The Easter weekend is the most important point in history. Each year we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus. This moment in history changed the possibilities for all humanity. It gave all of us the opportunity to have the relationship with God that He has always wanted for us, and with us. To understand how this works, we need look no further than the experience of one of the thieves that died alongside Him all those years ago…
I had finally run out of road.
The life I had lived, for what felt like forever, had finally caught up with me.
Red-handed, caught in the act, no way out now. These Romans just deal with the likes of me.
No mercy, no second chance.
Only one sentence—The Crucifix!
Everything went black…
The pain was all gone…
I slowly opened my eyes to the most amazing world. The sun was bright, beating down, and the views, wow – they were just exquisite.
There was a man leaning over me, smiling, offering me his hand to help me up. My head was exploding, I felt completely weirded out—but I recognised his face. I knew him, I had seen him before.
Moments before this totally surreal experience, I was hanging on a cross. Man, the pain was excruciating. The whole of Jerusalem had gone black. I have never seen darkness like that before. I could feel the darkness.
I think one of the other guys there was just like me. He had been caught too. I guess if we spend our lives hanging out with thieves, we are going to end up dying with them too.
But that other guy.
The third guy.
The one in the middle.
He was different.
This might sound bonkers, but it felt like he had chosen to be there. Weird, I know.
Everyone was mocking him. It was brutal. Even the other guy hanging on the cross.
It was wrong, I knew it was wrong. He shouldn’t be there. I said that too.
“Stop mocking him, we deserve to be here. The road ran out for us. But this guy, he is different.”
Then, he turned his face toward me—the man on the middle cross.
I cannot explain it but I knew him.
I knew who he was.
“Remember me, please remember me. I cannot tell you how sorry I am for the way I have lived my life. I need you. I need your help!”
“Today, my friend, I will see you in Paradise—today!”
As my eyes opened, the man who was smiling and offering me his hand said “Do you know where you are?”
I didn’t know what to say, my head was proper mashed. So I said the one thing I still remembered:
“The man on the middle cross told me to come…”
“Yes I did, didn’t I? Welcome to Paradise!”
That man is no longer on the middle cross, but He is still telling us all to come. His name is Jesus and He is the solution to all our problems. Why not check into our next blog, coming out on Easter Sunday to discover more about this most important moment in history.
