“Oh, of course, I intend to be saved sometime! But there is no use in being in a hurry about it; I’ll take my chance, even at the eleventh hour. Remember the dying thief in the Bible!” This was the careless answer of a young man when spoken to about his soul.
“Which thief?” pointedly asked his questioner.
“Why, I had forgotten there were two. I mean the saved one,” was the reply.
“Yes, one was saved and is in heaven now. The other, who had an equal opportunity for salvation, is in hell. How can you be sure that you will not spend eternity as he will? Remember, those who plan to be saved ‘at the eleventh hour’ frequently die at 10:30!”
Startled, the young man realized the danger of waiting too long, and that night he received the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour and was saved for eternity.
Like him, thousands forget there were two thieves. They remember the mercy of God that saved one, while forgetting the judgment of God that condemned the other. Carelessly they wander on, hoping to be saved at last, but oh, how many who have heard the gospel again and again postpone a decision until it is too late and they are lost forever.
One thief believed on the Son of God, and is with Christ now. One thief scorned the Saviour, and went to hell. You must be with one or the other for eternity. DON’T risk waiting for “the eleventh hour”! v