With Me in Paradise

Jesus addresses his second word from the cross to one of the men crucified with him. We often call him a “thief,” but he is probably a Jewish insurrectionist against Rome. He’s a pretty rough character! Mark says that after they were all crucified, he joined the other criminal in “railing at Jesus,” mocking and demanding that he save them (Mark 15:32). But as the hours wear on, his perspective changes. It seems likely that hearing Jesus pray for his enemies had a lot to do with it (Luke 23:34).

First, he sees himself in a new light. Earlier, he saw himself primarily as a victim, griping about the raw deal he’d gotten in life and how he deserved better from God. Now he realizes he deserves nothing from God. He is “receiving the due reward for [his] deeds.” He is overwhelmed by the “fear of God.” With death approaching, it hits him that he will soon give an account to God, and it is not going to go well. But then he begins to see Jesus in a new light, too.

Throughout his ministry, Jesus has claimed to be God’s King. He is the long-promised Messiah of the Old Testament, come to rescue God’s people, restore God’s rule in our world, reign over a never-ending kingdom. This claim is what everyone ridicules at the cross: the crown of thorns, the purple robe, the sign over his head declaring him ‘king of the Jews,’ the jeers from the crowd, the “drink” from the sponge. All of this mocks Jesus’ claim to be king. The whole point of crucifixion was to humiliate the victim as a helpless weakling. Jesus’ own followers gave up hope that he was God’s King at his crucifixion (Luke 24:18–21). All this is what makes the criminal’s discovery so amazing. As he observes Jesus, it dawns on him: he really is God’s King! Yes, he looks weak and defeated now. Yes, the world mocks him as a pathetic phony now. But in a flash of faith, the criminal sees past these appearances: Jesus is God’s King! This criminal may not understand how it will all work out, but he knows this cross is not the end of Jesus’ story. Somehow, Jesus will come through this mess and wind up ruling the world!

Of course, this is exactly what Jesus has been telling his disciples: he is a different kind of king than they expected. Jesus is a king who came not to be served, but to serve; not to surround himself with the impressive and beautiful but the sinful and broken; not to destroy his enemies but to lay down his life for them. Millions of Christians will sing songs and take the Lord’s Supper during Easter week to celebrate this. But at the cross, only one person in the whole world understands it—this crucified criminal!

But saving faith requires more than just accurate knowledge about Jesus; saving faith requires personal trust in Jesus. And this is exactly what we see from this crucified man: he declares his faith in Jesus. He gasps, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” This is an amazing confession of faith! Jesus earlier called his disciples not to “be ashamed of him” before the world (Luke 9:26). Over all the ridicule and slander at Calvary, this man declares: “everyone else may hate you and despise you, but I confess you as the true king.” Jesus still calls his followers to confess him as Lord, and to boldly identify with him before the world. (Rom 10:9–10)

But this criminal also makes an audacious request of faith: “remember me when you come into your kingdom.” We would not say it like this. We might say, “Jesus, forgive me!” Or “Jesus, save me!” But the criminal is thinking about that Kingdom Jesus has been talking about. He may be thinking of the Old Testament stories of David, from 1 Samuel. God promised to make David king over Israel. But then David spent many years running from his enemies, living in caves, suffering and humiliated—he did not look much like a king! But a small group of men believed he was the rightful king, and they pledged loyalty to David. They stuck with him through all his trials. So when David finally “came into his kingdom,” he “remembered” and rewarded these faithful friends. This is the idea the criminal has in mind: “Jesus, you may be humiliated and despised now, but I know you will soon trade this cross for a crown. When you have all glory and authority, please remember me! I pledge myself to you now; show me favor then!"

I call this audacious, because there is no reason Jesus should grant his request! Think about it: hours before death, this man realizes he’s wasted his life, and is about to face the music. He also realizes Jesus, who he has ignored and despised until the last thirty seconds, may be able to help him! But what does this man have to offer? A wretched and shameful past he can do absolutely nothing about. And it’s not as if he can promise to do better in the future—he is stripped naked and nailed to a cross for goodness sake! He has nothing to offer. So he does the only thing he can: throw himself on the mercies of the King: “I know I don’t deserve it. But I heard you ask God to forgive those Roman soldiers, and I was hoping you might have some mercy for me. Will you clear some room for me in your kingdom?” It’s an audacious request! How does Jesus respond?

The man addressed Jesus as a king, and I don’t think Jesus ever sounds more kingly than in this second word from the cross: “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” With this precious pronouncement, Jesus tells us at least two things about the kind of king that he is. First, he is a great king. He has the power and the authority to open, at a moment’s notice, the gate of Paradise to whoever he wishes. In Revelation 3:7, Jesus says he is the one who “has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one will open.” (cf Isa 22:22) What could be more important this Easter Week than soberly considering this truth?

However the world may despise him now, Jesus alone has the power to open, and to shut, heaven’s door. But Jesus’ words also tell us he is a gracious king. Why would Jesus even consider this criminal’s brazen request? The guy apparently had no use for Jesus during his ministry, and openly ridiculed him with the rest of the world as he died on the cross. He only drags up to Jesus when he runs out of every other option—then has the nerve to ask for a place in his Kingdom like he’s Peter, James, or John!

But here’s the truth: whatever your story may be, you and I have just as little to offer Jesus when we finally drag up to him; and our request that he welcome us into God’s family in spite of all our past and ongoing sin is every bit as brazen. But if we will come to Jesus—if we will come dump at the foot of his cross a lifetime of embarrassing sin, a broken and humble spirit, and a flicker of hope that he might take us anyway—we will make the same discovery that this criminal did. Instead of slamming the gate of Paradise in our face, Jesus flings it wide open. He welcomes us into the heart of God today, right now, not waiting until we’ve straightened up a little bit. The moment we identify with him, he identifies with us: “you will be with me.” What a great and gracious king!

Have you come to him?

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Article by Eric Smith
Senior Pastor, Sharon Baptist Church