"Same Misery"

 "Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him." (John 19:32 KJV)

  ""You have heard the law that says, 'Love your neighbor' and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike."" (Matthew 5:43-45 NLT)

 Last night I finished watching a movie called, "Greater", which was based upon the life and death of a young football player who was killed in an auto accident just as he had turned Pro. I thought at first it was just about his life; but realized after, it was about his brother, as he was a Christian, but waivered in trusting in the Lord. 

 During the later portion of the movie, as they were having the memorial at the Collage stadium, his bother couldn't bear to enter into the gymnasium where the service was taking place. He went out onto the track where he meets a strange character; a character that seems to know him very well, but also tries to make him feel mad at God for taking his brother's life. I believe this character was the devil, who was there to make him. once and for all, turn against God. 

 There two thieves that were hanging alongside Jesus, both had to suffer the same exact painful experience, having their legs broken! One was a man that mocked Jesus, the other was a man that asked Jesus to allow him into His kingdom. Both suffered and died the same excruciating death.  

 If I had to make a bet on the person most likely to have the most welcome them in Heaven, I would probably place my money on the "Thief on the cross". A man who meets Jesus but had hardly any time to be able to share Jesus with anyone else. You could almost say that his salvation was meaningless, as it only benefited him; but you would be wrong, 100% wrong! 

 I told this story before, so I won't waste time with details. My wife and I had a lunch engagement, where we were sitting across from an older couple. I happened to be wearing a shirt that said, "Calvary Chapel," and the man was staring at my shirt, as if he was disgusted by it. So, I asked him if there was something wrong?  He barked back at me, "Why do we need that?" 

 "Excuse me?" I said, "Why do we need Calvary Chapel?" He proudly produced to me that his church believed that you must be baptized in order to be saved; at which, I said, "Well, maybe that is why we need a Calvary Chapel!" The man became very upset, and things got a little bit testy. 

 After he calmed down, and I was able to speak sensibly to him, I said: "So, if you had someone you loved and cared for that was on their deathbed in the hospital, and went in to meet with them, and they had not been saved; are you saying that it would be useless to ask them to receive Jesus, because it wouldn't count unless they were baptized?" 

 Both him and his wife had lost the color in their faces, and looked as if they were ashamed. I figured that the things I said had struck a chord, and hoped it wasn't because what I said had actually happened in their lives; but I could only think that it did. The thief on the cross had no chance to physically share his testimony; the baptism thing is a whole different story...

"NOTICE WHAT LARGE LETTERS I USE AS I WRITE THESE CLOSING WORDS IN MY OWN HANDWRITING. Those who are trying to force you to be circumcised want to look good to others. They don't want to be persecuted for teaching that the cross of Christ alone can save you. And even those who advocate circumcision don't keep the whole law themselves. They only want you to be circumcised so they can boast about it and claim you as their disciples. As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world's interest in me is also dead. It doesn't matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is weather we have been transformed into a new creation. May God's peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. From now on, don't let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus." (Galatians 6:11-17 NLT)