The Doxology of the Cross

We have been considering the history and theology of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Christ was crucified in time and space, and we studied that historical event as recorded in all four gospels. The theology of the crucifixion means the interpretation of Christ’s death as given by Jesus and his apostles. We learned that Christ’s death was for the ransom for the elect of God; that Christ died for our sins; that Christ was made sin that we might become the righteousness of God; that Christ was made a curse that we might receive the blessings of Abraham; and that Christ’s death was a propitiatory sacrifice, one that turned God’s wrath away from us and caused the Father to be propitious and gracious toward us. We learned that the cauldron of God’s wrath against us was poured out in its totality upon his only beloved Son on the cross, leaving nothing to be poured out upon us for whom he died. Christ suffered all our hell and punishment. In Isaiah 53 we are told that “the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all,” and “the punishment that brought us peace was upon him” (Is. 53:6, 5). Jesus Christ was punished, but we are given peace. He was wounded, but we are healed and saved. He was judged, but we are justified.

God’s People Give Him Glory

Now we want to consider the doxology of the cross. What does that mean? It is the application of redemption in the lives of God’s elect. It is the praise and honor that redeemed sinners render to God as a result of our understanding of the cross.

God’s people give him glory because he saved them. On the cross Jesus Christ secured salvation for all those who would repent and believe for him. He died for his people, meaning all those whom the Father gave him to save. He loved the church, we are told, and gave himself up for her. And St. Paul says, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son. . . . and those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29, 30).

God’s people are enabled by the Father to come to Jesus Christ for salvation, and this salvation is sure and complete. Jesus said, “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37), and “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44). He said, “Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life,” from the realm of death into the realm of life everlasting (John 5:24). The cross, therefore, brings life, peace, justification, and healing to some, and they are the ones who praise God. That is the doxology of the cross.

Not Everyone Praises God

Not everyone believes in a dying Jesus for salvation and praises God. When Jesus hung on the cross, the vast majority of people mocked and reviled him. What were the taunts of the passers-by? “You who were going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” In other words, they were saying, “Jesus, since you are still up there, you must be a false messiah. You are not the Son of God. You are a blasphemer, not a savior!” Was there doxology coming from their mouths? Not at all. Why? They were not the elect of God. They were not included in the Father’s donation to the Son (John 17).

Did the church leaders–Annas, Caiaphas, the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees, the elders, scribes, and theologians–praise God? Not at all. They also mocked Jesus. First they said, “He saved others,” and at least they acknowledged that much. But they continued, “but he cannot save himself! He is the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.'” Jesus received no praise from the Jewish establishment.

What about the Gentile soldiers? They also joined the passers-by and the Sanhedrin to mock Jesus the dying Christ. What about the two thieves? We are told in Matthew and Mark that at first both thieves mocked Jesus and heaped insults upon him even in their own hour of death. They did not glorify God. There was no doxology coming from the mouths of any of these people.

The Doxology of the Centurion

But then God sent the miracle of darkness and the miracle of the earthquake–the darkness that lasted three hours long and the earthquake that ripped open stone tombs. As the Roman centurion witnessed these things and the calm and majestic way Jesus was suffering, and as he listened to Jesus’ words: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,” and “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit,” he believed in Jesus. Luke says he praised God, saying, “Surely, this was a righteous man,” and we are told in Mark that he declared, “Surely this was the Son of God.” Here, then, we see doxology coming from the lips of an unlikely candidate–a Gentile centurion. This man praised God, confessing that Jesus is the Son of God, the righteous one. What was this centurion really saying? That Pilate, Rome, and the Sanhedrin were wrong in condemning Jesus. He was filled with a new understanding that Jesus was all he claimed to be–the innocent one, the righteous one, the Son of God, the true King of Israel.

Jesus knew that his death would bring about the salvation of Gentiles. In John 12 we are told about some Gentiles who came to see Jesus, and this is what he said: “But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (John 12:32). In John 3:14-15 he declared, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Everyone! And so we see a centurion, a Gentile, enabled and drawn by the Father to come to the Son. He who executed the will of Pilate by crucifying Jesus now made the true confession of faith: “He is innocent. He is the Son of God,” and praised God. This is the doxology of the cross.

We must realize that the history of crucifixion is necessary, but that history alone will not save us. Theology of crucifixion is necessary but that theology alone will not save us. There must be doxology which comes only from a heart that believes in Jesus who died on the cross in behalf of us.

The Doxology of Simon

Remember Simon of Cyrene, who carried Jesus’ cross? I believe Simon also experienced salvation as he carried Jesus’ cross, as he watched Jesus being crucified, as he saw the darkness and earthquake, as he heard Jesus say, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing,” and as he watched him die, committing his spirit to the Father. I believe Simon also gave praise to God.

How do we know that? Well, we are told in the book of Mark that Simon of Cyrene was the father of two young men, Rufus and Alexander, prominent Christians in Rome (Mark 15:21). We are told in the book of Romans that Simon’s wife was a Christian woman who was also a mother to St. Paul (Romans 16:13). I believe that Simon confessed Christ and doxology came forth from his heart. I believe he was given repentance and faith, and when he went home that day to his wife and children, he told them all about it. I am sure he said something like this: “I have seen the Savior of the world, the Son of God. I carried his cross and he showed mercy to me. Hallelujah!” That is the doxology of the cross.

The Doxology of the Thief

Jesus was crucified at the same time as two criminals. The Bible says these men were thieves and murderers. In their impenitence, initially they both joined everyone else in cursing, mocking and reviling. But then something happened. A sudden, miraculous change took place in the attitude of one of the thieves toward Jesus. This hardened, violent criminal suddenly changed his mind about Jesus and began to rebuke his friend who was reviling Jesus. We read about this in Luke 23:40: “But the other criminal rebuked him. ‘Don’t you fear God,’ he said, ‘since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.'”

This thief had seen the darkness that lasted for three hours. I am sure he experienced or heard about the supernatural phenomenon of the earthquake. He heard Jesus praying for his murderers and saw how Jesus suffered with calmness and majesty. As he experienced these things, a miracle happened in this man’s heart. Remember Jesus said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44)? That speaks of human inability. But this thief was drawn by the Father and the Son. He was enabled by the Father, enlightened and regenerated by the Holy Spirit. He experienced an instant change in his heart and mind, and instantly he began to fear God. Now he could feel the sting of death and the guilt due to violating God’s law. He knew that after death he must stand before the Judge of all the earth, as we read in Hebrews 9:27, “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” He recognized that he was a sinner, as we read in verse 41: “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve”–their heinous, criminal, sinful deeds.

I was interviewing two boys the other day and speaking to them about salvation. When I asked, “How do we know that we are sinners?” they gave me some good answers: the Bible says so, the father says so, the pastor says so. But I said, “There is another way to know that we are sinners. What is it?” There was no answer.

Conviction and Confession of Sin

How do we know that we are sinners? Because we sin. Whether we are children, parents, neighbors, friends, or politicians, we all sin. But we do not experience the type of conviction of sin demonstrated by this thief unless the Holy Spirit causes us to understand that. This thief, through God’s miraculous work in his heart, acknowledged that he and his fellow thief were criminals and that they were merely receiving the phase of punishment that was due to them from the Roman government. But there was another phase of punishment awaiting all men which he recognized also. “Don’t you fear God?’ he asked his fellow thief. In other words, he was saying, Don’t you know that you will have to stand before the bar of God in the great assize? Doesn’t that put fear in your heart?

The thief knew that he was already receiving his just punishment for his sin against the Roman authorities. But now he was acknowledging that he was not righteous at all. He realized he was a sinner before God. Let me say this: I cannot assure you that you are saved unless you have this profound inner awareness birthed into you by the Spirit of God that you are a sinner, that you are lost, and that you deserve hell and just eternal punishment. No one can confess his sin unless the Spirit is working in him to convict him of this truth.

Conviction and Confession of Who Jesus Is

Then the thief made another confession. He confessed that Jesus did nothing wrong. Now, the Sanhedrin had condemned Jesus as a blasphemer. Pilate, though he declared him innocent three times, condemned Jesus as a political subversive. The crowd and soldiers condemned Jesus, and only moments earlier the thief himself had been condemning Jesus. But now he had a revelation, a sudden enlightenment, and he realized that Jesus was completely innocent. In fact, the thief now began to defend Jesus’ honor and rebuked his fellow murderer for mocking Christ. Surely God had brought about doxology from the heart of this hardened, violent criminal! Jesus saves, changes, transforms, and delivers those who trust in him.

And not only did the thief realize that Jesus was innocent, but he now believed in Jesus as the Messiah. This was another amazing miracle! Remember how Peter had difficulty believing in a Messiah who was going to die on the cross? To him it was contradictory to think of a suffering, dying Messiah. He tried to persuade Jesus not to die and Jesus rebuked him. But here we see a thief who was given such divine illumination that he recognized this dying Jesus was truly the promised Messiah of Israel. And by that realization, the thief stepped out of hell into heaven!

In his commentary on this passage John Calvin wrote,

I do not not know if there was ever, from the foundation of the world, a more rare or memorable example of faith: so much the more admiration is due to the grace of the Holy Spirit that gave here such a shining illustration of itself. The thief, not only untrained in the school of Christ, but rather a man who in a career of sinful killing, had tried to extinguish all sense of right, suddenly penetrates more deeply than all the Apostles and the other disciples, upon whom the Lord himself had spent so much effort, to teach them; not only so, but he adores Christ as King on the gallows tree, celebrates His reign in the fearful and unspeakable loss, and proclaims Him author of life in the hour of dying. . . .Indeed, it was to step from the depths of hell to the heights of heaven. . . .We see how keen was the sight of his understanding that could discern life in death, exaltation in ruin, glory in disgrace, victory in destruction, kingship in slavery. If the thief raised Christ, by faith, as He hung on the cross, almost overcome with evil words, to the heavenly throne, woe to our idle minds, if we do not lift our gaze to Him who sits on God’s Right Hand, if we do not plant our hope of life upon His resurrection, if we do not reach out to the heaven that He has entered. From another aspect if we consider in what state he begged Christ’s mercy, our admiration of his faith increases. Life-blood draining from his torn body, he awaits the executioners’ last stroke, and yet he finds his peace in the grace of Christ alone. First, whence could that confidence in pardon have sprung, if he did not sense in Christ’s death (which to all others seemed so hateful) a sacrifice of sweet odour, able to expiate the sins of the world? And when he bravely disregards his agonies, completely forgets himself, seized by a longing for the unseen life, he goes beyond all human sense” (John Calvin, Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries, Volume III: A Harmony of the Gospels–Matthew, Mark & Luke and James & Jude, ed. David W. Torrance and Thomas F. Torrance, trans. A. W. Morrison, [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1980] 202-203).

The Faith of the Thief

What kind of faith did this thief have? In the gospel accounts we read of the faith of several people. The apostles had faith, although several times we find Jesus asking Peter and the other disciples, “Where is your faith?” or rebuking them: “O ye of little faith!” The centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant had great faith, Jesus said, as did the Syro-Phoenician woman who asked Jesus to heal her daughter.

In Luke 23 we see the dying thief placing his faith in a dying Messiah, and in my view, this man did not have just little faith or great faith. No, this thief had very great faith! By faith this thief saw this dying Jesus as the innocent, true Messiah. He saw him as the one who will be raised from the dead, who will come again in the clouds of the sky with power and great glory, and who will say to some, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world,” and who will say to the rest, “Depart from me, you who are cursed into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

It may be that the thief had heard Jesus, or his apostles, preaching the kingdom of God before, but he had rejected it. But now, by a wonderful, miraculous work of God, he was regenerated and drawn by the Father and the uplifted Christ from the cross. He was convicted of his sin by the Holy Spirit and granted the gift of faith, and so he prays, “‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom'” (Luke 23:42). Jesus, remember me! This was the thief’s request. We can contrast his request with that of the mother of James and John. Do you remember what she asked of Jesus? She wanted him to ensure that her children received the most honorable places, at his left and right. But this thief was not praying for a place of honor. He simply said, “Remember me.” Help me, in other words, and think kindly of me. Act graciously to me when you come into your kingdom.

This thief was not saying “if” but “when.” He was certain of Christ’s kingship and his kingdom, and I am sure he was thinking of the future coming of Christ. Like the Pharisees and Martha, the sister of Lazarus, this thief believed in the resurrection. He was probably thinking about the resurrection at the last day when Jesus will come–his second advent–to usher in the kingdom of God in its fullness. And so he asked Jesus, “Remember me.”

In the Greek the word speaking there is elegen, the imperfect of lego, meaning that he kept on speaking and did not ask just once. Now we must remember that this man was hanging on a cross. Can you imagine how it felt to be crucified? Every word would be spoken only with extreme pain. But Jesus allowed him to keep on praying, and so he did: Jesus, be gracious to me. Be kind to me. Think kindly of me. Forgive me. Justify me. I know you are the King of Israel. I know you are the promised Messiah, and when you come into your kingdom in the last day, think of me. Give me a place in it.

What comfort and satisfaction this thief was giving to the dying Jesus by his words! In Isaiah 53:10 we read that the suffering Servant will see his offspring, and in this thief Jesus saw offspring. While Jesus was dying on the cross, someone was being made alive by him and on the basis of his death. This thief was one of Christ’s offspring, to whom he gave life while dying.

This thief had very great and authentic faith. He was not trusting in Jesus for health, wealth, fame, welfare, position, and power. His was saving faith. And what did Jesus finally tell the thief? I am sure he was surprised by the answer, and I must remind you at this point that St. Paul says our God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or imagine.

Instant Salvation

In essence, the thief was asking Jesus, “Jesus, someday in the far future when you come again, remember me.” What was Jesus’ answer? “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Today! Not in the distant future, but today–this very day! Jesus Christ offers us instant salvation. Today you will experience salvation if you believe in him, as we read in 2 Corinthians 6:2, “Now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” This is our today! “What must I do to be saved?” asked the Philippian jailer. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). If you repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you will cross from death and will arrive in life everlasting instantly.

“Today you will be with me. . .” Through this reply Jesus was also prophesying that the thief would die that day. When some people were crucified, it took many days for them to die, but Jesus told the thief that day he would be with him in paradise. If you read the crucifixion accounts, you will see that Jesus’ prophecy was fulfilled. The soldiers came and broke the legs of the thief to ensure that he died that very day.

Not only that, Jesus was telling the thief he would be with him, meaning not as a servant behind him, but as his offspring. He would not be with Jesus as a subordinate, but as a coordinate, as one with whom he communes as friend with friend. This is life–yea, this is abundant life! This is joy unspeakable. Jesus’ answer was exceeding abundantly above all the thief could ever ask or imagine.

What Is Paradise?

Jesus told the dying thief, “You will be with me in paradise.” Paradise comes from a Persian word, pardes. We find this word in Genesis 2:8 in the Septuagint translation where it refers to the garden of Eden. We see it in the New Testament in 2 Corinthians 12:2 and 4 where it refers to the third heaven to which Paul was caught up and where God is. It is where the tree of life is, according to Revelation 2:7. So Jesus was telling the thief, “Yes, your body shall be in the grave, but your soul, your spirit, shall be perfected today and be in conscious communion with me in paradise.”

Paradise describes Abraham’s bosom to which Lazarus’ spirit went, as we read in Luke 16. It is a place where believers will be conscious and comforted. There we will be able to commune with God and speak to him. Paradise is the kingdom of God, which is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Paradise, Not Purgatory

According to certain erroneous teaching, very few Christians will be admitted to paradise when they die because their souls are not pure. According to this view, the vast majority will be sent to purgatory because their souls were not pure at the moment of death. PGM In purgatory they will undergo a process of cleansing through suffering various types of pain, and the amount of time they spend in purgatory depends upon the degree of the sin and guilt to be cleansed.

This false teaching is not based on the Bible but on a false view of atonement. Purgatory is not a biblical doctrine; it is a doctrine created by imaginative theologians as a way of generating vast amounts of money for the church. Those who espouse it urge people while they are living to give money to speed up the purificatory process in purgatory for themselves and others. But is this what the Bible teaches? No. The Bible says Christ died for all our sins. “It is finished!” Jesus cried from the cross. No man should dare to add anything to the perfect atonement of Christ. And so, according to what the Bible teaches, we know the thief was clothed in the robe of Christ’s perfect righteousness and given entrance by Christ instantly into paradise to be with him forever.

Assurance of Salvation

Finally, what did Jesus mean when he said to the thief, “I tell you the truth” –Amen, lego soi, or truly I say to you– “today you will be with me in paradise”? He was telling the thief to strain his ears and listen carefully. Jesus, the Son of God, was telling the truth so that his words could minister great assurance of salvation to the thief at the moment of his death. In essence Jesus was saying, “Thief, do not doubt. I tell you the truth: Have complete assurance of your salvation. I have spoken, and you shall be with me in paradise.” What a word of comfort and encouragement! This thief had reached out by faith to the cross, the tree of life, and had eaten the fruit of life. And now he was being assured by God himself that he did indeed possess eternal life.

Life or Death?

Remember, there were two thieves–both criminals, both condemned, both crucified with Jesus. Both thieves mocked Jesus, and yet, surprisingly, one came to experience life. Two will be in the field, we are told, or working at the mill; one will be taken and the other left. Here were two lifelong friends. One repents, prays, believes, is saved and assured of salvation. He experiences life. The other refuses to repent, refuses to trust Jesus, and refuses to pray. He remains impenitent to the very end.

Where did the other thief go? We know he was not drawn by the Father to paradise. No, he died and went to the place of agony, torment, and conscious existence where he will wait for the day of judgment.

What about you? Young man, young woman, young child–what about you? Professors, what about you? Monied people, what about you? Where will you go when you die? Have you read the history of the cross? Have you understood the theology of crucifixion?

Whenever I fly, I see people reading thick books–novels or whatever. But most people do not read the history of the cross. They do not understand the theology of the cross, nor do they render doxology to God. But listen to the thief who is preaching from the cross. What is he telling us? He is saying, “Fear God! Fear his judgment. Acknowledge your sin. Confess Jesus alone as the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savior of the world. Ask him to remember you, to save you, and to be gracious to you. Do not remain impenitent, but trust in him today.”

In Luke 13:23-24 we read, “Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, ‘Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?'” That was a theological question about predestination, but Jesus didn’t answer it. What did he say? “He said to them, ‘Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. . .'” Strive, in other words. Strive! Run to the cross! There is nothing more serious, nothing more important, than looking at the cross and trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Strive! Spare no effort! Do everything you must do today! Do what the thief himself did–he strove, he cried, he prayed, and he was assured. He is with Christ, while the other is in a place of torment.

One day I will die also, and I am not going to base my hope in anything I have done. This will be my song: “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, and he washed it white as snow.” We have to have perfect righteousness with which to enter paradise, to fellowship with God, and Jesus Christ has given his righteousness to me.

What about you? It is never too late. While you are living, there is hope for you if you repent and trust in Jesus alone. Jesus tells us to look unto him and be saved, all the ends of the earth. You should not delay putting your trust in Jesus. Your children should not go out without trusting in Jesus. Jesus came to save us, and he will save us even now if we do not remain impenitent, hardhearted, stubborn, and loving sin and its pleasure. The real reason people do not want to trust in Jesus Christ is because they want to sin. There is no other reason. The reason is not an intellectual one but a moral one.

May God help us to understand the cross! May we pray to his Son, saying, “Remember me and be gracious to me. Have mercy on me, a sinner. I know that I must stand before God the Judge, but you are the mediator. Have mercy on me and forgive my sin. I believe that you died on the cross for me also–even for me. Clothe me with your righteousness that I may enter into paradise.” May we thus be drawn by the Father, drawn by Christ, and enlightened by the Holy Spirit, that we may also enter into paradise when we die!