Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into
your kingdom.” Luke 23:42
When it comes to Bible stories, the repentant thief on the cross is a cherished
favorite. Suffering there next to Jesus,
he looked on as the religious leaders, the soldiers and even the other
crucified crook mocked Jesus and ridiculed him.
Perhaps it was in the brilliance of unselfish forgiveness shining forth from the darkness of undeserved hatred that the condemned man saw for the first time the Christ for who he really was. “Jesus,” he pleaded, “remember me when you
come into your kingdom.”
One of the amazing things about this rich story is the suddenness of it
all. Was the thief thinking about Jesus
when he committed his crime? No. Did he contemplate the Christ as he was tried
for his offense and sentenced to death?
No. The night before his crucifixion,
was he meditating on the Messiah?
Probably not. As the nails were
pounded into his hands and feet, were the robber’s thoughts centered on the Son
of God? No way! It is probably safe to say that Jesus had
occupied very few, if any, of the man’s thoughts until now.
But then suddenly!
As the events unfolded beneath his feet, how long did the robber have to
witness the forgiveness by the Innocent One for injustice from the guilty ones
before emerging from his spiritual stupor?
How long did it take for the perp to turn penitent? Was it a full minute? Three?
Could he have held his tongue for five minutes before speaking out?
In a single unforeseen moment in time, the man’s soul awakened to recognize the
King of a kingdom not of this world. And
not even extreme physical pain would deter him from eternal spiritual
gain. In the blink of an eye, the life
lived wrong got it right.
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in
paradise.” Luke 23:43
In never-ending mercy and love, God never quits; he always pursues. And his sudden, sovereign moments of salvation
continue, right to the end.
Praise his name!
[Click here to see the daily reading in Luke 23:32-43.]
Showing posts with label thief. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thief. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Friday, November 28, 2014
Stepping out of the Shadows
John 3:19 (NIV) This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.
If you've ever spent a period of time a dark place, where no light enters, you understand when I say the bright light caused me to shade my eyes. The first encounter when leaving total darkness and entering a bright room, can be blinding. It takes time to focus and once in a while we might prefer to be back in the place of darkness.
John 3:20 (NIV) Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
A thief works under cover of darkness, knowing the light exposes criminal activity. This same person doesn't brag about the misdeeds committed for fear of being discovered. The consequences would be life altering for them.
John 3:21 (NIV)
But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
Sometimes that best thing that can happen to someone living in the shadows is to be found out. When the thief enters a room and a light turns on, they are caught. The light exposed the wrong-doing. The next things to happen are captivity, confession and conviction.
John 3:13-21
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