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STEALING THE THUNDER
OF THE THIEF
I recently saw a list of some
of the most famous thieves in American History. People like Bonnie and
Clyde were near the top and even Robin Hood was given special mention.
But there was one glaring omission. He is not famous in the sense that
everyone knows his name or what he looked like. He is not know for what
he stole or who he stole from. He is simply called "the thief on the
cross."
It is a favorite line that finds its way into many a conversation about
salvation. "What about the thief on the cross?" I once heard a slight,
yet strangely refreshing variation, "what about the crook on the cross?"
And even when we were handing out literature in Jamaica, one for the
shopkeepers kept arguing the case of the "thief on the cross." Different
terms, same argument.
Well, what about the thief on the cross? Why is he given so much
attention by our religious friends? As Isaiah predicted, Jesus was
"numbered with the transgressors" (Isa. 53:12)
crucified between "two robbers" (Mk. 15:27). But these two men who were
alike in life were separated in death. Only one of them said to Jesus,
"remember me when You come in Your
kingdom," to which the Lord replied, "truly I say to you, today you
shall be with Me in Paradise" (Lk. 23:42,43). Does that prove that a man
is saved by faith alone?
What about Luke 5:42? That's where Jesus healed the paralytic who had
been let down through the roof, saying that He did so "in order that you
may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins." In
the same gospel, He told Zacchaeus "salvation has come to this house" (Lk.
19:9). When was the last time you heard anyone say, "what about the
paralytic" or, "what about Zacchaeus?" What these and other cases prove
is that the thief on the cross was not
the only person to whom Jesus extended salvation before His death. And
it was not until after His resurrection that He pronounced with all
authority, "He who believes and is baptized shall be saved" (Mk. 16:16).
Why would the Lord hold the thief or the paralytic or anyone accountable
to a command that had not yet been given?
What about Romans 10:9? "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as
Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you
shall be saved." People argue that baptism is not essential for
salvation since the thief was not baptized. If that's the case, then you
don't have to believe or confess to be saved either. He couldn't believe
in his heart in the resurrection because the event had not yet occurred.
He couldn't confess Jesus as Lord because it was not until God raised
Him from the dead that He made Him "both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36).
If you want to make the thief on the cross the pattern for salvation
today, you're going to have to cut out more then baptism.
What about Romans 6:3,4? "Or do you not know that all of us who have
been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?
Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in
order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the
Father, so we too might walk in newness of life." Baptism is not just
some ritual to be checked off the list. It is what connects us to the
death and resurrection of Jesus. The old man of sin is buried with
Christ and the new man raises up to a new life of righteousness. Even if
the thief called a "timeout" and came down from the cross, he couldn't
have been baptized "into His death" or raised up in the likeness of His
resurrection. This passage alone ought to put the whole argument to
death.
Don't let the thief on the cross rob you of your own salvation. He never
got to see the resurrected Christ come out of the grave as conqueror
over sin and death. But we have the eyewitness testimony of those who
did and heard Him say, "he who believes and is baptized shall be saved"
(Mk. 16:16). If you respond in faith and obedience to His gospel call,
this same Jesus will remember you when He comes into His kingdom. So,
what about you?
-- Bubba Garner via
Gospel Power, Vol. 13, No. 29, July 16, 2006.
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