Luke 23:39-43 (ESV)
One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
The two thrives give us a perfect example of those who approach God by faith and those who approach God for personal gain. The two were both criminals. They both had done something wrong, apparently worthy of a cruel death. The first thief wanted Jesus to prove He was the Son of God, but not because he thought Jesus was, but only because he had a personal motive: He wanted to be saved from the pain of the cross. The second thief had faith to believe Jesus was the Son of God. He didn’t need Jesus to prove it. He only wanted Jesus to save him from the second death: Separation from God for all eternity. He put his faith in Jesus that Jesus would be able to bring him into the Kingdom. He had faith that Jesus was the Son of God. All we can assume is that in his criminal life he had some revelation about Jesus. In this moment he came to faith. One of the two wanted self-preservation for life on earth. One of the two wanted eternal life with Jesus. That is the difference in our world about how to approach Jesus. Some simply want personal gain and don’t need Him unless that is the outcome. Some simply want to be with Him in paradise.
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