"Three Crosses"
A Meditation for Good Friday by the Rev. Dr. Hilary J. Barrett
Preached at New Britain Baptist Church
Good Friday, April 2, 2010
Luke 23:26-43
“[Jesus] replied, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’”
Luke 23:43

One of my responsibilities as Senior Pastor of Pleasantville Church is to teach Confirmation each year.  It’s something I love to do – partly because the kids are generally so honest at that age; and partly because one of the things they are honest about is what they don’t know.  There are a lot of things they don’t know -- and a lot they don’t know about the faith.  Maybe you’ve seen it too.  Several years ago, I realized that we had passed a watershed mark in the culture when we got to the season of Easter and it became clear that a number of the kids in class did not know the story of Holy Week.  More than that: they were not entirely clear that Easter represented the celebration of the Resurrection.  Their associations with Easter were more along the lines of a celebration of spring – which is not entirely wrong because the very word “Lent” comes from an Old English word meaning, “to lengthen,” and refers the lengthening days which occur in the Northern Hemisphere during the spring time.  Either way, it was startling to me at the time that kids who were connected enough to the church to participate in Confirmation could not know the story of Holy Week and Easter.

Now, maybe they didn’t know the story because they weren’t listening all the times we talked about it in church.

Or maybe they didn’t know the story because it was never a point of conversation in their homes.

Or maybe they didn’t know the story because they were so busy studying to get the perfect SAT score, or getting up early and staying out late in order to be the best soccer player.

It’s hard to know what makes one story worth remembering and another not.

And the thing is – it’s not just our teenagers who are struggling to know the stories of our faith.  Two years ago, I was on my way to the Good Friday service held at St. Jude’s that year when I stopped to pick up my black robe back at my office at Pleasantville.  Standing outside the church’s front door was a young man who looked to be in his mid to late twenties.  He was hoping someone would be there to open the church for him so he could get in and complete the installation of a new air conditioning system in the church’s office.  It hadn’t occurred to either him or the company’s dispatcher that the offices of the church would be closed on Good Friday. 

When I explained to him that the church would not be conducting business today in observance of Good Friday, he registered no recognition.  And as I made my way to my vehicle so as not to be late for the service, I could hear him speaking on his cell phone to the company dispatcher: “Yeah, yeah,” he said, “no there’s no one there.  I don’t know.  It’s a holiday -- Good Friday or somethin’.”

This is the world we live in now -- a world where we can assume nothing in the way of what people know, understand, or value about the Christian faith.  Something has shifted and is unlikely to shift back – unless, we are willing to keep telling the story.

The thing is this is a hard story to tell.  I’d rather hear any other story about Jesus than the one we tell today.  I’d even go for the story of a dinner party where Jesus gathers with his friends, knowing that one of them is going to betray him.  But this story – the story of Jesus of Nazareth, crucified outside the city walls of Jerusalem on one of three crosses set up to execute criminals of the Roman Empire – that’s a hard story to tell.  It’s a hard story to hear.  It’s a hard story to keep remembering.  Maybe that’s one of the reasons many people aren’t real clear about it.

Today, we are gathering at the foot of the cross to remember this hard story.

We gather to hear how, in Luke’s account of the crucifixion, Jesus was crucified at the place called The Skull, and there along with him were two criminals – one on his right and one on his left.

We gather to hear how, after the men were nailed to their crosses, and after their great ordeal had begun, the crowd began to cast lots to divide Jesus’ clothes.  And the people stood by, watching.  But the religious and political leaders of the day scoffed at Jesus, making fun of him, taunting him and saying – “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”

We gather to hear how, one of the suffering men, one of the criminals, joined in with those who were taunting Jesus.  In the face of his suffering, this unrepentant man turned to despair and doubt and cynicism – which, if we are honest, we must admit is easy enough to do.  I don’t think his heart turned this way just because he was a criminal.  For how many of us have known what it’s like to lose faith in God’s goodness for a time.  How many of us, when faced with great loss, or great hurt, or great hardship, have had those same moments of feeling that maybe it’s all just a big cosmic lie?  Maybe there’s nothing worth believing in, or trusting in after all -- and we might as well just curse God and die.

We gather to hear today how, one of the suffering men, the other criminal, sees Jesus nailed upon the cross as he is, and he recognizes him.  In the face of great suffering, his heart does not turn to despair but turns instead to hope.  The sight of the Lord of all creation nailed to a cross does not leave him without belief.  On the contrary, in the face of great suffering, he is comforted by Christ’s presence with him in his suffering, and he confesses his faith in Jesus with the words, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

And with words of grace beyond measure, Jesus responds, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Today, we gather at the foot of the cross to hear a hard story.  It is a story about suffering and a story about human evil.  It is a story about the dark side of humanity, and the great abyss of despair that can ever threaten to undo us.

But the story we hear today is also a story of immeasurable grace: the story of a sinful man who turned to God and there found mercy.  We hear the story of a man who, when faced with great personal suffering – even at the end of his life, turned towards the grace of God and found abundant pardon: “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Every part of this story is true.  Every part teaches us something true about ourselves and about our God.  We all have a bit of the criminal in us – both the one who gave into despair and the one who trusted in God’s mercy.  We all have need to know that Jesus will remember us in His kingdom.  And I believe that we all will find comfort in His assuring words: “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

“Jesus, remember me, when you come into your kingdom.”

On this Holy Friday, may we come to the cross with repentant hearts, ready to receive the grace that God is so willing to offer.  And may the mercy we receive here embolden us to share the story of God’s amazing grace with those who have ears to hear it.

Thanks be to God.  Amen.