November 2015
The majority are not always right. Sometimes it needs one person with a
different view, a new idea or a bold opinion to get us all to see what has been
staring us in the face.
The people crowding around the grisly execution scene
outside Jerusalem were all agreed; the man hanging there is a fake – no-one can
now take seriously his claim to be a divine king or saviour. So what if his name, Jesus, means ‘The Lord
Saves’; he can’t even save himself! So
what if some gave him the royal title ‘Christ’; does he look like someone who
is in charge? National leaders,
soldiers, another condemned man – they all speak with the same sneer: “Save
yourself if you are the King!”
But another dying man sees things differently. In great pain, his mind is still strong
enough to resist the majority view; he calls out, “Jesus, remember me when you
come into your kingdom.” One man who
realises that Jesus is indeed a king with a kingdom, one man who believes that
knowing Jesus (or rather being known by him) will matter forever: “Remember me!”
Time is running out for Jesus; now would be the opportunity
for him to end the pretence and confess that he has been misleading people with
all his talk of coming from the Father to seek and to save the lost. Instead Jesus’ reply shows that nothing has
changed, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
The crowd thinks that Jesus has ended up on the cross
because he couldn’t save himself. Jesus
knows that he is there because that is how he will save others. He must die in our place bearing our guilt if
he is to bring us back home to God his Father from the far-off country where we
have taken ourselves. That is why he can
immediately offer forgiveness to a convicted criminal (and to anyone
else). My debt is paid.
So are you stuck in the crowd or have you seen what this man
saw? While everyone else shelters behind
the popular mood of the day this man alone accepts Jesus’ authority over him
and receives the rescue that Jesus alone provides.
Sincerely
Graham Burrows
