One of the criminals who was hanged insulted him, saying, 'If you are the Christ, save yourself and us!' But the other answered, and rebuking him said, 'Don't you even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.' He said to Jesus, 'Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.' Jesus said to him, 'Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.' Luke 23:39 WEBThree men were nailed to wooden crosses and raised high in the air, naked and exposed for all to see, while they slowly died. The ones on the sides were thieves, while the Man in the middle was Jesus Christ. While they hung there, one of the thieves began to repent, and with only minutes left in his life, he made things right with God. Jesus told him: "Today you will be with Me in paradise."
In Romans, the scripture reads: 'The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart'. It is speaking of the word of faith which we preach. If you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart, one believes resulting in righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes in him will not be disappointed' (Romans 10:8'10).
The thief did just that, he believed that Jesus was coming into His kingdom as a King, and then he asked Jesus to remember him. But what did the thieves family think? He had lived his life as a villain, robbing and stealing from others, and then he died by capital punishment. You can bet that his family and friends thought this man went to hell, but he did not.
If you have lost a loved one who was not right with God, take hope knowing that God is merciful, He is gracious, and even if they had seconds left and whispered a prayer, they will be waiting happily in paradise. Only God knows who will be there and who will not. If you are reading this, know that Jesus is still the Man in the middle. If you turn to Him, you will be saved but it is a choice that only you can make. Both thieves had Jesus beside them and both of them had the opportunity, but one man remained lost, while one man was saved. This choice is yours, and yours alone.
Prayer: Jesus if it was not too late for the thief on the cross, then it is not too late for me. Come into my life and be my Lord today. I choose You. Please forgive me of my mistakes, help me learn from them and to live a life that is pleasing to You from this day on.Note: Ladies, if you would like to participate, Thursdays at our "Ladies in Distress" group is "Thankful Thursday"! You are invited to join in and share with the group about how God has blessed you! Here is the link
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Amen
Prayer: Jesus if it was not too late for the thief on the cross, then it is not too late for me. Come into my life and be my Lord today. I choose You. Please forgive me of my mistakes, help me learn from them and to live a life that is pleasing to You from this day on... Each day I begin my day by mindfully choosing you Father, and often by the end of a day I have lost my focus and my inner smile. I come home deflated and frustrated too many days Lord! Help me to keep my focus on you throughout each day Father. Help me to come home with the same inner joy that I begin with... I'm not asking for the pain to be less or the work to be easier (although that would be welcomed eagerly)... I'm asking for me to keep my focus on you all day so that none of that matters<3 Restore my mindset and help me to be kinder (less grumpy) to those who matter most to me. (I tend to put a smile on for strangers and show my grumpy spirit to those clostest to me) Help me to be the light shining bright for someone else to see you Lord. Help me to keep my happy spirit all day. Thank you Amen Thank you Pastor. Praying for Sylvia! Hope she is feeling better asap! Tooth pain is the worst! I have been dealing with my impacted wisdom tooth lately and I feel for her!! God bless
Thank you Jesus for being part of our lives.We worship and praise you.Love and adore you.Blessings for Sylvia and Paster Dion.God love you and so do we. Amen
Thank you Jesus, Amen!
Amen!!!
Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. Amen!
Amen!
Lord, I believe and trust in You. Always be by my side, Amen.
O Lord, thank you Pastor Dion for your words of comfort! We all have loved ones that have passed away leaving us wondering if we will see them again on the other side ... But just like the thief on the cross, our Lord is so good and merciful
that He would have heard a small prayer whispered in the last few minutes, even while we were unable to be there or get there in time!!! Thank you so much dear Pastor for your words of comfort!!!
In Jesus name, amen.
Amen!
Jesus if it was not too late for the thief on the cross, then it is not too late for me. Come into my life and be my Lord today. I choose You. Please forgive me of my mistakes, help me learn from them and to live a life that is pleasing to You from this day on. Amen. <3
Thank you Pastor Dion for todays devotion. :-)
Amen....
How is Sylvia now Pastor?
Amen. Praise God! Thanks Pastor Todd!