Criminals

As Christians, we are very familiar with the Gospel accounts on the crucifixion of our Lord and Christ, Jesus. Part of that story temporarily focuses on two criminals (Luke 23:39-43) that were crucified along side with Jesus.  One criminal on Jesus' left and the other to His right.  Little is said about these two individuals or what their crimes were although some translations refer to these two as thieves.  What we can agree upon is that these two men were guilty of their crimes and were receiving their "just" punishment whereas Jesus, totally innocent of any crime, was nailed on a cross between these two criminals.

So why do you think that the the Gospel of Luke goes into detail about the remaining moments of these two other characters when surely our concern should entirely be on Jesus.  Well, we will find that the focus is still on Jesus once we examine who these two criminals represent and what Jesus offers to them.  You know - the Big Picture!

My interpretation of this scene is that these two criminals are not just two bad guys receiving their justice, but rather, in reality, they were not individuals at all but the collective representation of mankind - all of mankind, from Adam through the end of time.  All of mankind is guilty of sin and the consequence of that sin is death.  Hence, man's sinful nature, and the consequences thereof, were exemplified by the two criminals hanging next to Jesus.

Now, let's look at the individual characters of these two criminals.  As with all in the world, both were guilty of sin and both surely died for their sins.  But before we go there, let's momentarily return to Luke 23:39-42:  Here we find that in the world there are only two kinds of people: those that are unrepentant of their sin and mock God and those that repent and look to Jesus for salvation.  One criminal represents the former group (the lost) and the other criminal represents the latter group (the saved).

We Christians believe that even as sinners we can be rescued from our sins and anticipate life eternal with Jesus because, as we conclude in Luke 23:43, Jesus assures us, the repented, that we will be with Him in Paradise.  Jesus, the One without sin, became our sin and died on the cross so that we would have the promise of salvation.  It took a criminal to show us, the world, that if we repent of our sins and put our faith in Christ Jesus then we will be set free.  Unfortunately, too many in the world elect to follow the other criminal and dismiss the One True God in favor of other worldly gods.

So, does it bother you that you are considered to be a criminal subject to death by crucifixion for your sins?  Actually, the more important question to ask yourself is:

Which criminal are you?

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

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