Hope at the Cross – The Gift of Redemption

The sermon begins by introducing three great hopes that only Christ through the cross can give to those who believe in Him: forgiveness, redemption, and resurrection. These hopes cannot be found in any other philosophy or religion in the world. The pastor then presents three main questions that will be addressed in the sermon: who needs salvation, what is the price of redemption, and who is saved.

The first section addresses the question "Who needs salvation?" by examining the mockery, ridicule, and shame that Christ had to endure from Roman soldiers, Jewish religious leaders, and the crowd at the cross. These people mocked Jesus because they did not believe His claims to be the Son of God, and they did not believe that someone who was betrayed, executed, and beaten could save anyone at all. However, the pastor emphasizes that not only those who mocked or ridiculed Jesus need salvation; everyone needs salvation because everyone has sinned according to the teaching in Romans 3:23 and Romans 3:9-12. Even those who are indifferent and unmoved by the presence of God need to be saved. The pastor warns that when reading Scripture, we should not adopt the attitude of the Pharisee in the story of Luke 18:9-14, thanking God that we are better than others, because it is only by God's grace that we do not fall into the same sins as they do.

The second section focuses on "The Price of Redemption." The pastor describes in detail the suffering that Christ had to endure in less than 24 hours: the betrayal by Judas Iscariot, the denial by Peter, the desertion by the disciples, six trials, torture, shame, and finally shameful death on the cross. But the greatest pain was the separation from the Father when Jesus cried out in Aramaic: "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46). The pastor quotes the prophet Isaiah 53:2-5 to show that this was predicted more than 700 years before. The pastor explains that the Vietnamese word "cứu chuộc" (redeem) includes two meanings: "cứu" (to save from danger) and "chuộc" (to pay a price to obtain something). The pastor uses an analogy of a mother and son to illustrate love that has no price: a mother does not calculate what she has given to her children, but redeems them completely out of love. This reflects how God loves humanity: God died so that we might live, God bore our sins so that we might be forgiven, God endured shame so that our sins might be erased.

The third section answers the question "Who is saved?" The pastor explains that although God forgives everyone, not everyone is saved. Salvation depends on the individual's repentance and confession of sin. The pastor uses the example of two thieves crucified with Jesus: at first both reviled Him, but one later repented and asked to be saved, and Jesus promised him: "Today you will be with Me in paradise" (Luke 23:39-43). Those who are saved are those who recognize their sinfulness, repent, come to Christ, ask for forgiveness, and place their full trust in the redemption accomplished on the cross. The pastor cites Isaiah 55:6-7 and Romans 10:9-10 to emphasize the conditions of salvation. However, the pastor also warns that merely confessing "Lord" with one's mouth is not enough; true salvation must be demonstrated through a fundamental change in a person's way of life and thinking. If a person is saved by God but their life remains the same as before, then it cannot be said that they have experienced true salvation.