“Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
-Luke 23:43
How costly are Jesus’ words on the cross! Grace to a thief, purchased at the cost of His own blood! I’m so thankful for this encounter, recorded for us in Scripture, because it shows more than practically any other story how much our salvation rests on grace alone.
This thief had done nothing to earn Paradise. In fact, he had earned the very opposite: a slow, painful execution. The other thief, on the other side of Jesus, had earned, deserved, and was getting the very same. But there was one difference, and it wasn’t this thief’s inherent goodness, or promise to follow Jesus: it was faith.
In that moment, hanging on the cross, he saw Jesus for who He really was. And his words were surprising: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Now THAT takes a lot of faith to say to a bloody, dying man. Looking at Jesus hanging on the cross, nobody would think, “Here’s a King about to inherit a kingdom.” Even Jesus’ own disciples had fled. But this condemned thief saw the glory of what Jesus was doing, and though all circumstances pointed to the contrary, he realized the truth: the Messiah was hanging next to him.
EXTEND THE LESSON
Read or listen to the hymn, “There Is A Fountain”
Jesus’ words to the thief are his words to you if you trust him. Read Revelation 21:1-7 and meditate on the Paradise prepared for you.
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