Saturday, April 7, 2012

The Focus is not the blood of Jesus... The way Jesus faced His passion and death: Victorious

Why we all stand to listen to this kind of story of The Gospel of the Passion of Christ, full of suffering and blood. Are we not agree that we have enough blood and suffering already in our world?

St Thomas A. asked if there is another way from God to save us different of the crucifixion. The answer is yes. But as we know didn't happen in a different way. According to "the Angelic Doctor" The details of the Passion of our Lord are CLEAR SIGNS for the path we need to follow as CHRISTIANS (the ones that belong to Christ and follow Him) those signs are going to be arrows that are going to remind us of the: Love, Power, Mercy and Wisdom of God.

Why the Gospel of John today and actually every year? Because of the deep theology it contains. The other synoptic gospels (Mathew, Luke and Mark) are very similar. This one according to the wise and old preachers was written by the disciple represented by "the eagle", the one that have more THE BIG PICTURE of what happen to Jesus.

In the details of John's gospel we see not much what happen to Jesus, but THE WAY JESUS FACED HIS SUFFERINGS AND DEATH. After all the hatred, humiliations He responded with FORGIVENESS AND PRAYER fir His enemies: "Forgive them Father".

Brothers and sisters, what we need to focus in this liturgy on Good Friday is not in the blood or humiliations in itself it is more the way Jesus faces His Passion and Death. He gave His Spirit, as John says in his gospel as a way to say: He gave His Life. There are two kind of people in this life: the ones that lose their lives and the ones that give their lives. The one that dies in an accident doesn't have control of his life, Jesus is defeating death and is freely giving his Life for our salvation.

Our Lord cried with a loud voice, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) a declaration of victory. He had finished the work the Father gave Him to do (John 17:4). The work of redemption was completed, the types and prophecies were fulfilled (Heb. 9...:24ff), and the Savior could now rest. He then addressed His Father in the final statement from the cross, “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit” (Ps. 31:5). This was actually a bedtime prayer used by Jewish children, and it tells us how our Lord died: confidently, willingly (John 10:17–18), and victoriously. Those who know Jesus as their Saviour may die with the same confidence and assurance (2 Cor. 5:1–8; Phil. 1:20–23).

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