Dying Thief Accepts Christ as His Saviour “And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” ~ Luke 23:42. “To the last of His work Christ is a sin-pardoner. At deepest midnight, as the Star of Bethlehem was about to sink into oblivion, lo there shines amid the moral darkness with distinct brightness the faith of a dying sinner as he lays hold upon a dying Saviour. Such faith may be represented by the eleventh hour laborers who receive as much reward as do those who have labored for many hours. The thief asked in faith, in penitence, in contrition. He asked in earnestness, as if he fully realized that Jesus could save him if He would. And the hope in his voice was mingled with anguish as he realized, that if He did not, he would be lost, eternally lost. He cast his helpless, dying soul and body on Jesus Christ. He had heard Pilate declare, “I find no fault in him.” John 19:4. He had marked His godlike bearing, and His pitying forgiveness of His tormentors…. Among the passers-by he hears many defending Jesus. He hears them repeat His words, and tell of His works. The conviction comes … to him that this is the Christ…. When condemned for his crime, the thief had become hopeless and despairing; but strange, tender thoughts now spring up. He calls to mind all he has heard of Jesus…. He has heard the words of those who believed in Jesus and followed Him weeping…. The Holy Spirit illuminates his mind, and little by little the chain of evidence is joined together. In Jesus, bruised, mocked, and hanging upon the cross, he sees the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world. Hope is mingled with anguish in his voice as the helpless, dying soul casts himself upon a dying Saviour…. Quickly the answer came. Soft and melodious the tone, full of love, compassion, and power the words: Verily I say unto thee today, Thou shalt be with Me in Paradise…. To the penitent thief came the perfect peace of acceptance with God.” From Sons and Daughters of God by Ellen G. White. For free access to more of her writings, please visit...

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the Lord is the great God, And the great King above all gods. In His hand are the deep places of the earth; The heights of the hills are His also. The sea is His, for He made it; And His hands formed the dry land. Oh come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice: “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,[a] As in the day of trial[b] in the wilderness, When your fathers tested Me; They tried Me, though they saw My work. For forty years I was grieved with that generation, And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts, And they do not know My ways.’ So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest.’” Psalm 95...

“In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be ashamed; Deliver me in Your righteousness. Bow down Your ear to me, Deliver me speedily; Be my rock of refuge, A fortress of defense to save me.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭31:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.com/114/psa.31.1-2.nkjv

“Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” ~2 Corinthians 9:15. “What a terrible record the human race will have to meet in the last day, since the vast majority of men have refused the priceless offering,—rejected the richest gift that God could bestow upon the world. It is through the inestimable gift of Christ that all our blessings come. Life, health, friends, reason, happiness, are ours through the merit of Christ. O that the young and the old might realize that all comes to them through the virtue of Christ’s life and death, and acknowledge the ownership of God. The apostle writes, “Ye are not your own.” Even when we were under the control of a cruel master, even when the prince of darkness ruled our spirits, the Lord Jesus Christ paid the ransom price of His own blood for us…. Render to Him willing heart service, and no longer rob God of that which is His own. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” … Through His holy Word, through His providences, and through messages sent to you by His servants, Jesus is daily saying to you, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Jesus has given His precious life for you, that you may become a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Then give yourself to Him as a pledge of grateful love. Were it not for the love freely given us of Christ, we should now be in hopeless despair, in spiritual midnight. Thank God every day that He gave us Jesus. The thought that Christ died to obtain for us the gift of everlasting life, is enough to call forth from our hearts the most sincere and fervent gratitude, and from our lips the most enthusiastic praise. From Sons and Daughters of God by Ellen G. White. For free access to more of her writings, please visit...

“Those who will put on the whole armor of God and devote some time every day to meditation and prayer and to the study of the Scriptures will be connected with heaven and will have a saving, transforming influence upon those around them.” Prayer p.22. ~ Ellen G. White

“Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭104:1-3‬ ‭KJV‬‬ http://bible.com/1/psa.104.1-3.kjv