Instant Forgiveness and Salvation.

One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!" 
But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
"And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
And He said to him, "Truly I say to you today; you shall be with Me in Paradise."
Luke 23:39-43

Two Sides.

by

Dwight L. Moody

The cross of Christ divides all mankind. There are only two sides, those for Christ, and those against Him. 

Think of the two thieves; from the side of Christ one went down to death cursing God, and the other went to glory. 

What a contrast! In the morning he is led out, a condemned criminal; in the evening he is saved from his sins. In the morning he is cursing; in the evening he is singing hallelujahs with a choir of angels. In the morning he is condemned by men as not fit to live on earth; in the evening he is reckoned good enough for heaven. In the morning nailed to the cross; in the evening in the Paradise of God, crowned with a crown he should wear through all the ages. In the morning not an eye to pity; in the evening washed and made clean in the blood of the Lamb. In the morning in the society of thieves and outcasts; in the evening Christ is not ashamed to walk arm-in-arm with him down the golden pavements of the eternal city.

And that, my friends, is just what Christ wants to do for you. That is the business on which He came down from heaven. That is why He died. And if He gave such a swift salvation to this poor thief on the cross, surely He will give you the same if, like the penitent thief, you repent, and confess, and trust in the Savior.