nor did he say to the thief on the right, hey, you need to say a sinner’s prayer first with specific words and then accept me as your personal lord and savior, and only promise to have faith alone and scripture alone.....
(see, we can all play that game)
What the thief said is far closer to the sinner’s prayer than “Hail Mary, Mother of God...”
Plus, I don’t subscribe to a sinner’s prayer formulation.
Why would a punk that got the book refer to Jesus as "Lord" ?
Because he believed Jesus IS LORD.
By grace are ye saved through FAITH, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God