“YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE”
”And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you,
today you will be with Me in Paradise’ ”
(Luke 23:43).
THE GOSPELS Say that Jesus was crucified between two «criminals» (Luke 23:32). The Greek word Luke used, kakourgoi, refers to «someone who commits serious crimes and offenses,” that is, to a common criminal. Matthew and Mark refer to them as «robbers» (see Matthew 27:38; Mark 15:27), and both evangelists also say the two robbers heaped insults on the Lord (see Matthew 27:44; Mark 15:32). Amidst the commotion, one of the two criminals said to the Lord, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us” (Luke 23:39). The conjunction «if” expresses the possibility of something of which one is uncertain.
Suddenly, something unexpected happened. One of the two robbers, who minutes earlier had opened his mouth to insult the Son of God, cries out to his thieving colleague, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong” (Luke 23:40, 41). This sinner who was about to die pro- claimed two great truths: (1) That Jesus was God; (2) That they were sinners. This double acknowledgment (the Lord’s holiness and the sinfulness of their souls) led him to make this astonishing request: “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom» (Luke 23:42).
The criminal knew everything had come to an end —he was about to run out of time; his hope of living was diminishing quickly— however, when all earthly things come to an end, the «Kingdom” still remains. And the Lord’s answer opened the doors of eternity to the dying thief: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise» (Luke 23:43).
What a wonderful promise! The robber, the criminal, the one who committed serious crimes and offenses and insulted the Lord, will be in “Paradise.” Although the entrance to paradise is still a future experience, which will only become a reality after Christ’s coming (see Revelation 2:7), the truth is that the robber began to live in paradise on the cross itself.
Everlasting life will not begin in heaven; everlasting life begins today, the moment we accept who God is, who we are, and surrender ourselves in His loving arms.
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2023
“I AM WITH YOU”
From: J. VLADIMIR POLANCO
Collaborators: Lorina Maya & Avineyda Hernandez