Two men are hanging on a cross. Together they have lived a life of crime. They have been cast out by society. They have been found guilty of their crimes. And now it seems they will enter eternal damnation together.
Two men joined together by their evil nature. Two men united by their criminal lifestyle. They were comrades in sin and row they are partners in suffering. Two men bound toward an eternity in hell. History would forever link them together.
But then, something came between them. Actually, Someone came between them.
At first, both men were offended by this intruder. These men had been yoked together by a life of crime. They shared a common bond. And now their union was being challenged.
They began to hurl insults at this Man. On the brink of eternity they join with the enemies of this Man - the chief priests, scribes, elders, Pharisees. They mock Him and insult Him as if He is a common criminal deserving of this fate.
Then something incredible happened. The man in the middle speaks. But He does not fire back at His accusers. He does not shout insults at the men on either side of Him.
The man who had come between them prayed for them. He prayed, "Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing."
Incredible. In the midst of hate, anger, and evil this was love, peace, and righteousness.
The two criminals both heard this prayer. They both turned and looked at this Man. And when they looked at Him they saw love, forgiveness, grace, mercy, and everlasting life.
One continued to shout insults at this Man in the middle. Even though he, the thief, was in pain and agony, and in the valley of the shadow of death, this did not humble his proud spirit. He rebuked Jesus and said, "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" He foolishly thought he could blaspheme the Son of God in one breath and ask for deliverance in the next breath.
This criminal looked at love and his hate grew.
He looked at forgiveness and continued to sin.
He looked at grace and cursed the One Who provided it.
He looked at mercy and hardened his heart.
He looked at everlasting life and chose eternal death.
He was looking at Jesus but all he could see was another man dying.
However, the other criminal suddenly sees this Man in the middle for who He really is. This is not only Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. This is the Christ, the Son of God. Suddenly his eyes are opened and he sees the Lord of all creation.
There was no sign of His glory or of the dignity of His Person. His kingdom was but a subject of scorn to all. But the poor thief is being taught by God and all is made plain.
Instead of the brutality of the soldiers and the callousness of the crowd, he saw love. Instead of evil living and unmentionable cruelties, he now saw incarnate goodness. Instead of hatred and lust and murder, he saw mercy and forgiveness.
How is this possible? How is it possible that a dying thief took a suffering, bleeding, crucified man for His God!?
All of this took place before the miraculous happenings of that day. He recognized the Christ before the three hours of darkness;
before the curtain of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom; before the earth shook and the rocks split;
before the tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life;
before the centurion exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!".
God used this moment, the most unfavorable of circumstances, to show that it is only by sovereign grace that the thief is saved. God shows us that salvation is only of the Lord.
This thief looked at love and realized what had been missing in his life.
He looked at forgiveness and felt the weight of his sin drop to the foot of the cross.
He looked at grace and knew there was hope - even on a cross. He looked at mercy and found a Savior.
He looked at everlasting life and would receive Paradise.
He was looking at Jesus and knew he was looking at the Son of God hanging on a tree and being unjustly crucified.
So, with one eye on Jesus and the other eye on the other thief he rebuked the other thief for his mockery of the Lord Jesus: "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." The thief confesses his sin and his evil. He acknowledges his guilt and the judgment of God upon his sin.
He thinks about the prayer Jesus just has uttered to the heavenly Father. Jesus was praying for the very men who were crucifying Him. Jesus was forgiving His enemies. The criminal begins to reason that if Jesus can do that, then there must be hope for even one like himself.
So he turns in faith toward Christ: "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
The thief, by grace, somehow recognized Jesus as the Messiah, as the Son of David, Who would rule over the Kingdom of God. "Remember me," says the thief. He is asking the Lord to not forget or ignore him, to be mindful of him. The thief is placing his fate in the hands of Jesus.
In all the agonies of the cross, and while believing Jesus to be the Lord, he seeks no relief at His hands, but asks that Jesus will remember him in His kingdom. He does not presume to ask a place in that kingdom, but with humility just says, "Lord, remember me." There was mighty faith in that word. If Christ will but think of him, that will do.
The first thief sought instant relief. But this one looked beyond the cruel moment. He did not ask to be delivered from the cross but asked to be provided for when the cross had done its horrific deed.
I need to make an aside here to make a very important point. There was no essential difference between these two men. Their natures, their recorded histories, their circumstances were the same.
We need to establish this point that there was no difference between them, because some have tried to say that there was a distinction. Some say one was not as bad as the other, that the thief who believed had some redeeming qualities that led him to be more receptive to God's salvation in Christ.
Yet, the Scriptures are clear: they were both alike at first. Both were guilty of crimes against Rome. Each was a convicted criminal, getting his just punishment. Both were unbelievers, both were unrepentant and both were opposed to Jesus Christ. There is no reason to set forth a natural distinction between them except to tarnish the luster of the grace of God that shines so brilliantly in the salvation of one of these men!
What was true of these two men - no difference - is also true of all mankind. All of us are alike in our separation from a holy God. We are all under the dominion, power, control, and influence of sin (Rom. 3:9). (Rom. 3:22-23). "There is no difference, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God"
Just as the dying thief rejoiced to see this fountain in his day, there may we, though vile as he, wash all our sins away.
The crosses were only a few feet apart so the Lord immediately heard the cry of the penitent thief. Christ was in the greatest struggle of His life. How would He reply to the sinner's cry?
Jesus once promised "whoever comes to me I will never turn away." Here, in His dying hour, Jesus keeps His promise.
Jesus answered the thief, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
Jesus gives the thief far more than he asks for.
The thief asked to be remembered in the Kingdom; Jesus tells him he will enter paradise.
The thief was asking about the future; Jesus speaks of the present "today." The thief asks Jesus to remember him; Jesus says, "you will be with me."
And that is what makes life after death paradise: it is life with Christ! Jesus did not say, "Today you will be in Paradise." He said, "Today you will be with me in Paradise."
It was this thought which was with Stephen in his last hour. He prayed: "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." It was this blessed expectation which moved the Apostle Paul to say, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain ... I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far."
To be "with the Lord forever" is the goal of all our hopes. And Jesus Himself is also looking forward to having us with Him forever. It is what He died for.
Jesus took no notice of the taunts and jeers of the people, the rulers, the soldiers. He made no response when they ridiculed Him to save Himself. But the prayer of the penitent thief caught His attention and elicited His response.
This is the power of Christ the Savior. The Lord Jesus is no feeble Savior. When the thief cried out, "Jesus, remember me," the Savior was in agony upon the cross. He was grappling with the powers of darkness and carrying the weight of the whole world's guilt. Jesus was at his very weakest. He was suffering agony and undergoing the pains of hell in his soul.
Yet even then, even there, He had the power to redeem from death and to open the gates of Paradise.
Jesus always has time for a penitent sinner. No sinner who comes to Jesus wilt ever be turned away.
This is typical of Jesus. Over and over again he shows compassion for individuals during busy and stressful times of His life.
On His way to raise Lazarus from the dead, He took time to weep with the mourning family.
On His way to help a dying child, He helped a despairing woman who had touched the hem of His garment.
On His way to Golgotha, staggering under the weight of a cross, He showed compassion to several distraught women.
On His way to securing salvation for the sins of the world, He showed love or the cross by appointing a caretaker for His mother.
Jesus could not and would not neglect this penitent sinner. His very words confirm that:
For the Son of Man Game to seek and to save what was lost
the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
Jesus had promised in His word deliverance for those who trust Him. The thief would not be denied.
In conclusion, I want to give you two incredible truths to take home with you. First of all, as we reflect on the first word of the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” How many times has Jesus repeated those words as He sits by the right hand of the Father? “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
How many times has Jesus looked on us as we ignored the needs of those around us and He has said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
How many times has Jesus looked on us as we have neglected to spend time with Him during the day and He has said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
How many times have we done something which was an affront to God yet, in our ignorance and apathy, we were not aware of our sin and Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
It is true. There are sins we commit of which we aren’t even aware. Just like those who crucified Jesus. They did not know who they had nailed to the tree. They did not know who they had spit upon. They did not know the One that they had insulted.
And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
However, this verse is not to say we are justified in our ignorance. This verse is here to show us that God is glorified in His mercy.
The second truth is told in this story. There was a woman who had come to the end of her life here and her friends talked with her about her faith and hope. For forty years she had been in the church and had served Christ faithfully. She had spoken often about the Savior she loved and followed.
Now at the last one of her friends said: "But, supposing that after all these years of your profession of Christ and all you have testified; supposing at the last it should not be true and that there was no certainty you would get to Heaven, what then?" The old woman looked up with a smile and said:
"Well, then God would have more to lose than I."
She was right. God has more at stake than we have. He made His pledge and covenant in Christ and that word cannot be broken. Like the dying thief we, too, may ask Him to "remember us in that kingdom." His promise is that He will.
Listen to the penitents prayer: "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
Listen also to the Lord's gracious and sovereign response: "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
