No Small Parts - The Penitent Thief
November 1, 2020 Sunday Evening Study

Integrity is an amazing thing. We are called to act in integrity in all of our dealings, and more often than not it can be an incredibly difficult thing to do. Honesty and uprightness - really, righteousness - is no longer commonplace in society. In fact, even in popular culture when someone does display integrity it is made much of - almost like there are very few people who would behave in this way.

Take for instance the story of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. After Charlie and his grandfather have toured the factory and broken the rules, they find out that they will not get the promised lifetime supply of chocolate because they broke the rules. Charlie has the opportunity to take an Everlasting Gobstopper to Wonka’s chief competitor for a large sum of money to help his family, but instead he gives it back to Wonka even in spite of Wonka’s poor treatment of him. This is so celebrated that Charlie’s integrity gains him ownership of the factory after Wonka.

I was recently watching reruns of an old sci-fi show called Warehouse 13 where they hunt historical artifacts that have mysterious powers. In one episode they sort of travel back in time to 1961 - and there is a stark difference even beyond the setting and the costumes. The way in which they speak to each other - especially men to women - is very different, conveying far more respect and politeness than we see today.

So what do you do when you have done something wrong? At some point or another we have all been caught in a sin - and by caught, I mean caught by someone, prompting a response from us. A few weeks ago we talked about Herodius and Herod’s sin in marrying his brother’s wife. We looked at the story of King David in contrast and saw the difference when David immediately repented of his sin vs. Herodius doing anything she could to eliminate the threat of the truth in which everyone around her was eventually consumed.

So when you find yourself in the hot seat, are you more likely to stick to your guns or to recognize your mistake and own it? Sometimes it may depend on the situation - when we look at Charlie, to his mind he had nothing to gain and a lot to lose by acting in integrity, yet he chose the right path anyway. Would you do that every time? It may be easy to say you would, and a lot more difficult when the situation is in front of you.

This evening we are going to discuss a character that most people are familiar with, though he has a very small part in the narrative. And interestingly, though he is mentioned in 3 of the gospels, the interaction we will be looking at tonight only occurs in the gospel of Luke. Please open your Bibles to Luke 23:39.

To set the stage, Jesus has been arrested, beaten, tried, and nailed to the cross. He has been mocked, with the sign naming Him “King of the Jews” affixed over His head. It is here that we meet two other men sharing a similar fate. Read Passage.

In Matthew and Mark both thieves are characterized as being abusive toward Jesus, reviling and blaspheming Him. The term “Hurled insults” does not express the more serious aspect of the verb eblasph