1. Please pray with me. May the words of my mouth and the meditation
of our hearts, be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock, and our
Redeemer. We’ve come to the end of
another year. No, not by the secular calendar.
But, the church has its own calendar, sometimes called the Church year.
Today is the last Sunday on the church’s calendar, and we end it on a high
note, focusing on the center of the Christian calendar, Jesus Christ, and
seeing him as our King. The Gospel
reading today from Luke 23 shows us
Jesus the King bringing his mission to completion on the cross. Then, in the
Epistle, Paul speaks of our King as
the firstborn from the dead, God himself, the head of the body, the church, who
transfers us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. The message today is take from Luke 23:35-43
and is entitled, “The King on the Cross,”
dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
2. As a tour guide took a group through an
art gallery in London, he stopped before a painting entitled Checkmate. The
guide talked about the painting, the style and texture, and then moved on. But
one of the group stayed behind, staring at the chess pieces on the chessboard
in the painting. The chess game was between the devil and Dr. Faust, who had
sold his soul to the devil. It appears as if the devil has won. Faust has only
the king, the queen, and one weak pawn left. The devil has a smirk on his face,
as if waiting for the final verdict, Checkmate! The young man who stayed to
study the painting was a chess champion from Russia. When the tour group was
two corridors away, they suddenly heard their stray member running down the
marble hallway to catch up, shouting, “It’s
a lie! It’s a lie! The king has another move. Another move!” Jesus, the King on the Cross, who dies for
the forgiveness of our sins, always has another move.
3. The Epistle from Colossians today opens
with a war scene, a battle between the king of darkness, the devil, and the
King of light, Christ. That was why Christ came, to do battle with the king of
darkness, to destroy his power over us. In the Gospel, we see that battle
coming to a climax. It looks as though the devil has won. Members of the kingdom of darkness mock the
King of light. Look at the language Luke uses here in chapter 23. “The people stood watching, and the rulers
even sneered at him. . . . ‘He saved others; let him save
himself if he is the (anointed King, the) Christ of God, the Chosen One’” (v
35). The soldiers gave him wine vinegar and mocked him, “If you are the king of
the Jews, save yourself” (vv 36–37). One of the criminals joined these rebels
of darkness, hurled insults at him, and said, “Aren’t you the Christ (the
King)? Save yourself and us!” (v 39).
4. Above Jesus’ head they nailed Pilate’s
sarcastic statement, “This is the King of
the Jews” (v 38). And he really was the King. Paul calls him the, “image of the invisible God,” (v 15) the
creator of all things, who holds the world together (v 16). Then why didn’t
he save himself? Why didn’t he show the people of the rebel kingdom that he was
really the King of kings? What were
Jesus’ last thoughts before he died? They were not thoughts about himself, they
were not thoughts for relief of his pain. They were thoughts of others—those
around the cross like his mother, even those who crucified him, and they were
thoughts about you and me.
5. Jesus’ concern was to finish his
mission, to destroy the power of the devil, so that God and man could be
reconciled. As Paul says in the closing verses of Colossians 1, Jesus has reconciled
us, “by making peace through his blood,
shed on the cross” (v 20). It looked like defeat. But the king had another
move. He moved three days later, Easter morning, rising from the dead as the
victory in the struggle with sin, death, and hell, so that you and I are
assured of forgiveness and peace, new life, and eternal salvation.
6. In another month, we’ll be engaged in
some fashion in the routine of looking back over the year of 2016, rehearsing
our blessings and regretting our failures and tragedies, and then looking ahead
to make resolutions and build dreams for 2017. We can engage in a similar
practice at the end of the church year. We can look at our spiritual life. How
is our relationship to the Lord? Are we growing in grace and knowledge, in the
fear and love of the Lord? Are we handling the problems and challenges of life
with faith and trust? Is our witness warm and consistent?
7. We can look at the life of our
church—our own congregation. What is our relationship to the other members? Are
we using our gifts to help fulfill our mission together? As we look at our own
lives and at our congregation, we may see some things that are discouraging and
frustrating. We may be tempted to give into defeat. But, Jesus our King on the
Cross always has another move.
8. As we move into the unknown new year,
the King says, “Whatever your
circumstance, I have a move that will surprise you. Trust me, trust me.” The
King has another move. He moved in the past to give us peace. He moves with us
now into a new year—and he will move in the future to bring us to a blessed end.
9. Some of the readings assigned to the
last Sundays of the church year focus on the return of the King at the end of
world. We’re familiar with some of these Gospel stories: the wise and foolish
virgins, the King on the judgment throne with all people divided like sheep and
goats, and the listing of the signs to remind us of the return of the King.
10. The more one studies these signs, the
more one becomes convinced that the end is surely coming and that it must be
close. Martin Luther felt that way. He said: “It is my firm belief that the angels are getting ready, putting on
their armor and girding their swords about them, for the last day is already
breaking.” Another time he said: “As
things are beginning to go, the last day is at the door, and I believe the world
will not endure a hundred years” (Mark
Galli, “In Praise of Foolish Lovers” Christianity
Today, November 19, 1990, p 35).
11. That was 500 years ago. Would we be able
to say the same things today? No one, of course, knows the exact day and hour
that the world will end. Jesus said not even he, as the God-man, knew when the
end would come, but only the Father. But, Luther’s words can help us learn
again what Jesus emphasized, and what all. Scripture teaches—that since we don’t
know the exact day and time, we need to be, ready for his coming each day. We
should live as if Christ, the, King, were coming today, as if today were the
end of the world.
12. That day came for the other criminal
hanging beside Jesus. He didn’t join the mocking, but rebuked his partner on
the other side of Jesus. Then he said in Luke 23, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom’” (v 42). Jesus
responded, I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise” (v 43).
Paradise is a beautiful word Scripture uses three limes to depict heaven. It’s
a Persian word that originally designated the walled, private, lavish garden
where the Persian king would stroll with his closest friends. The final move Jesus our King on the Cross
will make is to bring us to a blessed end is to take us to his paradise, where
we will walk with him in the garden forever.
Amen.
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