Francis Gayang csc –
Readings: Is 52: 13 – 53: 12; Heb 4: 14-16; 5: 7-9; Jn 18: 1 – 19: 42
Christ’s desire was to do the will of the Father. With total obedience He surrendered himself in responding to the mission’s need, allowing himself to be maltreated. Even His own were unaware of his divinity, and that was what made Peter afraid of confessing Jesus as his master to the crowd during the judgement of Jesus. He was not sure who Jesus truly was.
Probably he might have believed Jesus to be an extraordinary master who exceled over all other teachers of that time. Yet Jesus, filled with the merciful heart of the Father, did not count those human weaknesses. He was more interested in our present stand, what we can change, and what we can do. He was truly the perfect image of a merciful Father. He was ready to be our ransom, washing away our impurity with His innocent blood.
To the world, Jesus’ mission appeared to be a failure because He died a terrible death, equal to that of a criminal. However, for those who are open to the revelation of God, the Cross is the Sign of God’s self-emptying love, giving himself up freely and totally. He didn’t resist nor try to defend Himself against the false accusations of the people who were not truthful and whose hearts were filled with the darkness of sinful motives and tendencies.
The sacrificial offering of Christ on the cross should remind us of our call to die to our selfish motives and grow in the love of God and our fellow human beings. We are called to give as Christ gives and forgive as we are forgiven. If we truly know what Christ has done for us, we can’t but do likewise. We pray that Christ may help us never to lose track of our journey each day as we strive towards perfection in our spiritual life.