Luke 23:43
Luke 23:39-43
One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
Question: Who does Jesus let into Heaven?
Answer: Those who sincerely ask Him. The thief had given an implied question, awaiting affirmation, and which Jesus gave. The repentant man issued his confession of guilt, and plead for Jesus’ acceptance, and he got it, and so too will anyone else, simply at the asking, provided that we also forgive others in return.
Question: Did the thief merit or earn forgiveness? Did the thief effectively save himself by asking Jesus to save him?
Answer: Asking for forgiveness neither merits nor earns forgiveness. Granting forgiveness is a choice by the injured party, who bears the full cost of the offense, thus making the granting of forgiveness a matter of complete grace by the giver.
Leighton Flowers: “Imagine the prodigal son, after returning home in his humiliation, and being received by that warm welcome of his father, running to him and embracing him and giving him the golden ring and killing the fatted calf and having the party and hanging out in the corner of the party and bragging to his friends, ‘Well, you know, I did come home, after all. You know. I just want to brag about me coming home out of my pigsty. Look how great I am.’ It’s just silliness. It was totally and completely the choice of the father to run to him, to embrace him. He didn’t owe his son that, on the basis that he came home. He chose to do that because he is a gracious father, and that alone is what saved the son. He deserved to be stoned upon his return, probably, because of what he did to his father. But he was received in grace because the father is gracious.” (Dr. Michael Brown with Leighton Flowers on Soteriology101, 43:04-43:52)
