This week’s devotions are based on Week 6 of Cross Examined: Don’t you fear God? (LISTEN HERE)
Luke 23:42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Amidst the gasping for breath and the pain of nails in one’s hands and feet, one criminal found enough energy to rebuke the other and then turn to Jesus with a simple request, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
There have been many individuals who have died for crimes they have committed. Some have notorious rap sheets, many are buried and forgotten.
This one might have been too.
But Jesus never forgets a heart of faith.
The temporal fate of these criminals was set. Their lives would end on a Roman cross.
For one, what was next would make the cross feel like a resort, for the other, the cross would simply be the transition to the glories of heaven.
“Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Did the second criminal understand what this meant?
We don’t know, but from what we know, these words were the end to the conversation and comfort to the criminal on the cross.
Hours would follow of labored breathing, excruciating pain, and the wincing of bones breaking. But the pain of the cross would be followed by the joys of paradise.
Jesus changed everything.
With his simple promise, the eternal fate of the second criminal was changed. His earthly consequence would not be forgiven, but his eternity was secured because he placed his trust in Jesus, the one who forgave him.
I wonder what went through the mind of the second thief.
Did the pain hurt less? Did his tension lower? Did his heartbeat lessen?
Perhaps. We don’t know.
But here’s what we do know. When our biggest problem in life, our sin, is solved, and our eternity is secured, it gives peace, promise and perspective to anything we are going through in life.
The event may not go away. Earthly consequences may still exist. But there is nothing sweeter than for Jesus to say, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
What would the criminal say when he saw Jesus again, not on the cross but with a crown of glory? What would the criminal say when his pain was gone and joy overwhelmed him?
What would you say? What would you do?
Our entry to heaven may not be today, but Jesus promise is real for us every day…including today.
What he did on the cross secured the promise he gave to Nicodemus and the world:
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Let that sink in today.
Apply: What challenge are you facing today? Listen to Jesus’ promise to the thief on the cross. How does it give perspective and peace amidst the challenge?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for taking care of my biggest problem by paying for my sin through your death on the cross. Give my heart peace, no matter what my circumstances, to know that heaven is mine because of your sacrifice. AMEN.