Which Malefactor Are You?

Which Malefactor are You?

Luke 23:39-43 KJV ³⁹And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, if thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
⁴⁰But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
⁴¹And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.
⁴²And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
⁴³And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Each year, during the time we celebrate the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, I read the gospel accounts given us by the four men who walked with Jesus and recorded His words. Each year a different theme presents itself to me, it's like that with God's word. You can read a paragraph a dozen times and each time the Holy Spirit can reveal a different bit of truth to you that you didn't understand before.

What the above verses say to me is that this is a picture of our world today. We are all malefactors lost in our sin and condemned by it just as the two thieves who were crucified with The Christ. Neither one was worthy of His grace and love but both were given that final opportunity to make a choice, a choice to believe in Him or a choice to rail against Him.

One chose to rail against Him and die in his sin just like the millions in the world today who choose to reject Him and instead live to satisfy their lust of worldly things and their pride of life. Too many in today's world choose to believe the lies of the adversary just as the thief who railed against Christ. Yet still God chooses to offer salvation to all who will open their minds and hearts to the truth, not willing that any should be lost.

Romans 1:20 KJV For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

The other thief chose to open his mind and heart to see the eternal power and Godhead of Jesus as the Son of God. Even though he deserved none of God's grace or mercy he too was given the choice and chose to believe in the Christ and was rewarded with the words of Jesus: "Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise."

The two thieves who were crucified with Jesus give us a perfect representation of our world today. Let's read the scripture again:

It is you and I, whose minds and hearts have been opened to see the eternal power and Godhead of Christ who must, like the second thief, take a stand for the word of God. We must rebuke the one who has chosen to rail against God. We must come to see those who have chosen to believe the adversary's lies for what they are, children of God, made in His image who have been deceived. If we don't, who will?

If you have accepted Jesus as your personal Saviour and been given the gift of the Holy Spirit then you have been chosen and given a calling with talents you may not even know about. That calling will include 'divine appointments' set by God where you are to plant the seed of the gospel whether by word or deed so that others can water the seed and God will through the Holy Spirit bring that person to Himself and reap the harvest. Each of us has a part in God's perfect plan for humanity that we must fulfill.

Every person like the two thieves must be brought to the point where they must make the decision whether to believe in God or reject Him. What would be the point of having free will if we are not given the opportunity to use it? Is this not the reason our Lord told us to go and preach the Gospel to every tongue and nation so that every soul could have the opportunity to accept or reject its maker?

As we near the end of the church age, each day that passes is one less day we have to plant the seed of the Gospel. Tell that person who has been on your heart about Jesus and that they need to make that decision whether to believe in Him or not.

Yes, I know we set ourselves up for ridicule and insults at times, but there is always that chance the seed you plant may sprout and another soul be saved. The end result of every soul that God created both believers and unbelievers alike rest solely in God's hands for He is a Sovereign God, the Master Potter who will do with what He creates as pleases Him. I do know that somewhere in eternity 'Every Knee Will Bow and Every Tongue Will Confess He Is God!'

Will you rail against God or will you hear Jesus words?
'Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.'

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