Heaven,
How I Got Here: The Story of the Thief on the Cross
by Colin S. Smith
In this dramatic re-telling of the story of the
thief on the cross, Pastor Colin S. Smith draws us into the world of Roman rule
and the way Jesus met the this criminal on the cross. With an eye towards revealing the emotional
and backstory of the thief and with a lens towards Jesus’ compassion on the
cross, Heaven, How I Got Here grabs the reader’s attention from the
beginning. Readers are sure to find much
good here including a clear presentation of the good news of Jesus Christ.
Beginning the book Colin brings out a narrative
of what the thief on the cross’ life might have been like prior to his painful
execution. Initially, the thief tells the story of being raised in a Jewish
home, his father was a builder and his mother was the caretaker of the
house. What struck me was how Colin
mentioned that the thief’s mother had a ‘ridiculous faith’ and that her
foundational teaching came from Exodus 34.6, “God is gracious and
compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.”
This passage was taken up many other times in the prophetic literature,
including in Joel 2. Seizing an
opportunity to set the table, Colin goes to tell of how the thief came to
understand in injustice by Roman taxation and how this crippled his families
livelihood (12-13).
Colin goes onto bring out the interior dilemma
held onto by the thief on the cross concerning the cultural idea of Messiah he
was taught and Jesus’ actual work. Colin
writes, “Jesus. I had heard about
Him. The One from Nazareth, claiming to
be the Messiah…Well, I thought, ‘If He is able to perform miracles, this is
surely the day to produce one. But it’s
always the same with these religious types: great claims, nice thoughts, but no
muscle to confront the harsh realities of the word (22).’” There is a rising sense of disappointment
about a Messiah who would come into the world of taxation and bitterness and
yet not overturn Roman rule.
The change of judgment to hope happens as the
thief narrows in on Jesus’ words of forgiveness. Smith writes, “Hope began for me in the
strange words of Jesus that at first filled me with hate: ‘Father, forgive
them, they do not know what they are doing.’
Forgiveness! If Jesus could offer
forgiveness to His torturers, perhaps He would offer forgiveness to me (37).” This was the part of the book that was most
wonderful to me, the forgiveness offered to the thief, and the compassion and
grace offered by Jesus . His former way
of life was one of thinking that God was out to get him but Jesus offer of
forgiveness does not come with a package of merits as its condition.
I really enjoyed this book and think many will
be caught up in the narrative life of the thief. My only criticism is that I think Colin goes
a little overboard about trying to explain that salvation is not about our
works. I totally agree but I believe
this came out more clearly in the narrative part of the thief’s life.
Thanks to Christian Focus Publications and
Cross Focused Reviews for the book in exchange for an honest review.
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