Mark chapter 15 this morning. Mark 15.27. Last week we talked about the
king. They crucified the king. And with him, verse 27, with
him, they crucified two thieves, the one on his right hand and
the other on his left. And the scripture was fulfilled,
which saith, and he was numbered with the transgressors. And they
that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads and saying,
ah, thou that destroy us the temple and build us did in three
days, save thyself and come down from the cross. Likewise, also
the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes,
he saved others himself. He cannot save. Let Christ, the
king of Israel descend now from the cross that we may see and
believe. and they that were crucified
with him reviled him. In verse 31, there we see that these, in verse
32, we see that these two thieves who were crucified with the Lord
Jesus Christ, both joined in the mocking. The chief priests
and the scribes and the elders were all mocking, and many that
stood by. And these two thieves joined in on that, and both of
them expressed their hatred and their disdain for the Lord Jesus
Christ, along with everybody else. But in Luke chapter 23,
let's turn over there. We see that a difference was
made at some point. Look at Luke chapter 23, verse
39. And one of the malefactors, which
were hanged, railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself
and us. But the other, and we know now
from the book of Mark that before this verse, they both were railing
on him. But then one, while one was railing
on him, the other answering rebuked him. All of a sudden that wasn't
okay anymore. Saying, don't you fear God? That
has to come first, doesn't it? The fear of God is the beginning
of wisdom. Don't you realize you're talking
to God? Seeing thou art in the same condemnation,
and we getting what we deserve. We indeed justly, for we receive
the due reward of our deeds, but this man hath done nothing. How did he know that? Same way
you do. He hadn't done anything wrong.
And he said unto Jesus, Lord. We see that quite a bit in his
word, don't we, Lord? Remember me. When thou comest into thy kingdom. Who did they crucify? The king. They rejected him as king, but
somebody didn't. Somebody said, you're sure enough
the king, and when you come into your kingdom, don't forget about
this poor sinner. Remember me. And Jesus said unto him, verily
I say unto thee today, thou shalt be with me. And that's paradise, isn't it? To
be with him is paradise. A difference was made at some
point. That's kind of like my testimony.
Somebody made a difference. I was a mocker. I was a scorner. I was a hater. Of God and his son. And somebody
did something about it. And it wasn't me. a long time ago, many years ago,
I heard a pastor preach named David Pledger in Houston, Texas.
He preached a message concerning these three crosses. Notice in
the very beginning of what we read, with him, they crucified
with him. If the Lord Jesus Christ had
been crucified alone, on one cross, it wouldn't have changed
what he accomplished, would it? Not a bit. What he accomplished
didn't have anything to do with the other two and indeed in the
greatest sense he did die alone. What he accomplished was between
him and his father. He by himself purged our sin. But God, our Father has treated
us here to something remarkable. He arranged three crosses so
that we would see why our Lord died here. In the very instance
that he died, we would see the effect of it. Brother Pleasure preached on
these three crosses and he said this about it and I've never
forgotten it because it was so I think clear I've never heard
anybody say it this way before it blessed me and it helped me
to understand what happened there that day something that very
few people in this world understand everybody knows that a Jesus
died on a cross but very few understand what took place there.
And Pastor Pleasure said this he said one man died that day
with sin in him and on him. One died with sin on him, but
none in him. And another died with sin in
him, but none on him. Now you think about that with
me for a few minutes. I've never forgotten this, this has helped
me a lot. The thief who died mocking the Lord Jesus Christ
that day died with sin in him, that is his very nature was sin. And he died with his sins on
him, that is responsible before God for them. He was responsible
and punishable for all of his sins before God, because he died
rejecting the Son of God. The other thief died with sin
in him. He died with a sin nature, didn't
he? He died inherently evil, but with no sin on him. He was a child of wrath, even
as others, by nature. But never in this life Do we
cease to be sinners? But he died that day with no
sin on him. That is the guilt, the accountability
of his sin was taken away and put on another. The only way
you're going to see the Lord Jesus Christ and be with him
in paradise as this man is, is if you have no sin imputed unto
you. Romans 4, 5, but to him that
worketh not, in other words doesn't do anything to be saved, he doesn't
perform before God the deeds of the law, because Paul said
it in the context of that, by the deeds of the law shall no
flesh be justified in God's sight. So just quit trying to work your
way to heaven. But to him that worketh not,
that doesn't do that, that doesn't say, that's not going to say
in that day, Lord look at all of our wonderful works. To him
that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
that justifies them freely without having done anything right ever
their whole lives. His faith is counted for righteousness.
And David put it this way. He said, it says, even as David
also describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth
righteousness without works. My righteousness is not mine,
it's Christ's. But now it's mine because he
was made sin that I might be made the righteousness of God
in him. And he said this, God did that
and then he said this, blessed are they whose iniquities are
forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin. He was a sinner. He had sin in
him, didn't he? But he didn't have any on him.
Before God, he was innocent. The Lord had prayed from that
very cross, Father, forgive them. And the Father did. The Lord
Jesus Christ died that day with no sin in him. First John 3, 4, whosoever committeth
sin transgresseth also the law. For sin is the transgression
of the law, and you know that he was manifested to take away
our sins, and in him is no sin. No sin. Only a spotless lamb
was an acceptable offering under the law of God for sin. And that
was just a picture. spotless Lamb of God." Paul said
those sacrifices of the Old Testament could never take away sin, but
John said, look there is the Lamb that does take away sin,
and He is spotless. Only a spotless Lamb can do that.
1 Peter 1.18, for as much as you know that you were not redeemed
with corruptible things, silver and gold from your vain conversation
received by tradition from your fathers but with the precious
blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot
that's the only lamb that God will accept as an offering for
your sin my sin any sin now when I say that he had no sin in him
I say it in exactly the same sense that John did here in the
text that we just read. I know that the scripture says
he bear our sins in his own body on the tree, but I'm not talking
about the depth of his sufferings here. I'm not saying that he
bore our sins in some superficial way. I don't mean to limit at
all the sense in which our sins ravaged his soul. Except to insist,
as scripture does, that it was my sin. It was our sin that he
bore, if you're here. He had no sin of his own in him. He had no inherent sin, and that's
what John said. And that's why Isaiah prophesied
that he was wounded for our transgressions. Sin is not, was not, never has
been, and never will be his nature. It was mine. It is to this day
mine. But never his. That's what I
mean when I say there was no sin in him. I don't mean to minimize
his sufferings at all. John Gill said this about the
scripture we just quoted from 1 John. In him is no sin. He said neither original sin
nor actual sin, no sin inherent. There was sin imputed to him
but none in him nor done by him. And hence he became a fit person
to be a sacrifice for the sins of others. And by his unblemished
sacrifice to take it away And answered the typical sacrifices
under the law, which were to be without spot and blemish.
And this shows that he did not offer himself for any sins of
his own, for there were none in him, but for the sins of others.
He was wounded for our transgressions. But friends, this is the wonder
of all wonders and is the very heart of the gospel. He died
that day with my sin on him. He didn't have any in him, but
all of the sins of all of his people for all time were upon
him. He was accountable before God for them. He suffered them. Did his sin, did my sin infect
his very soul? Yes, but it was my sin. He bore my sins in his own body. And what a wonder. All we like sheep have gone astray.
We have turned everyone to his own way. That's my part in salvation
right there. I need it. I've gone astray. You know what his part is? He,
the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He took my
sin away. He put it upon his son and the
son of God satisfied God's justice for him by receiving all of the
punishment due my sins and putting it away. He died with sin on
him that day, but don't ever be confused about whose sin that
was. Isaiah 53, 5, he was wounded for our transgressions. He was
bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. There was a result
of him bearing my sins. I'm healed. I'm free. I'm saved. I'm sinless. I'm perfect. First
Corinthians 15 three, for I delivered unto you first of all that which
I also received. And that's in the context of
observing the Lord's table. You think about that as we eat
and drink at the table. I delivered to you what I received
of the Lord. How that Christ died for our
sins according to the scriptures. He died for our sins. Now if
the Lord has laid on Christ your iniquity then it's not on you
anymore. God can't demand justice twice for the same sin. First
at my surety's hand and then again at mine. The Lord Jesus
paid for my sin and I'm never going to. I'm never going to. That's why the wages of sin is
death. And the Lord said to me and all
who believe on him, he that liveth and believeth in me shall never
die. Not in any sense. Not physically, not spiritually,
not eternally. We're not going to die. We're
going to fall asleep. And we call it death. And he
accommodates our understanding in his book. But we're not going
to die because the wages of sin is death. And he took my sin
and he took the consequences. I'll never pay for a single sin
that I've ever committed. You know how? How wonderful it
is to be able to say that. All of my problems are because
of my sin, and he took it away. If Christ died for everybody,
then everybody's gonna be with him in paradise. We know that
this is not the case. He declared clearly in John chapter
10, I lay down my life for my sheep, and they're not gonna
perish. If he laid down his life for you, you're not gonna perish. He prayed as he was going to
the cross there in John 17, those that you've given me, I pray
for them. I don't pray for the world, but
for those that you've given me. We read a while ago in Romans
4, 8, blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. You know, the only way that God
cannot impute sin to you is if you don't have any. And the only
way you don't have any is because he imputed it to his son. The
Lord Jesus Christ. Not because Christ is a sinner,
but because Christ is our substitute. Our surety. He obligated himself
in the eternal covenant of grace to be our surety, that is to
be responsible for our sin debt. And our text describes that debt
come and do. This is the day, this is the
hour. And he paid it. We sing a little chorus sometimes
that's very clear and concise about that. It says, he paid
a debt he did not owe. And I owed a debt I couldn't
pay. I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing
a brand new song, Amazing Grace, all day long. Christ Jesus paid
the debt that I could never pay. Now maybe you've wondered, how
did that one thief know that was hanging on that cross that
day next to him. How did he know? How did he know
who he was? How did he know he was the king? They were all mocking and ridiculing.
Nobody else seemed to know. Nobody else attributed that to
him. He wasn't jumping on a bandwagon of some kind. Both thieves at
the beginning as we read were mocking him and reviling him.
So what happened? Well, let's consider for a second,
this was no random arrangement here. One Savior, two sinners. One on the left and one on the
right. And notice the language now. One on his right hand and
one on his, why are we told that? Turn to Mark 15, Mark 25, I'm
sorry, Matthew 25. Mark 15, 27 is what says, with
him they crucified two thieves, the one on his right hand and
the other on his left. Now turn to Matthew 25. Verse
31. Matthew 25, 31. When the Son of Man shall come
in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he
sit upon the throne of his glory. That's where John saw him in
the book of Revelation. Sitting on the throne of his
glory, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Lamb, as it had been
slain. For him shall be gathered all
nations, and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd
divides his sheep from the goats. His sheep, didn't he say? I lay
down my life for my sheep. And he will divide them. And
he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on
the left. Then shall the king, who they
crucify, who's that? It said right above his head,
this is Jesus, the king of his people. Then shall the king say
unto them on his right hand, come ye blessed of my father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of
the world. And we'll just stop right there.
You know, I wonder which thief was on his right hand and which
was on his left. Do you have any doubt about that? The one that believed, which
side was he on? This arrangement is a microcosm
of the whole world of sinners. And on open display, is the sovereign
grace of Christ in saving whom he will and hardening whom he
will. Both of these thieves were crucified within a few feet of
the Son of God. Both could see all that transpired
that day. Both heard the words that he
spoke from the cross. Both were in exactly the same
situation. dying and desperate and in need
of mercy. Both were condemned criminals
who at the beginning were mocking and railing on the Son of God
in the same situation, in the same condition, experiencing
all the same things. But what a difference. One's
a sheep and one's a goat. And you wouldn't have been able
to tell which was which. But the Lord of glory did. He knew
who was who. And this same thing happens whenever
the gospel is preached now. Two sinners sit and hear the
same sermon, while one is bored and counting the ceiling tile,
and the other rejoices in his heart in the Savior who died
for sinners. Two siblings are raised in the
same household by the same parents under the same circumstances,
and one rebels against authority, God's authority in the home,
and seeks out evil and never has any interest in the gospel,
while the other, at some point in their life, something happens. And they begin to fear God. That's
what happened to that. He said, how can you not fear
God? And he begins to attend unto
his gospel. And before long, he's committed. Like Paul, I know whom I have
believed. And I'm persuaded that he's able, I'm convinced of his
ability to save me, not my ability to do anything. No confidence
in the flesh, but I'm convinced he's able. How about you? What
happened? How did this one thief know who
he was? How do you? He knows the same way you do.
The same way any sinner can and does know. Our Lord answered
this question plainly in Matthew 16, 13. Let me read it to you
quick. When Jesus came into the coast
of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples saying, who do
men say that I the son of man am? And you know that's the issue.
One of the thieves knew who he was, and the other one didn't.
That's the difference. That's the issue as far as, in
us, that's the difference. Whom do men say that I am? And
they said, well, some say you're John the Baptist, you know, come
back from the dead. Some say you're Elijah, come
back from the dead. And others, Jeremiah, one of
the other prophets, he saith unto him, but what about you?
What about you? What about, what do you say?
You see how he's, he's making it, he's distinguishing between
them. Okay, I see what they're saying
now. What about you? And Simon Peter answered and
said, you're the Christ. You are the Christ. You are God's
anointed chosen Savior. Sent Savior, successful Savior. You're the son of the living
God. And Jesus answered and said unto
him, here's the difference. Now there's the difference in
you, is that you know who I am. That was the difference in the
thieves too, wasn't it? But here's who made the difference. You're
blessed, Simon. You're blessed of God because
you're smarter than the ones that didn't know. No, that's
not it. You're more spiritual. Well,
you're just more fortunate than them. What is the difference? Flesh and blood hath not revealed
it unto thee. They don't know. You can't reveal something you
don't know. And even the ones that do know,
I believe I know who he is, but I can't reveal it to you. I can
tell you about it. Flesh and blood hath not revealed
it, but my father, which is in heaven, he turned the light on
and you saw the glory of God in my face. That's how that works
now. That's what happened to that
thief. Now there are a few observations that we need to make concerning
our Lord saving this one thief under these extraordinary circumstances. Do you see the three crosses?
Three crosses. I'll tell you this, since God
saved this dying thief, let no sinner ever despair of the mercy
of God. Don't you ever give up. But come
to Christ. No matter how desperate, no matter
how wicked, no matter how vile, no matter how wretched, no matter
how hopeless, come to him, look to him, and receive mercy. This sinner was breathing his
last few breaths on this earth. He wasn't of any use to the Savior
at all. They say, oh, we're saved to
serve. Really? Is that why God saved you? Because he needed,
you know, some workers? Not my God. He saved a useless
thief, murderous, seditious thief on this day that was useless
to him. And you know what? I'm useless
to him too. If I close my mouth, he said,
the rocks will cry out my glory. I don't need you. I don't need
a God that needs me, do you? But I need this God. But since he saved this thief
now, he had done nothing thus far in his life to recommend
himself to God. He would live no life of service
on this earth. You know, He didn't have anything
going for Him at all except one thing, Christ loved Him. He was
one of His sheep from eternity. You don't need much else. We don't need a whole lot else. And remember that in our text
now we see no evidence whatsoever that this thief was saved by the Lord Jesus Christ.
I want you to remember this. In our text, in the book of Mark,
there's no evidence given whatsoever that he was a child of the king. It just says, and the two thieves
that were crucified with him railed on him, just like everybody
else, and then it moves on and never mentions this thief again.
If we didn't have Luke's account, what would you think about that
thief? You'd given up on him, hadn't you? You'd say he's a
goner. But you'd be wrong. You'd be wrong. You'd say, well,
the text doesn't say, you know, that here these thieves are in
Mark 15, 32, reviling the Lord Jesus Christ. They're out of
time. It's too late. There's no hope for them. Oh,
we'd be dead wrong if we said that. As long as there's breath,
there's hope. As long as there's, it doesn't
say that he died and went to hell, does it? Then there's hope.
There's hope. And I would never encourage you
to delay bowing to the master, bowing to the king and owning
him as Lord and Savior, as this thief did here. I would never
recommend, in fact, I warn very strongly against it. Today, here's
my message from the Word of God. Now is the accepted time. Now
is the day of salvation. But I'm here to tell you this
this morning, as long as you're breathing, there's hope for you.
I don't care who you are. I don't care how wretched and
vile you are. My Savior can and does save the
most hopeless of cases. I thank God for that. Since God
saved this thief, Let no sinner ever trust in their works for
salvation. This man didn't have any. Salvation
is by grace, but you have to be baptized. Really? No. Salvation is by grace, but
you have to serve faithfully. No. There are no buts in this
man's salvation and there aren't any in mine either. Not a one. And I'll tell you this, since
God saved this thief, I must believe that all that is necessary
for a sinner to be saved is for him by grace through faith to
know the Lord Jesus Christ. Didn't our Lord say, this is
a life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God and
Jesus Christ whom thou hast seen. The means of salvation while
not to be neglected at all are nothing without a revelation
of a person You must know him No sermon preached Here except
those brief utterances of our Lord from the cross We have no
reason to believe that anybody was praying for this man or cared
anything about him But we know this, it pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe. So we don't neglect
the means of preaching. We neglect the means of salvation
that God has given and revealed clearly that he's given at the
peril of our own souls. But after that we have done all
that we know to do, God must give the increase. Salvation
is still of the Lord. He must reveal himself to the
sinner. Blessed are you, Simon, because
my Father revealed me unto you. That's how you know who I am.
No man can come unto me except the Father which hath sent me.
Draw him, take him from where he is, and bring him to me. And he can do that as it pleases
him. Since God saved this thief, we must understand That his revealing
grace and power are supernatural and irresistible. How do you
look at this broken, bloody, defeated, mocked, despised, and
dying man and see a king? And not only a king, but the
king. I'll tell you how that happens.
By the revelation power of God Almighty. Who do you see when
you look to Calvary? This world's still mocking him
now. They still despise him, the one revealed in this book.
They love the Jesus of religion, but he's an idol. People still hate the God of
this Bible and his son, but God also is still revealing his son
to sinners. And may God give us eyes to see
who he is. We've seen how that it was specifically
in the character of sovereign that Christ was abjectly despised
that day. And yet this thief was enabled
by God specifically to say, Lord, remember me when you come into
your kingdom. Oh, her eyes to see him as he
is to see who that is hanging on that cross. What do you see
on Calvary? An object of pity? He said, don't
cry for me, cry for yourselves. A sentimental story of love's
best effort? Or do you see the king of glory,
triumphing over sin and Satan and death and hell? Do you see
a champion? He's my champion, the champion
of sinners. Can you see him? Look and live. That's what that thief did, isn't
it? He looked, and he saw somebody he had never seen before. Oh,
he had seen, he had seen him, but not with those eyes, not
with eyes of faith. But God gave him faith. By grace
are you saved through faith, and that's not of yourself. That's
the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should
boast. Thank God for eyes to see the Savior and to see the
King. the King of salvation, the King
of love, the King of glory. Lord, give us eyes. Let's pray
together.