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Malachi and The Thief on the Cross
Malachi and the Thief on the Cross
Malachi has a unique teaching technique:
1. God makes an Accusation.
2.Then God Cross-examines Himself by speaking for the audience.
3.This is followed by God giving the evidence to convict.
This got me thinking how this method could work today:
1. Accusation – “You are not saved because you have not been baptized. “
2. Cross-examination – “I am saved, like the thief on the cross, without baptism”.
3. Evidence – You are not the thief, nor are you like the thief. Here are three ways you are not the thief:
1. He could not come down off the cross to be baptized. You can be baptized at any time but are unwilling. You are not like the thief.
2. He would have been baptized if Jesus had commanded him. You have been commanded (Mark 16:16) but are unwilling. You are not like the thief.
3. He confessed Jesus while dying. Baptism is both our death and confession simultaneously (Acts 2:38; Romans 6) but you want to separate the two and are unwilling to keep them together. You are not like the thief.
Nowadays everyone wants to be saved like the thief – without baptism. No one wants to be saved like the Rick Young Ruler – go sell everything. Instead lets be saved like Jesus commanded us, by being baptized. We aren’t the thief.
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