“I am the Way, the Truth and the Light, no man comes to the Father but through Me.”
John 14:6
APRIL 2025
A thief once died and surprisingly found himself at the gates of Heaven.
A curious gatekeeper towered over him and demanded to know why he should get into this perfect, peaceful place. The thief had no answer. He hadn’t been to church in years, if ever. He remembered a prayer his grandmother used to pray, but he hadn’t done even that regularly. His family never had money, so he grew up stealing what he needed. It was easy, and he was good at it. His only real friends were thieves as well. But life was dangerous, unpredictable. It was only a matter of time before something went horribly wrong, and when it did, he and a fellow thief had to answer for it.
The trial was short; they were both found guilty.
The judgment was swift: execution. They would not be mourned or missed. And yet, here he was after death, at the entrance to Heaven. After a brief conversation, the gatekeeper just let him in. In fact, the thief was welcomed in with warmth, love, and forgiveness.
A thief?
While we can only speculate about this thief’s entire background, we do know that he was a real person. He was a thief, and we know how he was executed for his crime. We also know where he went after he died! In the Bible, we are told of the crucifixion of Jesus, and that two criminals were executed on either side of Him—and one was our thief.
One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!” But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:39-43 NLT
So how did this thief get a personal invitation to Heaven from Jesus? Was it really as simple as the passage above shows us? The short answer is yes! It really is that simple!
You can come, too.
So why was this unnamed thief on the cross next to Jesus allowed into Heaven? The same account in Matthew 27 tells us that both thieves cursed Jesus. But something changed, and one thief, who had cursed Jesus moments before, suddenly realized the truth of who Jesus was and then prayed to Him. He saw Jesus dying, yet loving the people who hated him. He saw the Son of God and simply asked to be with Him. Our thief didn’t have time to do anything good to right his wrongs. But he had time to ask Jesus for the help he needed. He had time to change his heart. This is where the story gets even better: Jesus died to pay for the sins of mankind. Then he rose from the dead, conquering sin and death! Only God could do that! You, too, can be with Jesus one day in paradise. This is God’s gift to you—the offer of grace. He wants you to come live with Him for eternity someday. Jesus, the man on the middle cross, said you could come, too.
You don’t know what I’ve done...
But you may say, you don’t know what I have done! It doesn’t matter what you have done. The Bible says that God is rich in mercy, and He loves us! Dane Ortlund writes that,
“[Rich in mercy] means the things about you that make you cringe most, make him hug hardest... It means our haunting shame is not a problem for him, but the very thing he loves most to work with. It means our sins do not cause his love to take a hit. Our sins cause his love to surge forward all the more.”
Your sins and mistakes are precisely why He died for you! They are of no surprise to Him. He created you to know Him, and He wants you to know that you are treasured.
So what do you say to God? The best thing to do is just use your own words. The thief did. He said, “Remember me, Lord!”
He acknowledged his need of a Savior, and called Jesus his Lord. He went from cursing to trusting. In Luke 18, another man prayed, “O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.” The Bible tells us that man was forgiven because he was humble and acknowledged his need of a Savior.
Just come like a child. Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, unless you turn and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven.” Look to Jesus like a child and you will see Him more clearly. Come. Come to the Father, as his arms are open wide to welcome you. All of us need a Savior. Jesus has already done all the work. He said you could come. Will you? Learn More at ManOnTheMiddleCross.com
Sunday: Fear and Great Joy
With the Sabbath over, Jesus’ disciples Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome came to the tomb to anoint the body with ritual herbs. They worried that they would not be able to roll away the heavy stone that blocked the entrance to the tomb.
Thank you for taking the time to read this message. If this message has caused you to think about your need for a savior, we would love to talk to you more about Jesus. You can hear more about him by attending church on Sundays. The following churches meet at 10:30 on Sunday mornings: Winfield Baptist Church at 330 State Route 304 in Winfield, Pastor Corey can be reached at 570-524-2735, office@winfieldbaptist. com, and winfieldbaptist.com; Grove Community Church at 429 8th St in Selinsgrove, Pastor Chapin can be reached at Chapin@churchinthegrove.com or www.churchinthegrove.com;and Sunbury City Church at 501 Catawissa Ave in Sunbury, Pastor Steve can be reached at570-495-4962, sunburycitychurch@ gmail.com, and sunburychurch.com.
Matthew 28:5-8a: “And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy.” If you feel that you have heard God speaking to you through this story and would like more information about God’s grace, please call Pastor Kristina Schaeffer at 570-374-9544 or Pastor Gary Schaeffer at 570-742-4601. They will rejoice in sharing God’s word with you.
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