The Thief on the Cross
The thief on the cross gives us all hope. He met Jesus on the cross and discovered salvation. Gary McBride continues his series.
What Happens After a Person Dies?
In this series, we are considering what happens after a person dies. The Bible presents two alternatives. There’s either eternity in Heaven or eternity in the place we call hell, the Lake of Fire.
We’ve looked at the fact that God has put in our hearts the thoughts of life after death.
I Am The Way, The Truth and The Life
I’m sure most of us have been at a coffin or in the presence of a dead person and wondered what happened to them. Many people assume that whoever dies will end up in Heaven. Even the worst of people are sometimes eulogized or talked about as if they were in Heaven.
But there is only one way to get to Heaven, and that is through the Lord Jesus Christ. He said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father, but by me.
A Wonderful Story
There’s a wonderful story in the Gospels about a man who repented of his sin and gained access into Heaven. This is the story of a thief on the cross with the Lord Jesus. What happened that day was three men were nailed to crosses outside the city of Jerusalem.
Two were thieves who were sentenced to death. They all three were put on the cross at 9:00 o’clock in the morning. And the first little while, both of those men on either side of the Lord Jesus made fun of him and mocked him. They were saying if you are really the Christ, come down, save yourself and save us as well.
Two Sentences
But the Lord Jesus was different. He spoke two sentences. The first one was a prayer to his father. He prayed, Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing. That’s a cry for mercy. Most of us would say we hope you get what you deserve, but the Lord Jesus was asking God his father not to give them what they deserve. He also addressed his mother, who was there, and obviously she was left a widow and he committed her care to the apostle John, those were words of love.
So, though the two thieves started the day railing on the Lord Jesus, mocking him, making fun of him the one obviously heard the words of mercy, and the words of love. He made a wonderful admission sometime before noon that day. Here’s what he said,
the other answering rebuked him saying, do you not even fear God seeing 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. Then, he said to Jesus, Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom and Jesus said to him assuredly I say to you to day you will be with me in paradise.
Words of Mercy and Love
And so, having heard words of mercy and words of love, the man admitted that he was a sinner. He said to his fellow thief we are getting what we deserve. We are being treated justly. We have committed crimes and now we are paying the price of the penalty for our crime. But then he turned to the Lord Jesus and he asked for grace to be given to him.
He was a sinner deserving of death, but he asked the Lord Jesus to remember him when he came into his Kingdom. This reveals that the man recognized the Lord Jesus was more than just a mortal. He recognized that the Lord Jesus was going to live again and that he was going to rule and reign in a Kingdom. This man asked for a place in that Kingdom, and the Lord’s gracious response to him, in light of the fact that he had repented and that he had asked for grace, was to say that today you will be with me in Paradise.
What a Transformation
What a transformation. That morning the man was an enemy of the state, a criminal. But that afternoon he was a friend of God, a citizen of Heaven no longer condemned, but forgiven. And guaranteed a place in Heaven. As a result, when you think of those three men on the cross, one of those thieves died in his sin.
But the Bible says he died physically that day, but there’s coming a day when he will face what is called the second death, that is eternity in the lake of fire, that man had the same opportunity. He heard and saw the same things. He even had the witness and testimony of his fellow thief, who repented and confessed.
The Man on The Middle Cross
The man on the middle cross, the Lord Jesus, died once but lives forever. But in his death, he died for our sins. And on that basis the other man on the cross died physically that day, but the Bible says he also died to sin and he received eternal life. His destiny is very different. He lives forever in Heaven. What a difference.
These two men were on either side of the Lord Jesus Christ. We might ask the question on what side would you be? The side where you mock God and don’t care about your future? Or on the other side, where you recognize that you are a sinner and you need a savior, and you ask God for His grace.
Do you trust in the reliability of the Bible? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Gary McBride
Gary and Gloria McBride were commended into full-time work in 1981 by Grace Bible Chapel in Timmins, ON.
They were first commended to Zambia then went to Northern Ontario and were involved in camp work for 28 years.
They now reside in Southern Ontario and Gary serves as itinerant Bible teacher, as well as helping with New Life Prison Ministry (nlpm.com).
Gary has authored several book and loves to writes. He has a passion to see young men develop and mature in the Lord.
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Images Courtesy of:
Cemetery – Daniel_Nebreda
Cross – fietzfotos
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