Paradise was God’s idea from the beginning. In the garden, God created a place of life, beauty, and communion with Him. Sin shattered that world and closed the garden gates. Psalm 16 looks ahead with confidence to joy and eternal pleasures in God’s presence. In this midweek service, we hear how Jesus’ promise of paradise on the cross reaches all the way back to creation. What sin closed, the cross reopens. Redemption restores what was lost and fulfills what God promised from the start.

Hanging beside Jesus is a criminal with nothing left to offer. He has no good record, no future plans, and no time to make things right. All he can do is ask Jesus to remember him. Jesus responds with a promise that defies human logic: “Today you will be with me in paradise.” This word speaks hope to anyone who believes it is too late for them. Salvation is not earned over time or proven by performance. It is given by grace. Paradise is promised not to the deserving, but to the trusting.

Hanging beside Jesus is a criminal with nothing left to offer. He has no good record, no future plans, and no time to make things right. All he can do is ask Jesus to remember him. Jesus responds with a promise that defies human logic: “Today you will be with me in paradise.” This word speaks hope to anyone who believes it is too late for them. Salvation is not earned over time or proven by performance. It is given by grace. Paradise is promised not to the deserving, but to the trusting.

Every marriage brings together two sinners in need of grace. Without forgiveness, resentment grows and distance widens. With forgiveness, healing becomes possible. This week places forgiveness at the center of marriage, not as a technique, but as a gospel necessity. Forgiveness does not ignore pain or pretend sin does not matter. It names the hurt and refuses to let it have the final word. Rooted in the forgiveness we receive from Jesus, this week invites us to see how mercy makes permanence livable and love resilient. Marriage, as God designed it, is not sustained by perfection. It is sustained by grace.

Marriage begins with God’s declaration that it is not good for us to be alone. Before sin enters the world, God creates marriage as a gift marked by unity, commitment, and permanence. In a culture that treats relationships like contracts that last only as long as they benefit us, Scripture presents marriage as a covenant rooted in promise. This week sets the foundation by reframing marriage not as a consumer arrangement, but as a covenant designed to reflect God’s faithful love. Before marriage asks anything of us, it shows us what kind of love God has already given us.

In a culture where millions have walked away from the church, the invitation is not to religion but to rediscover the living Jesus: His identity, His presence, His authority, and His mission.

In a culture where millions have walked away from the church, the invitation is not to religion but to rediscover the living Jesus: His identity, His presence, His authority, and His mission.