Cries from the Cross | With Me

Cries from the Cross | With Me
The second cry from the cross focuses upon the repentant criminal. We note from Jesus' statement where this man was going – to Paradise or the third heaven, as Paul describes it, 2 Corinthians 12:1-4. Why was he, a criminal, a robber assured by Jesus of acceptance there? Because, in contrast to the other criminal, he was concerned about his eternal destiny; he confessed his guilt and from what he had heard about Jesus – from rulers, from soldiers, from Jesus' own statements, he had come to believe that Jesus was Christ the Lord and King. His commitment to Him had brought to this criminal the assurance of acceptance into the presence of God – without baptism, or works, or a record of past goodness. His faith and cry for mercy meant as Jesus promised, he would be "with Me" in paradise.