At Death, I Found Life

January 14, 2025January 10, 2025 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

I was a common thief, a professional criminal. I didn’t want to work, and because my father passed while I was still at a young age, I didn’t learn the family trade. Here I was uneducated and had no skills, so I felt I was forced to steal from anyone I could in order to get by. I stole food. I stole tools that I could sell to buy things I needed. I could get water, and I managed to sleep just about anywhere, but it was food that didn’t come easily.

I soon learned to create distractions while I stole from shop owners. I also learned a useful technique of bumping into people and then stealing their bag of money while at the same time asking, “Are you okay?”

Yeah, sometimes I would get caught, mainly by trying to steal from other thieves out there. Occasionally, I would get beaten and thrown in jail, but not that often. I knew stealing was wrong, but what choice did I have?

I traveled around a lot. That is how a professional thief survives! If you steal from too many in one place, word can get out and you are watched more closely. If you are new in town and the town is relatively large, you tend to blend in as just another visitor or businessman who belongs there.

It was in my travels that I first heard of the man named Jesus. Supposedly, he was the Son of God. I didn’t know for myself and really didn’t care. I mean, what could he do for me? I liked it, though, when he happened to be in the same town as me. He would draw these large crowds, and they would all be straining to get a look at this man who was performing miracles. Everybody just had to see a miracle!

I usually took in a good amount with him around distracting people. I mean, you really couldn’t ask for a better distraction than that. Umm, now that I think about it, maybe that was my miracle? Yeah, I heard his claims and his teachings about living for God and doing good, but I couldn’t see how to make money doing that! One time, I bumped into Jesus himself. We both just stood there for a moment and gazed at each other when, all of a sudden, Jesus said to me, “See you later.” At the time, I had no idea what he meant by that.

A few years went by with Jesus drawing the crowds in when it was time to go back to Jerusalem. A Jewish holiday was approaching. I knew I had to be careful, for I had been arrested there many times, but I just couldn’t resist the crowd! The place would be packed!

I got to Jerusalem early, but it wasn’t long before the crowds started coming in. I wanted to get there so I could claim a somewhat nice place to sleep in an alley. I had come across it on a previous stay in Jerusalem. It was a little remote, but I felt safe, and there were a couple of places I could hide my loot.

The holiday was upon us. The pickings were good. Then I heard that Jesus had ridden into town a few days ago on a donkey being highly celebrated, kind of like a king. I thought, “Wow! Once again, Jesus is here, so I can work the crowd as he does his thing.” But midweek, something happened, and the crowd, slowly began to turn on Jesus.

I then started to hear around town that the religious leaders were plotting against Jesus. Apparently, they were tired of his claims and teachings, but mostly his healings! They were upset that Jesus was getting so popular. They felt as though their power and authority over the regular folks was slipping away. They felt the only way to stop it was to make Jesus disappear for good.

As I was listening to this talk about doing away with Jesus, I was spotted in the crowd. I was instantly arrested and thrown in jail. There were two others already there. I’m not sure what the one man was in there for, but the other man, Barabbas, I believe, was accused of starting a riot and of murder. He seemed to me like a very violent man.

You can imagine my shock when I heard they had arrested Jesus. I mean, in my opinion, he was a good man. He went around teaching about how to live life in a way we had never heard before. He performed many miracles. One miracle was turning water into wine at a wedding after the host family ran out. People who were there said the wine they served at the end of the party was better than the first wine they had served. Usually, hosts would serve the cheaper wine toward the end of a party, thinking most wouldn’t notice. He also healed a lot of people. He healed the crippled, the lame, the blind, the sick, and some with a skin disease. He even raised a couple of people from the dead. His claim to be the Son of God was probably true after all because who else could have done all of that? There seemed to be a peace and calmness in my heart when I was around him.

I didn’t understand the action taken by the top religious leaders until it dawned on me he was a threat to them. Often, he would challenge their religious rules, which they thought pleased God, by showing a life that was based on a relationship with God. Perhaps they thought he would cast a demon out of them! I guess they couldn’t understand God coming here, as a child of an ordinary family, as rumor had it, to walk among us, especially in the manner in which he did. They thought their king of kings would come into town with trumpets blaring and in a chariot of the finest gold anyone had ever seen. No matter what they were thinking, Jesus certainly didn’t deserve to be beaten! I mean, I didn’t see it, but he was tortured!

He only went about doing good things for people. He didn’t cause storms, he calmed them! He didn’t cause death but raised people from it! He didn’t inflict disease on people, he healed them of it! God being among the people is the greatest thing that could ever happen! I mean, he played with the children, and children were “nothing” back then. He also respected women. He gave time to those most considered “unimportant.” You know, after thinking about what I heard him teach and seeing how he lived, I guess I had concluded that Jesus was indeed the Son of God. He was the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

It was customary at this particular festival for the people to choose someone who was in jail, to be released. I couldn’t believe it when I heard the people shouting for Barabbas to be set free. “Were they nuts?” I thought. I mean, do they really want to have a known killer walking among them? After that, the people were asked what they wanted done with Jesus. Again, I was shocked when I heard them screaming, “CRUCIFY HIM!” I guess when people don’t like being confronted with how they live, they want the person telling them the truth to go away. In Jesus’ case, they wanted him to go away forever!

We walked slowly to the hill they call “Golgotha,” meaning “The place of the skull.” Our pace was slowed by the fact that Jesus could barely walk, much less carry a cross. They finally pulled some guy out of the crowd and made him help Jesus.

Even when we got there, and the three of us were hanging on our crosses, the crowd continued to persecute Jesus. The other guy hanging on the cross on Jesus’ left was getting in on it, too. I couldn’t take it anymore! I yelled at him and said, “Hey, that is the Son of Almighty God you are disrespecting! We are criminals and deserve death, but this man has done nothing wrong! Leave him alone!” Then I turned to Jesus and asked him to remember me when he came into his kingdom.” My heart broke when, with all that was left in Him, he turned to me, and with the most loving look, he said, “I tell you the truth. You will be with me in Paradise this very day!”

I spent my whole life wondering around, drifting from here to there and doing nothing good. I never helped anyone! Life was always about me and what I could get for me!

Ironically, at the end of my life, after witnessing the greatest “giver” ever, I was ready to do something for someone else. I guess that was my motivation for standing up for Jesus. I’m glad I did.

(The actual account can be found in the Bible. Luke 23:39-43)

If you have never had your own encounter with Jesus Christ, know that you can. He is waiting for you to accept his offer of forgiveness for your sins. With that begins a relationship that brings hope, encouragement, comfort, and guidance with the added bonus of eternal life. Along the way, you can ask for help with anything. Problems in life, relationships, and healing. Having a relationship with Jesus is the best thing you will ever do with your life. God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are real. So are heaven and hell. There are no other alternatives. Encounter Jesus and change your life.

Hacked

April 16, 2024March 23, 2024 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

Individuals are getting hacked all the time these days, especially on social media. I know my Facebook account got hacked once. Just the other day, a friend told me someone, or a group, got into her “X” (formally Twitter) account. There is even a company now you can pay to try to guard you against hackers getting your personal information and securing loans or, worse, draining your bank accounts.

A few years ago, I took a nap on a Saturday. When I woke, I looked at my phone and saw an email from my bank. I had set up a “Withdrawal Alert” whenever more than a set amount came out of any of my accounts. The email informed me that $9000 had been transferred from my savings. I immediately called the bank and told them I didn’t do it and didn’t authorize it. They finally stopped treating me like a criminal, a “guilty” party, after two hours. I told them the people responsible were tied to the account where the money went. I got the money back, and I have greater security today.

But what happens when someone’s heart gets hacked? What do I mean by that? An individual, perhaps raised in a church, knows right from wrong and believes in God even, but Satan found a way into their heart and, as a result, into their life. His presence in their heart could cause them to act in a way that is no longer pleasing to God. It could cause them to say and do things that are not right. You don’t think it could happen? What about Judas?

Judas was one of Jesus’ disciples. He heard the teachings and saw the miracles. In fact, he probably had a front-row seat. I can only guess he was in attendance every time.

Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, even then getting ready to betray him, said, “Why wasn’t this oil sold and the money given to the poor? It would have easily brought three hundred silver pieces.” He said this not because he cared two cents about the poor but because he was a thief. He was in charge of their common funds, but also embezzled them. John 12:4-6 (MSG)

Jesus said, “The one to whom I give this crust of bread after I’ve dipped it.” Then he dipped the crust and gave it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. As soon as the bread was in his hand, Satan entered him.

“What you must do,” said Jesus, “do. Do it and get it over with.” John 13:26-27 (MSG)

See, the scriptures point out that Satan “hacked” into Judas’ heart. He found a way in, and he caused Judas to betray Jesus. The sad end to Judas’ life is he knew he had sinned. He gave the money back to the priests, well, tried to. They didn’t want it because they knew it was now dirty. After Judas did this act, he judged himself and committed suicide. I know that if he had gone to Jesus and asked for forgiveness, Jesus would have done so.

If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—simply come clean about them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we’ve never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God. 1 John 1:9-10 (MSG)

Guard your heart by guarding your mind. Bring every thought into captivity. For what you think, you begin to believe. And what you believe, you start to speak and act upon. Don’t let your heart get hacked. You won’t be guilty, and your life will be “locked,” secured for eternity.

Ready

November 22, 2022November 19, 2022 / Mark Brady / 3 Comments

My grandmother had a painting in the hallway of her house that captivated my attention on more than one occasion. I would stand there and study the details of it, thinking, “Boy! That day is going to be something.” It portrayed the rapture. The moment when Jesus came back to earth to call his bride home. The painting showed people ascending into heaven from cars, an airplane, fields, and houses. The plane crashed because the pilots were both Christians. Some of the vehicles crashed too. It was as if the earth went chaotic in a moment. (The photo displayed is similar to the one my grandmother had.)

Since Jesus ascended into heaven, men have been looking for and anticipating his return. After all, He said he would. The Bible contains at least 100 scriptures concerning his return. There have been many books written about it and even some movies made. Countless sermons have been preached, encouraging people to watch, and pray, but most of all, be ready! I remember a word given in our church when I was about eight years old. The man said that Jesus’ return was so close it was as if He was already standing up. I got excited and put my shoes back on!

Matthew 24:36 – “But the exact day and hour? No one knows that, not even heaven’s angels, not even the Son. Only the Father knows.” (MSG)

1 Corinthians 15:52 – We’re not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. (MSG)

Matthew 25:13 – “So stay alert. You have no idea when he might arrive.” (MSG)

Matthew 24:37-44 – “The Arrival of the Son of Man will take place in times like Noah’s. Before the great flood everyone was carrying on as usual, having a good time right up to the day Noah boarded the ark. They knew nothing—until the flood hit and swept everything away.

“The Son of Man’s Arrival will be like that: Two men will be working in the field—one will be taken, one left behind; two women will be grinding at the mill—one will be taken, one left behind. So stay awake, alert. You have no idea what day your Master will show up. But you do know this: You know that if the homeowner had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been there with his dogs to prevent the break-in. Be vigilant just like that. You have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up. (MSG)

I look around and definitely see individuals preoccupied with life. They are more concerned with current politics with striving to be successful or famous. Trying so hard to earn more money or where their next meal may come from. They might even be more concerned with their relationship status. Satan loves this. He wants us to forget that Jesus Christ is coming back for us. He wants anything for us other than to be ready. It takes focus on our part. It takes keeping God first in our minds, hearts, and life.

In the days of Noah, very few believed that it would rain one day. It had never rained before, so why should they? Today, there are probably very few that believe Jesus will return for believers, for He has never returned previously, but we have been told that He is going to. We have a choice to either believe it and live accordingly or not.

I pray that you choose to believe me and, more importantly, believe God’s word and live your life ready to be caught up in the air with Jesus. If you don’t, you will definitely know the truth when the rapture occurs. There will be mass destruction and confusion everywhere around you. People will disappear right before your eyes. I, for one, have no desire to be here when that happens. I mark myself as “Ready!”

brady, mark a.

Words to inspire you

thief