00:00
Oh, can you hear me?
00:01
Okay. 'cause I'm
using this mic.
00:03
You can't hear me. Oh,
I asked to use this.
00:07
Well, you can hear me
here. To use this mic.
00:09
Oops. I'm gonna turn it
00:10
off because I speak
with my hands.
00:16
Hang on. But are you
00:17
still okay? You're
hearing me, Okay.
00:18
Okay. Well, I'll stay
00:20
away from you know what?
00:21
I'll turn this one off.
00:23
Laura, do you want to
turn this one off?
00:26
Because if I go
near it's crypt
00:27
tonight but leave it
00:30
here just in case
I might. Yeah.
00:33
So, my name is
Elizabeth Menudo.
00:35
That's my table
back there.
00:38
Matty started me off
00:41
crying with
this testimony.
00:44
But anyway, so today is
00:46
our final journey with
00:47
the encounters with Jesus.
00:49
And today we're
going to be talking
00:50
about Jesus encounter
while he was
00:54
with that thief
on the cross.
00:55
But before we do that,
and again, y'all,
00:58
I'm nervous about
this, Mike,
01:00
but you just what do I do?
01:02
Hold it. No, use the hand.
01:05
Okay. Hang on 1 second.
01:26
So before we start
with this encounter,
01:29
I want to talk
to you a little
01:30
bit about what crucifixion
01:31
was without going into
too many gory details.
01:36
This was something
that the Romans
01:38
used very effectively.
01:42
of their capital
punishment.
01:45
It was reserved for
people that were
01:47
considered enemies of
the state of Rome.
01:50
In fact, at this
time, I don't believe
01:52
a Roman citizen
could be crucified.
01:54
Is everything
okay? Okay. Okay.
01:57
Because you're a
Roman citizen,
01:59
they would benevolently,
02:01
if you were
condemned to die,
02:02
they would just
decapitate you,
02:04
which was
preferable to this.
02:07
So first let's start
and talk about it.
02:10
Crucifixion was
designed not only
02:13
to permanently remove
someone from society,
02:15
but it was also to prolong
02:17
their death and give
them an agonizing death.
02:21
I wish if this was
a smaller group,
02:23
I would pass this around.
02:25
But this is about the
size of the nail.
02:29
What they would do is they
02:30
would go through
the wrist,
02:33
then they would cross
02:35
the condemned feet like
02:37
this and have it so
that they were bent.
02:40
They weren't standing
up like this.
02:43
It was bent. It was
like that by design.
02:47
Because when
you are hanging
02:49
from the cross,
you're suffocating.
02:52
In order to get
a good breath,
02:55
you would have to push
up and take a breath.
03:00
But keep in mind that
03:02
before you were
brought here,
03:03
you were stripped naked.
03:05
You were beaten
front and back.
03:08
And then you were marched
03:10
publicly to where
the cross was at.
03:13
Whenever you needed
to get breath in
03:16
your lungs and you
squished up like this,
03:20
your back is going up
against that back.
03:22
That probably
looked so terrible.
03:28
only designed
to permanently
03:30
remove from society and
03:32
to prolong their death,
03:33
but it was also designed
to humiliate them.
03:36
As I mentioned, they
would strip you
03:39
naked. They
would beat you.
03:41
And then the whole
time that you're
03:43
walking to where you're
03:45
going to be crucified,
03:47
you, they're
making fun of you.
03:50
It's a horrible
way to die.
03:53
Crucifix wasn't
just designed
03:56
to permanently remove
you from society,
03:58
to prolong your death
and to humiliate you,
04:02
but it also served
as a deterrent.
04:05
Ladies back then at
the time of Christ,
04:08
this was a
horrible symbol.
04:10
It was terrible. I
kind of think of it
04:13
kind of like the Swastica.
04:15
Nobody likes that.
Did you know
04:17
that before 100 years ago,
04:19
the Swastica
meant good luck.
04:21
But it doesn't
mean that anymore.
04:25
the religious
leaders would think
04:28
that there are women
and men wearing
04:30
this cross around
their neck
04:33
or having it tattooed
on their arm.
04:35
I wonder what they
would think today.
04:37
I mentioned that
the crucifixion
04:40
was reserved
for enemies of
04:42
the State of Rome And
04:45
Jacqueline, where's
my Jacqueline?
04:49
see if we could
put up the Greek.
04:52
I looked up because we
04:54
always call them the
thieves on the cross.
04:58
In Greek, lept
means thief.
05:02
One who steals in private
05:04
at night doesn't
want to be
05:05
seeing this is the person
05:07
who stole your
kids bicycle.
05:09
At what's in the gospels
05:14
is not there, it is
a different word.
05:18
In the book of Luke we see
05:21
as I hope I'm
saying that right,
05:23
any Greek people
out there.
05:25
But this is malignant
05:27
disposition implying
criminality
05:30
in Mark and
Matthew there's a
05:33
different one and
it's lays, stays.
05:36
This is somebody
who would steal
05:38
in the open with violence.
05:40
It comes from
the root word,
05:41
which means predator.
05:42
That is who these
two gentlemen
05:45
were on either
side of Jesus.
05:48
They were stays,
they were kors.
05:51
In fact, if you remember
05:53
earlier in the
book of Luke,
05:54
where the Good Samaritan,
05:55
he came across the road
05:57
because someone
had been stripped.
05:59
They had had all their
possessions stolen,
06:02
and they were beaten
almost within an inch of
06:04
their life by
someone like this.
06:08
Those are the people
that were condemned to
06:11
die because they were
06:13
enemies of the
state of Rome,
06:14
and they were put
on the cross.
06:17
Now, this brings us to
06:18
Jesus when he went
before Pilate.
06:21
And now we understand
why pilots like y'all.
06:28
Why did you bring
me this man?
06:30
He's not this. And I
06:33
don't think he's an enemy
06:34
of the state of Rome.
06:36
But I believe that
the enemy entered
06:38
those religious
leaders and
06:40
they're like, yes he is.
06:41
I don't know if you have
06:42
the scripture from Luke,
06:44
but in Luke we read that
06:46
they start making their
case with Pilate.
06:51
They began to accuse
him of saying,
06:54
we found him perverting
the nation and
06:56
forbidding us to pay
taxes to Caesar,
06:58
saying that he himself
07:00
is the Christ the King.
07:02
Pilate says, are
you the king?
07:05
And Jesus says it
is as you say.
07:08
But then pilot's like, no,
07:11
you guys three times
07:13
Pilot tried to
release Jesus.
07:15
He said, let me punish
07:17
him and then I'll
release him.
07:19
And the religious
leader said, no.
07:22
He even sent him to Herod.
07:25
Herod sent him back.
07:27
And then he's like,
I've got an idea.
07:30
Don't y'all
have some thing
07:32
where you can release
07:33
a criminal on
your Passover,
07:35
and the religious
leaders are like crap.
07:39
Well, yes we do, and
we want Barabas, okay?
07:42
Brabs was supposed to
07:44
die that day as
well on a cross,
07:46
but they kept
saying crucify
07:49
Jesus finally we know that
07:52
pilot relented and
basically told him,
07:56
I washed my hands of this.
07:58
We know that Jesus
was stripped.
08:03
He was beaten, He had to
08:05
walk and had to have
08:07
someone help him
with his cross.
08:09
And then he gets all
the way up there.
08:14
because those
religious leaders
08:16
wanted not only
to permanently
08:18
remove him from society,
08:20
they wanted to prolong
and agonize his death.
08:23
They wanted to humiliate
08:25
him. And they were hoping.
08:28
They were hoping that
08:30
this symbol of
Jesus on the cross
08:33
would be a big deterrent
08:34
because there was a big
following of Jesus.
08:38
It was called the way
because Jesus said,
08:41
I am the way, the
truth in the life.
08:43
No man comes
to the father,
08:47
know they're thinking
this will stop it,
08:49
this will put
an end to it.
08:52
I think it's
interesting when you
08:55
study Jewish holidays
and festivals,
08:58
I don't know if
anyone in here does,
09:00
but Passover was when
09:03
the Israelites
were in Egypt.
09:06
They had been there for
09:07
400 years and they
were enslaved.
09:12
did these different
plagues through God.
09:14
The last plague was
the angel of death.
09:16
And Moses told them
what you need to
09:18
do is you need to
sacrifice a lamb,
09:22
and you need to take
09:24
the blood and put it
on your doorpost,
09:30
and then the death
angel will pass
09:33
past your house and not
take your first born.
09:35
And that's what
happened. So this
09:37
is the time of Passover,
09:39
when Jesus has
been condemned.
09:42
You guys, isn't it amazing
09:44
that those
Jewish holidays,
09:46
they are always
looking back.
09:48
It's a way to look back
09:50
and see what the
Lord has done.
09:52
But those holidays
always are
09:53
pointing to something
in the future.
09:56
You guys, Passover was
the prequel to this,
10:00
where Jesus bled and died.
10:07
Now we get to the
encounter with
10:09
Jesus and the thief
on the cross.
10:13
At first, Jesus is
nailed to the cross.
10:22
They lift the cross up and
10:24
they sink it in the
ground, friends.
10:29
He's in horrible pain.
10:32
He's slowly bleeding to
10:35
death from his wounds,
10:36
but also from his beating,
10:41
Before they put
them up here,
10:43
they took these thorns.
10:45
And I wish I would
have brought I have
10:46
some like it. They're
about this long.
10:48
They made a crown and then
10:50
they sunk it into
our Lord's head,
10:52
into his temples
to humiliate him.
10:57
At first, when Jesus
was on the cross,
11:01
the Romans, the Roman
guards are like,
11:04
if you're Jesus, get
yourself off this cross.
11:08
The mob was saying
the same thing and
11:11
so were the religious
leaders save yourself,
11:14
but were these two
Gregor's lactate guys
11:18
on either side of Jesus?
11:20
But then something
happens in Luke,
11:24
it says there were
two other criminals
11:26
led with him to
be put to death.
11:29
If we can go up a
little bit, sorry,
11:33
it's where the thief on
11:36
the left side
started up again
11:38
with the maligning
of Jesus.
11:42
He's like, why don't
11:45
you save us and get us
down off this cross?
11:50
But the man on his right,
11:54
something changed in him,
11:56
and he said, hey,
we deserve this.
12:00
We deserve this
punishment.
12:04
Everything that we've done
12:05
in our life to this point,
12:07
has brought us
to this point.
12:08
We deserve death, but
12:13
this man has done nothing
12:15
wrong. He is innocent.
12:19
Nowhere in the
Four Gospels
12:22
does it tell us
what happened.
12:24
How did he get rid
of his stony heart
12:26
and get a heart of flesh?
12:27
How did that happen?
12:28
Actually, I think it's
right here, Father,
12:32
forgive them for they
don't know what they
12:38
Jesus up on that cross
12:39
and sunk it into
the ground.
12:41
That's when he said
that Jesus was
12:44
put on the cross at 09:00
12:45
A.M. and he died
at 03:00 P.M.
12:47
He was there for 6 hours.
12:49
Sisters, he was
suffocating.
12:52
He was bleeding, he
was in wretched pain.
12:55
During that time, he
said seven things.
12:58
They're recorded in
the four Gospels.
13:00
Not one gospel
has them all.
13:02
You have to read
all of them,
13:05
the things that
Jesus said.
13:08
I think what happened,
13:11
I think that that man,
13:15
having experienced what
13:17
Jesus is experiencing,
13:19
only Jesus was holding
all of our sins and
13:24
darkness came
across the land
13:27
at 12:00 3 hours in.
13:29
I think when he heard
13:31
our Lord say forgive them.
13:34
I honestly think
he thought, wow,
13:36
he's forgiving
these men that are
13:39
driving these stakes
into his flesh.
13:43
He's saying forgive them.
13:45
He's also talking to
13:47
those religious
leaders that
13:49
mocked him and brought
him to this point.
13:52
this was all part
of God's plan.
13:55
He was talking
to the mobs,
13:58
but that man knew that
Jesus was talking
14:01
about him too,
and friends.
14:04
He was talking
about me because
14:10
my sins put Jesus on
14:16
was talking about
all of you.
14:21
Do you guys have
the Jacqueline,
14:25
the one that talks
about forgive?
14:28
I looked up the Greek
word for forgive.
14:31
It's a pam. It
means to lay aside,
14:38
leave, let go,
omit, let loose.
14:41
This is Jesus
while he's going
14:44
through such wretched
pain, and he's saying,
14:46
Father, let go
of their sin,
14:49
let loose of, forgive
14:51
them, let this wipe them.
14:52
Can you guys, did you
know that after this,
15:01
the thief turns to
Jesus and he goes,
15:05
remember me, when
you come into
15:07
your kingdom,
he went down.
15:12
Did anyone grow up in
15:13
the Baptist
church? Like me?
15:15
Yeah. Okay. So you guys
15:17
remember the Romans road?
15:19
It's not the road that
Golgtho was off of,
15:21
but it was like,
oh, we go through
15:22
the book of Romans,
we talk everyone.
15:24
And so, but you know
what, that thief,
15:26
there was no time as
15:29
the meeting Van
mentioned there's
15:31
no time for him to
get down and do
15:32
some good works or to
get baptized, you know?
15:39
his sense when he talked
to the other man.
15:40
He goes, We are sinful,
15:44
then he acknowledged
who Jesus is.
15:46
Remember me when you
come into your kingdom.
15:51
I tell you today
you will be with me
15:54
in paradise I
looked up what
15:58
the Greek word for
paradise is because
16:00
the New Testament is
written in Hania Greek.
16:02
I want to challenge all of
16:04
you. I'm just a nobody.
16:07
But I've had so much fun
16:08
reading the Greek and
just trying to find
16:11
out there's like
a Greek paints
16:14
this picture we just
saw with a fiume.
16:17
It paints this huge
picture of forgiveness.
16:20
When I looked up the
Greek word for paradise,
16:25
it actually comes from
an older Persian word
16:28
which means garden of God.
16:30
In fact, it's the
same word that
16:33
is used to describe
the garden of Eden.
16:36
So this is something I
found so interesting.
16:39
Okay, I'm going
to bear with me.
16:41
Those of you who
know me know that
16:43
sometimes I jump over
to a rabbit trail.
16:45
But I will bring it
back, I promise.
16:46
And if I don't
someone say,
16:47
let's bring it back a
couple of weeks ago,
16:53
But I learned that if you
16:56
get bitten by a
poisonous snake
16:58
or a poisonous viper,
16:59
you get an anti venom.
17:02
Did y'all know there's
17:07
survive a bite
from a viper?
17:10
Any guesses on
what it might be?
17:14
It's a lamb, it's a sheep.
17:18
There's something
about them,
17:20
they'll get very sick
for a couple of days,
17:23
but then something
happens in
17:26
their very complex body
17:28
where they start to
produce an anti venom.
17:31
If someone gets bit
by a poisonous snake,
17:35
they get an anti venom
that came from a lab.
17:38
You guys think
about this God,
17:44
put us in the garden.
17:45
A poisonous little viper.
17:49
under my feet
to be honest.
17:52
In fact, I never
capitalized
17:54
the devil's name because I
17:55
don't give him
any respect.
17:56
But he comes, he
deceives Eve.
18:01
They fall into sin,
they got snake bit,
18:03
and now we deserve death.
18:05
Do you guys remember
when Sherry shared
18:08
the encounter with Jesus
18:09
and John the Baptist?
18:11
And do you remember when
John the Baptist is
18:14
baptizing in the river
18:15
and he sees Jesus coming?
18:17
He didn't say, yo everyone,
that's my cousin.
18:19
Yeah. Whoo, what's up?
18:20
Missed you at the
last reunion?
18:22
No, he said,
Behold the Lamb of
18:24
God who takes away the
sins of the world.
18:27
That's how he
referred to Jesus.
18:30
When Jesus bled and died,
18:32
that was the ant of venom
18:34
to that snake bite in
the garden of Eden,
18:38
you guys, and he told
that man to his right.
18:43
Today I tell you, you
18:44
will be with me
in paradise.
18:46
You guys, Jesus paid
it all, all to him.
18:51
I owe Sin had left
a crimson stain,
18:55
but he washed me
white as snow.
18:58
All that's the gospel.
19:00
That is the gospel, I
19:04
guarantee you
you're never going
19:07
another Easter
crucifixion the same way.
19:10
Because when I had
the opportunity and
19:13
the blessing to bring
19:16
this encounter to you,
I never will either.
19:20
I want to give you guys
all the opportunity
19:24
that if you haven't
had a chance to say,
19:26
Lord, remember me, I
19:29
want to give you the
opportunity today.
19:31
And one of my
friends from Metabo,
19:33
I'm not going to point her
19:34
out which one she is,
19:36
but she told me 'cause
I said, you know,
19:38
I'm going to give
an ultra call
19:40
And she said last week
she goes, well, Liz,
19:42
she was one time
I was sitting in
19:44
church and I was feeling
the Holy Spirit,
19:48
Holy Spirit was
convicted me.
19:49
I need to go forward,
I need to pray.
19:50
And she goes, but I was so
19:52
paralyzed with fear,
19:53
I didn't want to
walk forward.
19:54
I didn't want anyone
to look at me.
19:56
And so but she said that
19:59
the leader did
something unusual.
20:01
He had everyone stand.
20:03
He had them hold hands
and close their eyes.
20:06
And then if you wanted to
20:08
come forward for prayer,
20:10
for salvation to be
remembered by the Lord,
20:14
you could squeeze the hand
20:16
of someone next to you.
20:17
So what I want to do in
a moment is have all
20:20
of you stand hold hands.
20:23
And if the Holy
Spirit is telling
20:25
you I need to be with you,
20:27
Lord, I need to
make a decision.
20:29
I don't want
to leave here.
20:31
I don't want to leave one
20:33
more day without knowing
20:35
this amazing God who
20:38
loved us so much that he
20:39
sent his only
begotten son,
20:41
that whosoever
believeth on
20:43
him shall not perish
20:44
but have eternity in
the garden with God.
20:48
So, let's stand.
Let's hold hands,
20:53
and we're going to
close our eyes.
20:57
And if you have not ever
20:59
asked the Lord
Lord remember me,
21:02
I want you and
your entourage
21:05
to come forward and pray
21:07
with me and with Jamie.
21:09
Jamie, will you come
21:11
forward to if anyone
wants to pray.
21:14
And we're going
to just have
21:17
the verses to
the song that
21:18
said Jesus paid it
all, all to him.
21:23
I owe Sin had
left a crimson.
21:26
He washed this
whitest snow.
21:28
Let me pray, Father.
21:30
I just pray for every
woman in this room,
21:32
Lord, she's fearfully
and wonderfully made.
21:36
God, you even
know the number
21:38
of the hairs on her head.
21:40
And God, when you
were bleeding
21:43
and dying on that cross,
21:45
you were covering
our sins.
21:48
And Lord, you want to
give us forgiveness.
21:51
Father, you want to
provide a way for us to
21:55
have that anti venom to
21:57
that terrible serpent
bite. That is sin.
22:00
We are all born
sinful, but Lord,
22:03
I thank you so much that
22:05
you do wash as white
as snow ladies,
22:08
if you want to
come forward,
22:10
squeeze some hands and
22:12
come forward and
pray with us.
22:14
We're just gonna
play the music