_“As Moses
lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up,
that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” *(John 3:14-15)*_
Today’s
feast is the reason why we have crosses in our churches, in our homes, in our
cars, on our necks, our desktops; everywhere. Today we celebrate the cross not
as a crude element of murder and shame but as the object of the victory of
Christ over death; the object on which Christ prophesied he would draw all men
to himself.
The first
sin that Adam and Eve committed which brought God’s wrath upon mankind happened
beside a tree; the tree of the forbidden fruit. The serpent tempted Eve and she
ate and gave some to Adam. Their eating of the tree made their eyes open and
they realized they were naked.
Just as a
tree was the source of man’s downfall, it became necessary that when God was
restoring man to himself in Christ; correcting the error of the first man, a
tree would again play a vital role. The object of sin becomes the object of
redemption. When Christ carried the cross, he was actually carrying the tree
(the forbidden fruit) back to its original state as a source of life.
Again, as
Jesus himself said in our Gospel passage today, what Moses did in the
wilderness foreshadows the cross of Calvary. Mankind like the people of Israel,
rebelled against God by choosing evil over good, sin over righteousness, lies
over truth thereby bringing upon themselves death, pain and sorrow. In the
cross of Calvary, God decided to bring healing, restoration and life again to
mankind in the same manner Moses erected the bronze serpent in the wilderness.
Just as
the people looked up at the serpent for healing, so also we look up at the
Cross of Jesus for healing. Is there any area of your life you desire healing?
Do you believe the story contained in our first reading today? Then just take
your gaze at the cross. You may have seen the cross several times but this
time, look at it again; look with faith and expect to receive life, health, restoration
and well-being.
This feast
we celebrate today has its origins in the discovery of the cross on which Jesus
was crucified. The story has it that when Christianity became accepted as the
official religion of Rome, Helen who was the mother of the reigning emperor
decided to go to Israel to see things for herself. She eventually found three
crosses around the site where the crucifixion took place and in other to know
the exact one on which Jesus was crucified, they brought in a very sick man and
placed him on the crosses only for him to get cured instantly on one particular
cross.
From that
moment, the cross was no longer treated as an object of shame and disgrace but as
a Sacred object. This explains why we are not ashamed to wear the cross on our
necks and carry it everywhere. Take away the cross from a church building and
you are left with a mere auditorium. Just as we carry physical crosses about,
our celebration today reminds us of the words of Jesus: “If any want to become
my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow
me.” (Luke 9:23).
As
powerful as the cross, so powerful are those pains, insults, ridicule and shame
we have to put up with for the sake of our Christian Faith. Just as we can no
longer look down on the cross, so also we dare not look down on what we have to
suffer if such suffering is due to our desire to serve God. Do not despise your
sufferings, do not reduce your cross, do not abandon the narrow path; do not
try to be like everyone else, do not get tired of doing good even when your
goodness seems unrewarded and unappreciated by others. Cherish the pains and
sacrifices you have to put up with for Christ’s sake.
When I sat
down to look at the Crucifix before preparing this message, I noticed certain
details:
One, the
size of the cross compared to the size of Christ hanging on it. It dawned on me
that our crosses are always going to be bigger than us.
Two, the
look on Jesus’ face; the fact that he wasn’t frowning. I got the message that
we can only carry our cross with hearts free of bitterness. Not even those
killing us deserve our anger.
Three, the
people at the foot of the cross. While the crowd jeered and mocked, soldiers
did their job, Jews supervised, Mary the Mother of Jesus was there supporting
her son with a loving maternal gaze. It dawned on me that when we suffer, the
crowd will never support us but one person we can always trust to be on our
side is Mary, the Mother of God.
Let us
pray: Let Jesus, thank you for the healing power of your Cross, teach me to
value it and to value the crosses I bear daily for your sake. Amen.
Be Happy.
Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Feast of the
Exaltation of the Cross. Bible Study: Numbers 21:4-9, Philippians 2:6-11 and
John 3:13-17.)
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