The criminal who preached the gospel as he was dying

One of the most popular go-to guys in the Bible is the penitent thief on the cross. As told in Luke 23:39-43, he was crucified next to Christ, who assured him of his salvation while they hung there in unimaginable suffering. He’s the textbook example of justification by grace through faith alone; a moving illustration that a deathbed conversion is possible no matter what kind of life one has lived.

I love the video clip of Alistair Begg delivering a dramatic parable based on this story, which you can watch here. The thief reaches paradise, and Begg humorously imagines him failing to answer any theological questions; he has no idea why he’s there other than “the Man on the middle cross said I could come.” I fully agree with Begg’s point, that our salvation is entirely the Lord’s doing, by grace alone.

But we see in the Biblical account that somehow, the man did know a few things about Jesus; in fact, the substance and depth of the truths he speaks as he’s dying, which he may not have realized himself, are fascinating. There was a miracle on that cross, especially considering that according to Matthew 27:44, both of the criminals crucified with Jesus taunted Him. One of them did a complete 180 in those few hours, as the Lord not only granted him faith and repentance but taught him some pretty amazing Christology, like He did Peter (Matthew 16:17).

Sermons can be written based on his few words, and here I’ll just briefly break down the rich meat of his faith, whether he was conscious of it or not. Simply put, he preached the gospel, and he’s a model for us who strive to do that today. After all, what he said worked.

“Do you not even fear God …”

He knew where to start. Knowledge and wisdom begin with the fear of God, the Bible teaches. God is absolute in His holiness, His glory, His authority, and His power, and before Him all we can be is undone, as Isaiah put it. Awestruck, broken, and trembling, before He even speaks a word.

Jesus Himself, the embodiment of love and compassion, said we should fear the Lord, because He can cast us into hell (Luke 12:4-5). Fear hardly begins to describe the crushing terror an unrepentant sinner will experience before God. Which brings us back to the thief: 

“ … seeing you are under the same condemnation?”

Starting the sentence with God’s judgment indicates he wasn’t just talking about the civil penalty of crucifixion here. All sin is sin against God.

The Bible says we’ll all stand before God in judgment. We’re all sinners and therefore all guilty before a holy God. The penalty for sin is death; not just as the world delivers, but as God does — the “second death,” what Jesus called “the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41).

“And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds …”

Many people think of condemnation as unjust or unfair, but the thief recognized his own sin, the justice of his guilt, and confessed it. He didn’t get the chance to live a changed life, but in effect, what he did was repent.

Repentance is, in your heart, renouncing your sin and turning toward God through Christ, which the thief was about to do. When John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus, he preached repentance. When Jesus started His ministry, He preached repentance. When Jesus left this world, He told His disciples to preach repentance, which they did when asked what must be done to be saved.

Repentance must come first; that’s what opens the door to Jesus. Now the thief can turn to Him:

“… but this Man has done nothing wrong.” 

How did he know this? Obviously, at some point, the thief had heard of or perhaps even witnessed Jesus’ ministry, especially considering what he would say next.

It makes me wonder, did he grasp the significance of Jesus’ innocence? Was he a Jew who recognized the life-saving blood of a spotless Lamb splattered on a post on Passover? Did God, in His amazing grace, invite the thief to cast his sin upon the sinless Man on the cross in exchange for His right standing with God?

Whatever the case, the thief who knew he was dead in sin also knew that the Man crucified next to him was his only hope.

“Lord …”

He called Jesus — a bloody, beaten, humiliated Man hanging naked from a Roman cross — Lord. Judging by what he was about to say, I don’t think he meant this as merely a title of nobility or respect, but as submission to the Messiah, the Son of God, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

The thief knew Jesus wasn’t just a prophet or a moral teacher. The Greek word kyrios is the equivalent of the Hebrew word Adonai. He believed in Jesus’ divine identity and authority, and trusted his life to Him in complete surrender. That’s all He calls us to do to be saved.

“… remember me …”

Here he makes it personal. Even though he recognized Jesus’ authority as Lord, he didn’t just appeal to that. He also appealed to His compassion, His love, His grace, and His mercy. Jesus is Lord, and He is our Savior. It takes much boldness to make a personal request of such an imposing and awesome authority, but we can do that because He has invited us into a relationship of love and grace, deeper and more intimate than any relationship in this world.

Jesus indeed remembers us, and so much more. He intercedes for us, gives Himself in our place, and promises to be with us always, because He loves us more than anyone else ever can.

“… when You come into Your kingdom.”

Remember, the thief said this while Jesus was about to die. But not only did the thief matter-of-factly speak of what Jesus would do after death, but he called it His kingdom! What he saw in Christ was a glorious victory, what many more would see three days later.

Death has no power over Him or His kingdom. The grave could not hold Him, and His victory is our victory. Those who believe in Him will rise, too, and live forever in His kingdom.

The thief covered it: Repent and believe. He got it. Jesus loves when that happens, especially from someone you wouldn’t expect to get it, like the Roman centurion (Luke 7:1-10), or the persistent Gentile woman (Matthew 15:21-28), or this condemned criminal. And the result? Salvation, on the spot. “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”   

If you repent and believe, He will be with you today, and you will be with Him forever.