Good Friday 2020


Second saying of Jesus Christ on the Cross
"Truly I tell you; today you will be with me in Paradise”.  Luke 23:43 (NRSV) 
Rev. Bartholomew Segan Palk, CSI Coimbatore Diocese
10th April, 2020. Good Friday Service 

Luke is the only Gospel writer who records the conversation between Jesus Christ and the thieves.  

He was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. - Isa 53:12 

In fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy Jesus was crucified with two criminals and He prayed for them. In Isaiah it is said that he interceded for the transgressors that means he would have prayed for both the criminals and both of them would have a place in the paradise.

 It depends on how we act and show our piety towards God. 

The second saying on the Cross teaches us that there are two kinds of people in the world.

The one chooses to join the crowd, mock, enjoy the present life and go with the flow. They don’t think rationally. They don’t plan and view life in a long span. Whereas there are these second kind of people. They are prudent, and wise. They think beyond their present and prepare for the worst situations. They are the people who succeed in the end even if they fail multiple times. Because they are innocent and discern what is good and what is bad. 

The first thief is like the first kind of people in the world.  

Without any second thought joins the Roman soldiers and starts to mock Jesus. He missed a golden opportunity to be with God. 
Many a times we too miss rare opportunities because of our ignorance and our selfishness.  
Let us give-up our ego, greed and spiritual pride. Let us stop blasphemy, talking ill and being a pessimist.  
We could see similar incident in the book of Luke 18: 9 onwards, the Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: God I thank you that I am not like other men... (v 11) we all know in the end the Pharisee’s prayer was not heard. Let us re-examine ourselves. 

The other thief is like the second kind of people in the world.

It is a question...How did he know Jesus had a kingdom and He could save others? 
Probably he would have got to know by the mockery made by the Roman Soldiers. (V: 35-3 8) Jesus with His compassion saved that thief out of sin and into salvation, and He did it in the nick of time. But we must never use this thief as an excuse to delay in knowing and following Christ.  
As we already discussed about the parable of Jesus in the book of Luke 18. The tax collector stood at a distance..(Reminding the importance of Social Distancing) and looked unto God, humbled himself and accepted that he dwells in the sinful world and he acknowledged himself as a sinner.  

The Bible says him as ‘the other thief’ and the Pharisees, the educated and elite also refer to the tax collector as ‘other’. But what happens to these ‘others’ is that they captured heart of the Lord and confirmed their berth in the paradise! 

May this quarantine life teach us that we too have gone far from the Church buildings and yet have come very close to God in His Vineyard.

Amen!

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