According to Luke 23:39, the third saying to the cross was offered by the unrepentant thief dying alongside of Christ. This condemned man spoke for all of us as an eternal truth by saying the word “IF.” The truth is that all of us live in a world of uncertainty. This word under our consideration breaks no chains, mends no flaws, opens no doors, marks no history. Yet, this man said “IF” to Jesus. One cannot help but wonder what would have been the benefits had he spoken with conviction, certainty out of belief instead of unbelief.
What this man said had his doubts exposed. According to Mark 9: 24, we must admit our doubts before faith comes. In fact, an occasional doubt can strengthen our faith if it is offered in the right way for the right reason. A case in point is recorded when Elijah was afraid of Jezebel that she would kill him in 1Kings 19. This prophet had just been mightily used by God. Then suddenly afterwords this fear took over. We must remind ourselves that doubt is not necessarily a sin as long as it is submitted to God. Had this unbelieving thief on the cross with his doubts surrendered them to Christ, things would’ve been a lot different for him.
To confess our doubt in any situation or various circumstances they would have been explained by God or the Scripture eventually. A higher spiritual wisdom oversees doubts. Even when we talk to God, we must not present ourselves with ulterior motives, which was the case of this man. With ownership of doubt, motives would be unnecessary. In the Scriptures we could easily see the relationship of each person of the Trinity as established in our reading of the Word. Therefore, he would have seen the divine Son of God hanging on the cross because of the unfair punishment of the cross since Jesus was sinless.
So now that doubts have been exposed and the situation has been explained, we can now consider what possibilities could have been explored by this unbelieving criminal. We must remember that whatever results that we seek is a matter to be discovered, not some empty pre-agreed arrangement with God. Salvation is the beginning point in our relationship with God, not an end. Once we accept Christ as our personal Savior a great spiritual meadow is before us to explore. This thief threw out accusations to Jesus. It was his method to torment our Lord. This is so unfortunate because he, like all of us, have a choice. And we must remember that choices are opportunities.
It is okay to tell God the word if as long as we are willing to receive the divine answer. The thief was not uttering a prayer or request. It was more of a demand. Some people make mistakes in their prayers by telling God that if he will do a certain thing then the person praying will do something. God does not work on the barter system.
Christian Writer 