"3 CROSSES at CALVARY: Rebellion, Repentance & Redemption!"

The greatest day in human history was wrought with rebellion, repentance and redemption. It was the "Lamb of God" that was slain from the foundation of the world whose time had come. It was His gift to a rebellious world that He offered Himself up as the ultimate sacrifice to redeem us back to the Father.

Present with Him that fateful day on Calvary were two robbers on either side of Him who would also be crucified. The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 23 expounds on conversations between Jesus and the two men. It contrasts the dichotomy of who we are as a people: rebellious and repentant! The one criminal stayed in character as a rebellious spirit and mocked Jesus from the cross (in the spirit of his father Satan) saying to Him, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us." You will notice that Jesus didn't even respond to that foolishness! He had seen that "If You are the Christ" temptation several times before from Satan...

However, the other criminal exemplified a repentant spirit and rebuked his partner in crime saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing that you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done "nothing wrong" (unlike us). Then he said to Jesus, "Lord (this man had received the Spirit of Recognition in order to call Him Lord), remember me when You come into Your Kingdom." And Jesus said to him, "Verily I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." (Luke 23:43)

Wow! Did you "see" that? The redemptive spirit of Jesus is on "automatic pilot"...it NEVER stops! It operates best under adverse conditions. Don't think it strange when adversity comes upon you. 9 times out of 10, it is the Lord God's doing and NOT the devil!

The "Cross of Rebellion" is close enough to see Christ while never desiring to be near Christ or ever submit to Him. Pride, arrogance and a sense of entitlement have deluded this person into believing they don't need God's help. Rebellion equals death in Christ and is a "transferable and contagious spirit."

The "Cross of Repentance" is rooted and grounded in the "fear of God!" I'm not talking about "reverence" here; I'm talking about being truly AFRAID of God! The penitent thief admits his sin and asks Jesus to "re-member" (put him back together or re-connect) him. This is the job of the Lord God; to re-connect us, re-assemble us and redeem us back to the Father. Once you KNOW who HE is, you cannot deny HIM...while even hanging on a cross.

The "Cross of Redemption" was necessary in order for us to gain access to the King and His Kingdom of Glory. This is the Savior's cross. One of the many reasons why I love God is that He is so strategic. Notice where He placed Jesus' cross. He placed the Cross of Redemption between the Cross of Rebellion and the Cross of Repentance...

In other words, Redemption (Christ) stands between Repentance (Life) and Rebellion (Death)...(Deuteronomy 30:15)