ECCE HOMMOS: BEHOLD THE MAN! ~ CookingFood.Org

“GENEROUS LENT 2017”

Lenten Reflections

Friday, 14^thApril 2017,

Holy Week

SACRED PASCHAL TRIDUUM - GOOD FRIDAY

Is 52:13-53;

Ps 31:2,6,12-13,15-17,25

Heb 4:14-16, 5:7-9;

Jn 18:1 - 19:42

ECCE HOMMOS: BEHOLD THE MAN!

It’s Good Friday, the very day for which Jesus was born into the world. His whole life, everything he ever said or did, had been leading up to this day. Every miracle, every sermon every word of forgiveness or challenge none of them makes sense apart from the cross. And today, we are invited to join millions of people all over the world in gazing upon the lamb who was slain for our sins.

In Pilate’s words: “Behold the Man”, let us behold Christ, recalling his humble beginnings as a newborn in a manger. Wondering at his hidden years as he grew in stature and grace. See him in his humility, trust and surrender to his Father as he walked with God each and every day. Behold the one who prayed into your hands I commend my spirit. See how this prayer which he breathed with his dying breath, was but the full expression of a lifetime of yielding to his father.

Come and “behold the one who said, I thirst” gaze upon the one who experienced hunger, thirst, and pain both physically and spiritually. He came not to be served but to serve. He washed his friend’s feet. He dined with sinners and touched lepers. He poured out his life day after day for his people. And now here he is crucified betrayed and abandoned. He is nailed to a cross, and he is still pouring out his life.

Behold your king, before his pierced and bloodstained feet, we bow our knees, anticipating the day when every person will kneel before him. Look upon this ravaged Rabbi and see here your eternal king, the one through whom all things were created. See your high priest seated in heaven even now constantly interceding for you just as he did on the cross. Behold Jesus. The sky blackens. The earth shakes. The rocks rend. His body lays still for now. His majesty is emptied but for a reason. Here is your king.

Scripture records seven last statements, or the “Seven Last Words” of Jesus. Let us ponder over them:

1. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”: While hanging on the Cross and enduring the cruelty of others, Jesus spoke words of forgiveness. He even acknowledged that those crucifying Him were not fully responsible. This humble acknowledgment of Jesus shows the depth of His tender mercy. It reveals He died not in anger or resentment, but in willing sacrifice. Can you say these words? Can you call to mind the person who has hurt you and pray that the Father forgives them?

2. “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”:What a gift it was to be there next to the Savior of the World, sharing in the sufferings of Christ in such a real way. The thief was privileged to be among the first to receive this gift of salvation won by Jesus on the Cross. Jesus offers us the same assurance. He offers salvation to us. And He offers it to us in the midst of our own suffering and sin. Can you hear Him invite you to share His gift of everlasting life?

3. “Woman, behold your son.”:Here, dying on the Cross, Jesus entrusted His own mother to John. And in so doing, He entrusted her to each one of us. Our unity with Jesus makes us a member of His family and, thus, sons and daughters of His own mother. Do you accept Jesus’ mother as your own spiritual mother?

4. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”:Jesus was not abandoned but He allowed Himself to feel and experience this complete loss of the Father in His human nature. He allowed Himself to know and experience the effects of sin. Therefore, He knows what we go through when we despair. And He is there with us in those temptations enabling us to press on through any despair toward total faith and trust in the Father.

5. “I thirst.”: Jesus thirsted physically at that moment for water to quench His dehydration. But more than that, He thirsted spiritually for the salvation of all of our souls. He longs to call us His children. He thirsts for our love. Satiate His thirst this Good Friday by giving Him your love.

6. “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”:These are the words of complete surrender to God. Surrender means God is in control. It means that we let go of our own will and choose only God’s. And it means that God pledges to accept our surrender and guide us into the perfect plan He has in mind for us.

7. “It is finished.”:What is finished? This spiritual statement from Jesus is one that affirms that His mission of the redemption of the whole world is accomplished. “It” refers to His perfect sacrifice of love offered for all of us. His death, which we commemorate today, is the perfect sacrifice which takes away the sins of all. What a gift!

We are used to seeing this sacrifice on the Cross. We ponder this sacrifice every time we look at the crucifix. But it is important to note that our over-familiarity with the Cross can tempt us to lose sight of the sacrifice. It’s easy for us to miss what Jesus actually did for us. He accomplished the act that saves us and He is now offering it to us. Let this completed act of Divine Mercy penetrate our soul. He desires to say that His sacrifice has “finished” its work in your soul. Understanding Jesus’ sacrificial love will enable us to love as He did. It will enable us to love those who have hurt us and those who persecute us. His love is total. It is generous beyond description.

Prayer: Lord, I know You thirst for my soul. You finished what You started by dying on the Cross for my salvation and the salvation of the world. Help me to understand Your love and to accept it into my life. I thank You, dear suffering Lord, for the gift of Your Precious Blood, poured out for the salvation of the world. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen