white house to a marble monument carefully tended with flowers. The inscription read: IN MEMORY OF MAXIMILIAN KOLBE: HE DIED IN MY PLACE.
Every day Gasovnachek lived since 1941, he lived with the knowledge, "I live because someone died for me." Every year on August 14 he travels to Auschwitz in memory of Kolbe.
More than that way: Jesus lay down his life in our place. "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" (John 15:13).
MAY GOD BRING US INTO HIS PRESENCE TODAY. GOD BLESS!
