"My appointed time draws near"

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

We are now approaching the last supper and again, today’s gospel talks about the betrayal of Jesus. Jesus is very aware of his pending fate for “My appointed time draws near; in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.” How much agony do you think Jesus is experiencing at this time to know that he will be crucified in less than 24 hours. What makes it worse is that he knows that one of his beloved disciples will betray him; someone who is close to him, someone who has broken bread with him will betray him. Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray him and all but Judas reply, “Surely, it is not I Lord?” But Judas addresses Jesus different from the rest, Judas replies, “Surely, it is not I Rabbi?” Why would Judas respond differently to Jesus? He does not acknowledge him as Lord, but as a Rabbi. Jesus did not consider himself a Rabbi, but our Savoir. Here Judas purposely denies acknowledging that Jesus is the Son of Man. This becomes a classic battle of good versus evil. “Do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does what is good is of God; whoever does what is evil has never seen God.” (3 John 1:11) Judas is not doing what is of God, therefore, he can not see God in Jesus.

What do you think made Judas hate Jesus so much that he would turn him over to the Roman Guard? Simply spoken – the devil made him do it – it was the evil that Judas let into his soul that allowed him to betray a friend who loved him. It was the greed that lead his life that made it impossible for him to see Jesus as the Son of Man and Lord and Savior. He lacked the faith and trust it needed to be a true disciple of Christ. So he betrayed Jesus for 30 coins.

During our Lenten journey, we probably encountered evil many times. Did you remember to pray daily? Did you go to mass every Sunday? Did you share the graces which God has provided you? Did you fast from those things which detour you from your final destination. Maybe we have gossiped or talked down to our friends. Maybe we were not as kind as we could have been. The more committed we are to following the path of Jesus, the more evil tries to knock us off course. What better time then during Holy Week to find the path that leads to the cross. Jesus is waiting there for you. He is waiting in his glory to free you from your sins. While evil may have caused you to stumble, Jesus defeats evil through the crucifixion and resurrection. Do not fear if you have fallen because Jesus tells us, “I did not come to call the righteous but the sinners.” (Matthew 9:13) Jesus is calling us to join him at the cross. Open your ears and hear his words. He is screaming for you – scream out for him.

A Simple Prayer “Jesus, I eagerly await the day of your resurrection. I want to avail myself of all the grace you are offering your church as we prepare together to enter the holiest days of the year. I want to experience the power of the resurrection in my life today, And I want to be a light to others so that I may lead them to you.

Yours in Christ Michael Marcon