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This emailed question went on to say that the thief on the cross received “no baptism, no communion, no confirmation, no speaking in tongues, no mission trips, no volunteerism, no church clothes; he couldn’t even bend his knees to pray. HE DIDN’T SAY the sinner’s prayer. And, among other things, he was a thief. Jesus didn’t take away his pain. He didn’t heal his body or smote His scoffers. Yet, it was a thief that walked into heaven …. No spin from brilliant theologians. No ego or arrogance. No shiny lights, no skinny jeans, no crafty works, no haze machine, no donuts, no coffee in the entrance. Just a naked man, dying on a cross, unable to even fold his arms to pray.”
I’ll start the answer to this question by stating that we believe what happened to the thief on the cross is one of the most remarkable conversions recorded in the Bible, and the story unfolds in Matthew (27:38-44) and Luke (23:33-43).
Matthew, inspired by the Holy Spirit, writes: “Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.”
At this time, many were being crucified in Jerusalem because of insurrection carried out against Rome. Such thieves were quickly dispatched and executed without the benefit of a complete trial, if any. So there may have been several men crucified other than the two mentioned here.
There also seems to be some spiritual significance to the placement of the two thieves, at least to Augustine who wrote, “The very cross, if thou mark it well, was a judgment-seat: for the judge being set in the midst, the one who believed was delivered, the other who mocked Him was condemned. Already He has signified what He shall do to the quick and the dead; some He will set on His right, others on His left hand.”
In Matthew 27, we read how those who passed by Christ on the cross reviled Him and wagged their heads saying, “Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.” The chief priests, scribes, and elders also mocked Him saying, “He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.” Matthew goes on to write, “The thieves, also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.”
But something happened. The Scripture doesn’t say what it was. Two of them were cursing Him, reviling Him, blaspheming Him. When did things start to change for the one thief? Perhaps it was when he heard Jesus say, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”
At the crucifixion site, Luke lifts us a little higher, allowing us to hear the conversation between these two condemned men: “And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?”
Their comments show us a clear separation taking place. While one thief keeps railing against Christ, spewing more venom as he faces certain death, the other owns up to his guilt—the first requirement of repentance—and says, “We indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.”
The human race is plagued with the problem of blaming others for failures. But this thief made no excuses. He blamed no one for his plight, and he held no enmity toward his executioners. By refusing to blame others for his misdeeds, this dying thief conducted himself in true repentance. Instead, he chose to focus on the innocence of Christ, stating, “this man hath done nothing amiss.”
Think of that—the religious leaders mocked him, the soldiers cursed him, and others derided him, but a thief spoke kindly of Him.
Now this condemned man was ready to speak directly to Christ: “And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”
In a single flash of light, the Holy Spirit revealed Christ to him and taught him of the Lord’s future kingdom of glory, though, at the moment, He was hanging in shame and agony on the tree. The thief did not ask Jesus for any physical relief from his pain, only to be remembered in the future kingdom—that is true humility.
As this condemned man prayed, he was close enough to Christ to see Him bleed—precious blood that cleansed him of his sins so effectually that, in the same moment, made him as fit to enter paradise as Christ Himself.
Something else should be noticed here: near the cross of this dying thief stood the apostle John, Mary, the mother of our Lord; her sister, Mary, the wife of Cleophas; Mary Magdalene, and John’s own mother. But the malefactor turned to none of these saints for help. He turned from them and prayed directly to Jesus, with nothing and nobody between his sin-stained soul and the sin-atoning Savior. Had he trusted in any one of these great saints, he would have perished, for salvation is in Christ—He alone is the one and only refuge for sinners.
The person who wrote this email was correct—this thief received no baptism in water; he could not take the Lord’s Supper, and didn’t he belong to any church. Yet he was instantly and gloriously saved. This tells us that while these things are possibly very important in their own right, they have nothing to do with one’s salvation. Salvation is so exact that if any of these other things were a necessity, this man could not have been saved. But the Lord did save him.
Those who claim that a person must undergo water baptism, communion, or other such things not named in order to be saved are preaching a false gospel. Paul called it “another gospel” (Gal. 1:6).
The Bible says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).
And for those who claim that such is too easy, we would remind them that it is not easy at all, considering the terrible price that Christ paid at Calvary.
The salvation of the thief on the cross was instant, with no mention of any probationary place, such as purgatory as taught by the Catholics. Jesus told him, “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Jesus let him know that he was entering into that kingdom on that very day. Even though he was taken to paradise, his duration there was very short. Jesus immediately came back after liberating all of these precious souls, with this man included in that great number.
Invariably, we always get far more from the Lord than what we ask. The Lord will always answer a sincere cry and appeal. He has never turned a single one away who came with such humility and petition. If you want to know how to reach God, we believe that the example set by this dying thief on the cross cannot be improved upon: “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
How does the thief on the cross fit into our theology? He fits into Romans 10:13, which says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” We believe that “whosoever” includes the entirety of the world, and it included the thief on the cross who, by resting his soul for eternal salvation upon the dying Savior, had His kingdom assured to him. Praise God.
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