"Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say 'I have no delight in them;'" Ecclesiastes 12:1, NASB (1995)
I recently attended the funeral of my grandfather. By all accounts he was a good man. Sure, he had made his mistakes in life, but he loved his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I remember going on trips to his house (we went maybe once every three years) and riding on his leg as he walked around the living room. He was a strong man, a welder by trade, and struggled with his health in his waning years. He eventually lost his eyesight due to complications from diabetes.
At his funeral, I heard the story told by the hospital chaplain (who conducted his service) of how my grandfather in his last days had asked to see the chaplain. He told the chaplain (a Baptist preacher) that he was scared that he was not going to be good enough to get into Heaven. The chaplain related how he told my grandfather that no one is good enough to get into Heaven on their own merit, but rather it was belief in Jesus Christ that "got your ticket" into Heaven. Now this chaplain seemed light on the Gospel, but I believe (based on a later discussion that I had) that he presented it in such a fashion that my grandfather knew that it wasn't just a belief in Jesus Christ that allowed a person to inherit eternal life but also repentance of sins and a changed heart that yearned to obey Jesus's commandments. The chaplain stated that my grandfather prayed the sinner's prayer with him that day.
Matthew 27:44 and Mark 15:32 relate how both criminals were mocking Christ on the cross. As the hours wore on, however, Luke tells us in 23:40-41 that one of them rebuked the other one for continuing in his insults. In verse 42 the criminal asked Jesus to remember him when Jesus comes into His kingdom. Jesus answers him in verse 43 saying "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise". This account of conversion is truly remarkable considering the scathing and demanding passages of scripture that call believers to be prepared to sacrifice so much for the sake of Christ. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus tells potential disciples that in order to follow Him they must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Him. Luke 13:23-28 tells us to "strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able." In Luke 14:25-35 Jesus tells the crowd what following after him could cost them. The most concerning passage of all, though, comes in Matthew 7:21-23 where Jesus says that not everyone who claims to know Jesus (and do good works in His name!) will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
How can we reconcile these two positions? On the surface they seem to be diametrically opposed. On the one hand, we have a man (the thief on the cross) who lived according to his own fleshly desires, breaking the commandments at will and showing no remorse until just before his dying breath. On the other hand, Jesus Himself tells us that entering the Kingdom of Heaven is not easy; in fact, it could cost everything we have, even our very life (John 12:25). We may be tempted to think that deathbed conversions are dubious and doubt the validity of professions that are made just before dying. Certainly we can look at a man or woman who has finally come to the full comprehension of their own mortality, who has led a life of denying Christ's lordship and even His existence, and determine in our minds that they are scared and looking for some peace of mind. I myself have been tempted to think this very thing about my grandfather. But then there is the repentant thief.
The bottom line is that no one but God knows a man's heart. There are people sitting in our churches who profess to be Christians all their life and will end up in Hell, and there are people who will be received by Christ hours before taking their last breath. The lesson for me in all of this resides in Ecclesiastes 12:1 "Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say 'I have no delight in them;'". We must live for Christ while our hearts are still tender towards Him. Nothing else in this world matters.
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