Shining Bright in the Darkest Hour

Luke 23:39-43 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. 40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. 42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. 43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

There hung Jesus Christ, beaten and bruised, ridiculed and rejected, crucified between two thieves on Calvary's hillside. Yet, in the darkest moment in the history of humanity a light shown so bright that it penetrated the darkest of hearts, the heart of one of the thieves beside the Lord Jesus. Something occurred during these few hours on a horrific cross which caused a belligerent malefactor's heart to be humbled and to desire the things of God. In the beginning of the terrible ordeal this thief was reviling Jesus in the same manner as the angry crowd and the other hurting thief, but now he is defending the crucified Christ against their unjust railings. The dying thief admitted and confessed his own failings while recognizing the justness of the man in the middle.

The question must be asked, “What made the difference?” None of the gospel writers recorded a sermon preached by Jesus from the cross or a plea to the thieves for their souls. The only clue we can find is the very witness of Jesus Christ in the time of his deepest sufferings. Christ's sermon was preached by actions in His darkest moments. 

There was the witness of Jesus' conduct while hanging on Calvary's cruel cross. Although ridiculed and mocked by angry men and women on the ground and even by those crucified beside Him, Jesus never once lashed back at them. If anyone had the right to respond in anger for His unjust treatment it should have been Jesus. Yet, He opened not His mouth with words of bitterness, but instead with words of compassion as He prayed for His accusers and executioners, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Even in His agony His light was brightly shining with a spirit of forgiveness and mercy. 

There also had to be also a marked difference in His very countenance even in the midst of terrible circumstances: a countenance of peace and assurance rather than a countenance of scowl and vindictiveness as seen on the faces of his religious accusers. There was a marked difference in the actions and the countenance of the accused and His accusers. Obviously, this spoke loudly to the heart of one of the thieves. There, hanging on a cross beside him he saw love personified through the person of Jesus Christ. It there in the midst of death, he saw true Life, abundant life; and in the midst of confusion he saw peace in the face of the One that had accused of being a King. The light of Jesus Christ shown so bright it penetrated the dark heart of the one right beside him which created a humility and a hunger to join Christ in His kingdom.

There were probably others on that day who saw the light shining bright in the midst of Jesus' sufferings as Matthew records the statement of the centurion upon the death of Christ. Jesus never quit ministering even in the midst of His sufferings. We each should learn this powerful lesson from our Lord, “Our light can shine the brightest in our darkest moments.” The great Teacher never quit teaching and the great Lover of our souls never quit loving.

Let us also use the times of darkness for His glory and let us remember that someone is always watching us.

O, what a Savior!