A minister was talking to a professing Christian and asked him if he was active in a local church. The man responded, “No, but the dying thief wasn’t active in a church and yet he was still accepted.” The minister then asked if he had been baptized. The man responded, “The dying thief was not baptized and he still made it to heaven.” The minister then asked if he had partaken of the Lord’s Table. The man responded, “No, but the dying thief didn’t either, and Christ still received him.”

The minister then commented: “The only difference between you and the dying thief is that he was dying in his belief and you are dead in yours.”