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The Promise of Paradise

Luke 23:43 | “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Pastor Jim Quigley

Picture the scene. You have three men whose hands and feet are nailed to a splintered, wooden cross. It is evident that they have all been brutally beaten before they were savagely nailed to a rugged cross. These men have also been completely stripped naked in order to further humiliate and shame them. Of these three condemned criminals, the man in the middle—Jesus—is also at the receiving end of vicious insults and mockery from the onlookers, including from the two other criminals who hung next to Him (cf. Matthew 27:38-44, especially v 44). 

But then something unexpected and truly miraculous happens: one of the crucified criminals next to Jesus had a radical change in heart. One of the criminals was mocking Jesus (Luke 23:39), but then the other criminal rebukes him, pronounces that they are being rightly punished, and declares Jesus’s innocence (Luke 23:40-41). He then boldly—and likely with great fear—makes a request of Jesus, saying, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). How audacious of him to request this of Jesus after not long ago he had joined the other criminal and the crowd in verbally assaulting and mocking Jesus! 

Yet Jesus’s response is more shocking. After painfully pushing up on His nailed feet just to get enough breath to say something, Jesus declares, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Jesus gives this condemned criminal assurance that he will be saved and will be with Him in heaven. 

At some point between this criminal’s insults and his plea with Jesus, the criminal experienced a radical change of heart. He must have repented of his sinful ways and received faith to trust in Jesus for His deliverance and salvation. It’s significant to note that at no point did the criminal get down from the cross and do a series of good works in order to merit this response from Jesus. And the fact that this man was justly condemned to the cross makes it pretty evident that his spiritual resume before his crucifixion was not filled with good works either.

So what happened? God the Father radically intervened and gave this undeserving man the gracious gift of faith to believe in and treasure Jesus Christ. And the result? Jesus definitively declares that this former criminal will be with Him in paradise! 

Quite amazingly, this crucified criminal is one of the few people that the Bible makes absolutely certain we will see in heaven. We are not certain of this criminal’s sinful past, but we are certain of his future. He will most assuredly be in paradise with his Lord and Savior, Jesus. And this was secured for him, not by anything he could have done or said, but because God graciously transformed his heart and gave him the gift of faith to believe in Christ and Christ alone for his salvation. 

In a similar fashion, on a spiritual level, we are all condemned criminals before God Almighty. And the only way to escape the condemnation of eternal damnation is to be given faith to believe in Christ. And if God so graciously gives us this gift of faith, then we too with new hearts and new ears will hear Jesus say to us, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Reflection: Do you know someone who right now does not trust in Christ as their Savior? Or maybe that person is you. Today, ask God to do a miraculous thing and give them (or you!) a new heart and genuine faith in Christ so that they repent of their sins and faithfully follow Jesus.