Something to Remember 20

Today, I decided to read the accounts on the Passion of Christ in Luke and John. They were a bit contrasting in perspective, but I took them as complementary in imagining Christ and the situation at that time. Luke was presenting a more human Jesus while John was emphasizing the divinity of Jesus. But in both accounts, the other characters were the same.

Here are my reflections on the characters of the account:

(1) Jesus, in Luke, was depicted as having finally understood the gravity of His destiny, was in so much agony over it that He asks the Father to take the cup away from Him if it be His will. But God responds with a sign of strengthening, and though Jesus rightly was feeling pain and sorrow, He did not let this hinder Him from fulfilling the Father’s will. As a man, He was acting in total surrender to the will of God.

And yet despite this terrible agony, He never just looked to Himself but to the people He loved. In John, He spends His last moments before the passion praying for them. In Luke, He prepares them, though in vain because the disciples didn’t understand Him, for the mission ahead.

Once crucified, in Luke, He asks forgiveness for the very people who were hurting Him when it would be understandable for any human to cry out for anguish and justice. In John, already on the cross, He didn’t spend His last moments with His mother sharing goodbyes or signs of affection, but instead, entrusted her to a disciple.

These acts of selflessness together with the final act of selfless love, His innocent death on the cross for us, against the backdrop of all the persecution, mocking and pain that Jesus had to endure just fills me with so much gratitude. That even before I was born into history, my God had already paid for my debt. We see in Jesus what we ought to be – men who endure for God’s will, and who give everything selflessly in His name. That is true human perfection, no matter how the world tells us otherwise. And though it is surely beyond us, our mere intention to be like Christ pleases Him and He will surely help us achieve what He has designed us to be.

(2) I resonate a lot with Peter in both accounts. Jesus was already grooming Peter to be the leader of the Church after His departure from history. Peter, zealous as he is, promises Christ to follow Him to wherever He will be. But Jesus knew this was an empty promise and I feel that He sought to humble Peter by predicting correctly how many times he will end up denying Christ. Many times I feel like Peter, promising so much of myself to Christ but not really living up to those promises. A lot of times, I fail to get the point of discipleship, like when Peter attacks the slave when Jesus’ point for the sword was to prepare for the trials in their mission ahead. A lot of times, I do not cooperate with what He asks of me, like when Jesus asks His disciples to pray that they may not undergo the test, but instead they sleep in grief.

I think that Peter felt forced to deny Jesus in order to survive. Not at any point did Peter actually deny Jesus for who He is, but only that in those three times he denied Jesus, he thought more about himself. He was the character foil to Christ in those accounts, a selfish man who knew what had to be done but didn’t. I already know Jesus, but a lot of times, I am guilty of being too selfish to do what must be done for Him.

But I take great comfort in that, in Luke, despite Peter’s denial, Christ still looked at him. I think, though not explicitly stated, it was the most loving look Christ ever gave Peter. I pray that I always find that loving stare in my life because I know it is what will sustain me to choose the right things for Him.

(3) Finally, I also somehow resonate with Pilate. For all the condemnation Pilate has received throughout history (yes, we condemn him every time we say the creed), we have to give him credit that despite not having heard Jesus before unlike the Pharisees who sought to have him killed, he understood that Jesus had to be treated with a modicum of respect. He knew the truth to a certain extent – that Jesus was an innocent man. It was the only truth that mattered at that time, the truth that could have saved Jesus from damnation. The sin of Pilate, which I think I am guilty a lot of times as well, is that despite having known the truth, he allowed the pressures of the world around him – the Jews, the political situation, the laws and man-made customs – to push him to do what he knew was wrong. A lot of times, I hide behind these empty reasons when I fail to do what is right despite having known it. I pray that I be more courageous in not just being aware of what is true, right and good, but doing what ought to be done for Him.

Have a blessed Good Friday ☺
Today is a time for celebration, because 2000 years ago, Jesus sacrificed Himself for us to restore our friendship with God.