Skip to main content

Knowing the word God

Luke 23:43
And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise"."

Freedom
Jesus once again speaks from the cross, this time to a thief. Once again Jesus, bloodied, bruised and beaten lifts himself up to utter words of salvation to a man who recognized Him as the Messiah, something learned Pharisees and Sadducees failed to do.

The two thieves on the cross could be seen to represent the two states of mankind; one a state of rejection of Jesus and one of recognition and acceptance. One thief mockingly demanding proof from Jesus!

“If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” (Luke 23:39)

But the other thief chastises him and says,

“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.” (Luke 23:40)

The thief then asks Jesus to remember him when He comes into His Kingdom. And Jesus, demonstrating salvation as a freely given gift and not based upon works, lifts His body up on the wooden cross and says,

“Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

Freedom from the penalty of sin assured on a wooden cross.

Jesus ignores His own suffering to offer salvation to a repentant sinner. This is representative of His act of salvation for all those who accept Him and give their lives to Him. Setting the captives free.

Isaiah 53 says:

"And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many....."

He bore the sin of many that day as He was counted a criminal with two thieves. For the thief, for His disciples, and for you. His pained words to one repentant sinner are an assurance to all of us who believe.

Tomorrow we will look at His next statement....

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Knowing the word of God

And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,  Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,  And say, Thus saith the Lord God ; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:  And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:  Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:  Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.  Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.  After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back f...
Post a Comment
Read more

Knowing the word of God

The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.  The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the Lord .  So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son.  And the Lord said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel.  And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.  And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Lo–ruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Knowing the word of God

I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.  I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.  I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?  My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.  I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.  I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.  The watchmen that went abou...
Post a Comment
Read more