From Death to Life
Can you imagen to wake up one day and you know this is the last day of your life.
Because you and your friend have been caught for have been stealing and now you are sitting and eating your last meal. During the meal you and your friend reflect on your life all the fun stuff you two have been doing over the years and make you both smile and laugh.
And suddenly you start to talk about how you both get her in prison together and now you are eating your last meal. Both of you stopped talking and went silent. The tears started filling up your eye’s, but you could stop it before your friend saw it.
Few hours later both of you hanging on the cross together with a man with name Jesus.
You had heard about some of the things Jesus had done. And you wanted to believe in him, but you are afraid of what your friend would say, so you kept it for yourself.
Suddenly Jesus starts to speak “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34 ESV) And you hear and see what the soldiers do with Jesus’s cloth and what others say about Him. “And they cast lots to divide his garments. And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”” (Luke 23:34b-38 ESV) Then your friend starts to mock Jesus “One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” you couldn’t handle it; you start to defend Him. “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:40-41ESV) And you turn to Jesus and say Jesus, “remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus said to you, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:42-43 ESV)
Even if Jesus hanging on the cross and barely could breathe, He still had compassion to do His farther will, that is to save people. Jesus looked at this man’s heart and saved him. This man waked up as a dead man but died as a living man.
Maybe you who read this text are like this robber who have heard about Jesus but have not received Him into your heart. Pray to Jesus and ask Him to move into your heart, thank Him for who He is and what He has done. And start to believe in Him. Amen
Jesus died on the cross so you and me could be alive. Have our own relationship with our Farther in heaven. Walking around together with Him and listening to Him and let His will rule in our lives. This is what Jesus’ practice and taught and want us to do the same.
