Thinking About That Thief

The doctrine of salvation by faith only is often propped up by pointing to the thief on the cross (Luke 23:39-43). Many have mistakenly taken this account as a prooftext to say that baptism is not required today. Numerous tracts, books, and sermons have been devoted to this topic over the years. Allow me to briefly give three reasons why this text does NOT support salvation apart from baptism in the modern day.

We do not know whether or not the thief was baptized. The preachers and teachers of the denominational world proudly proclaim, “the thief was never baptized!” That is an assumption on their part, and a pretty big one! We cannot definitively say one way or the other because the Bible does not reveal it to us. All we know about this thief comes from the recorded conversation in Luke 23 and very brief mentions in the other accounts of the gospel. However, we do know that baptism was practiced in that period. The preaching of John and Jesus was accompanied by “a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4; John 3:22-23). Luke’s account also provides some key facts about the thief’s understanding. He demonstrates a working knowledge of God’s existence, Christ’s identity and innocence, divine law and judgment, the spiritual nature of the kingdom, and the resurrection! It is possible, some would even say likely, that this thief was an apostate disciple.

We do not live in the same time period the thief lived. It is important for the Bible student to remember how the new covenant came into effect after the death of the testator (Heb 9:15-17). The events of Luke 23 occurred before Christ’s death and resurrection. The Christian Age of “the last days” begins with the establishment of the church in Acts 2. Should modern believers look to men and women in different ages to know how to be saved today? Should we offer animal sacrifices as Moses and Aaron did? Of course not. We do not live under the same covenant as that thief.

We do not have the right to override the authority of Christ or the New Testament. Jesus is the Savior, the one to whom the Father gave all authority (Matt 1:21; 28:18). He had the power to personally forgive sins on earth (Mark 2:10-11). This is closely related to our previous point. There is a difference between the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry and His current reign from Heaven. A last will and testament doesn’t come into effect until after the death of the one who made it. God has already decreed who is set to inherit eternal life. The instruction for our age requires baptism for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; Mark 16:15-16; 1 Pet 3:21; Tit 3:4-7). Don’t twist the account of the thief on the cross to prop up false doctrine. We need to respect the authority of Jesus and His law.