11-24-19 Grace-Tucson Sermon

Pastor Tim Patoka

Christ The King Sunday November 24, 2019 Welcome Home: To Christ’s Glorious Kingdom Luke 23:35-43 1) Christ Shows his Glory on the Cross 2) Christ Welcomes Us to our Glorious Home

Last week in Grace’s Tucson Campus Ministry, we had a Bible study called “Let Your Light Shine: By Protecting One’s Reputation.” We learned how to use our gift of speech to defend and build others up and in so doing let our Christian light shine. To get our Bible study started off concerning people’s reputation, I had us go around the room answering this question – if you could choose how history would remember you, what would your name be? I gave my answer – Tim the Faithful, faithful both to my wife and my calling one as of your pastors. The students gave answers like: Kate the Great, Cassidy the Courageous, Jerry the Nice, and Magic Martin. As my students gave their answers, I wasn’t surprised that nobody said something like Jack the Coward or Jill the Doubtful. We typically present what’s best for ourselves. And we don’t do that by highlighting our weaknesses or not-so-glorious moments.

When you came here this morning and saw that we were celebrating Christ the King Sunday, did the verses for our sermon this morning surprise you? When we look at Jesus in Luke chapter 23, we see Jesus at the most humiliating time of his life. If this was all we had about Jesus, history would probably remember Jesus as Christ the Weak or Christ the Criminal. Yet as we look at these verses with the eyes of faith, we will see indeed why Jesus is called Christ the King. For it is on the cross where Christ shows us his glory. And he did with the believing criminal, so he will also welcome us to his glorious kingdom and our glorious home.

1) Christ Shows his Glory on the Cross A lot has happened to Jesus by the time we get to our opening verses. He’s been betrayed by Judas Iscariot, arrested by the Temple soldiers, and unjustly received the crucifixion death penalty from the Jewish ruling council and Pontius Pilate. He’s stumbled to the execution hill of Calvary and got nailed to the cross.

As Jesus endures the final six hours of his earthly life, we see in our verses how all sorts of people mock him. The Jewish ruling council ridiculed him amongst the crowd by saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself, if this is the Christ of God, the Chosen One!” (Luke 23:35) The Roman soldiers mockingly served him sour wine as if they were his servants and said, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” (Luke 23:37) Over his head was the official condemning charge 1

Pastor Tim Patoka

Christ The King Sunday November 24, 2019 “This is the King of the Jews.” (Luke 23:38) A charge that neither Pilate nor the Jewish ruling council actually believed yet used to accomplish their selfish desires.

As if that wasn’t enough, Jesus also heard blasphemy from a fellow crucified criminal who demanded, “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:39) And throughout this all, Jesus never says a word. He remains silent as the people heap abuse upon him and make this humiliating scene anything but glorious.

These people knew that Jesus had otherworldly power. In the previous three years, he had done all sorts of miracles to show the crowds that he was the real deal. These people were looking for Jesus to do yet another miracle – to save himself from the cross. And if he did, they have would seen his glory as the Christ of God, the Chosen One, the King of kings. But at long as he stayed there on that cross, he was no more glorious than any other condemned criminal.

We sometimes criticize these people for not seeing Christ’s glory on the cross. They were looking for it in normal ways like with a show of power, certainly not with a cross. Until they saw what they were looking for, they would not give him glory. But don’t we do the same thing? Don’t we sometimes demand to see God’s glory in a certain way and then hold it against him when we don’t? America considers itself a Christian country that’s founded on Christian ideals. Now, historians and theologians rightly argue on how biblically Christian our Founding Fathers actually were. But if America is supposed to be some global role model of Christianity, wouldn’t it make sense for God to step in and change our culture so that instead of becoming increasingly post-Christian we are renewed-Christian?

Surely it would be to God’s glory if our nation was a beacon of biblical truth! If Jesus is truly the King of kings who also loves us with all his heart, then wouldn’t I give him more glory if he used his power to bless me with a fulfilled life, satisfied spirit, or prosperity to share with others?

As it was at the cross so it is today. Jesus does not necessarily show us his glory in the ways people expect. But that doesn’t mean Jesus isn’t glorious. The problem is that we’re looking in the wrong place. God points our attention to the cross to show us his Son’s glory and proof that he is Christ the King. Jesus chose not to appease the crowds. Instead he purposefully withheld his power and listened to all who ridiculed him because what he was doing on the cross was far more important – he was receiving God’s condemnation for our sins and our wrongs.

Jesus is more than Christ the King. He is also Christ our Savior. But he had to do a few things to be our Savior. He had to leave his glorious kingdom in 2

Pastor Tim Patoka

Christ The King Sunday November 24, 2019 heaven and enter this world as a baby in Bethlehem. He had to live in complete accord with every one of God’s laws all the time. And then he had to offer his life as a sacrifice for everyone who cannot and has not lived as God demands. That’s what he was doing on the cross, giving his life up in payment for the very people who were mocking him and taunting him, for the very people who are worshiping here this morning who so often look in the wrong place for God’s glory and then hold it against him.

The cross is where we see Jesus’ glory as Christ our Savior. As we heard in our Second Lesson from Colossians chapter 1, Jesus has no equal. Just about all of those verses praise and glorify him. But did you notice how that lesson ended? It ended with the most glorious thing of all about him – the peace we have through the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. When we look at the crucifixion scene with the eyes of faith, we don’t see the pitiful man that the unbelieving crowds saw.

Instead we see Christ the King who chose not to save himself so that he could also be Christ our Savior. And that’s true glory right there. Whenever we see the crosses that adorn our churches, our homes, or our clothes, we get a chance to remind ourselves where God shows us his Son’s glory, that we have a Savior who is Christ the King.

2) Christ Welcomes Us To Our Glorious Home But our worship focus is not only about the day when Jesus died to pay for our sins. It’s also about that Last Day when every eye will see the glory we now see with the eyes of faith. And again we have nothing to be afraid of. Because as surely as Jesus assured the believing criminal that he would be in the paradise of heaven that same day, so he will welcome us to our eternal and glorious home.

We base this confidence on what the believing criminal and Jesus say. The believe criminal illustrates what saving faith is. He first confesses his wrongs and his deserving of punishment when he says, “We are punished justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for what we have done.” (Luke 23:41a) We don’t know what this criminal did. Evidently, it was bad enough to get the crucifixion death sentence. And in his final hours, he shows genuine sorrow over sin.

But there’s more to saving faith than being sorry. There’s also belief in who Jesus is. First of all, belief that Jesus has never sinned or done any kind of wrong.

The crucified criminal tells us as such, “but this man [Jesus] has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:41b) Not only is he saying that Jesus hasn’t committed a felony that’s deserving crucifixion, but that he has never done a single wrong thing ever!

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Pastor Tim Patoka

Christ The King Sunday November 24, 2019 That’s more than what any human can say about themselves or another. Secondly, saving faith is belief that Jesus is your Savior-King. We hear the criminal declare this when he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42) Jesus has to be a king of some kind in order to have a kingdom. We know that Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. Instead, it is found where Jesus rules as king like in heaven and in every believer’s heart. The criminal not only acknowledges Jesus’ kingship, but also appeals to him because of his saving love.

If Jesus loved this criminal so much as to die for his sins right beside him, why wouldn’t he at least remember him when he returned to his kingdom?

Jesus does more than assure this believing criminal that he’ll remember him.

Rather, he says, “Amen I tell you: Today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43) This is the promise Jesus makes to everyone who has saving faith. The moment they pass away or the Last Day comes, they will be welcomed into his glorious kingdom. Jesus will do more than remember us in this kingdom. We will be with him. Now I think that’s pretty cool. Not only will we finally find out which artist’s rendition of Jesus is closest to the truth, we will be in the presence of Christ the King himself. And there will be no fear. For the one who washed us from all our sins will be the same one who welcomes us to his glorious kingdom. As we bask in his glory, we will see how the rest of his glorious kingdom is indeed a paradise. As much as we appreciate a cool breeze in our Tucson summers or the winter warmth compared to the rest of the country, the paradise of heaven will be more. It will be the sum total of all that is good and godly without a hint of sin or sadness in sight. And it is our eternal home as we live under our glorious SaviorKing.

When I asked my campus ministry students to come up with a way for history to hopefully remember them, they gave me what I expected – positive words that highlighted wanted characteristics. We would expect Jesus to show us his glory in much the same way. Instead, he does it by pointing us to the cross. Yet as we look at it with the eyes of faith, we see there is nowhere better to see his glory. We see the only person who has ever been perfect willingly put his divine power aside and endured all sorts of ridicule so that he could offer his life as a sacrifice for our sins. Now that he has paid our price, he shows us his glory as Christ the King. We only see that veiled glory in bits and pieces. But on the Last Day, we and every other person will see him in the glory he now has. And we know what Christ will do to you, me, and every other person who has saving faith.

He will welcome us to our eternal home and to his glorious kingdom. Amen.

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