Resurrection is the not a common
terminology which is applied casually in our day-to-day life. This word cannot
be understood by any field of science because it is beyond human knowledge and
comprehension. This word 'resurrection' is brought in today by the world of
technology in movies for pure entertainment purpose. But other than that,
it is very difficult to find any true characters in religion who were any close
to saving mankind from their sins. There are stories of war, crusades, lust,
sexuality, building kingdom and many more but never a God rising from the dead.
In the mystic religion you will find there are many fictitious characters,
stories and incidents tagged as mythology may seem to be fascinating but never
a God who sacrificed Himself for mankind.
Jesus was not an ordinary human as He
performed miracles, extraordinary healings and raising two people from death.
History celebrates exuberantly on the resurrection of this man from the grave
after three days as He promised and that is what Easter is all about.
The people and the Romans wanted to prove
and show Jesus to be a criminal by crucifying Him between two notorious
criminals. Kindly stay with the reading as I point out to you the most
significant conversations that was exchanged between the three on the cross.
Criminal no 1 on the Cross:
The first criminal who was unapologetic
even in his pain hurled abuse at Jesus. Luke 23:39 records
what this criminal said, “Then of the criminals hanging there began to
yell insults at him: Aren’t you the messiah? Save yourself and us!” This
is true for many who are suffering and struggling or caught in a mess due to
their own wrong doings. People want a Saviour, a God to just save them from
their mess and that’s all they expect. C S Lewis the brilliant
writer states this, “we regard God as an airman regards his parachute;
it’s there for emergencies, but he hopes he’ll never use it.”. This
criminal knew who Jesus was. He knew Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, but never
intended to use the opportunity to repent. Charles Spurgeon puts this
beautifully, “Many choose to perish forever rather than trust
God.”. Many people including Christians today know Jesus very well
and yet are not willing to make an honest decision to follow His lordship.
Criminal no 2 on the Cross:
This criminal also knew that Jesus was
the Messiah who can forgive the sins of the people and he also had a good
understanding of God’s Justice. His response to the other criminal was
this, Luke 23:41 “We are punished justly because we’re
getting back what we deserve for the things we did, but this man has done
nothing wrong.”. The greatest testimony about Jesus from the criminal
is indeed historical. I think the revelation he had was just amazing. The
criminal was dying too with Jesus yet believed in His resurrection. Later we
come to know that even the other disciples were skeptical to some extent about
His resurrection, but this criminal had the best conviction that if he believes
Jesus then death is not the end, and he will live. Luke 23: 42 he
says this, “Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom.” I
believe this gesture shows that the criminal already accepted Jesus’ lordship
and engaged in sharing Christ’s Mission on the cross which is heard by the
crowd and recorded by the writers.
Jesus’ response to the criminal was
historical and the fulfilment of all the prophecies recorded in the
Bible. Luke 23:43 “Truly I tell you, today you will be with
me in paradise.”. Many of us to a larger extent fit any one of the two
category of criminals, but if we are willing to be remorseful and accept His
Lordship, I guarantee life would never be the same again. Even before His
crucifixion while He was with the people, He claimed, “because I live
you will live too.”. You are going to live in eternity (heaven)
with Him, only if you believe and accept His lordship. Would you choose to know
Him more?
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