“Jesus, Remember Me

When You Come Into Your Kingdom.”

One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, “Are you not the Messiah?” 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 have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Luke 23:39-43

The immortality Jesus offer has nothing to do with anything we do. Jesus gave His disciples and us the authority to do remarkable things. At Golgotha, an unamed thief believed in Jesus, just in time. He understood that eternal life had nothing to do with what he had done – good or bad. It had to do with what Jesus was doing – giving His own life so that even the undeserving could be welcomed into heaven by God. The important thing is being remembered not by others, but by God.

Our lives matter because God loves us.

Our Daily Bread – March 21, 2008