Commentary on the Gospel of
Everybody loves a winner. When you have good luck in business or other aspects of life, people you may not have heard from in years may reach out to re-connect. We want to bask in others’ success, hoping that it might rub off on us as well.
Perhaps that is why Jesus had to explain to his disciples that the Messiah had to suffer and die. Most people were looking for a Messiah who would be powerful. His closest followers would share in and benefit from that power. Time and again, Jesus had to explain that his mission was one of service and sacrifice, not power and riches. By laying down his life by living with love, Jesus did the most powerful thing imaginable: he destroyed death!
If we want to follow Jesus, we too will have to lay down our lives in service and sacrifice. By sharing Jesus’ mission willingly and with love, we will share his victory over death as well. What reward could be greater?
