From history, what Christ suffered and spoke on the cross, and from the thief to the right hand.
We have heard the history of the Passion or Passion of Christ according to the text except for the part when Christ was hanged on the cross.
will be. But so that we have the history of Christ's suffering in its entirety, let us read what St. Lucas writes about the Lord's cross.
Luc. 23:32-43.
And there were also brought two other malefactors, that they might be taken away with him. And when they were come to the place which is called the place of the skull, there they crucified him, and the malefactors with him, one on the right hand, and one on the left. And Jesus said, Father, forgive them: for they know not what they do. And they parted his garments, and cast lots thereon. And the people stood and watched, and the rulers with them mocked him, saying: He has helped others, he helps himself, he is a Christian, the chosen of God. The soldiers also mocked him and came to him, bringing him vinegar and saying: If you are the king of the Jews, help yourself. The inscription was also written above him in Greek, Latin, and Ezraic letters: This is the king of the Jews. But one of the malefactors who were hanged blasphemed him and said, "If you are Christ, help yourself and us. And the other answered and rebuked him, and said, Neither art thou afraid of God, who art in like condemnation? And we are justified in this, because we have received what our deeds are worth; but this man has done nothing unjustly. And said unto JEsu, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And JEsu said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, This day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
In this fourth part of the Passion or Passion of Christ on the Cross, I have chosen to speak primarily of the words that the Lord spoke on the Cross.
*) Held on Char Friday, April 2, 1534, in the parish church.
For we are not to look at this man's passion and suffering alone, but also at the words he speaks; by which words he also explains his suffering, what it creates and accomplishes.
2. above all, as we heard in the first sermon of the Passion, must-.
We distinguish the sufferings of our Lord Christ from all other holy sufferings, not only because of the person that Jesus Christ is the eternal God, through whom heaven and earth were created and all things were made, but also because of the cause of his suffering, and because of the benefit and fruit that follow from such suffering. For no man's suffering, nor angel's, nor any creature's, has brought about, nor can bring about, the suffering of this man. For he suffers not for himself, but for us, that we through it might be delivered and set free from sin and death.
(3) For the sake of the person, this suffering is exceedingly great and unspeakable. For one drop of Christ's blood is more than heaven and earth. There is a great difference when a king is smitten and when a peasant is smitten. If the person is great, then the sin against the same person is also great. We will leave this aside, and now say only that this suffering is great for the fruit and benefit, namely, that through this suffering all creatures are changed, and heaven is made new, and all things are made new. We will see this in the words that Christ spoke on the cross, which words every Christian should know or ever learn.
The first word that Jesus spoke on the cross is that he prays for those who crucified him, saying: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. These words are briefly put, but very comforting. The Lord may have added more words, but they are not written. But these are written for our comfort.
(5) Since our dear Lord Jesus Christ is lifted up into the air and hangs on the cross, separated from the earth, and no longer has anything of his own on earth, he is in his right, proper, priestly office, and accomplishes his work, for which he came on earth: not only with his suffering, that he offers himself, but also with prayer. For both are priestly works: sacrifice and prayer.
6. the cause of his suffering and priestly sacrifice is, as he himself speaks in the Evan
Gospel John 7:19: "I sanctify myself for them, that they also may be sanctified in the truth. And Cap. 10, 15.: "I lay down my life for the sheep." It says that his suffering should be called suffering for us, not for himself. This he holds here, as a faithful shepherd, priest and bishop of our souls, and directs his work and sacrifice, so that the whole world may become new.
(7) But what priestly adornment, or garment, or altar, does this priest Jesus Christ have, when he sacrifices himself for us? His adornment is not a golden, silken garment, pearls or precious stones, as the bishops of the pope adorn themselves, or as the high priest in the Old Testament had his special priestly adornment and was resplendent in it; but he hangs on the cross naked and bare, full of wounds, and has not, so to speak, a thread on his body. Instead of the purple robe, he has red blood, his body is full of wounds and welts, and swollen; instead of the priestly hat, he wears a crown of thorns full of blood.
This is the priestly adornment of this high priest. -For he is "a priest forever, after the manner of Melchizedek," as the 110th Psalm v. 4. says. This high priest is both priest and sacrifice; for he offers his body and life on the cross. It may seem unpriestly that he hangs on the cross, naked and bare, bloody and swollen, and has a crown of thorns cut through his head; but he is the true priest and bishop who sacrifices himself, and burns his own body in great love for the redemption of the whole world. The ancient priesthood had great splendor; when Aaron and his descendants sacrificed rams, oxen, cows and calves, it had a prestige and went on with singing and sounding. But there seems to be nothing splendid about this high priest.
The altar of this high priest is the cross and gallows. For as we now look upon the public judgment and the tabernacle, so shall we also look upon the cross whereon Christ hangs. Now it is called the holy cross, because Christ has made it so honest: but at that time it was no different, because the Jews hanged him on the light gallows, or set him on the stone of the tabernacle. On the
same altar, this high priest performs his sacrifice.
(10) This is a shameful, abominable and unusual altar. There the Jews said: Whoever comes on the altar, he is vermaledeiet and cursed. Moses himself said: "Cursed is everyone who hangs on the wood", Deut. 21, 23. The oxen, cows and calves that were sacrificed in the temple were led to the holy, consecrated altar with votive offerings and incense, and great honor was shown to them. But Christ, who is the right high priest and the right sacrifice, and who consecrates and sanctifies everything, is led to the public court to a dishonest, unconsecrated, even cursed altar, and is killed as an evildoer. We all hold that no place is so unpleasant as the cross or gallows; as the common evil wish and curse testifies: Go to the gallows, that the ravens may eat you. The same shameful, unpleasant place, and the cross, the most shameful wood that can be called on earth, is the altar of our high priest and bishop. There he is sacrificed as the most accursed man that ever came on earth.
(11) For this purpose this high priest is killed, not like the other thieves who are judged at his side. For here is all poison and devil in the people who crucify him. With the other two thieves they have compassion. But this one must be crucified in the midst of the other thieves, as the worst thief, and no one has compassion on him, but makes it so poisonous that it could not be more poisonous. All that he speaks will be most wickedly corrupted. The wine, which is given to the wicked, so that they become brave, they spoil with vinegar, gall and myrrh, so that nothing good happens to poor Jesus in his suffering. When he prays and cries, "Eli, Eli, lama asabthani," they mock him and say, "He calls to Elijah; stop, let us see if Elijah will come and help him." They do not do the same to the other two shepherds. But this one must suffer.
12. so it should happen to this priest with his sacrifice, that such great poison is poured out on him that no one can talk it out.
No thief and murderer dies so shamefully and ignominiously as this Jesus. He must go to the place of the skull, where the grave of all thieves, scoundrels and murderers is. His head is not only pierced with a crown of thorns, but he is also spit upon, disgraced and despised. One reads in no history that ever a man would have been judged by public court so mercilessly as this one. One is not in the habit of mocking an offender when he is being judged; just as it is not the way today to mock the condemned people who are being executed. There is no one who rejoices at their death; but everyone gladly gives muscatels, refreshment, speaks kindly to them, and helps in whatever way he can. But with this high priest it is different, he must be the most shameful thief and rogue who ever was.
(13) Therefore he is such a low and contemptible high priest in the sight of the world, having such a blasphemous and dishonest altar, and being such a sacrifice that men are afraid of him; as the prophet Isaiah says, Cap. 53:2, 3: "We saw him, but there was no form to please us; he was the most despised and worthless, full of pain and sickness. He was so despised that they hid his face from him; therefore we esteemed him nothing." When he was brought before the prisoners, he was treated abominably, both before the high priest Caipha and before the governor Pilato. Since he was nailed to the cross, they poured out on him all envy and poison, and were not satisfied with any spitting, mockery and blasphemy. All the floods should go over him, and he should be thus inflicted, as never an evildoer, and arrange his sacrifice in the most shameful place.
14 Thus we have this high priest Jesus Christ with his altar and sacrifice, most ignominiously prepared by the Jews and the men of war. Yet all our sins lie on his shoulder; as the prophet Isaiah also clearly testifies in the same place, Cap. 53:4, 5, when he says: "Truly he bore our sickness and took upon himself our pain; we took him for one who was afflicted and smitten and martyred by God. But he is for our iniquity
wounded for the sake of our sin and crushed for the sake of our sin. The punishment is upon him, that we might have peace; and by his wounds we are healed." And Cap. 9:6, "His dominion is upon his shoulder." There lie I and thou and all men, from the first man Adam unto the end of the world. For our sake he was judged in such a shameful place and died such an ignominious death that even the stones and creatures cry out over it, since men have no compassion on him.
15 In this priestly office and work, when he offers his body on the cross, he also comes with priestly prayer. For a priest, in addition to the sacrifice, should also offer his prayer to God. To such prayer he takes these words: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do"; prays, then, and offers himself to his heavenly Father. The epistle to the Hebrews in chapter 5, v. 7, says that Christ, in the day of his flesh, offered up prayer and supplication with strong cries and tears to Him who was able to save him from death, and was also heard, because he honored God.
(16) This is our consolation (as it is also preached to us that we should take comfort in this), that this high priest has prayed for me and for you and for all of us, that is, for his crucifiers. For just as he suffers for us all, he also worships for us all. So also his crucifiers are not only the Jews and Gentiles, who at that time laid their hands on him and crucified him, but also we and the whole world. For it is the sins of all of us that crucified him, wounded him and crowned him with thorns. Those crucifiers were only servants and slaves of our sins. If your sins and mine had not put Christ on the cross, they would have had to leave him satisfied. Since Christ is the true priest and the little lamb of God, who paid for the sins and death of the whole world with his sacrifice, the Jews and the Gentiles have power over him. Therefore this prayer goes over the whole world. When Christ prays for those who crucify Him, He also prays for us and for all men whom we have brought to Himself with our sins.
his cross and death; and beseeches not to condemn us, but to make us blessed.
(17) For this reason we are not to regard the gallows and the public judgment and cross on which Christ suffered as anything other than an altar, where Christ offered up his body and life for our sins and prayed in the midst of the suffering, so that he might thereby prove his priestly office and bring us to grace, and we might be freed from sin and eternal death. For he that taketh away sin taketh away death also. Cause: "Death is the wages of sins", as St. Paul teaches, Rom. 6, 23. Therefore, where sin is gone, death has no more power. But where death is gone, hell and the devil are also gone, and instead there is eternal righteousness, life and blessedness. Because Christ has taken away sin through his sacrifice and prayer on the cross, neither death nor the devil nor hell has any cause for us.
(18) Christ accomplished all this on the cross, not by our works and merit, but by his body and blood, when he became a curse for us and died on the cross for our sins, and finally interceded for sinners. This should be our joy and comfort, and for this we should thank Christ from the bottom of our hearts and preach about it with all diligence.
19 In the papacy they also preached this. But regardless of the fact that the words are so clear and the story so clear, that Christ sacrificed himself on the cross and prayed for us, they went on and taught another way to salvation, imagining to the people with many words that we ourselves should be priests, should sacrifice ourselves, and pay God with our own works and acquire eternal life. And still today the Pope and his followers condemn our doctrine, that we teach that we are saved only through Christ's body and blood, sacrificed on the cross. But is this not a terrible wrath, blindness and punishment that has fallen upon this people, that they themselves preach the Passion yearly everywhere, that Christ sacrificed Himself for us on the cross, and yet rage against us, curse our doctrine as heresy and condemn it?
who teach such doctrines and reject people from such certain, eternal consolation? This means (as Isaiah threatens the despisers of God's word) to be blind with seeing eyes and not to hear with open ears, and to have an obdurate, incomprehensible heart. For how else could it be possible that they should be so staarblind? They themselves teach and confess that Christ sacrificed himself for us; yet they persecute and shed the blood of those who preach and believe this. They let the high priest Christ shine as the dear, beautiful sun, that he sacrificed himself for our sins on the cross; and nevertheless they go and put a monk's cap on a dying man, give him paternoster stones in his hand, and say that he should put his comfort on his own works, on indulgences, on a lousy cap, on masses etc.; and thus they mislead the people miserably. The light shines in their eyes, they see it, but they do not understand it.
20 It is clear and evident that Christ, our only high priest, brings to us his wounds and tears, saying, "Father, here I am, a mediator between you and men. I am a man and have brothers who are in sins and in danger of death and hell. But I die for them, I sacrifice myself for them, be merciful to them etc. Our adversaries themselves hear and see such things, yes, they confess and preach them; nevertheless, let them still cry and rave against them, and condemn us as heretics. Well then, it is God's wrath, so may God graciously protect us from it. But if He ever wants us to fall, let us fall into such sin as we feel and confess, and not into that which is contrary to grace, and which adorns itself and is praised for righteousness and holiness.
021 Therefore let us open our hearts, and behold our high priest Christ in his right adornment. If you take your ears and eyes to counsel, and look at him from the outside, how shameful, miserable and wretched he hangs on the cross, you will find no adornment in him, as in Aaron. But if you take the word of God into your counsel and look into the heart of Christ, you will find an ornament filled with all virtues.
and such treasure, for which you will never be able to thank him enough.
(22) For first of all, he is adorned with great, excellent, heartfelt obedience to his Father, so that he allows himself to be spit upon, scourged, bruised, and so shamefully executed for his will and honor. What a glorious ornament this is, we cannot see in this life; nevertheless, we can see so much from God's word that all the rubies, precious stones, pearls, all the garnets and pieces of gold are nothing compared to it.
The other ornament is his great love for us, that his whole heart is set on helping us. He is not concerned about our suffering, indeed, he does not even think about it; our cause and our need are so dear to him. He first prays for us: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do"; then he prays for himself: "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" item: "Father, I commend my spirit into thy hands". Who, after all, can utter such love and adornment? His heart is so full of fire, more than all the world can understand or grasp. In his greatest suffering, torture and shame, he stands as if he sees or feels nothing; but thinks, sees and cares only for your and my misery, distress and heartache.
(24) Is not this great, earnest, burning love? If someone were to look so kindly on his enemies that he thought to help them with his harm, shame, scorn and ridicule, and in the midst of suffering cared for nothing else but that his enemies might be helped, then anyone who has reason would have to confess and say: There is greater love than if a father and mother ran through a fire or struck themselves on a knife to save the children. For there is the fatherly and motherly heart, which makes them not feel their misfortune and pain. But he takes care of his enemies so warmly that he does not think of his own need, but only sees to it that they are helped. In the same way our dear Lord Christ's heart burns, so that he tears through suffering, blood, spears, shame, burdens, wounds, as through a fire, and in all his love and mercy, he saves us for ourselves.
and says to his Father, "I am here for their sake; Father, forgive them, for for their sake I am suffering all this.
(25) Now this is the right adornment, since our high and eternal priest is adorned with it. This adornment must be seen and recognized with spiritual eyes. One does not see such adornment by heart, but Christ seems to be an avenger, a prankster, and an evil-doer above all evil-doers. But inwardly he is seen, and his words testify that in his heart there is much more beautiful adornment than the sun and all the adornment on earth. For there is first of all hearty and willing obedience to his Father; then to us love, mercy, patience, gentleness, and all the virtues in one heap. This is another colorful garment and priestly adornment than that of the priest Aaronis. And such I have wanted to show, for transfiguration, why Christ suffered.
(26) Therefore, in all matters of suffering, we should pay special attention to this article and firmly grasp it, and not allow it to be taken away from us. For this is the main thing, that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sacrificed Himself for us on the gallows of the holy cross, and that nothing was so dear to His heart as our grief and misery. For I and you, and all of us, are in his wounds and thorns and spittle, because in those same wounds and thorns and spittle he snatches and grasps at us, that he may save us.
(27) We need this article not only to comfort us, but also to strengthen us against the poison of the devil, which he pours into people through the pope and others, to bring them to heaven through their own righteousness, merit and works. But if we could have accomplished this with our works, what could Christ, the Son of God, have suffered, and let it become so sour? But now he stands here and prays to his Father, saying: "I, the high priest, offer my sacrifice, my body and blood, in all obedience and patience, asking you to be merciful to poor sinners, to forgive their sin, to be their father also, and to look upon my person and sacrifice. Therefore this is a prayer, not only spoken with the mouth, but also
For it has accomplished what it desired; it has blotted out our sin and reconciled us to God, if we believe otherwise.
(28) Now this is proof enough that we can do nothing of the kind by our works, for it is not so easy to obtain forgiveness of sins as the papists and teachers of works think. The works that the pope has commanded are difficult, but they are not impossible. It is soon done that one puts on a cap, watches a lot, fasts, sings; all this can still be done. But this is not the end of it. If one is to receive forgiveness of sins, there must be something far greater than my own works and yours; God will be slow to hear me even for my fasting, watching, praying: but this is what Isaiah says: "He was wounded for our iniquity, he was crushed for our sin; he bore the sickness of us all.
Now the papists themselves must confess that the suffering and death of the Lord Christ is far different from my prayer, my good works, my suffering, my almsgiving, my fasting. Whoever wants to lead such a fight against sin, death and the devil, will certainly achieve nothing. It takes another man, other works and merits to do enough for sin and to bear God's wrath. He who wants to exalt his own merit and works and use them against sin blasphemes Christ's death, sacrifice and prayer, because he thinks as much of his sacrifice and prayer as he does of Christ's sacrifice and prayer. One should diligently guard against such abominations.
030 Now the Lord prayeth not evil in the multitude; but setteth a difference of them for whom he prayeth, saying, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Many have sorrowed hard why the Lord spoke thus; but the simple opinion is that he means to indicate two kinds of sins. Some sins are confessed to be sins; some sins are not confessed to be sins. Some people know that they do wrong, and yet they do it without confessing it.
all timidity, out of pure hatred and malice against the recognized divine truth. This is called sinning against the Holy Spirit, since one stands up and persists that it is right. Such people sin knowingly and out of malice, persist in such a knowingly sin, do not desist from it, do not ask forgiveness for it. So do our junk lords, the papists: they know well that our doctrine is right, that Christ commanded the Sacrament to be received in full, did not forbid marriage, did not command anything about the Sacrifice of the Mass; item, that Christ died for our sins etc.: nevertheless, they condemn us as heretics for the sake of such things, and punish their subjects, where they know that they need our doctrine and the Sacrament as Christ instituted it. These do not sin ignorantly, but against the Holy Spirit. Whether our Lord God can convert one or more from such sin, if he wills: nevertheless such sin is of a kind and nature that it cannot be forgiven; for it goes directly against grace and forgiveness of sins; since forgiveness of sins wants both, that one confesses the wrong and lets go of it, and that one asks for forgiveness.
The others are sinners who sin ignorantly. This is what you are to understand: David knows well that he has done wrong and sinned against God by taking Uriah's wife and having him slain; but evil desire and the devil drive and chase him so violently that he falls into such sin before he has thought through what he is doing. But afterwards he confesses, is sorry, wishes he had not done it, and desires mercy. We all carry such sins around our necks that we are easily and unawares carried away and fall, sometimes hurried by the devil and our flesh, sometimes out of fear like Peter, sometimes out of carelessness and foolishness that we do not understand, sometimes out of security and presumption. Such sins Christ swallowed up on the cross and prayed for. For they are sins that do not fight against grace. Such a sinner does not say, "I have done right," but is naked, bare, and lets himself be seen, confesses his sin, and asks for forgiveness. So you see,
that many a poor thief, many a murderer, many a harlot, and other wicked people come to mercy; for they do not defend their sin, but confess that they have done wrong, and ask forgiveness.
(32) Let it now be discerned and said: All sins have the sacrifice and prayer of Christ between them and God, for which reason God will not impute them, provided that they are confessed and that one adheres to this high priest with his sacrifice and prayer on the cross. Those sins, however, which fight against grace and do not want to be sin, such as the blasphemy of the left-handed executioner and the high priests, do not belong here under the prayer of Christ. There is a great difference between sin that is known to be sin and sin that is not known to be sin. The sin that is recognized as sin, whether it be unbelief, or weakness of faith, or other shortcomings, are all sins in vain; God will not reject me for such sin, but will forgive me if I confess that it is sin, ask for mercy, and cleave to Christ. But the sins which are not acknowledged to be sins, but are denied, are unpardonable sins; for they do not want to be sins, and fight against grace.
Our papists and their followers knowingly and willingly do not want to do otherwise, nor do they want to recognize it as sin, nor do they desire Christ's sacrifice for sins; they sin against the Holy Spirit and deny the grace of God: Christ does not pray for them here, but for those who do not know what they are doing; they should take comfort in this sacrifice and prayer, and know that their sins are forgiven.
(34) Let this be said briefly of the prayer of Christ on the cross, that he might show why he suffered, that these sinners, who sin ignorantly and are sorry, may have a gracious God for his sacrifice's sake, who will not impute their sin to them but will graciously forgive it.
35 The other word of JEsu on the cross is that he says to the right-hand thief, "Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise." The left hand thief blasphemes
JEsum and says: "If you are Christ, help yourself and us". But the right thief punishes him and says: "Are you not afraid of God, since you are in the same condemnation? etc.; and turning to JEsu, he says, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." Then Christ tells him about the kingdom of heaven, saying, "Today you will be with me in paradise." This is a beautiful, excellent story, the like of which cannot be found anywhere.
For first of all, this is a great miraculous sign and very comforting, that this right-handed thief, who is rightly and justly condemned to death, both temporally and eternally, just like the left-handed thief, and has no good works, and has cause to fear God because of his sins, nevertheless takes courage and has confidence in Christ that he will take him into his kingdom.
37 Secondly, it is also a great wonder that this avenger and murderer does not turn back to the great offense of seeing Jesus condemned to death, blasphemed and desecrated by both spiritual and temporal governments. For then the rulers mock him, saying, "He has helped others, let him help himself; he is Christ, the chosen of God." The soldiers also mocked him, bringing him vinegar, saying, "If you are the king of the Jews, help yourself." For there was inscribed over his head, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." The left thief also blasphemes him, saying, "If thou art Christ, help thyself and us." In sum, everyone is angry with him and does not think anything of him, even the disciples themselves; although they may have stood around the cross in part, they no longer have any hope. But this thief on the right hand does not take offense at him, so that he also punishes the left thief for his blasphemy. It is indeed a great, great annoyance for the whole world that Christ dies such an ignominious death; nevertheless, this thief pulls through and has such great faith that he may call Christ, who hangs next to him on the cross, a Lord and King. Who has ever heard this? He gives the whole world the lie, and does not look at what other people think or say about him, and calls him, as a
eternal king. The others consider him to be a godless and foolish man, but he calls him a Lord and says that he has a kingdom and desires, when he will be in the same kingdom, that he will remember him. Now it was about that time that no one could reach the evening with his life. Therefore he believes that Christ is the Lord of another and eternal life. This is a great, excellent faith and a glorious confession, since otherwise all the world despairs of Christ and thinks nothing of him.
This is how Christianity is to be preserved; this is God's work, since all the world is falling away, Jews and pagans are crucifying and blaspheming Christ, and the disciples are forsaking Him, so God calls this thief. Thus He still wants to preserve His Christian Church today: even if all fall away from Christ, emperors, kings, popes, bishops, the most powerful and learned on earth, God still wants to keep a small group that shall have His Spirit and confess Him before the world. Therefore, this is a comforting image and example to all of Christendom that God does not want the faith in Christ and the confession to perish. If the disciples, along with others who are related to the Lord Christ, do not confess or believe, but rather deny Him out of fear, become angry with Him and run away, then an evil-doer or murderer must come forth, confess this Christ, preach about Him, and teach other people what to think of Him and what to take comfort in Him. For our Lord God will not leave Christ without people who confess him, even if it is only a thief on the gallows or a murderer on the wheel.
39 Therefore this is a comforting history, from which we are to learn what Christ has for people who belong to his kingdom, who find their way to him and to whom he wants to prove all grace, namely: who are sinners and confess their sin and ask for grace from the heart; these shall find grace and forgiveness. For just as he asked before, so he proves by deed that he is there for this reason, and wants to forgive sins of those who recognize their sin and desire forgiveness and believe: as soon as this thief admits guilt and calls on Christ, he is from that time on.
and is the first fruit that follows the Lord's prayer on the cross.
(40) Why does Christ not first take Peter or another saint? Why does he let the first fruit of his prayer be that he redeems and saves a scoundrel and murderer from sins and eternal death by his blood and wounds? Answer: He wanted to show that his kingdom does not pass over the saints, but over sinners; for the comfort of all poor sinners, so that they may believe and not doubt that Christ did not die for the righteous, but for the unrighteous and sinners; as he himself says, Matth. 9, 13: "I have come to call sinners to repentance, and not the righteous. Therefore he that thinketh to die a holy man, and without all sin, shall enter into heaven, when fire shall break out at the window, and devils shall dance. For he who does not want to be a sinner has no need of the Lord Christ or of his suffering, for he did not die for his own sake but for the sake of sinners.
41 For this reason, this history should be taken as an example, since Christ proves by deed what he sought and obtained by his suffering, since he makes a murderer on the gallows into a saint, who does not remain in sin, but becomes an eternal saint. For Christ did not die for sinners in such a way that they remain and continue in sins, but that he redeems them from sins, and that they convert, become pious and holy; as is seen here in the case of the thief. From the same Christ makes a
eternal saint (because he does not remain an avenger and murderer, but converts), and from the gallows and death, which the avenger, as he himself confesses, deserves, Christ makes a service to God, so that he no longer suffers as a murderer, but as a Christian and a true saint. For he dies in confession and faith in Christ, is heartily sorry for his sin, and has the resolution, where God would leave him longer on this earth, that he will no longer sin in this way. Through such faith he obtains the happy verdict that he is not only clean from sins, but also eternally blessed and declared an heir to paradise.
(42) We have now seen the fruit of Christ's suffering, first in the word of his prayer, and then also in the word of his work and deed, that he promises paradise to the right hand of the thief who calls upon him. We should follow this example, and not think as crude, godless people do, who say: I will sin, that Christ may deliver me, and prove his mercy upon me. No, not at all. For our flesh is not only full of sickness and filth before, but also full of sins. Since we are now deep enough in sins and death before, it is unnecessary for us to continue sinning; but we should seek how we may crawl out, how we may be reconciled to God, and sweep out sin more and more by God's grace. Let this be said of the two words of Christ on the cross. May God grant us His grace, so that we may grasp and keep it, amen.