THE TWO THIEVES

As our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ hung between two thieves on the cross at Calvary, He expressed love and forgiveness for all who were crucifying Him. Living out His Father's will by dying that way, He was fulfilling a prophecy. The two thieves who were hanging there beside Him were named: Dismas and Gestas. Both ridiculed Jesus at the beginning asking Him why doesn't He free Himself, and them, from the crosses if He was the Messiah.
Dismas was hanging on Jesus's right side and Gestas was on the left. After awhile, Dismas began to sense Jesus's utter pain and at the same time, noticed a forgiving spirit showing in His face. Something in Jesus's mannerisms worked in the heart of Dismas. He told Jesus to ..remember me when you come into your kingdom.
Instantly, with love and compassion, Jesus turns to him and says, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
Dismas was the only human to be ‘canonized'- -meaning that he was promised eternity in heaven by Jesus, Himself. (If you ever notice in the paintings of the crucifixion, Jesus's head is always turned to the right- - favoring Dismas.)As you can tell, Dismas was the good thief, so to speak, while Gestas (which in Greek means Justice) did not soften his heart and follow Jesus.
The two thieves were a prophecy that had to be fulfilled. This shows us that we all have a choice to make -whether we choose to follow God's will for our lives, or turn away and suffer mightily for it in eternity. It has been written that ‘Man can choose his sin, but he can not choose his consequences.'
In the case of the two thieves, they both chose to steal. They did not get to choose their punishment. Our Savior was sinless, yet He was subjected to much more than a thief's punishment. With grace and love, He endured it all. He paid it all! For us, it is never too late to turn and repent of our sins and ask Jesus to forgive us and believe, by faith, in Him. Dismas did just that.
Are we going to be like Dismas? Our God is a forgiving and loving God. Let us all draw closer to Him before it is too late.