“Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” – Luke 23:43
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
“Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God.'” – John 3:3
“For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall be united in a resurrection like His. We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.” – Romans 6:5-7
It is a promise made from the cross. A declaration of a new future for a man who had nothing left. It was a word of new life to a someone whose life was over. It was not a “wish” or a “dream”. It was not a false hope. They were not just “positive thoughts” to bring comfort to a dying man. These were words of transformation!
This man, who was dying, was being “born again”. His old life was ending…literally…and a new life was beginning…simultaneously!! According to the Scripture, this man is a visual illustration of our salvation experience when we come to Jesus. “Old things have passed away…”
I know from years of seeing people give their lives to the Lord that this man instantly experienced an inner sense of peace and joy. Maybe, as he heard these words, tears began to flow…not tears related to his pain , but tears of relief…he was redeemed! The old things were passing away, his mistakes were forgiven…his sins were being crucified on the cross right next to him!
In that moment the Holy Spirit worked as a spiritual perimedic and performed a “spiritual transfusion”. He transferred the criminal’s blood tainted by sin and rebellion into Jesus and the holy…innocent…eternal blood of Jesus into the man. And the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit filled his soul. As his physical blood flowed out the spiritual blood from the eternal fountain of God flowed in!
The body of a criminal was nailed to the cross that day, but the body of a saint was taken off…”the new has come”. A slave to sin his whole life, but now…“set free”.
I can’t help but wonder if there was some visible change in that criminal on the cross. Did the people watching see any difference after that moment? Was there a slight smile as a result of the Lord’s promise? Did the crowd begin to cast doubt on the words of Jesus? “Don’t believe him! He can’t even save himself.” “His empty promise isn’t getting you down from that cross…what good is it?”
It can be hard to explain our faith in a loving God when our circumstances are tough. This criminal’s physical suffering did not change. He did not get to come down from the cross and go home. But, there was a change…one that I believe those around the cross could see…there was something different…not a change in circumstances but a change in the one suffering.
This is the most powerful testimony of the child of God…the believer…no matter what we go through we have the promise that our loving Savior is with us…today!