HOMILY: “A Cross, A Prayer, A Paradise” The Second Word of Jesus from the Cross The Gospel of Salvation Luke 23:43 – “I tell you this: today you shall be in paradise with me.”
“A Cross, A
Prayer, A Paradise”
The Second Word of Jesus from the Cross
The Gospel of Salvation
Luke 23:43
– “I tell you this: today you shall be in paradise with me.”
1. Introduction – The Word That Opens Heaven
My dear
brothers and sisters,
On the
Cross, our Lord Jesus Christ spoke seven words before He died.
Each word reveals the heart of God and the mission of Christ.
The second
word from the Cross is spoken to a dying criminal:
“I tell you
this: today you shall be in paradise with me.”
(Luke 23:43)
This is not
just a sentence.
It is the Gospel of Salvation.
At Calvary
we see three crosses:
- One Savior
- Two criminals
- Three different hearts
One
criminal rejects Jesus.
The other turns to Jesus.
One dies without
hope.
The other dies with salvation.
And through
this moment, Jesus reveals something powerful:
No life is
too late for salvation.
2. The Scene at Calvary
Let us
imagine the scene.
Jesus is
nailed to the Cross.
His body is wounded.
His blood is flowing.
On both
sides of Him are two criminals.
They were
condemned for serious crimes.
They were guilty before the law.
Yet on that
day, something extraordinary happens.
One
criminal mocks Jesus.
“Are you
not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
But the
other criminal speaks with humility:
“We are
punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.
But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he
turns to Jesus and says:
“Jesus,
remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
(Luke 23:42)
And Jesus
answers:
“Today you
shall be in paradise with me.”
3. The Gospel in One Sentence
In that one
sentence, Jesus reveals the whole Gospel.
This is the
Gospel of Salvation.
The
criminal had:
- No good works left to do
- No time to repair his past
- No opportunity to serve others
- No chance to live a new life
Yet he was
saved.
Why?
Because salvation
is not earned.
Salvation is received.
Salvation
is the gift of God’s mercy.
4. Two Criminals – Two Responses to Jesus
At Calvary
we see two kinds of people.
The First Criminal – The Mocking Heart
The first
criminal says:
“Save
yourself and us.”
He sees
Jesus as a miracle worker, not as a Savior.
He wants:
- Escape from suffering
- Freedom from punishment
- Immediate relief
But he does
not want repentance.
Many people
today respond to God like this.
They pray
only when they need something:
- “God, solve my problems.”
- “God, remove my suffering.”
- “God, give me success.”
But they
never say:
“Lord,
forgive me.”
The Second Criminal – The Repentant Heart
The second
criminal does three important things.
1. He admits his sin
He says:
“We deserve
this punishment.”
Salvation
begins when a person says:
“Lord, I am
a sinner.”
Pride
blocks salvation.
Humility opens heaven.
2. He recognizes Jesus
He says:
“This man
has done nothing wrong.”
While
others mocked Jesus,
the criminal saw His innocence.
Sometimes
those who suffer the most
understand Jesus the best.
3. He trusts Jesus
He says:
“Jesus,
remember me.”
He does not
ask:
- “Take me down from the cross.”
He asks for
something greater:
“Remember
me.”
This is
faith.
5. The Last Prayer of a Thief
This man is
often called the Good Thief.
But he was
not always good.
He lived as
a criminal.
He hurt people.
He broke the law.
But on the
Cross, something changed.
He offered perhaps
his first real prayer.
“It was the first prayer he prayed in his
life — and also his last prayer.”
A dying man
prayed to a dying man.
Yet that
dying man was the Saviour of the world.
6. The Power of One Moment of Repentance
The thief
prayed only one prayer.
He knocked
once.
He asked once.
He sought once.
And Jesus
opened heaven.
This shows
something very important:
God’s mercy
is greater than human sin.
Even at the
last moment,
the door of salvation is open.
7. The Meaning of “Today”
Jesus says:
“Today you
shall be in paradise with me.”
Notice the
word today.
Not
tomorrow.
Not someday.
Today.
Salvation
is immediate.
When a
sinner truly repents,
God does not delay forgiveness.
8. The Meaning of “Paradise”
The word Paradise
reminds us of the Garden of Eden.
In Eden
humanity lost communion with God.
Because of
sin, the door of paradise was closed.
But at
Calvary something happens.
The Cross
becomes the key that opens paradise again.
Through
Jesus, humanity returns to the presence of God.
9. “With Me” – The Heart of Salvation
Jesus did
not only promise paradise.
He promised
something greater:
“You shall
be with me.”
Salvation
is not just a place.
Salvation
is being with Christ.
Heaven is
not heaven because of golden streets.
Heaven is
heaven because Jesus is there.
10. The Church as a Place of Salvation
My dear
brothers and sisters,
The Cross
still speaks today.
And the
Church continues the mission of Christ.
The Church
is like a hospital for sinners.
People come
with:
- wounds of sin
- broken relationships
- guilt and shame
- spiritual sickness
And
through:
- the Word of God
- prayer
- repentance
- and the sacraments
God brings healing
and salvation.
11. Three Powerful Lessons from the Good Thief
Lesson 1 – It is never too late to turn to God
As long as
there is breath,
there is hope.
Lesson 2 – Salvation comes through humility
The thief
did not defend himself.
He admitted
his guilt.
Humility
opens the door to grace.
Lesson 3 – Faith in Jesus saves
He simply
trusted Jesus.
And Jesus
saved him.
12. Self Examination
Let us ask
ourselves some serious questions:
- Which criminal am I like?
- Do I mock God with my life?
- Or do I turn to Him with repentance?
- Do I recognize my sins?
- Do I trust in the mercy of Jesus?
Each one of
us stands spiritually between the two thieves.
The
decision is ours.
13. The Call of the Hour
The Cross
is calling us today.
Jesus is
still saying:
“Come to
me.”
No matter:
- how far we have fallen
- how many mistakes we have made
- how broken our lives are
The mercy
of God is greater.
14. Conclusion – The Door of Heaven Is Open
At Calvary,
we see a beautiful truth.
One thief
rejected Jesus.
One thief accepted Jesus.
Entered
paradise.
He had no
time to change his past.
But he
trusted the Saviour.
And Jesus
welcomed him.
This tells
us something powerful:
The Cross
is the door of salvation.
Whoever
comes to Jesus with faith and repentance
will never be rejected.
15. Prayer
Let us
pray.
Loving and
merciful Father,
We thank
You for the salvation revealed through Your Son, Jesus Christ, on the Cross.
When the
thief turned to Him with repentance,
Jesus opened the doors of paradise.
Lord, we
too are sinners in need of mercy.
Give us
humble hearts that recognise our sins.
Give us faith that trusts in Your forgiveness.
Help us to
turn to Jesus every day of our lives.
And when
our final hour comes,
may we hear those beautiful words:
“Today you
shall be with me in paradise.”
We ask this
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
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ADDANKI RAJU.
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A Gentle Invitation to Share
If this
message has brought you even a small measure of joy, light, encouragement, or
spiritual nourishment, I humbly invite you to share this spiritual food with
others.
Someone you
know may be waiting for a word of hope.
Someone may be silently searching for meaning.
Someone may be thirsty for God.
By sharing
this message, you become a simple yet powerful instrument in God’s hands. This
small act of sharing becomes a beautiful act of evangelisation — a quiet
mission of love you carry out in your daily life.
Let the
Word that touched your heart reach another heart.
May the
Lord use you to spread His light.
May His Word bear abundant fruit.
God bless
you abundantly.
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