‘Today you will be with me in Paradise.’ (Luke 23:43)
During Jesus’s lifetime, He told a parable to answer the question ‘Who is my neighbour?’ (Luke 10:29) In that parable of the Good Samaritan, one of the most famous stories He ever told, He demonstrated that we have to look beyond geography, race or religion and that everyone is our neighbour. On the cross, He again demonstrated this Himself, for this promise to the dying thief is His personal response to His next-door neighbour in crucifixion; it is the living embodiment of this parable.
The thief on the cross is acutely aware of the need for salvation. He is also aware – unlike the other thief and unlike the vast majority of the crowd – that Jesus’s death is not the end of the story, for his request is ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom’ (Luke 23:42), a request which seems frankly ludicrous in the context. They are both dying. How, then, can Jesus come into a kingdom or be in any position to help the criminal?
This tableau shows us clearly that physical death is not the end. Life after death is of paramount importance to us, for if we are eternal beings, it matters enormously to know that the end of our physical bodies is not the end of life. Jesus promises the thief that his life will go on and that Paradise is real. Moreover, although there are many things we do not understand about eternal life and Paradise or heaven, we are assured here that this will include being with Jesus. ‘What more do we need to know besides this: that something happens to us after we die and that Jesus will be there?’ Eugene Peterson asks. (‘The Word Made Flesh’, P 250) In commenting on the ‘today’ aspect of Jesus’s answer, he adds, ‘Eternity is not perpetual future, but perpetual presence.’ When we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, it is God’s presence with us that is promised. (Ps 23:4)
Many of us fear death, or at least, we fear dying. The process of ageing and becoming frail and ill often fills us with foreboding. The indignity and helplessness of dying can rob us of peace and hope. We fear being dependent on others for our basic needs; we fear being alone and forsaken. But Jesus reassures us that there is hope beyond the grave. We do well this week not only to focus on the pain and agony of death but on the hope of resurrection. Even as He hung dying on the tree, Jesus offered life to His neighbour. He does the same for us and longs for us to hold out His life to others. What lies ahead is so much greater than we can possibly imagine.