Luke 23:32-43
Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”
One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
One of the things I love about reading the Bible is all the ways the literature of the Bible tells the story of Jesus differently through the different Gospels. As kind of an English nerd, I like to think about the image each Gospel writer uses—that unique angle that’s different from the others.
They all tell the same story: the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But the way they tell it highlights different themes from His life and different applications.
For example, the Gospel of Mark tells the story of Jesus like a Greek epic tale. Jesus is the hero on a mission, and by fulfilling His mission, He walks into tragedy—knowingly and willingly. That’s why we don’t see long dialogues or sermons in Mark. Jesus is a man of action.
In the Gospel of John, we get this mystical Gospel: lots of imagery and metaphor. Jesus is the Word made flesh. He’s the light in the darkness. He is the Judge who has come into the world—not to condemn, but so that those who reject Him are judged and those who believe in Him are saved.
In Matthew, Jesus is the new and greater Israel. Matthew follows the pattern of ancient Israel: they come out of Egypt, wander in the wilderness, and enter the Promised Land. Likewise, Jesus comes out of Egypt, is tempted in the wilderness, crosses the Jordan, gives the Ten Commandments in the Sermon on the Mount, and feeds the 5,000. He is the perfect Israel.
And in Luke, we see a number of themes, but the one I’d like to highlight today is this: Jesus is the new Adam—a prophet whose journey leads to suffering and death on the cross.
Unlike the old Adam, whose unfaithfulness brought death into the world, Jesus, the new Adam—the perfect Prophet—brings life into the world through His faithfulness.
To understand this, you have to go back to near the beginning of the Gospel of Luke.
Adam and Jesus: A Genealogical Connection
Luke’s genealogy is different from Matthew’s. Matthew starts with Abraham and goes down to Jesus (which fits the “new Israel” theme). But Luke does the reverse: he starts with Jesus and traces all the way back to Adam.
And right after that genealogy—after Adam is named—we get the temptations in the wilderness.
Jesus is tempted with three challenges:
“If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
“Bow down and worship me, and I will give you all the kingdoms of the world.”
“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself off the temple.”
And Jesus, in the wilderness, does what Adam could not.
The Return of the Tempter
You might ask, “Pastor, why are you talking about this when we just read about the crucifixion?”
Good question. I think Luke is doing something here.
At the end of the temptation narrative, Luke says that the devil left Jesus “until an opportune time.”
Now let’s examine the insults people hurled at Jesus during His crucifixion:
“He saved others—let Him save Himself, if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.”
“Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
“If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”
Sound familiar?
These are the three new temptations—this time under even worse circumstances. Jesus is no longer just hungry; He’s beaten, whipped, nailed to a cross—and still, He’s being tempted.
Can you even imagine?
The Two Trees: Eden and Calvary
Now I want to compare the tree of the cross—the tree of life in Christ—with the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in Eden.
First, picture Eden. We’ve all been to a beautiful park or garden—trees, flowers, birds, ponds. And maybe a mosquito bite or a little too much sun reminds us that even the best nature we experience is a far cry from Eden.
The Garden of Eden was perfect. No humidity, no bugs, no discomfort. Everything was good. And after Eve was created, it was very good.
And more than that, Adam himself was perfect.
We can hardly imagine that. A person who never worries, never doubts, never second-guesses. No anxiety. No aging. No pain. And yet… he could not remain faithful.
Sometimes we think: if my life were easier, if I didn’t have all these struggles, then I could be more faithful. But Adam proves that’s not true. Because sin doesn’t come from out there—it comes from in here.
In a perfect garden, with a perfect body and mind, Adam still fell—and brought death into the world.
The Allure of Sin
The problem with the forbidden fruit? It was beautiful.
Scripture tells us it was good for eating and desirable for gaining wisdom. Adam saw this perfect tree in a perfect garden and thought, “Why not?”
And that’s what sin often looks like to us. It looks good. It sounds right. The world affirms it.
As the great prophet Sheryl Crow once said:
“If it makes you happy, it can’t be that bad.”
And so Adam ate.
By doing so, he brought death into the world.
The Other Tree
Now consider the tree of the cross.
No beauty. No lush garden. Just a barren hill in a fallen world.
Jesus is in pain, surrounded by cruelty, weakness, mockery. He’s been whipped, beaten, mocked. Too weak to carry His cross. Nailed to it. And even then, tempted again.
“If you are the Son of God, save yourself.”
But Jesus remains faithful.
Unlike Adam.
His faithfulness means the old Adam is no longer in charge of our destiny. The new Adam is.
Jesus has turned the cross from an instrument of death into the tree of life.
From that cross, you have life. The doorway of death has become the path to resurrection.
A Cross-Shaped Life
The problem is… the tree of life doesn’t look appealing. It's not shiny fruit. It’s a prickly pear—but the prickles are shaped like nails.
The tree of life is suffering and death.
That’s why the Christian life is hard. Because we follow a Savior who didn’t call down angels, didn’t destroy the cross, didn’t muscle His way out of pain. He suffered and died.
And He tells us:
“Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Me.”
The fruit of the cross is life—but it also includes suffering.
St. Paul writes in Romans 8:
“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ,
if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory.”
The cross is a terrible, horrible tree. But it leads to life.
We follow a Savior who leads us through suffering, through temptation, and into eternal life.
Jesus resisted every temptation on the cross so that you could follow Him into everlasting life. And He calls you to follow—to lead a cross-shaped life, so that on the day He returns, you will rise again with Him.
In His name. Amen.
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