April 2002 chaplain's corner

The Chaplain's Corner is a monthly message for chaplains.

Chaplain's Corner - April 2002

Rev. Rich Hines

This message is primarily for those who call upon the name of Christ as their own Lord and Savior, and are serving as correctional or rescue mission chaplains within the United States.

This month I want you chaplains to consider one more passage unique to the Gospel of Luke. It's found in Luke 23:39-43. So far this year we've looked at two other conversions unique to Luke's gospel record, Zacchaeus and the sinful woman in Simon the Pharisees house. Our passage this month is the record of the conversion of a man known as "the repentant thief."

His repentance and saving faith took place at Calvary, or as the Hebrews called the place, Golgotha, the Place of a Skull. The background in Luke's presentation of the facts, starts in verse 32.

32 There were also two others, criminals, led with Him (Jesus) to be put to death.

33 And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left.

A comparison with other gospel writers' accounts helps our understanding of the text in Luke 23.

John 19:17,18

17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha,

18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.

Matthew 27:35,38

35 Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots."

38 Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.

Mark 15:27,28

27 With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.

28 So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."

So we see that all the gospel writers mention these others that were crucified with Jesus. But only Matthew and Mark mention that they were robbers (KJV "thieves").

Working in corrections, most of you know there is a difference between a petty thief and a robber. A thief breaks in and steals property, but a robber takes something off your person. The robbers' theft is a personal attack, threatening their victim's physical well being, hence in modern courts the penalties are generally greater for robbery than for a theft of property which does not involve personal contact with the owner.

The Holy Spirit through Luke used another word to describe these men who died next to Jesus. He called them "criminals." Mark as we've seen also quoted a prophecy from Isaiah 53:12 about the Christ dying with "transgressors." That word literally means "law breakers."

It is very possible that these two criminals were members of some band that especially attacked and victimized Roman officials. Maybe they were like Barabbas, whom Mark 15:7 says was an insurrectionist and a murderer.

John 18:40 tells us a bit more about Barabbas. John also said Barabbas was a "robber," which is the exact same word that Matthew and Mark used for these two dying on either side of Jesus' cross. This is why it is possible that these two also might have been insurrectionists.

By further examining the account in Matthew and Mark, we learn that at the beginning of their crucifixion, both these criminals reproached and reviled Christ (See Matthew 27:44 and Mark 15:32).

Matthew 27:44 Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him...

Mark 15:32 ...Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

So coming to the passage at hand in Luke 23:39-44 - which took place a bit later, we now read:

39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us."

40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?"

41 "And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong."

42 Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."

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

We are right to refer to the man Christ spoke to in this passage as the repentant thief, because here, only in Luke, we see his changed heart. Here, only in Luke, his tone and attitude towards Jesus changed from what it had been earlier. When he was first put on his cross together with the other dying criminal he had "reviled" Him. But now, he no longer thought it was right to do so. What, or better, who changed him? The ultimate answer to that question is the Holy Spirit.

Somehow as he writhed in pain on his own cross, he also watched and heard what was going on. He would have heard what the chief priests and Sanhedrin members standing there said about Jesus. "He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God." (Luke 23:35). He would have heard the people say "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross." (Matthew 27:40). "He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. ... for He said 'I am the Son of God.' " (Matthew 27:42,43b NASB).

He would have heard all of this and God's Spirit may have used it to start him thinking.

Then too, possibly he could read the sign Pilate had ordered to be nailed above Jesus on His cross. Normally these signs listed the crimes for which the man was being executed. Jesus' sign read "This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John's accounts taken all together).

Then lastly, he would have seen and heard Jesus Himself. Possibly to help us understand how the process of his conversion was assisted, Luke alone tells readers Jesus' first words from the cross, "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (Luke 23:34). This certainly could have been used by the Holy Spirit to start him thinking about his own need for forgiveness!

Note the change in this repentant thief in Luke 23:39,40 again -

39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, (obviously sarcastically and spuriously) "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us."

40 But the other, (the now repentant thief) answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?"

Furthermore, Luke 23:41 shows he now believed his death sentence was just, and that he deserved it. In effect, he publicly confessed that he had sinned.

41 "And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds (meaning our sins); but this Man has done nothing wrong."

After rebuking his fellow criminal, he spoke directly to Jesus:

42 Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."

Honestly, there is a textual variant to this verse. The earlier manuscripts have it: "And he said, Jesus, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom" (ASV), "And he was saying, 'Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!' " (NASB).

Note neither of these texts say he called Jesus "Lord," the way the later texts (KJV, NKJV) do.

Whether he called Jesus "Lord" verbally or not, from a Jewish standpoint, his mention of Jesus' future kingdom, proves he now believed Jesus was Lord and Messiah - the coming Christ who will reign. He therefore did recognized Jesus' Lordship, and in faith he asked to be part of His kingdom.

The MacArthur Study Bible, which we have given every chaplain in attendance at one of our past Chaplain Enrichment Seminars, has a footnote about this man's statement in verse 42. It reads:

"The penitent thief's prayer reflected his belief that the soul lives on after death; that Christ had a right to rule over a kingdom of the souls of men; and that He would soon enter that kingdom despite His impending death. His request to be remembered was a plea for mercy, which also reveals that the thief understood he had no hope but divine grace, and that the dispensing of that grace lay in Jesus' power. All of this demonstrates true faith on the part of the dying thief,..." A great footnote!

There's a lot to take note of in the words of this repentant robber/thief.

In regards to Jesus, this man believed He had done nothing wrong. Put that together with the fact that his words in verse 42 show us he realized Jesus was the promised Messiah (Lord) and coming King, who could deliver him from the eternal judgement he feared, but knew he deserved (see again verse 40).

... "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?"

He must have sensed Jesus was God in human flesh. Hence, he must have believed Jesus was sinless. The dying thief said, "...this Man has done nothing wrong." (verse 41)

Verse 42 also indicates he believed Jesus, who was dying next to him, would rise again and return in power.

"Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."

In Romans 10:9,10, which was written years later, we have a Biblical explanation of true saving faith in Christ.

"...if you confess with your mouth (literally) Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

This is exactly what the repentant thief did - confessed Jesus as Lord with his mouth, and believed in his heart that He would rise from the dead.

When the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee came to verses like Matthew 12:34, which says, "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.", he would say: "Whatever is contained in the well of the heart, eventually comes up in the bucket of the mouth." Ultimately and eventually that's true, and will work both ways, good or bad.

Yet at a certain point in time it's possible to utter the right words and not understand them. Worse, there are those who say the right thing, but are not sincere in their heart of hearts. These people say the right words just to please others, or as some kind of formula.

What's not possible is to believe with all your heart and not eventually evidence it outwardly - with words. The internal part of saving faith (the heart) and the external part (the confession with the mouth) are always tied together in Scripture.

In your evangelistic effort at the detention center, or the rescue mission; this is what you're praying for, changed hearts that will bring forth words that confess Jesus as personal King (Lord) and Savior. God's Spirit always works on the heart first. You then must be concerned with the heart, the real control center of each person to whom you give Christ's saving gospel. You should realize words by themselves aren't enough.

Yet this dying thief meant business! His words were a true reflection of his heart faith. He knew he was a hopeless sinner and that eternal judgement was awaiting him, hence he was afraid. When anyone is truly saved , they are saved from God, by God. They hide from God's wrath in God's grace found only in the work of Jesus Christ, the God-Man.

Whether or not he had heard that Jesus taught earlier (in Matthew 10:28) "...do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.", we cannot know. One thing for sure we do know is that he did fear God's righteous judgement, which he knew he deserved. Therefore we can be sure he wasn't just mouthing the right words, but that they were a true reflection of what was in his heart.

We also know this from Christ's response to his request. In verse 43 we read:

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

That word "Assuredly" is literally the word "Amen!" It means "of a truth" or "truly." When placed at the beginning of a sentence it contains the idea that "this is a solemn promise."

Next, note the words of Christ, "I say to you,". Jesus knew the dying thief believed He was Lord. When you believe the Lord has spoken, you also know what He said stands. The promise Jesus made to this man was guaranteed to him by Christ's own character as God, who cannot lie. When God says "Truly, I give My solemn promise as the Eternal God, who cannot lie" and then makes a definite promise - you know it's good. Nothing can change it!

And Jesus' promise to this repentant sinner, as he was dying, didn't just grant his request that he would someday be included in His glorious physical kingdom on earth. It was even better than that, because it was sooner. "Today, you will be with Me in Paradise." (verse 43).

The only other places this word "Paradise" is used in the New Testament are 2 Corinthians 12:4 and Revelation 2:7. The context of those verses make this word apply to heaven. In 2 Corinthians 12 it is compared to "the third heaven" and in Revelation 2 it is promised to overcomers - that they will "eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God."

On this day of crucifixion and death in Luke 23, "Paradise" immediately applied to "Abraham's bosom" (see Luke 16:22) which was the place of blessedness in which all the Old Testament saints spirit's were blessed and comforted, awaiting Christ's final escort to the final heaven, the eternal abode of God. So, even here in Luke 23:43, ultimately the "Paradise" Christ promised the repentant man meant heaven. With biblical authority a chaplain can tell people that if they truly repent and believe Christ's gospel, He guarantees them a place with Himself in heaven.

But being close doesn't count. What counts is a persons attitude towards Christ before they die or at the point of their death. In this passage we see that from the side of Jesus Christ, one man eventually ended up in heaven and the other ended up in hell.

Two other truths are brought home to us in this text, unique to Luke 23.

First, contrary to what most people believe today, it is clear that the Bible does not teach that everyone (or almost everyone) is automatically saved from God's judgement when they die. The Bible teaches only those who become God's adopted children through repentance and proper faith in Christ, end up in heaven. By proper faith, I mean completely trusting in the only correct remedy for sin, the Lord Jesus Christ's substitutionary death and resurrection for sinners.

Second, this passage together with others like 2 Corinthians 5:8 and Philippians 1:20-23, teach that the saved go immediately into Christ's victorious presence when they die. They do not have to experience years of any so called "soul-sleep" first, as some teach. Other false and unbiblical teaching requires persons spend time in a purgatory first, where they can suffer enough to pay for their own sins and that their sins can be erased by the merits and prayers of other people living on earth.

Christ's promise to this repentant believer that his experience of forever being with Him, and ultimately going to heaven would begin that very day! The basis of his cleansing from sin was Christ's death and the application of it was his trust in Christ alone.

Lastly, Luke 23:45 explains the words of the repentant thief were uttered before noon (the "sixth hour"). Most New Testament scholars therefore put Christ's words to him, recorded in Luke 23:43, as Jesus' second words from the cross. If you study all the words of Christ from the cross, you find one theme runs through every statement, love.

Whereas Jesus' first words from the cross "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do" (Luke 23:34)

expressed His love for a rather large group of wicked sinners, this second word in Luke 23:43 "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise" expressed His love for an individual repentant sinner.

Christ's love sought to secure the dying man, in the last hours of his life. Jesus' love gave the dying man assurance and security as he faced eternity.

Think of the passages we've looked at in Luke so far this year. Jesus' love in each case sought to secure the repentant sinners. With Zacchaeus, Christ, affirmed "he also IS A SON OF ABRAHAM" meaning of course, a true spiritual son. To the sinful but repentant and believing prostitute in Simon the Pharisee's house, He said, "your faith HAS SAVED YOU. Go in PEACE." And of course, to this dying but repentant thief, as we have seen, He guaranteed heaven.

In much the same way, Christ's sixth statement, or sixth word from His cross, shows His love for all His followers in any age. John 19:30 records His sixth statement from the cross, "It is finished!" By that statement we are reminded that Jesus' love for His own wants them to know that their sins have been completely PAID IN FULL, and that He has won the victory over their sin. Shouldn't that secure a believer?

I close with an encouragement to you to teach the inmates and residents about this love of Christ and that it's never too late, while they draw breath and have the mental capacity to think about eternity and God's unalterable truths - to repent and believe on Christ as Lord and Savior. Luke 23:39-43 proves there are "death bed conversions."

Rev. Rich Hines

Minister To Chaplains