The Thief on the Cross Introduction: This man who died next to our savior teaches us many great lessons. This lesson will primarily focus on this man's attitude at the point of death. Body: 1. The Man (Matthew 27: 38-44) · His reputation was that of a thief, Luke 23: 39 adds “malefactor”. He was a criminal. · He reviled Jesus, mocked and ridiculed Him just like the Jewish leaders, (Matthew 27: 39-43). He was guilty. · This was prophesied centuries before: Isaiah 53: 12 and Psalms 22: 7-8. · He deserved to die. He was crucified! His crimes led to his crucifixion and death. · He admitted before Jesus that he was getting what he deserved, (Luke 23: 40-41) And that Jesus was not, Hebrews 7: 26. · He knew Jesus was innocent of the crimes He was being crucified for. · He knew Jesus was a king with a kingdom and would enter it, (Luke 23:43). · He knew that even though they were all going to die on the cross, they would live beyond it. He believed in life beyond the grave. Resurrection · Sin brings suffering. 2. His Repentance, (Luke 23: 40-42) · He rebuked the other thief for continuing to blaspheme Jesus, (verse 39). The one thief had changed his mind about Jesus possibly because of the attitude he saw in Jesus on the cross. We know sorrow for past wrongs often leads to repentance, (2 Corinthians 7: 10). · The thief began to show reverence for God, (vs 40). He told the other thief he should fear God because both of them deserved to die. · He called Jesus “Lord”. · Recall that Jesus died before the thieves, John 19: 32-34. Therefore they heard Jesus’ words in Luke 23: 34 on forgiveness. They experienced the earthquake and the three hours of darkness. They also heard the words of the centurion in Luke 23: 47. So the one thief believed Jesus was a king, (vs 42). The thief did not ask to be removed from the cross, but be remembered when Christ came into his Kingdom. · This shows that anybody, no matter how bad, can change if they come to Jesus. 3. Christ’s Promise, (Luke 23:43) · because Jesus had the power to forgive sin, (Luke 5: 24), and do to the penitence of the thief, Jesus made this promise to the thief. Note that this promise was only made to this one thief and no one else. A special promise. · This was a promise of salvation, of eternal life. A promise to him of leaving this World of pain and suffering to go to be with Jesus in a place called paradise. This is the place of the righteous dead before the day of judgment. A place of comfort and rest, (Luke 16: 22, 25) 4. Conclusion · Sadly, many people look to this account of the thief on the cross and say that this shows one does not have to be baptized to inherit eternal life. But the thief did not need to be baptized for the same reason that Moses, Abraham, and David did not. The thief was not subject to the New Testament command to be baptized into christ's death, (Romans 6: 3-4). Why? Jesus had not died yet! The new covenant did not come into force until after Jesus died Hebrews 9: 16-17)
Prepared by Bobby Stafford The church of Christ at Granby, MO Located at For more lessons and Sermons please visit | ||
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