HOLY

WEEK CONTEMPLATIONS

Holy Week
Contemplations

by

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III

 ST SHENOUDA’S MONASTERY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
2013

HOLY WEEK CONTEMPLATIONS

COPYRIGHT © 2013
St. Shenouda Monastery

All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications

or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner
without prior written permission from the publisher.

ST SHENOUDA MONASTERY
Putty Rd, Putty, NSW
Sydney, Australia

www.stshenoudamonastery.org.au

ISBN 13: 978-0-9873400-2-3

All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from

the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas
Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Cover Design:
Hani Ghaly,
Begoury Graphics
[email protected]
Table of Contents
Preface
The Importance of Holy Week
Contemplations on the Suffering of Christ
How can we benefit spiritually from Holy Week?
Outside the City
To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and the Honour, forever Amen
Palm Sunday and cleansing the temple
The House of Bethany
Treason and the Kiss of Judas
Job’s Wednesday
Covenant Thursday
The Farewell Gathering with His Disciples
Good Friday
The Words of Our Lord Jesus on the Cross
T hese books first appeared in the late sixties and have since been reprinted
many times. They have been combined into one book to make them more
contained. Perhaps contemplations on the Holy Week of Pascha needs many
more books as it is the holiest week in the year, filled with wonderful spiritual
memories which are impossible to gather in one book. Contemplations on the
Holy Week of Pascha are suitable at any time of the year, as the suffering of our
Lord Jesus Christ is the foundation of our Christian faith. We remember the
suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ every day in the sixth hour prayer of the
Agpya.Therefore, we present these contemplations in your hands and, I also
pray, deep in your heart.
This book is a collection of the following five books:
1. Contemplations on Holy Week
2. Contemplations on the Holy Week Praises (To You is the Power and the
Glory)
3. Contemplations on Covenant Thursday
4. Contemplations on Good Friday
5. Contemplations on the Words of Christ on the Cross

Pope Shenouda III

PREFACE
THE IMPORTANCE OF HOLY WEEK
 T he Holy Pascha Week is the holiest and most spiritual week of the entire
year. It is a week filled with many holy memories in the most critical
stage of the period of salvation and the most important chapter in the story of
salvation. The Church has selected special readings from both the Old and New
Testaments. All the readings are filled with passion and emotions which
effectively reveal the relationship between God and mankind. Also the Church
has selected a group of spiritual hymns and contemplations.
This week is called Passion Week, Pascha Week or Holy Week. In the
English language it is called Holy Week and each day of this week is the holiest
of the year. For example, Thursday is called “Holy Thursday”, Friday is called
“Holy Friday” and so on.
This week is dedicated completely to worship and people refrain from work
and they gather in Churches for prayer and meditation. People used to take time
off work to devote themselves to the Lord and the Holy commemorations. They
attend Church, pray and listen to the hymns and the readings.
Many people take time of work to go on a holiday or attend a wedding etc,
but what can be more beautiful than taking time off to spend with God in
Church. The Christian Kings and Emperors used to grant people this week off as
a holiday. In the past, Christian Kings and Emperors used to give government
employees a holiday to attend worship at Church during this week. It is said that
Emperor Theodosius the Great used to allow captives and prisoners to attend
Holy Week with the rest of the believers. This gave them the chance to rebuild
their relationship with God and reform.
Also the Masters used to give their slaves the week off for worship. The Ten
Commandments says, “But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your
God. In it you shall do no work; you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your
manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is
within your gates.” (Exodus 20:10).
Indeed your servants and the rest of the nation have the right to worship God
like you and should participate in the sanctity of these days. They have the right
to take time off work to worship the Lord. So all worship together and deeply
enjoy the significance of this week. During the days of slavery, the Apostles
arranged in their laws that slaves should take this week off work for worship and
also a further week after Easter.
Do you give your employees time off during Pascha Week? Since an
employer takes time off during this week to worship then they have no need for
their employees.
The signs of sorrow and grief are very visible in the Church. The pillars of
the Church are wrapped in black veils; the icons are also wrapped in black as are
the pulpit and the Church walls. The hymns are sung in the sorrowful tunes and
the readings correspond with the journey and events of the week. The believers
avoid any visible signs of joy or happiness.
Women do not wear jewellery or make up and any kind of celebrations are
cancelled during this week. The whole Church is in mourning for the passion of
Christ which will be explained later. Do we join in with this sorrow during
Pascha Week? Or at least keep the holiness of the events? Or do we spend time
amusing ourselves in fun, pleasure and entertainment and living a totally
different life outside the Church?
The Church lives a high level of asceticism. Some hermits abstain from food
altogether for the whole week or abstain for three days then eat one meal and
then continue abstinence for another three days. Many believers also abstain
from food from Thursday night right through until after the Easter service, many
of them only eating bread and salt during this time. If they were unable to
abstain completely, they would then eat bread with herbs as it was not suitable to
eat sweets whilst remembering the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ for their
sake. Also they used to not eat any cooked meals as they did not want to waste
time preparing the food, they preferred to keep their minds and hearts on Christ
and His suffering.
During this week the only sacraments which are practiced are the Sacrament
of Confession and the Sacrament of Priesthood. During Holy Week the
Sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Myron are not practiced. Also the Raising
of Incense and the Holy Liturgy are not held except on Covenant Thursday and
Joyous Saturday. And of course it is impossible to practice the Sacrament of
Holy Matrimony. The Sacrament of the Unction of the Sick is carried out on
friday, the Seal of the Fast, just before the start of Holy Week.
No funeral services are held during this week. In the event of someone
passing away, there is no raising of incense, but the body is taken to the Church
to attend the Pascha prayers and the absolution is read, as well as special prayers.
During Holy Week we do not pray from the Agpya. The Agpya prayers are
replaced by the Pascha praises. This is because the Agpya prayers represent
many events in the life of Christ, but during this week we are focusing only on
the suffering of Christ. For instance, in the Morning Prayer we remember the
birth of Christ, in the Midnight Prayer we remember the second coming and in
theThird Hour Prayer we remember the descent of the Holy Spirit on the
disciples. However, during this week, we want to focus only on the suffering of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
Even the Sixth Hour Prayer, which reminds us of Christ’s Crucifixion and
the Ninth Hour Prayer where we are reminded of His death are not prayed during
Holy Week. These prayers are postponed until Good Friday so that we can
follow Christ’s journey in chronological order. As for the Psalms, we select from
them what is suitable for this week. The remaining Psalms from the Agpya
which have any meaning other than the suffering of Christ and the events of this
week are omitted.

WHY THIS WEEK IS CALLED PASCHA WEEK?

The word Pascha means “Passover” which is taken from Exodus 12:18 when
God said, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” In the first Passover the
Israelites were saved by the blood. Our Lord Jesus Christ is referred to as the
Passover as it is said, “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1
Corinthians 5:7).
Throughout this Holy week we remember the sufferings of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who offered Himself as a Passover. This happened so that when the
Father saw the blood of the Passover, He would redeem us from the sword of
death so as not to perish. We also remember that His blood was shed for our
sake. There is no salvation except through His blood, as it happened at the first
Passover (Exodus 12).

THESE DAYS ARE HOLY DAYS

Not only are the Pascha days holy days they are the holiest days of the year.
What do we mean when we say the Pascha days are holy days? All the days of
our lives are considered holy days. Each day we pray the Prayer of Thanksgiving
saying; “Keep us in peace this blessed day and all the days of our life.” We say
this every day because our Lord Jesus Christ has given us life through His
blood. Hence, through His blood, our life is sanctified. However, there is no
denying that there are days that are holier than others.
Perhaps the first example of this is the sanctification of the Lord’s day every
week. This is mentioned in the Holy Bible in the story of Creation, “Remember
the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 21:2), “observe the Sabbath day to
keep it Holy.” (Deuteronomy 5:12).
It is the day of the Lord, a holy day, a day that is blessed and sanctified by
the Lord and He asked us to also make it holy. In Greek it is called “kericaki”,
which means the Lord’s day. It is a day dedicated to the Lord in which we do
not work as He commanded us. We also do not work on any of the other holy
days which the Lord referred to (Leviticus 23).
These days are more holy than other days. Our whole lives are holy;
however the days of the Lord are extremely holy. This is because they are
dedicated to the Lord. There are moments which have their own unique kind of
holiness for spiritual reasons. Despite the fact that our life is holy, the times of
prayer, meditation, visions and revelations has its own unique holiness.
And there are Holy days in everyone’s life. The day that the Lord appeared
to Saul (Acts 9), was a day of special holiness. And the day which Saint John the
Beloved saw his vision and wrote the Book of Revelation was also a day of
special holiness. Also the days of fasts and feasts are days that have their own
special holiness, unlike any other day.
If the days of Lent are the holiest days of the year and the Pascha week is in
Lent, then we can say that Pascha week is the holiest week of the year. The holy
Lent contains the highest level of asceticism, more than any other fast.
Therefore, the level of worship during Holy Week, when the believers gather
together in the Church, raising their prayers in one spirit, listening to the selected
readings from the Old and New Testaments, as well as the deep praises with
their deep spiritual impact, is very holy indeed.
The spiritual memories of this week are very powerful, as we follow Christ
step by step, as we sing the Pascha praises, “To You is the Power, the Glory and
the Honour forever, Amen, Emmanuel our God and our King.”
The spiritual meaning of this week has its own unique depth.Believers are
dedicated, serious, meticulous and more submissive to God, giving all their time
to Him. Although it is ideal to dedicate all your time to Him during this week, if
you are unable to dedicate your full time to Christ our Lord, then try as much as
you can to devote some time at least.
It is a week which we enter into fellowship of Christ’s sufferings. We put
before us all His sufferings, with a contrite heart and true repentance in order to
prepare ourselves for Holy Communion on Covenant Thursday. It was on this
day that the Lord made His covenant with his pure disciples and established this
great mystery (the Sacrament of Holy Communion). Now we need to ask, how
did this Holy Week start?

HOW DID THIS WEEK START?

The sufferings of Christ started as early as when King Herod planned to kill
Him when he ordered the killing of the children of Bethlehem. King Herod
thought that our Lord Jesus Christ was among those who were killed but in fact
the Holy Family escaped to Egypt before this was achieved.
Our Lord’s earthly service was filled with suffering from the very
beginning. For instance, there was the controversy of the Scribes and the
Pharisees fighting against Him and the jealousy towards Christ when they
witnessed the people’s interest in Him.
How many times did they try to kill Him and they could not? This is because
His hour had not yet come. And when did this hour come? It came when He
gave Himself up to redeem the world. The thread of the controversy against Him
began when they seriously considered killing Him on Sunday, and they paid the
price to Judah on Wednesday and arrested the Lord on Thursday night (Friday
eve). Together we will try to continue with this story to see how this controversy
started:

1 Christ’s popularity caused the Jewish leaders to be envious. Our Lord

Jesus Christ was very popular and much loved among the people.
Thousands of people crowded around Him and were amazed by His teachings
and His miracles, but the Jewish leaders envied Him. They tried to turn the
crowds against Him by saying that His miracles were not from God. They said,
“This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the
demons.” (Matthew 12:24). They also told the people that Christ makes the
Law invalid, but they failed in their plans and the people still loved and followed
Jesus.

2 Then He raised Lazarus on Saturday. It was a profound miracle. It was

different from the miracle of raising the daughter of Jairus and raising the
son of the widow of Nain, when he was in his coffin, because four days had
passed since his death (John 11:39) and it was said about him that, “there would
be a stench.” (John 11:39). This miracle had a great impact and many people
believed in Him.

3 Before raising Lazarus He opened the eyes of the blind man. This was the
first time such a miracle occurred, “Since the world began it has been
unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind” (John 9:32).
So the Jewish leaders started to use the authorities and they cast Him out,
“For the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he
would be put out of the synagogue.” (John 9:22).
At the death of Lazarus, people remembered this miracle, “and some of them
said, ‘Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this
man form dying?’” ( John 11: 37).

4 After the miracle of raising Lazarus, they gathered a council against

Christ. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and
said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone
like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away
both our place and nation.” And Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to
them, “You know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is expedient for us
that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should
perish.” (John11:46-50).
It is clear that this was a false accusation because the miracles of Christ did
not result in the destruction of the nation nor affect the Roman rule. So the
raising of Lazarus and it’s effects pushed the Jewish leaders to hold a council.
After the council it was said, “Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to
death”. Also, they tried to kill Lazarus.

5 Sunday came and the Jewish leaders became agitated and wanted to kill
Him. The way the people greeted Him as a King aggravated them even
more. The People cried out: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
The King of Israel!” (John 12: 13). So the Jewish leaders felt that they had lost
their authority. This became clear as they, out of envy, insisted on killing him.
And the Pharisees therefore said among themselves, ‘You see that you are
accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!” (John 12:19).

6 What about those people who loved Christ? How could they face the
crowds who shouted, “Crucify Him?” Where before they called Him ‘The
King of Israel?” This is because Christ refused the earthly kingdom, as He said
“My Kingdom is not of this world.” (John 18:36).
Thus, the people had great hopes on the coming of the Kingdom of Christ as
they chanted on Palm Sunday, Hosanna! The Jewish leaders were successful in
influencing these people to gain them on their side.

7 But The Lord Jesus Christ felt that His hour was near and He began to
practice His authority in order to fulfill His death that He wanted. So He
purified the temple and scolded the Jewish Leaders.
CONTEMPLATIONS ON THE SUFFERING OF
CHRIST
 T he most useful thing in our spiritual life is for us to reflect on suffering,
and in particular the sufferings of Christ. Meditation in suffering lifts up
the spirit. It lifts the spirit above the level of worldly desires. Therefore, when
one is in the state of suffering, usually his/her spirit is stronger, spiritually deeper
and often detached from the love of the world.
When we are in the state of joy we may feel cheerful and happy that the
world is on our side but during times of suffering and pain we feel that the love
of the world has disappeared from our hearts.
Therefore, it is easier for the sick person to draw closer to God. When a
person is sick and experiencing suffering and pain they can accept to hear about
and talk about God, loves to pray and asks people to pray for them and the word
of God is always on their lips, more than in the case of good health.
Likewise, the person who is experiencing hardship and sadness or any sort of
graveness, their heart is usually far from the lusts of the world and materialistic
things. Perhaps the Lord allows such suffering because it may be beneficial to
our spirit if handled wisely. Those who visit tombstones benefit from just
looking at images of death and remember lost friends and loved ones; this gives
them a deeper understanding and a deeper spiritual life.
There are many stories of Saints who benefited greatly from death. Saint
Anthony the Great benefited spiritually from the death of his father. Also, he
lived the first few years of his monastic life in a grave. Saint Macarious the
Great used to keep a skull in his cell and would rest on it while sleeping.
Just the mention of death can be of benefit to the heart of a wise man. What
about the mention of Christ’s death and His suffering? Therefore during Holy
Week, believers are more spiritually deep. Suffering is the most significant
contemplation that we must meditate on in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Cross is our Christian motto, a symbol of suffering. The Cross
encompasses the depth of the physical suffering (pain) of Christ. It impacts our
souls more than any other event in the glorious life of our Lord. There is no
doubt that every event in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ impacts us, but the
image of the Cross is the most influential one.
It was said that when Gandhi, the well known Indian leader, stood before the
image of the crucifixion, he was deeply moved by it in spite of being a Hindu.
The Angel of Resurrection focused on the sentence, “The Crucified”, so he
said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was
crucified. He is not here for He is risen.” (Matthew 28:5-6). He called Him
“crucified” even after His resurrection and He continued to be called “the
crucified”, as St Paul said, “For indeed Christ our Passover was sacrificed for
us.” (1 Corinthians 5-7). Also, St. John said about Him, “And in the midst of the
elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain.” (Revelation 5:6). St. John
also said that he heard the, “Voice of many angels saying, ‘Worthy is the Lamb
who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom. And strength and honour
and glory and blessing.’” (Revelation 5:12). Thus, we see that the Bible focused
on Christ’s suffering even in the Book of Revelation. This shows us that Christ’s
suffering is not only the earthly subject of contemplation, but also the heavenly.
All His suffering is recorded in the Bible, not only the events of the Cross,
but many other events in His life on earth. His suffering was not only one week,
but throughout His ministry and even since His birth. Divine inspiration
summarised the life of our Lord in the flesh in the following deep, focused
sentence which described Him as, “A Man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief.” (Isaiah 53:3).
He was born during the coldest days of winter, in a very cold place which
was the manger, as there was no place for them (Luke 2:7). King Herod made
every effort to kill Him, so he had all the children of Bethlehem killed that He
might be among them! So the Holy family had to flee to Egypt with Him. Then
they returned, “After those who sought the young Child’s life were dead.”
(Matthew 2:20).
The Lord Jesus Christ spent His early childhood and His youth unknown in a
house of a poor carpenter. The world knows little of this period in time. Christ
lived as a poor person, bearing the narrow road for our sake. He did not walk the
wide road, but had a life full of suffering, both emotionally and physically. He
did not have a house or money. When tax collectors came to collect the taxes
He had nothing to give.
He experienced hardship, hunger and thirst. An example of this was when
He said that He was tired after a long journey to save the Samaritan woman.
The Holy Bible says, “Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus
by the well, it was about the sixth hour”. (John 4: 6).
Just as Christ experienced hardships He also hungered, but when we say
hungered we do not mean the usual hunger as if one was delayed an hour or so
from eating. When it was said that Christ was hungry on the mountain, it is that
hunger that is above what humans can tolerate from the abstinence of food. It
was said that “afterward He was hungry,” (Matthew 4:2), at last after forty days
of fasting! When it was said that He was thirsty on the Cross, it was describing
an intolerable thirst; after all the fluid was lost from His body.
The hunger and thirst He felt at the well of the Samaritan woman was not of
the hunger and thirst of food and water. The Holy Bible does not mention that
He ate food or drank water. Christ said, “My food is to do the will of Him who
sent me.” (John 4:34).
Christ experienced the pain of rejection in His ministry. “He came to His
own, and His own did not receive Him.” (John 1:11).
“And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend
it.” (John1:5). It is painful to know that the light came into the world and men
loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. (John
3:19). In the Lord the prophecy of the Psalm was fulfilled, “Those also who
render evil for good, They are my adversaries, because I follow what is good.”
(Psalm 38:20).
All His life He treated people with love, but He did not find love in return.
He did not find love which was equal to His love or even good treatment which
was similar to His good treatment of others. This is clearly seen in the verse,
“The Son of man has nowhere to lay His head.” (Matthew 8:20). As we read
this verse and consider it from a physical viewpoint, we should also understand
it from the emotional side.
 The Lord Jesus Christ lived among ungrateful, denying people, denying His
love and denying His good works. Once He went to His own country Bethlehem,
and they rejected Him. They did not believe Him, but they scorned Him and
treated Him with contempt saying; “When He had come to His own country, He
taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where
did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter’s
son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and
Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all
these things?” So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet
is not without honour except in his own country and in his own house.” Now He
did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” (Matthew 13:54-
57). So the Lord said to them, “A prophet is not without honour except in his
own country, among his own relatives and in his own house”.
Then He went to a city of Samaria and its door was closed in his face. The
disciples were not happy about this, but He bore with Samaria in great love and
patience until he was able to enter and work for its salvation. And when He saw
the fruit of His work in Samaria He said to His disciples, “I sent you to reap that
for which you have not laboured; others have labored, and you have entered into
their labors.” (John 4:38). Truly the work for the salvation of souls needs much
hard work, suffering, tolerance and longsuffering.
Sometimes, He sees the doors of our hearts closed so He stands there and
knocks. It may take a long time, until His head is wet with dew, and His locks of
hair with drops of the night. (Song of Songs 5:2). Here the Lord teaches us that
in order to earn the love of the people we need to acquire endurance, patience
and longsuffering.
Sometimes the hearts of people are hard and stiff and cannot be entered
quickly or easily. So if you have tried hard to earn the hearts of people and
couldn’t, do not be upset, or if you have entered a person’s heart and did not find
the same level of love, do not be sad as this happened to Christ and He is the
source of love and He continued treating people with love.
But while He was among people He “went about doing good.” (Acts 10:38).
“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the
gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease
among the people.” (Matthew 4:23). Who of those people did not receive from
the love of Christ? Each and every one received it, even those who rejected Him,
even those who later cried “Crucify Him, crucify Him.” He spread His love to
all, but was criticised by the Jewish leaders. When He felt pity for the tax
collector and wanted to save his soul, they criticized Him saying, “He has gone
to be a guest with a man who is a sinner”. (Luke 19:7). So Christ answered and
said; “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of
Abraham.” (Luke 19:9).
The Lord endured those who criticised Him, and continued to try and gain
them. How many times did He do good and was criticised for it? This was seen
in His love for the tax collectors (Luke 18:9-14) and the Samaritans (Luke
10:30-35). He was also compassionate to the sinful woman that washed His feet
with her tears and Simon the Pharisee criticised Him within his heart saying,
“This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman
this is who is touching Him for she is a sinner.” (Luke 7:39). Christ then
explained to Simon that whoever is forgiven much loves much.
With the same empathetic, loving and kind heart He had compassion on the
woman that was caught in the act of adultery and saved her from those who
wanted her to be stoned. They knew He was compassionate towards sinners, but
they did this to, “Test Him, that they might have something of which to accuse
Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as
though He did not hear.” (John 8:6).
It is surprising that our Lord faced such acquisitions, rejections and insults
from the leaders of His time. He endured a series of accusations and insults.
They said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a
demon?”(John 8:48). What astonishing words that were said about the Lord of
Glory, who cast out demons, that He should be accused of having a demon!
They said to Him, “You have a demon!!? And those Blasphemers thought that
they “spoke rightly”!
My brothers and sisters, do not dwell on what others say about you, for it
was said about Christ that He was a Samaritan and had a demon. When the Lord
heard these insults He answered calmly and peacefully.
What is this Lord? Just send fire from above to destroy them. Kindness does
not work with this nation, be hard on them so they honour you! As if the Lord
replied: this is not my way, I will leave them in their wrath and after sometime
they will return and repent and look up to Me whom they have pierced and
wounded and they will regret it.
There is no greater endurance than what our Lord endured of criticism and
accusations. Even every miracle He preformed they tried to cover its glory by
their insults, criticism and false accusations. He used to cast out demons from
the demon possessed, so they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except
by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons,” (Matthew 12:24), as if the Lord was one
of Satan’s soldiers.
He opened the eyes of the man born blind; such a miracle had never been
witnessed before and the Pharisees said about Him, “This Man is not from God”,
instead of believing Him. They put pressure on the blind man who had received
his sight saying, “Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.” (John
9:24).
When the blind man defended Christ they reviled him and said, “You are His
disciple,” as if the discipleship of Christ is shameful. What an astounding thing
that the Lord should be described as a Samaritan and as having a demon, a ruler
of demons, described as a sinner, and that He is not God, and His discipleship is
an insult!!! What else?!
They said about Him that, “This Man is not from God, because He does not
keep the Sabbath.” (John 9:16), also they said, “Look, a glutton and a
winebibber,” (Luke 7:34), and “a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” (Matthew
11:19). What else did they say about Him? They said that He is “a blasphemer!
And speaks blasphemies.” (Matthew 9:3).
Then they took up stones to throw at Him (John 8:59), trying many times to
stone Him (John 10:31). Their reason for attempting to stone Him was, “For a
good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy.” (John 10:33). When the
high priest charged Him with death, it was for the exact same reason, the charge
of blasphemy! The high priest tore his clothes saying, “He has spoken
blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have
heard His blasphemy.” (Matthew 26:65).
It is amazing that the Author and finisher of faith, the Good Teacher, the One
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge is called
“blasphemer”!! While He is “the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1
Corinthians 2:10). They also accused Him of political offenses. They said that
He was against Caesar and that, “He stirs up people”, “perverting the nation”
(Luke 23:5,2).
Those who wanted Jesus as their King to deliver them from the hands of
Caesar wanted to take Him by force to make Him King (John 6:15). But Christ
refused the earthly kingdom, because His Kingdom is not of this world (John 18:
36). They accused Him of being against Caesar and started to complain about
Him saying, “We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay
taxes to Caesar, saying that He himself is Christ, a king.” (Luke 23:2). What an
amazing thing, they accused Him without shame and His words were, “Render
to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
(Mark 12:17).
Those who were angry with Caesar and wanted a king to save them were
now putting Christ in Caesar’s hand as a criminal. And Christ was silent and did
not respond because He “carried our sins.” They did not stop accusing Him of
blasphemy and made many political accusations, but they also accused Him of
deception, even after His death on the Cross for them, and for the entire world.
They went to Pilate and said to him; “Sir, we remember, while He was still
alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore command
that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night
and steal Him away, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ So the
last deception will be worse than the first.’” (Matthew 27:63-64).
Indeed the Lord Jesus Christ was not treated with the same sort of love that
He gave so that the words of the prophecy would be fulfilled, “they hated Me
without a cause.” (John 15:25, Psalm 69:4). This is Christ who was accused of
being against the people because He wanted to change their customs and
culture. They also accused Him of wanting to destroy the Temple and rebuild it
in three days, as well as being angry with Caesar and refusing to pay taxes to
him. This is the One who is meek and humble, Who does not quarrel nor cry out,
nor will anyone hear His Voice in the streets. This is the Christ who was rejected
by many. The scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, the elders and the Jewish priests
tried to entangle Him in His words (Matthew 22:15). They rose against the Lord
and against His anointed saying; “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast
away Their cords from us.” (Psalm 2:3).
It was also said of Him that, “He Himself has suffered, being tempted.”
(Hebrews 2:18), so the depth of the spiritual life is to “suffer with Him” or to
enter into the “fellowship of His sufferings” (Philippians 3:10). So all suffering
for the sake of righteousness, is considered as fellowship with Christ’s suffering.
It was said that He was sorrowful and distressed (Mark14:23). In the Garden of
Gethsemane He said, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful even to death.”
(Matthew 26:38). It is enough what was said of Him in Isaiah about His sorrow,
“Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows.” (Isaiah 53:4). This
means that all the sorrows and suffering of mankind have been placed on His
shoulders and was carried in His heart.
In the Scriptures it is recorded that He cried more than once. He wept at the
tomb of Lazarus (John 11:35). He wept over the city of Jerusalem, “He saw the
city and wept over it.” (Luke 19:41) foretelling what would happen to it. The
Bible reveals to us Christ’s human nature. It shows us how delicate and
emotional He was and sensitive towards individuals who suffered, as well as,
cities and wept over them.
Why did He weep at the tomb of Lazarus? Was He affected by the sorrow of
Mary and Martha? Perhaps! Or was it because He loved him? Maybe, however,
there is a much deeper meaning. Perhaps He wept for all those who reached
death by sin. Also, because man was created in the image of God and His
likeness reached the stage that his sister said about her beloved brother that there
would be a “stench”. It was the first man’s sin that lead to this: death, stench,
decay of the body and weeping of family and friends. All this was before
Christ’s eyes when he wept at the tomb of Lazarus.
Lazarus’ death represents human imperfection, that dies and decays.
Mankind suffered from much pain, grief, sadness and tribulation, until our Lord
had compassion on them, “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with
compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having
no shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36) and He said to them, “Come to Me, all you who
labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28).
He joined them heartily, bearing their pain, but how did He comfort them?
He comforted them in a practical way. Just as He carried their sins He also
carried their sorrows and pains. As Isaiah the Prophet said, “He was oppressed
and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the
slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His
mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7).
So when we contemplate on Christ’s suffering, we contemplate on our
transgressions and our sins that He bore and carried for us, and because of it “He
poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors.”
(Isaiah 53:12). Christ’s suffering is an evidence of His love for mankind. His
love for us crucified Him, if it wasn’t for His love for us, neither Pilate nor the
Jews would have been able to crucify Him. “I lay down My Life that I may take
it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to
lay it down, and I have power to take it again.” (John 10:17-18). And why did
He lay down His Life? Because of His love for the world.
His great love for you and me, made Him to lay down Himself to save us.
So we were saved by His death, “For God so loved the world that He gave His
only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life.” (John3:16). It is His great love that led Him to carrying the sins
of the whole world and to wipe them by His blood and die for us.
He carried our sins and pain joyfully. St. Paul said of the Lord’s suffering,
“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that
was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at
the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews12:2). He endured the Cross with
joy, because He found joy in salvation. He was joyful in this complete salvation
that He offers on the Cross. He offered Himself as a sacrifice of love.
So do you offer yourself as a sacrifice of love? Do you look at the passion of
Christ, forgetting yourself? Do you take it as your example and benefit from His
suffering? We can learn from this and sacrifice for others. Do you offer yourself
as sacrifice of love, accepting any pain and suffering for the love of others? If
not, then start now; learn to give yourself up to death as the Lord did.
Christ’s love reached its pinnacle when He was crucified on the Cross,
giving Himself up with a loving and compassionate heart. He accepted death on
our behalf so that by His death we may live.
Christ’s pain was not only in His flesh. It was not only physical pain that
Christ experienced when the crown of thorns was placed on His head or when
He was slapped or whipped or when He fell beneath the heavy Cross…but more
importantly it was that He carried the sins of the world since Adam until the end
of the ages; the sins which went against His nature.
He stood before the Father and mankind as a sinner. Before the people, “He
was numbered with the transgressors.” And before the Father, on behalf of all of
mankind’s sins, carrying our sins before the divine justice to satisfy the Father
and became a “burnt offering a sacrifice for a sweet aroma to the Lord.”
(Leviticus 1:9), “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we
might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5: 21). It is hard
for the Holy One to carry sins, it is a very painful matter, but He accepted it
joyfully. He died as a sacrifice of sin, as a carrier of sin. Do you also do so?
Do you carry other people’s sins as Christ did? Can you take the sins of
others and attribute them to yourself saying, “It is my mistake not his or hers?”
And if another’s sin is attributed to you, can you accept it in silence? And if you
cannot carry the sins of others, can you at least endure it? Meaning to endure the
sins of those against you? If you cannot carry the sins of others and attribute
them to yourself, at least do not condemn them. Look at what Christ has done for
us on the Cross and compare it with what you do. Are you like Him, offering
yourself as a sacrifice of love for others? Are you a sacrifice of sin that carries
the sins of others? Are you a burnt sacrifice that is accepted before God the
Father? What are you during Holy Week?
If you do not carry people’s sins, then carry their suffering. Carry people’s
suffering as Christ carried it, who told them “Come to Me, all you who labor and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). Join in with Christ
in comforting others, be a big heart which suffers with those who suffer, visits
the sick, comforts those the broken hearted, helps to solve people’s problems, or
at least prays for others and comforts them in their tribulations and helps them to
follow God. As St. Paul said, “Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with
those who weep.” (Roman 12:15).
But many of us do not follow half of this commandment. They rejoice with
those who rejoice, but it is hard for them to weep with those who weep. Joy is
what attracts them, sadly not pain, and if they join others in their distress, they
quickly get bored and leave, because joining others in their pain causes us pain
too, that is why they run away from it, while it is beneficial to them.
Always remember during Holy Week that the pain will benefit you and
spending just an hour with those who are suffering or in pain is better than many
months of joy and happiness. So set this rule before you.
People like joy, but they benefit from pain. King Solomon said, “Better to go
to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for that is the end of
all men; And the living will take it to heart. Sorrow is better than laughter, for
by a sad countenance the heart is made better. The heart of the wise is in the
house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.” (Ecclesiastes
7:2-4).
But because one cannot live in pain and suffering all the time, therefore
Solomon said, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under
heaven …. a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to
dance.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 4). So try to benefit from times of pain, in the pain
of others, and benefit from meditating on the sufferings of Christ for you.
We look at Christ’s suffering and we are comforted. During our times of
pain we find comfort in Christ’s pain. We think about His suffering and
compare it to our own and we are comforted knowing that He also suffered. He
suffered and carried our pain so that we may be comforted. But Christ’s
sufferings were due to His righteousness and ours due to our sins.
Before the first sin there was no pain. Pain came to the world as a result of
sin. Pain and sadness entered into people’s hearts. God did not want this to
happen, and so what did the Lord do? He carried the pain instead of us ….. and
what else? Our Lord Jesus sanctified pain by His pains. So pain becomes a gift
and blessing. As St. Paul said, “For to you it has been granted on behalf of
Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake.” (Philippians
1:29). And pain became the way of glory, as St. Paul also said, “And if children,
then heirs - heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with
Him, that we may also be glorified together.” (Romans 8:17), indeed the Lord
has sanctified the pain. And He will continue to sanctify it, until we depart from
the world of pain. Here we find pain is holy and there are crowns for it, as St.
Paul said, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
(Romans 8:14).
Indeed the Lord has blessed pain. So pain and suffering are rewarded by
heavenly crowns for those who endure it, as St. Peter said, “But even if you
should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of
their threats, nor be troubled.” (1 Peter 3:14). There will always be pain and
suffering in the world, and if we endure it we will obtain its blessing until His
second appearance, “the place which has fled all sadness, distress and sighing”
as we say in the litany of the departed. “And God will wipe away every tear
from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall
be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4).
And those who live in complete devotion to Christ will gain an everlasting joy,
inexpressible happiness that is full of glory.
So if we suffer here, we will rejoice there. Do not be like the rich man to
whom father Abraham said, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received
your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and
you are tormented.” (Luke 16:25). Therefore, we should take the position of
Lazarus, and suffer here on earth so as to rejoice in heaven. We use the narrow
gate and walk in the way of anguish because “narrow is the gate and difficult is
the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matthew 7:14). For
that reason let us suffer for Christ’s sake, because this will open the way to
eternal glory.
The Church places the martyrs in the highest ranking because of the
suffering that they endured. In the Church’s rituals we place the martyrs before
our fathers the patriarchs and the heroes of the faith, and before the monks and
hermits. And as much as those martyrs suffered, as much as the Church praises
and gives tribute to them and God honours them. Those martyrs entered into
fellowship with Christ’s pain. They suffered with Him and so they also were
glorified with Him. But how about those who did not have the chance to obtain
the crown of martyrdom? To those we say, every type of pain for Christ’s sake,
has its blessings and its rewards and crowns.
The blessings and heavenly crowns are not only a reward for the suffering
and pain of the martyrs, but any type of suffering and pain is acceptable before
God and each one will receive their own reward according to their own labour (1
Corinthians 3:8). An example of such suffering and pain is the suffering which is
endured from the service and ministry and preaching. St. Paul explained this in
2 Corinthians 4, 6 & 11).
Likewise the pain that we suffer in our spiritual struggle. As St. Paul said,
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of
wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12). This wrestle is against,
“the fiery darts of the wicked one.” (Ephesians 6:16). All these kinds of pain,
suffering and spiritual struggles have their own crowns. This also applies to
every insult we bear for the sake of Christ. As the Lord Himself said, “Blessed
are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you
falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in
heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew
5:11-12).
These insults are fellowship in Christ’s pain who was also insulted and it was
said about Him that He is a deceiver and blasphemous. In your pain be confident
that Christ is a friend of all those who are in pain and suffering. A friend and a
companion for you at times of pain and He will never leave you, as the Bible
says, “In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His Presence
saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bore them
and carried them all the days of old.” (Isaiah 63:9). Even your pain He considers
as His pain, just as He reproached Saul (Acts 9:4).
You should be comforted that Christ shares your pain and suffering. And let
your heart be strengthened, “Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He
shall strengthen your heart” (Psalm 27:14) and place this before you that:
Christ was strong and powerful in all His suffering. During His crucifixion
He was steady like a mountain that is not affected by storms and wind. He was
steadfast during the time of His arrest, He was charged, insulted, slapped,
mocked, crucified and put to death. He was the perfect example of a great,
strong and courageous heart that bore the injustice of the wicked and said,
“Father forgive them.” This beautiful phrase has moved and moved the hearts of
people throughout the generations. Thus, He transformed the Cross of shame to a
Cross of glory and transformed pain and suffering to blessings and crowns.
When we see the sufferings of our Lord Jesus, we are comforted in our pain.
And when we see His suffering, we feel guilty within ourselves because we
caused His pain. Many people grieve over the Lord’s suffering, but they increase
His pain by their actions and everyday they add new pain to Christ. Many people
see the image of the crucified Christ and they cry and feel pain in their hearts,
but they crucify the Lord everyday.
If we truly want to ease His suffering, we must repent. This way we do not
sadden His heart with new sin and not adding another drop to His cup of pain
because of our sins. So let us leave sin and make God’s heart happy. So let our
repentance be mixed with the love of Jesus who was crucified for us.
Many people turn away from sin from the fear of hell and the eternal
punishment. But let us leave sin because it hurts the Lord and injures His loving
heart, and not because of our fear of losing the Kingdom, or caring for ourselves.
Do not let our repentance revolve around ourselves, its purity and determination,
but rather let it be centred on God who loved us. He considers sin to be betrayal
from us, receiving His love with ingratitude and we add to this pain by our sins.
So let us ask the Lord to help us to live in righteousness, so we do not hurt His
heart which does not hurt anyone, His heart which is full of love for us, and has
compassion on us, even when we sin.
The Lord in His suffering for our sins has compassion on us and does not
judge. Judgement has its time in His second coming. But during His suffering,
he put before us a comforting fact, which is, “For I did not come to judge the
world but to save it.” (John 12:47). In fact the point which truly heralds
admiration in Christ’s suffering is, in all the sins of the people it never changed
His love towards them. In spite of all the betrayal and rejection and all the false
accusations and deception.
In spite of the charges and lies, and all the assaults and beating, slapping and
mockery, all this did not shake His great love which had no limits. It remained
the same big heart, who could bear all, it could bear the weakness of His loved
ones, and bear the betrayal of people who He was good to. This is the big heart
which He prayed for those who crucified Him saying, “Father, forgive them, for
they do not know what they do.” (Luke 23:34). Truly the love of Jesus was
more powerful than His suffering.
 Another amazing thing about His suffering is that it was the cause of His
pleasure. St. Paul says, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,
who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2). The
Lord Jesus found gladness in enduring the pain because of His joy for our
salvation therefore He despised the shame. He did not complain when He
suffered for us, but He was joyful, because of His great love for us, and His love
of satisfying the Father. So His Crucifixion was, “An offering and a sacrifice to
God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” (Ephesians 5:2).
Thus, the Lord gave us salvation and God loves the cheerful giver. He gave
His life as redemption for the world. And His giving was mixed with love, and
was with joy for the great salvation and completion. And there was beauty in the
suffering of Christ and He sanctified suffering. Suffering came as a result of sin;
it entered the world and its impact was death. The Lord wanted to save us from
both suffering and death. So by death He trampled death, and by suffering He
sanctified suffering, and turned it into a sign of love, and a sign of obedience,
obedience to the Father and love for mankind. And when we look at the
suffering Christ we remember His love, and we remember how He sanctified
suffering, and sanctified the suffering of those who bore suffering for His sake,
such as the martyrs and the confessors, and all who carried the cross in their life.
So when we love suffering and its sanctification, we enter the company of
Christ’s suffering.
HOW CAN WE BENEFIT SPIRITUALLY FROM
HOLY WEEK?
 hoever does not benefit spiritually during Holy Week will find it hard to benefit
W during ordinary days, because suffering affects the soul in a deeper way.
Feeling joy can be superficial. But feeling pain is deep, and goes inside
the person and touches the heart, the feelings, the emotions and the senses. So
did we benefit from the week? So what advice can we offer on this topic?

1 Our behaviour outside and inside the Church - What I noticed in many
individuals during Holy Week is that they behave completely differently
outside Church from how they behave inside. Why is this so?
a- Inside the Church there are black curtains, sad hymns and readings which
concentrate on Jesus’ suffering, in order to promote reverence, then outside the
Church there is laughter, joking and playfulness. So what we built inside the
Church, we destroy outside. We lose all the spiritual benefits we gained while
we were inside the Church.
b- Inside the Church we think only of Jesus’ suffering. Even the Psalms of
Agpya we do not pray because they do not concentrate on His suffering, but
other events in His life. We want only to concentrate on His pain. And what
about us whilst we are outside the Church? Many, topics we think of and speak
of, as if we are not in Holy Week. So we hope, according to our own ability that
we focus on the pain and suffering of Christ and meditate on the events of this
week.
If we were with Christ during that week we would have followed Him
outside the city. So let us live with Him outside the city during this week away
from the media of the world which surrounds us. This leads us to the next point:

2 The Sacred Assembly - If we were in the ordinary fasting days we would

put before us the verse, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly.” (Joel 2:15). So let us do this during Holy Week. Let us
stay away from useless interactions and discussions. The days of Holy Week are
not days to meet with friends to talk and tell stories. And they are not days of
arguing and debating many different topics. But the days of Holy Week are to be
differentiated by having a sacred assembly with God, and also by staying away
from all forms of entertainment. Do not waste your time in reading magazines
and newspapers, and being preoccupied with what is in them, from latest news to
jokes, or getting into discussions about what you have read with family and
friends. Do not waste time during Holy Week with listening to the radio or
watching television. But try to be alone, and enter into yourself, and sit with
God, and shorten the time of your meetings and discussions with people to only
the important things. And make your spiritual work suited for the Holy Week.
No doubt that maximum concentration on the Lord’s suffering through
complete devotion may only suit the monks who have been liberated from the
tiring earthly work. What I am very impressed with are lay people who take
holidays during Holy Week to spend in church.
Taking holidays during this week allows one to devote themselves to the
Lord and experience the feelings of this holy week, and they do not just use their
holidays for going to the beach and other important matters, but they use it for
the Lord. The people of Nineveh were faithful to God in their fasting, and they
were exemplary to us and from this we got some of our holiest fasting days.
If you can’t take time off, then at least concentrate on God during your free
time. Do not waste any of your free time during Holy Week, but take advantage
of it as is befitting of the Holy Week. You can go to Church or have special
meditations, or prayers and readings suited to the sufferings of the Lord Jesus.
Women, do not be too preoccupied during Holy Week in the preparations for the
Feast.
Do not let the demands of this period occupy you, from cleaning the house to
preparing the food to buying what is necessary for the Feast day, but rather
prepare yourself as much as possible before hand so that you can let the
sufferings of Christ be the centre of what occupies your mind during this week.
And what else is suitable to these days?

3 Follow the steps of Jesus - We follow Jesus’ life, step by step during this
week. The Lord refused the earthly kingdom on Palm Sunday, and the
Jews lost their hope in Him, till they crucified and placed Him in the tomb. So
have your contemplations each day of this week according to what is suitable for
it.
If the Lord refused the earthly kingdom on Palm Sunday because He has
aspiritual kingdom, you should find out if you have pleased God in His spiritual
kingdom? Do you have anything that the Lord does not own? How can you
subject all that you have to His kingdom?
 And during the general funeral, tell yourself: If it happens that I died during
this week and they will not have a funeral for me, then let’s hope that I will
benefit from this general funeral as I prepare for eternity and let me consider this
general funeral especially for me. If you find that the Church prevents greetings
and kisses from the evening of Tuesday of Holy Week, then let me remember
Judas’ kiss. Say in your prayers; How many times Lord did I give you the kiss
of Judas? How many times do I bow before your altar and kiss it and I betray
You with my sins? How many times do I wear a cross close to my heart,
symbolising that I am a child of Yours and yet my heart is far from Your love?
How many times do I say words of love for You in my prayers; however, my
heart is far from You? I hope that when I kiss you Lord it is with honesty and
sincerity and with a heart full of love for You and that I don’t betray You with
my sins. All this as we follow the events of Holy Week. Also, take the Church
readings during this week as a form of meditation.

4 Look after the sanctity of this week - This week has the holiest days of the
year. The Lord exerted Himself for us, and gave all that we needed for
our salvation. He said about this salvation, “It is finished.” (John 19:30). It was
a sacrifice of love, and for us He bore the injustice of evil, bore the mocking, the
insults, the beatings, the spitting, the whipping, the thorns and the Cross and all
manner of pain. So keep all this in your mind. If you do not feel the holiness of
this week you may not be following it as should be.
Let your days be spiritual days and not ordinary days, by severe scrutiny in
your behaviour, look after your spirituality and devote yourself to worship
according to your ability, with your heart feeling compunction to who placed the
sufferings of Christ before your eyes.

5 Share in His suffering - St. Paul said, “That I may know Him and the
power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being
conformed to His death.” (Philippians 3:10). Can you train yourself to enter into
sharing the Lord’s suffering being conformed to His death? St. Paul, who
entered in sharing His suffering, said, “Always carrying about in the body the
dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our
body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life
of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So then death is working in
us, but life in you.” (2 Corinthians 4:10-12).
“For Your sake we are killed all day long. We are accounted as sheep for the
slaughter.” (Romans 8:36). So have we entered, with St Paul, in sharing with the
Lord’s pain? Did we follow the Lord’s suffering, and resurrect to the Cross with
Him?
Have we participated in pain with Him? Have we carried the shame for Him?
Are we ready, deep in our hearts, for all this? Are we ready to go out of the city
for the Lord? Are we ready to be crucified with Him? And can we say with St.
Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ
lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of
God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20). The way to
make Christ live in you, is to be crucified with Him. Do you bear all things for
Him? Is it for Him that we are patient? Do we carry our Cross for Him every
day and follow Him?
Do we get tired and complain whenever pain comes our way for Him? We
whinge, are unhappy and judge others, then we say our Cross is too heavy for
us! It is good to enter into the company of Christ’s pain, but it has to be with
joy, gratitude and thanks to Him, whether this pain involves yourself or the pains
of others.
During Holy Week, when you remember you have a Cross to bear, carry it
with calmness to the Golgotha. You will bear the pain there for the Lord, till the
Lord says to you, “It is finished.” This brings us to another exercise we can
enter into during Holy Week.

6 Feeling the pleasure of pain - Every pain you bear for the Lord, feel its
pleasure, blessing and its crown. Our fathers the martyrs found joy in
pain. For example, Anba Fam, who wore the best clothes when he went to be
martyred, said, “This is my wedding day.” And the saint who accepted the ropes
that tied him. Because of feeling joy while being in their suffering, they were
able to bear the pain. Are you like that? Or are you very sensitive to everything
that comes your way? Do you get annoyed, tired, sad and or perhaps even
angry! Practice getting over all this and learn to feel joy and pleasure in the
pain.
If you are overly sensitive about your dignity and your rights, try to over
come this, remembering what was said about the Lord Jesus, “He was oppressed
and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the
slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His
mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7). If you are reprimanded often and are easily insulted and
simple things hurt you or upset you, you know that you still have a long way to
go and still have much training to do.
Rejoice in pain because God gives blessings. When Saul was called to be an
apostle, he honoured this pain and He said, “For I will show him how many
things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” (Acts 9:16). And the apostle entered
in that pain and did not lose his joy, so he said, “As sorrowful, yet always
rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing
all things.” (2 Corinthians 6:10).
We will get our reward in heaven, according to our bearing of pain for Him.
“Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his
own reward according to his own labour.” (1 Corinthians 3:8). So it is the case,
we hope to test the pain with love, acceptance, joy and trust, having faith in the
kingdom. And the wicked people, their deeds follow them, and the righteous
their pains follow them, as well as, their good works.
And every person has his own kind of pain for the Lord. It is not necessary to
enter the pain of the Cross itself or be whipped as Christ was or endure the
injustices and false accusations which our Lord was exposed to. However, your
pain could be the weariness and sacrifice of the service, “For God is not unjust to
forget your work and labour of love which you have shown toward His name, in
that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” (Hebrews 6:10). It is a
labour of love to give love to others, just as Christ Himself did, which was the
image of love. What else can we do to benefit from Holy Week? No doubt we
need to follow the rituals which are befitting of this week.

7 Asceticism - Whoever puts the suffering of Christ before him, does not
have the appetite to eat, so he fasts and is reluctant to eat. Suffering by
nature tends to cause one to lose their appetite. Whoever hungers for food has
not felt the depth of the suffering within himself. And whoever feels the depth
of the suffering tends to lose their hunger during this time. Many people go
through this week without eating at all, without feeling fatigue. The reason is
because they are drowned in Christ’s pain and they forget food.
If hunger persists easily with you then know that you have not entered into
the pain as you should. Do not rush then into eating but rather acquire those
feelings necessary for sharing the pain of our Lord. Then the hunger will ease
and you will forget it. So have a special plan for this week. Stay away from
delicious foods which stimulate your appetite. Be an ascetic this week.
If your inner self is battling with food do not listen to it. Triumph in firmness
and know that the biggest joy to yourself is for you to conquer the soul. And as
one of the fathers said, “Be happy, not for the desires you get, but for the lusts
you humiliate.” And every time you desire to eat, rebuke yourself saying, “On
this occasion which the Lord suffered for me, do I delight in eating and
drinking?” If you want to succeed in managing your ascetism you need to feed
your soul on spiritual food so you live and bear the hunger. And from this we go
to:

8 Suitable reading - Reading is food for the spirit, and Holy Week has
suitable readings. The readings suit the suffering of Christ, and are about
the events of the holy week. This includes spiritual interpretations and sermons
of the saints. Also any books which includes the love of God. The Church
rituals put before us the four Gospel readings, distributed over the days of the
week. Also there are the readings from the Book of Revelation, on the night of
Apocalypse. Also there are the hymns and the prophecies from the Old
Testament along side the readings. We also read from Lamentations of the
Prophet Jeremiah in the last hour of Good Friday. The readings of Job the
Prophet are also very suitable. And the importance of all this:
The readings have to be in depth and with understanding and spiritual
benefit. Every day of Holy Week has its suitable readings. And by the will of
God we will try to introduce you to the readings. The spiritual reading is a
wonderful spiritual food, it focuses the thoughts and prevents them from being
scattered, and leads them to special emotions evoked by the readings. Also the
readings are material for meditation and prayer. There is another food, which is
hymns.

9 Church Hymns - The week of suffering has its own exclusive hymns
which are full of depth and impact. So we hope that you live these
Coptic tunes, which you listened to in Church, in your homes during Holy Week,
and that they help you. You can play the tapes and CDs of these hymns in your
homes and anywhere else so that wherever you are becomes like the Church
choir. And let it be with the spirit of prayer so that you can benefit from the
emotions which are raised from the melody in the soul. In addition, the tunes,
like the readings, will protect the thoughts from being scattered. Even those who
are not talented in memorising the hymns can still be affected by the tunes when
they listen to them. The readings and the hymns are spiritual food. We can also
include here prayers.
 Prayer - We do not pray from the Agpya during this week, but the spiritual work
10 of the Holy Week prayers is to have a strong relationship with God.
Use deep heartfelt private prayers. Tell the Lord everything that is in your heart,
openly and frankly, as a child does with their father, in love and emotion. Pray
for yourself and for the Church and for all those who are in distress.
We also use the Pascha prayer instead of the Agpya. Cry out to the Lord in
your prayers and say, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and the
Honour, forever Amen, Emmanuel our God and our King.” Repeat this many
times with spiritual meditation in every word you say. Remember that we have
written a book about the meditations of this special Pascha prayer.
Also pray the short frequent prayers, any prayer represents the internal
condition of your heart, whether it be a request, thanks, praise to the Lord or
meditation on His beautiful qualities, or perhaps confessing of sin or a contrite
heart. Any of these we can put in a short sentence, and talk to God from the
depth of our heart.
Add to all this, the ritual prayers of the church. So Holy Week is
characterised by the collective general prayers, as we all gather in the Church,
praying in one spirit. We notice that in the last 3 days (Thursday, Friday and the
eve of Saturday), that the general prayers include the whole day, and all night on
the eve of Saturday night (the Apocalypse). The day and night is spent in
prayers, hymns, readings and raising of incense, concluding with the Holy
Liturgy. The spiritual person follows with his heart all these prayers,
concentrating with his thought and emotions, asking the Lord who carried the
sins of the world and died for them, to forgive and have mercy. This leads us to
another point in the spiritual Holy Week, which is...

11 Confession and Holy Communion - It is good during this week, that one
sits by himself and remembers his sins, and collects them and puts them
at the foot of our Lord’s Cross. We put them on the Lamb of God who carried
the sins of the whole world. And says to Him, in shame and pain, “Lord carry
my sins as I am part of the sins of the whole of mankind which You carried.
Take them Lord and nail them on the Cross with You and wipe them with Your
blood.”
During Holy Week, examine yourself carefully and diligently.Examine
yourself and know that these sins are the cause of His crucifixion. In Christ’s
pain we rebuke ourselves knowing that we are the cause of His pain.
 Many are upset over Christ’s pain, but they increase His pain by what they
do every day. They look at the Crucified image of Christ and cry, while they
crucify Christ every day by their sins, “If they fall away, to renew them again to
repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him
to an open shame.” (Hebrews 6:6).
We do not feel grieved during this week over His pains, but instead over the
sins of mankind which caused Him this pain. We are grieved over ourselves,
because we are the cause of this pain, “So Jesus said to Peter, ‘Put your sword
into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?’” (John
18:11).
Indeed, how human standard dropped to such an extent, which caused it to
lose her loyalty and all righteousness, and transmitted sin without shyness. It is
befitting to cry over ourselves the sinner, and not on Christ who conquered death
and gave the perfect salvation. Therefore, it was good that the Lord said to the
women who cried over Him, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but
weep for yourselves and for your children.” (Luke 23:28). So whenever the
heart looks to the Lord in His crucifixion, it calls:
I am sorry Lord that I made you suffer to that extent. Your suffering is
actually my suffering, and You carried them instead of me, truly. Lord I am so
grateful with the salvation You have offered to me and to the world with Your
blood. I remember what the Apostle said, “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was
sacrificed for us.” (1Corinthians 5:7).
Also I say that Passover was eaten on bitter herbs. Truly, the Jews were
happy because the blood of the Passover saved them from the destructive sword.
The word of God said to them, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.”
(Exodus 12:13), but they shall eat the Passover “with bitter herbs” as the Lord
told them (Exodus 12:8). These bitter herbs remind them of their sins which
caused them to fall into slavery under Pharaoh and their need for the Passover to
pass over from slavery and death.
We too eat our Passover with bitter herbs in remembrance of our sins which
required this blood so that the Lord purges us with hyssop to be clean. We
remember our sins and to judge ourselves and not others. We stand before the
Cross of Christ as sinners and not as a judge. Think of our sins and not the sins
of others; we are all under judgement, “There is none who does good, No, not
one.” (Psalm 14:3).
We confess our sins and prepare ourselves for communion. We have three
Liturgies during Holy Week: Covenant Thursday, Joyous Saturday and Sunday
of the Resurrection. Before that were two very important occasions; the liturgy
of Friday the Seal of the Fast and Palm Sunday liturgy. Covenant Thursday is
the main liturgy and it is the liturgy which all other liturgies originated from.

12 The period of spiritual storage - Holy Week is the period of harvest for
the whole year. You harvest all the spirituality which you need for the
whole year. This is what we need; we don’t just need spirituality for Holy Week
only. We also need to store and save for the fifty days which follow. We need to
store up a spiritual stock for Holy Week which lasts the fifty days in which there
is no fasting, no mettanias, no Pascha hymns or praises. So prepare from now
during these Pascha days.
There is no doubt that whoever weakens spiritually during the fifty days
which follow, witnesses to themself that there was not enough spiritual storage
during Lent and Holy Week.
 OUTSIDE THE CITY

D uring Holy Week we follow Jesus Christ step by step; we notice that He
was taken outside the city. What is the spiritual meaning of the words
“Outside the city”? The city is the place of the believers. It is the place of the
Saints. It is the place in which the believers are, or the place that the Lord is with
the believers, the Saints, that is “the place of the Lord with the people”.
Therefore, it is said “Your Camp shall be Holy.” (Deuteronomy 23:14).
How can we keep the holiness of the city? Anything which is defiled or not
clean should be outside the city. Therefore, any sacrifices of sins had to be
burned outside the city, although it was from the holiness of the Lord. Because
all the sins of the people are transferred onto the offerings, they should be
burned outside the city so that the city is not defiled. St. Paul the Apostle said of
the sacrifices which carry the sins of the people, “For the bodies of those
animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are
burned outside the camp.” (Hebrews 13: 11).
Jesus Christ, the sacrifice of sin was crucified outside the city. Truly, He is
holy without sin, but He carries the sins of the whole world (John 1: 29, 1John
2:2). “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own
way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53: 6). So,
because He carried our sins, He became a sacrifice of sin.
He has to suffer outside the door, outside the city (Hebrews 13:12). They
crucified Him, and the Bible says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.”
(Galatians 3:13). So He had to go outside the city to be crucified there. The
sinner was generally expelled outside the city so as not to defile it inside, that the
city remain holy and without sin. They did the same with Jesus, “He was
numbered with the transgressors.” (Deuteronomy 53:12). He became a sinner in
their eyes, judged and convicted. If they crucified Him in Jerusalem He would
defile Jerusalem!!
What a degree of cruelty that was reached towards this great, soft, kind heart,
who carried their sufferings. He came to save them from their sins, but “He
came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.” (John 1: 11). But we, who
received Him and believed Him, we are joined with Him in His sufferings and
go outside with Him, outside the city. We are the sinners who put all our sins on
the Holy One. He carried them on our behalf when we follow Him in His
sufferings, “Therefore, let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His
reproach.” (Hebrews 13:13).
In order to fulfil this, according to tradition in Holy Week, we close the
sanctuary and go down from the first Khorous (the Khorous of the Saints). We
spend the whole week of Pascha in the lower Khorous, away from the Holy of
Holies, away from the sanctuary. This reminds us of when they took Jesus far
away and He is the Holy, so that He would not defile the city! And we remain
with Him, wherever they take Him, our city is beside Him. Outside the city, we
remember our sins which took us away and took Him away. We say to Him:
“You are Lord who makes the city holy, and without You it could not be holy.
They took You away, outside because of us, so at least, we will go out with
You. Let us meditate on this principle, the principle of “Outside the city.”

THE PRINCIPLE OF BEING OUTSIDE THE CITY

W hen did the Lord begin to implement this judgement of putting the
sinner outside the city? It was a judgement which was enforced since
the beginning of humanity; since Adam. Adam lived in paradise, inside the city,
with God. The Lord appeared to him and he talked with God. So what happened
when he fell? He went outside the city, He and his wife who sinned before him,
were expelled from paradise. The holy city was closed off and the Lord sent an
Angel to guard paradise with a sword of fire. So Adam and Eve could not enter
and were separated from the tree of life. (Genesis 3:23,24).
When does the judgment end? When the consequences of sin are paid; the
ransom was paid on the Cross. Then Jesus took Adam and his children and
returned them to paradise. He opened the city door for them which had been
closed since the first sin. He returned them back after the punishment.
The Lord took Cain outside the city too. Cain realises this and he said to the
Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear! Surely You have driven me out
this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be
a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth.” (Genesis 4:13,14). Cain going outside
the city has two major meanings:
The first and more minor one is the Lord expelled him from the face of the
ground. He would see neither his father Adam’ face, nor the saints who were
born of him and were called sons of God (Genesis 6:2).
The second and more serious one is he was expelled from before the face of
God, “I hide from Your face.” This was the thing which David the Prophet was
most terrified of and he said in his prayers, “Do not cast me away from Your
presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” (Psalm 51).
This is the punishment of staying “outside the city” which is from the
beginning of mankind, from the time of Adam, Eve and Cain: The first who was
punished was Satan who was expelled from the chorus of Angels. He was no
longer with the Angels of God in heaven, but wandering around the earth.
How difficult were the words said of Satan’s fall and his punishment in the
Book of Isaiah the Prophet? It was said to him, “How you are fallen from
heaven, how you are cut down to the ground, for you have said in your heart: ‘I
will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will
ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High’. Yet you
shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit.” (Isaiah14:12-
15).
Satan was outside the city for the same two punishments. He was outside the
city of saints, outside the pure group of Angels. He was also outside the
communion with God Himself. He lost His love, His company and His affection.
He lost His company and was outside, in the darkness, he and all the angels who
followed him. The punishment of “outside the city” was to include humans and
angels.

This punishment affected the whole of humanity during the flood. The
sinners defiled the earth with their deeds. The Lord wanted to clean the whole
earth for a second time. He destroyed all sins and sinners, He got rid of them
outside the city, outside the whole earth, outside life itself, outside the general
destruction which has never been repeated in the history of mankind (Genesis 6).
Now the city of God, the holy, is Noah’s ark, which only includes 8 people who
were saved by the Lord (1Peter 3: 20). But the sinners and the wicked were
outside the city, outside the Ark, meeting their fate.
The same thing happened to Korah, Dathan and Abiram. They stole the
honour of the priesthood for themselves. They spread bad thoughts among the
people and they allowed 250 men to carry the censer and offer incense (Numbers
16:17).
So what did happen? The Lord sent them outside the city, outside the group
of saints, when He said to the people, “Depart now from the tents of these
wicked men! Touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins.”
(Numbers 16:26). The Lord took them out of life as, “The earth opened its
mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men with
Korah, with all their goods, so they and all those with them went down alive into
the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly.
And a fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men
who were offering incense.” (Numbers 16: 32-35). They went outside the city
without repentance and they died. The city became pure and holy again, after it
had been cleaned from evil and the evil doers.
This may remind us of the verdict to Ananias and Sapphira from St. Peter the
Apostle. He did not just take them outside the city and separated them from the
assembly of believers, but he took them completely from life. Anianias died
instantly and St. Peter said to Sapphira after 3 hours, “Look, the feet of those
who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”
(Acts 5: 9). Where outside? Is it just being outside the city which is followed by
repentance and return? No, they were gone from the city into death; Sapphira
died instantly beside her husband’s feet.
But the covetous person, he was put out, but repents. This sinner had this
principle applied to him by the order of St. Paul the Apostle, “Therefore put
away from yourselves the evil person.” (1 Corinthians 5: 13). He ordered to,
“Put away from yourselves” and deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction
of the flesh that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1
Corinthians 5:5).
So this sinner repented, cried severely over his sins until St. Paul’s heart was
soften and he forgave him. He sent to the Corinthians that they should accept
him back inside the city, saying to them, “This punishment which was inflicted
by the majority is sufficient for such a man, so that, on the contrary, you ought
rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with
too much sorrow. Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.” (2
Corinthians 2:6,7). So he returned back to the city with repentance.
The Church followed this principle during the first few centuries. The
Church is an Assembly of Saints and not just a group of believers. So, whoever
departs from this faith and this holiness, will be taken out of the city and be
isolated. It is not fitting for the Church to mix the Saints with evildoers,
believers with non-believers. The Apostle said, “What fellowship has
righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?”
(1 Corinthians 5:11).
There were sinners who were completely prevented from entering the
Church. Other sinners were prevented from attending the Holy liturgy, the
liturgy of the Saints. But they were permitted only to attend the first part of the
liturgy which is called the Liturgy of the Catechism (or the Liturgy of the Word).
They attended and listened to the readings and the sermon and then they left
before reconciliation, since the liturgy was for the saints.
 The Church becomes a group of saints who want to have a life of holiness.
These may stay and those who don’t want to? Let them go since the Bible says,
“Holiness adorns Your house, O Lord” (Psalm 93). When the Church isolates
sinners outside the city for some years leaving the fellowship of the saints then
the Church remains holy and pure. The Church was very scrupulous in their
actions, “perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1). This is
from the punishment of the Church but there was another type:
Sinners took themselves outside the city. An example of this was the
Prodigal Son. He desired to live his own way and to enjoy money and pleasures
with his friends. He left his father’s home by himself and went to a far country
(Luke 15:13). And so he lived outside the city, away from his father. He stayed
this way until he came back to his senses (Luke 15:17). He returned back to the
city, to his father’s house. The father was very happy in the return of his prodigal
son and the whole family was happy, except for the older son. With pride and
jealousy, his will was not according to his father’s will, he said, “He was angry
and would not go in.” (Luke 15: 28). The father had to go outside to persuade his
son. The Prodigal Son went outside the city completely of his own will; no one
took him there but his wrong emotions.
This is just like the divided sects; anyone who becomes angry with the
Church for any reason decides “not to go to Church from now on”. He will be on
his own outside the city.
Some leave the Church and go outside because of tradition and teaching. Just
like division they leave, go far and follow their own teaching which is not
according to the Bible. Or they may be judged by the Church with a sentence of
Anathema. This will completely destroy them and take them outside the city,
especially if there is a heresy and they insist on it, teaching others wrong ways.
The Apostles says, “If we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to
you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1: 8,9).
John, the beloved gave the same verdict. The disciple which the Lord loved,
who speaks of love more than any other apostle, says, “If anyone comes to you
and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet
him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.” (2 John 1:10,11). He will
be sent outside the city, by thinking outside the apostolic thoughts, even before a
verdict comes against him.
Another strange type, in those who are outside the city is he who is outside
the city with his heart, but he is inside of the city physically. A person may seem
to be inside the city, but from deep within he is outside. His spirit is different to
the assembly of saints, his thoughts are not like theirs, and his ways are not the
same. There will come a time when he will go outside the city in practice. For
example, the Apostle said these impressive, emotional words: “They went out
from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have
continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none
of them were of us.” (1 John 2:19). Truly, children of God are distinct and
manifest (1 John 3:10), “from their fruits, they are well known.” All of this is
going outside the city on earth, but the cruellest and hardest type is going outside
the city in eternity.

OUTSIDE THE CITY IN THE ETERNITY

A nyone who goes outside the city on earth has a rope to return with, but
once outside the city in eternity, there is no hope. An example of this is
the foolish virgins. The Bible said about the wise virgins when the Lord came,
“Those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was
shut.” (Matthew 25:10). But the foolish virgins came late, after the door was
shut. They stand outside that door, outside the city saying, “Lord, Lord open to
us”. All they heard was, “I don’t know you.” What terrible despair to hear the
voice of the Lord saying, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.” And
these souls will be kept outside the city forever.
Another example outside the city is Lazarus the beggar and the rich man.
This lost, rich man was outside the holy city where our father Abraham was with
Lazarus the beggar in his bosom. He requested Lazarus to dip the tip of his
finger in water to cool his tongue. But he heard the frightening words, from the
mouth of our father Abraham, “Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so
that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there
pass to us.” (Luke 16:26).
The righteous will be in eternity together with the Lord and the angels, in the
heavenly Jerusalem. But the wicked will be outside. The place for the wicked is
called the outer darkness. It is darkness because it is separated from God who is
the true light. It is an outer darkness because it is outside the heavenly Jerusalem,
outside the assembly of the saints, outside the city in eternity. The Lord said
about the wicked and lazy servant, “Cast the unprofitable servant into the outer
darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 25:26).
 In Revelation, “Blessed are those who do His Commandments that they may
have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.
But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and
idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.” (Revelation 22:14,15).
Then they are outside the holy city, coming down from heaven, the heavenly
Jerusalem, the tabernacle of God is with men (Revelation 21: 27). They are
outside the holy city, because their works are defiled, “But there shall by no
means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only
those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.” (Revelation 21:27).
Whoever is outside the saintly believers is outside the Book of Life, but with
all of this there is still hope. There is a bridge that reaches inside it called
repentance. Returning to God can enter us into the city. And so the Lord said in
His comforting promise, “the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast
out.” (John 6: 37). There is then a chance to Passover. The door is not yet shut
and there is still time and the promise is still there, waiting.

THE LORD SUFFERED IN ORDER TO

GET US INSIDE THE CITY

He took our place outside the city in order to give us His position inside. Our
position is outside the city, so He, the Holy One , went outside the city instead of
us, in order to get us inside the city. He came down from heaven to earth to let us
go up into heaven. He became a Son of Man in order to make us children of
God, He took our sins, for us to be righteous and holy like Him. He took what is
ours and He gave us what is His. He took our punishments so that we may
receive His crowns and His glory. He had gone outside the city to pay the
ransom in order for us to enter. He accepts death, to give us life. He took our
weakness, to gave us strength, and took our shame to give us His glory.
It has been said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, come down off the
cross”. He didn’t want to do that, because if He refuses the cross and death, then
we will receive the death sentence. He said to us “you are sentenced to death; I
will die on your behalf.” Your punishment is outside the city, I will go out
instead of you. With all acceptance and joy, with all love and sacrifice, Jesus
went outside the city, carried our shame, carried our sins and died on the cross
on Golgotha, erased it with His blood by paying the ransom which we owed to
the divine judgement.
When He commits His pure spirit, He descended quickly down to Hades to
release the righteous for hope, and open for them the Paradise. He said to the
angel who carries the fiery sword guarding the Tree of Life, “Put your sword
back”. “I have come with these righteous to the paradise, and they will be able to
eat from the tree of life. The time of captivity which they spent outside the city is
finished and now they have come back to their original state and it is better.”
Let us remember all these things while we sit in Church, outside the
Sanctuary. Enough time has been wasted outside the city by our own will, the
time we wasted outside God’s heart, outside the bosom of the Church and the
company of Saints.
TO YOU IS THE POWER, THE GLORY, THE
BLESSING AND THE HONOUR, FOREVER
AMEN
 W ith this song we praise our Lord Jesus Christ during Holy Week,
following Him step by step. This praise replaces the Agpya prayers
during the five day and the five night prayers. We repeat the hymn twelve times
in each prayer instead of the twelve psalms which are included in each of the
Agpya prayers.
Our Lord Jesus Christ left Jerusalem to Bethany, and we follow Him saying,
“To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and the Honour.” The Chief
priests were annoyed when the Lord cleansed the Temple, and they planned to
kill Him. But we protest against their plots saying, “To You is the Power, the
Glory, the Blessing and the Honour, forever Amen.” Our Lord Jesus Christ, in
humility, knelt down to wash the feet of the disciples and we praise Him saying,
“To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and the Honour, forever Amen.”
The Lord was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was in so much
agony that His sweat were drops of blood and we cry to Him saying, “To You is
the Power and the Glory.” We follow Him hour by hour; whilst He is arrested,
put under trial in the presence of His enemies, crowned with thorns, flogged,
falling under the Cross, nailed, till He committed His Spirit into the hands of the
Father and when He took the thief on the right with Him into Paradise, and
during all these events we sing to Him, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the
Blessing and the Honour, forever Amen.”
 THINE IS THE POWER
The first thing we praise our Lord Jesus Christ for during Holy Week is His
Power. Yes, Lord, To You is the power, as St. Paul said, “Christ the Power of
God.” (1 Corinthians 1:24). Some people may think You were weak on the
Cross, but we know who You are. The first thing we know about Your Power is
that You are the Creator. “All things were made through Him, and without Him
nothing was made that was made.”(John. 1:3). And You have the power as a
Judge who will come in His glory to judge both the living and the dead.
Indeed, this crucified Lord who seemed to the people weak, had they
considered what He had done throughout all the days that He spent among them;
they would have known how powerful He had been in everything.

HE WAS POWERFUL IN HIS MIRACLES AND HIS HOLINESS:

O Lord, You alone of all the powers, defeated sin, the world and the devil,
while all the others were too weak to resist sin, “For she has cast down many
wounded, And all who were slain by her were strong men.” (Proverbs 7:26). As
the Holy Bible says, “They have all turned aside, they have together become
corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one.” (Psalm 14:3). But You God,
You are the Only One who challenged the whole world, saying, “Which of you
convicts Me of sin”. (John. 8:46).
You are the only One who overcame the Devil and said, “For the ruler of this
world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.” (John. 14:30). In the Book of
Revelation, they sang for You saying, “For You alone are Holy.” (Revelation
15:4). You alone are powerful in Your Holiness, “Holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens.” (Hebrews
7:26).
Lord, Your miracles proved Your wonderful Power, as You, “had done
among them the works which no one else did.” (John 15:24). Your Power over
nature was shown: when You rebuked the wind and the waves and when You
walked on the water. David sang for You saying, “You rule the raging of the
sea: when its waves rise, You still them.” (Psalm 89:9). To You is the Power,
Lord.
 You showed Your Power over the sick and the dead: as you healed all
diseases and weaknesses of the people, especially the incurable ones. You
opened the eyes of the blind, cleansed those with leprosy, healed the woman
suffering from haemorrhage, the man who was a paralytic for 38 years, the
paralysed man who was lowered down through the roof and the man with the
withered hand. Lord, You raised the dead, even he who had been in the tomb for
four days and there was a stench.
You showed Your Power as a Creator: when You fed thousands with five
loaves and two fish. You even created a new substance when you turned the
water into wine and also when you created eyes for the man who was born blind.
Your Power over the devils was shown by casting out evil spirits, who left
many saying, “You are the Son of God.” You rebuked the demons and did not
let them speak. Your miracles are countless, Lord, as John the Beloved said,
“And there are also many other things that Jesus did which if they were written
one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that
would be written.” (John21:25). Beside all these aspects of the Lord’s Power, the
puzzling one is shown in His suffering and crucifixion where He gives us a new
concept of the meaning of Power. What is this new concept of power?

THE LORD’S NEW CONCEPT OF POWER:

The world’s understanding of Power differs from that introduced by our
Lord Jesus Christ. To the world, it means being violent, being able to strike,
being able to defend oneself and having the power to force others to surrender.
Our Lord set the example of the Power which loves and sacrifices oneself to
others, endures and gives without limits. When we think of Power, we have to
look at it from the spiritual side not the physical. That is how we should look at
our Lord Jesus Christ’s suffering.
The materialistic world thought that the Lord Christ was weak when they
struck Him on the face, mocked Him and crucified Him. That would have been
true if the Lord Christ had those insults due to His inability, but in fact, He was
far more powerful than all those who struck, mocked and crucified Him.
He had the power to destroy them all, but He did not because He loved them
and His love was more powerful than death. He was able to put them to death,
but He did not because He came to save them from death, by His own death to
give them life. We glorify the Lord’s endurance, which proved to us that true
Power is in endurance, as the Apostle says, “We then who are strong ought to
bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves.” (Romans 15:1).
Some people are too weak; they do not have the ability to endure even the
least insult. The smallest insult provokes them and causes them to lose control
and turn to revenge. This shows their weakness and lack of power to endure.
The Lord Christ was powerful in His endurance, and His endurance is the
evidence of His power of love. For a person who has love is able to endure,
while failure to endure shows lack of love.
The Lord Christ came to carry our sins, “All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the
iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6). The Lord sacrificed Himself for our sins and for
our sake, He endured the insults of those who struck Him and spat upon Him. In
His deep love, He was joyfully singing in the ear of each of us, “Because for
Your sake I have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face.” (Psalm 69:7).
We listen to these words and answer Him in humility, “For my sake, You
endured the injustice of the evil, the flogging and the slaps, and never turned
Your face away from the shameful spitting.
The power of the Lord Christ during His passion and crucifixion appeared
when He was able to destroy all those who attacked Him, but He never did so
because of His great love for us. He was punished for our sake and gave us His
peace, took upon Himself our shame and gave us His Glory.
To understand the real Power of the Lord Christ we have to ask ourselves:
what could have happened if Christ had refused the humiliation and crucifixion?
Or if He had commanded the earth to open and swallow all who were on it, or
fire to come down from heaven and burn them? He could have done so, but the
consequence would have been our destruction, the Redeemer refused to die for
us. So the Lord said, “I will die so that you may not die, and be mocked so that
you may be glorified. I came in flesh especially for your sake to sacrifice Myself
and endure insults for you out of love for you and for those who insult Me”.
Therefore, He did not only endure injustices, but loved, forgave and prayed for
the wicked, interceding for them saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not
know what they do.” (Luke 23:34). This is the real Power of a heart full of love,
who tolerates those who trespass against Him, loves them, prays for them and
sacrifices Himself for their sake. Who of us can do that? And when insulted by
another of an inferior rank to himself, would forgive, defend and also support
him!
St. Peter the Apostle, drew his sword to defend his Master when they
arrested Him and he cut off the servant’s ear, not understanding power in its
Christian spiritual concept. The Lord asked him to put his sword back. It is
good to have holy zeal, but violence is not our way. Our way is love. With this
love the Lord healed the servant’s ear and surrendered to the sinners for whose
redemption He came. St. John and St. James the Apostles also did not
understand the real meaning of power and when the Lord Christ was rejected by
a City, the two Apostles said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come
down from Heaven and destroy them?” But He turned and rebuked them saying:
“You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not
come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” (Luke. 9:54-56). In the same
way, the Lord came submissively to the Cross, to give His life a ransom for
many.
Therefore My brethren, when we stand near the Cross, we do not weep as
Mary Magdalene did and the daughters of Jerusalem, nor do we sympathise with
the Lord, nor do we stand there to support Him, we stand near the Cross to
glorify both the Cross and the Crucified, singing the beautiful hymn “To You is
the Power...”
The Cross is our boast, as we say with St. Paul: “But God forbid that I
should boast except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world
has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14). “For the message
of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being
saved, it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18).
If the Cross had been a sign of weakness, it would have never been our boast
and we should have never taken it as our symbol. If the Cross had been a sign of
weakness, we would have never raised it on our Churches and our Domes or
hanged it around our necks, tattooed it on our hands and drawn it in our
writings. The Cross to us is a sign of power, the power of love, sacrifice, self
denial and endurance. This is the real meaning of power.
Many said to the Lord Jesus Christ, “If you are the Son of God, come down
from the Cross and we will believe.” Had He accepted the challenge, it would
have meant the destruction of humanity and loss of salvation. But He, however,
was too powerful to be moved and He remained on the Cross. The Lord Christ
was not overcome by this vain glory: save Yourself to prove that You are the
Son of God, to prove Your power and surprise the world by the miracle. He was
not overcome by such flattery, nor by the wrong concept of power. He was able
to come down from the cross, but He did not do so, that we might be saved.
The Lord Jesus Christ never thought of Himself, instead He was thinking of
us. He did not care about saving Himself from death, but He was concerned
about saving us. By redeeming us, He did not yield to crucifixion out of
weakness but out of love. He was unselfish, for love “does not seek its own, is
not provoked.” (1 Corinthians 13:5). Had He been thinking of Himself and of
how to be glorified according to the world, He would not have emptied Himself
and took the form of a slave. He did not think of Himself because He came to
give Himself up for us and thus He proved to the world the power of His love
and sacrifice, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for
his friends.” (John 15:13).
That is how the Lord Christ set the example of Power and overcoming
oneself on the Cross. It was amazing how the Lord Christ accepted all their
iniquities: “As a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.”
(Isaiah 53:7). He was aware of the plot against Him, but He did not resist evil.
He calmly said to Judas Iscariot, “What you do, do quickly.” (John 13:27). The
only justification for what the Lord Christ did is His desire to die for us. He had
the power to destroy the Cross and those who wanted to crucify Him, but His
power was greater; the power of love and sacrificing.
This Power which accompanied Him all through the journey of the Cross
will be the subject of our contemplation in the following pages.

HE WAS POWERFUL IN ACCEPTING DEATH:

The Lord Christ was powerful in approaching death. People did not attack
Him secretly or take Him by force. He knew that they would arrest Him and He
knew the time, as He told the disciples, “You know that after two days is the
Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” (Matthew
26:2). It would not be wrong to say He knew the exact hour and moment and
even the place, and still He went to the place where they would arrest Him, and
at the fixed time.
And when the time came, He went to wake up His disciples, who had fallen
asleep in the garden and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the
hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.
Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.” (Matthew 26:45-46). When
the enemy approached, He went with His disciples to meet him. He wanted to
give Himself up for our sake, as He said, “I lay down My life that I may take it
again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay
it down, and I have power to take it again.” (John 10:17-18).
 The Lord Jesus Christ walked towards the enemy in power and courage, and
we walk by His side saying, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and
the Honour, forever Amen.” The Lord had the power to put away death, but He
was content in accepting it, “To give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark.10:45).

HE WAS POWERFUL WHILE BEING ARRESTED:

Our Lord Jesus Christ was powerful when He was arrested. The soldiers
who came with their sticks and swords were afraid of Him. St. John the
Beloved, who followed the Lord till the Crucifixion, explained this by saying,
“Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward
and said to them, ‘Whom are you seeking?’ They answered Him, ‘Jesus of
Nazareth.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am He.’ And Judas, who betrayed Him, also
stood with them. Now when He said to them, ‘I am He,’ they drew back and fell
to the ground.” (John 18:4-6).
The Lord’s enemies fell to the ground and they were unable to confront His
unarmed power which was more effective than their armed attack. Jesus could
have gone away at that time, but instead He remained calm, courageous and
dignified. When they stood up, He asked them once more, “Whom do you
seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth”. Jesus answered, “I have told you that
I am He. Therefore, if you seek Me, let these go their way.” (John 18:7-9).
That is how our Lord Jesus Christ was powerful when He was arrested.
Others who may face the same circumstances would have trembled with fear.
But with the Lord, it was the opposite, He was not afraid, but it was those who
came to arrest Him who were too scared to face Him, until He presented Himself
to them saying, “I am He”.
The Lord’s Power was also demonstrated when He healed the ear of the
Chief priest’s servant while He was being arrested. “Then Simon Peter, having a
sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear.”
(John 18:10). But our meek Lord, who does not behave violently, turned to
Peter and asked him to sheathe his sword. He refused to defend Himself or let
others defend Him. He rebuked Peter saying, “Put your sword in its place, or do
you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with
more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53). The Lord refused to do
anything to save Himself, but faced death in courage for our salvation. As for
the servant’s ear, it was healed by the powerful Lord who was to be arrested,
“And He touched his ear and healed him.” (Luke 22:51). The Lord showed
mercy to His enemies even during the most critical times. We stand beside the
arrested Lord who healed the servant’s ear, whispering in His holy ear, “To You
is the Power...”
This act of mercy puts to shame the soldiers, Judas and the Chief priests. It
was also a witness against them or an invitation to believe in Him later. After
being arrested, He walked among them as a King in the midst of His slaves or
the Creator with His creation. He could have destroyed them all, but He wanted
their salvation.
The Lord could have done what Elijah did with the Captain of the fifty who
asked him to meet the king. “So Elijah answered and said to the Captain of the
fifty: ‘If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you
and your fifty men.’ And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and
his fifty.” (2 Kings 1:10). The Messiah could have simply done what Elijah did,
but He instead came to die for man. His power was in controlling Himself and
not destroying them. It is the power that saved us and the courage that made Him
face death without fear.

HE WAS POWERFUL DURING THE TRIAL:

The Chief priests were afraid of the Lord, so they held His trial at night.
They were confused and, “Sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to
death, but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they
found none.” (Matthew 26:59-60). They were amazed to see Him calm and
silent, “And the high priest arose and said to Him, ‘Do You answer nothing?
What is it these men testify against You?’ But Jesus kept silent.” (Matthew
26:62-63). Accusations did not upset the Lord Christ, neither did false witnesses.
His silence was more powerful than words; it made them feel that their
accusations and false witnesses were trivial.
They searched for something else to charge Him with and implored Him to
admit that He was Christ the Son of God. “I put You under oath by the living
God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!” He could have remained
silent, but He answered powerfully, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you
hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the Right Hand of the Power and
coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:63-64).
He was powerful in facing Pilate, as well as, Caiaphas. His dignity overruled
that governor who repeatedly confessed, “I find no fault in this Man. And
indeed, having examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this
Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him. I have found no reason
for death in Him.” (Luke 23:4, 14 &21). No words were spoken to convince
Pilate, but instead it was the Lord’s silence and the power that radiated from
Him. That governor tried different tricks to set Him free and when he failed he
washed his hands, announcing his innocence of the blood of our Lord Christ.
And we stand beside the Lord during His trial saying: “To You is the Power...”

HE WAS POWERFUL DURING HIS CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH:

When the Lord was on the Cross, the sun was darkened and, “the veil of the
temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks
were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had
fallen asleep were raised.” (Matthew 27:51-52). When the centurion and his
men, who were guarding the cross observed the earthquake they were dreadfully
frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54). The
centurion became a great saint and was martyred for the name of Christ. His
name is Saint Longinus and is commemorated by the Church twice a year in the
Synaxarium.
The sun’s darkening had its effect on Athens in Greece. Due to this
phenomenon, the astrologist and the council member, Dionosius Ariobagi,
believed in Christ because of the preaching of St. Paul, who explained to him
how the sun was darkened at the time of the crucifixion of the Lord Christ.
Dionosius became the first Bishop of Athens.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was also powerful on the Cross when He forgave
those who crucified Him and when He promised the thief on the right hand to be
with Him in paradise that same day.
The Lord was Powerful in His Death. When His hour came, “Jesus had cried
out with a loud voice and said, ‘Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.’”
(Luke 23:46). St. John Chrysostom chose the phrase “with a loud voice” and
contemplated on the power of the Lord during His death. How did the Lord have
such a “loud voice” while dying and after He had reached a state of extreme
physical weakness?
He struggled at Gethsemane, “Then His sweat became like great drops of
blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:45). He was then arrested and had
to walk on foot for a long distance. He was sent for trial five times before
Annas, Caiaphas, Pilate, Herod then Pilate for a second time. Add to this the
exhaustion and the unbearable pain He had, when He was whipped thirty nine
times in the most savage way, while many before Him had died from such
whipping or had reached near death! Then the crown of thorns caused Him to
lose blood. He was also struck several times. Then He had to carry the Cross
until He collapsed beneath it. “Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a
certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him
they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus.” (Luke 23:26).
He endured more pain when He was nailed to the Cross. He was physically
drained and His skin stuck to His bones, as David the prophet prophesied saying,
“I can count all My bones.” (Psalm 22:17). When Jesus reached the moment of
death, He had no power left in Him even to whisper. How then did He cry out
with a loud voice?! We stand by His side amazed at this holy moment, saying:
“To You is the Power...”
The Lord was powerful in His death. He defeated death by His death,
trampled the serpent’s head and fulfilled the promise given to humanity since the
time of Eve, “He shall bruise your head.” (Genesis 3:15). Therefore His death
revealed Him as the Saviour of the world. The Lord’s most powerful moment
was that of His death. At that hour He reigned over humanity and restored His
Kingdom from the ruler of this world. “The Lord reigns, He is clothed with
majesty; The Lord is clothed, He has girded Himself with strength.” (Psalm 93).
He reigned on the Cross. For this reason, we find in the prayer of the ninth hour,
by which we commemorate the Lord’s death, Psalms of praise, glory and
worship. So we stand before the Powerful Lord in His death singing: “To You is
the Power...”

HE WAS POWERFUL AFTER HIS DEATH:

The first thing the Lord did when He yielded up His Spirit was lay hold of
the devil and bind him for a thousand years. The Lord also, “Descended into the
lower parts of the earth.” (Ephesians 4:9). He announced the good news to the
dead and led them, with the thief on the right hand, to Paradise. It was the Lord’s
death that opened the gates of Paradise after being locked for thousands of years,
since the fall of Adam and Eve. The One which they thought was dead in the
sealed tomb was able to open the gates to Paradise and lead all who died in hope
of His procession of victory.
One of the beautiful stories that were told after the Lord’s death is that, while
Nicodemus was shrouding Him, he contemplated saying, “How can I shroud the
Lord and the Creator?! So the Lord looked at him and smiled and Nicodemus
said, “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal,” which is where the well known
Trisagion originates from. We stand by the side of the holy tomb, saying to the
Lord in His death, “To You is the Power...” The Lord was powerful in His
Resurrection, powerful when He left the sealed tomb and conquered death.

THE LORD HID HIS POWER FROM THE DEVIL:

One of the main reasons which makes people think that the Lord Christ was
weak was that He used to hide His power. It was an act of humility that confused
the devil and made him wonder, ‘Is that really Jesus Christ! Is it Him or not?! It
was for the best not to let the devil know the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ, as
he could have done his utmost to cripple the plan of redemption, for the devil
never wanted the world to be saved. The following are some examples which
illustrate the devil’s confusion because the Lord hid His power.
The devil knew that the Lord Christ would be born from a virgin, as Isaiah
the Prophet foretold, “Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall
call His name Emmanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14). He also described the characteristic of
this Son, “For unto Us a Child is born, unto Us a Son is given and the
government will be upon His shoulder: and His name will be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6). The
devil heard a confirmation of this prophecy when the angel appeared to Joseph
and said, “Behold! The virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall
call His name Emmanuel.” (Matthew 1:22-23).
It was also confirmed in the angel’s annunciation to Virgin Mary that, “The
Holy spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow
you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of
God.” (Luke 1:35). And it happened that the Virgin Mary did conceive, and the
devil witnessed what happened when Mary visited Elizabeth, “When Elizabeth
heard the greeting of Mary that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was
filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, but
why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”
(Luke 1:43).
The devil then said within himself that this was certainly the Son of God. But
when the Incarnated God was born in a manger, the devil was very confused.
How could that happen! It is hard to believe that this poor, homeless baby, who
is surrounded by animals, is the Son of God. It cannot be Him, without the whole
world celebrating His coming with ceremonies, without angels and heavenly
lights surrounding Him to announce His arrival and heaven and earth shaking
before Him. The devil was confused as he had no idea of the meaning of
humility or self mortification; otherwise he would not have become a devil.
The devil also heard what the angel announced to the shepherds, “Do not be
afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all
people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is
Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped
in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:10-12). The devil said within
himself, “This is certainly He”. This was confirmed by the multitude of heavenly
host, praising God saying, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good
will toward men.” (Luke 2:14). If peace was to return to earth, then it should be
through the Lord Christ, the Saviour. This was also ascertained by the testimony
of the wise men, the fulfilment of the prophecy about the baby of Bethlehem, the
disturbance of King Herod because of the Child’s birth and worship of the wise
men to the Child. (Matthew 2:1-11).
However, the devil later suspected the matter when he saw that great Saviour
who was praised by the angels and worshipped by the wise men and who caused
Herod to tremble, flee in fear to Egypt. He thought: “Is it possible that God
escapes from the face of man? Where is His power, His Kingdom and awe? It
cannot be Him.” But the devil then saw that when that Child entered Egypt,
many of its idols fell and were broken. He knew this fulfilled the prophecy by
Isaiah which said, “Behold, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud and comes to
Egypt; the idols of Egypt will totter at His presence and the heart of the
Egyptians will melt in its midst.” (Isaiah 19:1). And the devil said within
himself, “No doubt, He is the Saviour, the Son of God.”
Once more the devil started to doubt when he realised that the Child returned
only after the death of those who were seeking His life. “But when he heard that
Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to
go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region
of Galilee. And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth.” (Matthew 2:22-
23). What a confusing situation! “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
(John 1:46). “‘No, it cannot be He!” said the devil.
The devil remained in his doubts till the Child was twelve years of age and
he saw Him sitting among the elders, and all who listened to Him were amazed
at His understanding. The devil heard Jesus answering Mary and Joseph, “Did
you not know that I must be about My Father’s business.” (Luke. 2:49).
The devil then said within himself, “It must be He. Who else will have such
wisdom and talk about His Father’s business!” When the boy submitted himself
to Mary and Joseph, the devil started to doubt again. How could He yield to
them while heaven and earth surrender to Him? It cannot be He! What increased
his doubts even more was seeing Jesus Christ living for another 18 years, until
He was 30 years old, as a simple carpenter, with no fame at all. The Lord would
not waste the prime of His life in such a way. It cannot be Him.
The devil then heard St. John the Baptist, who testified for Christ saying,
“but there stands One among you whom you do not know. It is He who, coming
after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.”
(John 1:27). He pointed to Christ and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who
takes away the sins of the world!” (John 1:29). “There comes One after me who
is mightier than I. I indeed baptised you with water, but He will baptise you with
the Holy Spirit.” (Mark 1:7-8). And the devil said, “It must be He.”
The devil was especially amazed when he saw that great Lord who John the
Baptist said was not worthy to stoop down and untie his sandal straps and was
supposed to take away the sins of the world, be Himself baptised with the Holy
spirit. That great Lord came to St. John to be baptised just like everyone else.
The devil expected Christ to baptise St. John and start His mission; that is
what dignity means. But he saw exactly the opposite happen. He heard Christ
saying to John, “Permit it to be so now.” And St. John did baptise Christ. It was
too much for the devil to understand this humility and he said in his heart, “It is
not He!” During the baptism, a remarkable sign was given to prove that it was
He. The devil saw the heavens parted and the Spirit, like a dove, coming down
upon Christ. And there came a voice from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased.” (Mark 1:10-11). There was no doubting that clear
testimony of the Father. It is certainly He.
The devil then returned to his doubts when he saw that He, to whom the
Father and the Holy Spirit gave testimony during the baptism, was lying
exhausted on the mountain, hungry after fasting. How could He be hungry while
having the power to turn the stones into bread to eat? Surely it was not He. The
devil was able to take Him and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, then to a
high mountain. (Matthew 4:5-8). The devil was then certain that it could not be
the Son of God, and dared to say to Him, “All these things I will give You if
You will fall down and worship me.” (Matthew 4:9). But his fear returned when
the Lord rebuked him saying, “Away with you, Satan! Then the devil left Him,
and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.” (Matthew 4: 10-11).
The devil’s fear was increased and he began to think that it was He when he
saw Him performing miracles that nobody else had ever performed before. But
he found that the Lord hid some of those miracles behind His prayers. Other
miracles He worked on the Sabbath, which led to the anger of the Pharisees and
Scribes. The devil, seeing the Lord living without a title, no position, and no
residence, surrounded by weak people said to himself, “No, it is not He!” The
devil then heard Christ say to Nicodemus, “No one has ascended to heaven, but
He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.”
(John 3:13). And the devil said, “Could it be He?! But how could He be in
heaven while being on earth with Nicodemus!”
If He is to be found everywhere, then He must be God. It is also confirmed
by the phrase, “descended from heaven”. Besides, he heard the Lord saying,
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). These
words nearly convinced the devil, whose doubts returned to him because of the
expression “Son of Man”, which the Lord often used. But why does He say that
“the Son of Man must be lifted up so that whoever believes in Him may not
perish but have everlasting life.” (John.3:14-17).
The numerous miracles of the Lord Christ proved His divinity, and His
power over evil spirits forced them to admit it. “And demons also came out of
many, crying out and saying, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of God! He rebuked
them.’” (Luke4:41). The devil’s suspicions started again when he found that the
Lord was tired of walking, sitting by a well asking a woman for a drink!! When
the Lord rebuked the sea and waves, the devil said, “It is He”, but when He was
asleep in the boat, he wondered how it could be when it says in the Psalms, “He
will neither slumber nor sleep”! (Psalm 121:4)
Some people were just as confused as the devil himself. “Some say John the
Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (Matthew
16:14). The Lord asked His disciples, “But you, who do you say I am?” Simon
Peter answered, “You are Christ, the Son of the Living God”, and the Lord
answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not
revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17). The
devil heard this clear, unquestionable confession and said to himself, “No doubt
it is He.”
The devil’s confusion started again when he heard the Lord tell His disciples
that He must go to Jerusalem to suffer, die and on the third day rise. And the
devil could not understand how would the Son of God suffer and die. It must be
His way of saving Man. Then He should be stopped. So the devil put words in
Peter’s mouth to say to His Lord, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not
happen to You!” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You
are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things
of men.” (Matthew 16:22-23).
The devil then thought it might be He when the Lord left to Jerusalem where
He was received as a great King and the awaited Messiah. Even the children
praised Him in fulfilment of the Psalm, “Out of the mouth of babes and nursing
infants You have ordained strength.” (Psalm 8:2), and out of respect He cleansed
the temple. But his doubts returned when the Lord retired to Bethany.
The Lord started to destroy the devil’s kingdom, revealing to the people the
hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees saying, “Woe to you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites.” (Matthew 23:1-3). He did away also with the Levitical
priesthood by telling the parable of the vineyard and the wicked tenants. (Luke
20: 9-19). The Lord put to shame the Pharisees, Sadducces and the Herodians
that “No one dared question Him.” (Mark 12:34). Thereupon the devil began to
get ready to arrest the Lord and so the plot developed on Wednesday.
The devil saw the Lord washing the disciples’ feet on Thursday and he was
encouraged, saying in his heart it was not the Lord; for how would the Lord
wash the feet of men?! And so the devil entered Judas after the piece of bread
was dipped and made him carry out the plot. (John 13:2). When the devil heard
the Lord’s last conversation with the disciples and that He would send them the
Holy Spirit, he thought it must be He; for who else could send God’s Holy Spirit
except God Himself!
The devil then hearing the Lord’s long prayer to the Father, asking for the
disciples, “That they may be one as We are.” (John 17:11), “As You, Father, are
in Me, and I in You.” (John 17:21), “Keep through Your name those, that they
may be one as We are.” The devil trembled and said “It must be He?” He
remembered the Lord’s words before, “I and My father are One” (John
10:30)and His words to Philip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father, so
how can you say, ‘Show us the father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father
and the Father in Me?’” (John 14:8-10), and the devil was filled with fear and
said, “It must be He?”
But soon the devil saw the Lord in His agony on the Mount of Olives, asking
the Father if He would remove that cup from Him, and exclaimed how would the
One who said, “I and My Father are One”, be in such agony, till “His sweat fell
to the ground like great drops of blood.” (Luke 22:44)! So the devil was
reassured and said, “No, it is not He.” The soldiers then came to arrest Him.
The devil saw the soldiers who came armed with swords, weapons and sticks to
arrest the Lord Jesus Christ, and they fell to the ground and were not able to face
His overwhelming reverence, though He was unarmed, and the devil became
puzzled. He saw the Lord heal the ear of the slave when Peter severed it with his
sword, and the devil said “Certainly, it is He”. Who else would have such
courage and reverence? Who else would have such love towards His enemies
and have such miraculous power? But soon the devil saw the Lord walking with
them as a lamb to the slaughter, not opening His mouth. And the devil was
reassured again and said, “No, it is not He.”
Then the Lord was put to trial by the chief priests, and the devil listened
carefully. He was trying to find an answer to the question he had in his mind
since the temptation on the mount. The question this time came from the chief
priest who asked the Lord, “Are You Christ, the Son of God?” And the Lord said
to him, “Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting
at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew
26:64).
The devil heard this clear confession and wondered if it was He who had
said many times before, would come upon the clouds of heaven! But the devil’s
doubts returned when he saw the Lord despised and forsaken by the people who
mocked and spitefully treated Him, and He opened not His mouth. He offered
His back to be flogged and His cheek to be slapped, and did not turn His face
away from the shame of spitting. He saw the Lord fall with exhaustion under the
Cross, and Simon of Cyrene carrying it for Him. The devil then said, “No, it is
impossible that it is He? Dignity and power according to the devil meant false
glory.
So he said to himself, “It cannot be He”. And the devil shouted on the
mouth of the public, “Crucify Him, Crucify Him.” But the echo of the Lord’s
words remained, “I lay down My life, I voluntarily lay it down and I have
authority to take it up again.” The Lord was lifted on the Cross and the devil
continued to be tormented with doubt. The Lord hid His power and the devil
continued asking the old question, “Save Yourself! If You are the Son of God,
come down from the cross.” (Matthew 27:40).
The Lord’s first words while on the Cross started with, “Father, Father,
forgive them.” The word “Father” disturbed the devil, and he asked himself,
“Could it be He?” And by putting words in the mouth of the thief on the left of
Christ, who asked, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” (Luke 23:39).
The Lord said to the thief on his right, “Truly I say to you, today you will be
with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:42). And the devil was shaken with fear. What is
He saying? Doesn’t He know that Paradise has been closed for five thousand
years? And at the east of the Garden of Eden He placed the Cherubim, and a
flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.”
(Genesis 3:24). How would Paradise be open then? And how would the
Crucified enter it with the other thief?! Could it be the Christ, by whose
Crucifixion the world will be saved?! If that happened, Satan’s kingdom would
fail and all that he achieved since Adam. On the sixth hour, there was darkness
over the earth, the veil of the temple was torn in two, the earth shook, the rocks
were split and tombs were opened, and the devil’s fear increased and he said, “It
is He, no doubt, Christ the Saviour.”
But in spite of the shaking of the earth and darkness, the devil heard the Lord
say, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” then say, “I am Thirsty”,
and then the devil calmed down and said, “It is not He.”
The devil waited for the death of the Lord Christ to get hold of His soul, as
he did with other human beings, and bring Him down to Hades. He was
surprised when the Lord cried with a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I
commit My spirit.” The devil was astonished to hear the Crucified still saying,
“Father”. Could He be truly the Son of God? What was the meaning of that loud
voice? How did He get that strength? And the devil said to himself, “How would
He entrust His spirit into God’s hands? It has to be in my hands.” But when the
devil progressed to take the soul of the Lord while still in fear and doubt, the
Lord held him with the power of His divinity and bound him for a thousand
years.

TO YOU IS THE GLORY

During Holy Week, we see that the Lord Christ, as described by the Prophet
Isaiah, “He is despised and rejected by men, and we did not esteem Him.”
(Isaiah 53:3). We see Him despised for our sake and follow Him, singing this
immortal hymn, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing and the Honour,
forever Amen, Emmanuel our God and King.”
DESPISED AND REJECTED BY MEN!!
In fact, the Lord did not only abandon His glory during the Holy Week, He
sacrificed His dignity for our sake.
He became without Honour in His own country. They reproached Him
saying, “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” (Matthew 13:55). For us He endured
shame, insults and reproach, for us! Being humble, the Lord sat with tax-
collectors and sinners, but they called Him a glutton and a winebibber. For His
love and concern, which was evident when healed the sick, they accused Him of
breaking the Sabbath, to teach us in depth, instead of abiding by the letter of the
Law. They said He violated the Law. We see Him abused for our sake and we
follow Him with the same hymn, “To You is the Power and Glory...”
We know, Lord, why they insulted You. They insulted You because You
were not like them and Your humility exposed them. You did not behave like
them for, “But all their works they do, to be seen by men. They make their
phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. They love the best
places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces,
and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’” (Matthew 3:5-7). But You lived a
modest and meek life by associating with the lowly and despised, eating with
sinners and tax-collectors. You let the sinner woman touch You, the Samaritan
woman converse with You, and the children come to You. You walked in
poverty, with no title, no money and nowhere to lean Your head on.
They refused to glorify You Lord, for You reviled their glory and said, “I do
not receive Glory from men.” (John 5:41). So You refused the kingdom and
majesty. But know Your great Majesty, and to You we say, “To You is the
Power, and the Glory.” Their scorn did not decrease Your glory at all. They sold
You for the price of a slave, “Thirty pieces of silver” and mockingly, they put a
purple robe on You and a crown of thorns upon Your Head. As for us, we
follow You in Your passion saying, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the
Blessing and the Honour, forever Amen.”

YOU ARE OUR GLORIFIED GOD:

They despised You, because You took the form of a servant, but we glorify
You, as we know who You are. You are equal to the Father as You said, “All
Yours are Mine.” (John 17:10). And You are the Only Begotten Son, who is in
the bosom of the Father, since the beginning (John. 1:18), “Who being the
brightness of His Glory and the express image of His person.” (Hebrews 1:3).
Yes Lord, we glorify You for the glory which, “You had with Your Father
before the world was.” (John 17:5), and because all authority in heaven and earth
has been given to You. (Matthew 28:18).
You were glorified before we existed, and for You “Every knee should bow,
of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth.”
(Philippians 2:10). Before we began to glorify You, You were and still are
glorified by the Angels and Archangels, “Before whom stand thousands of
thousands and ten thousands of the heavenly hosts ministering to You and
carrying out Your word, O our Master.”
You had been also glorified before the Angels or anything else existed, when
You alone existed. You do not need any creature to glorify You, for You are
glorified in Your Nature, Your attributes, and Your Divinity. You need no one to
glorify You and as You said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and
the End, the First and the Last.” (Revelation 22:13).
When we glorify You, Lord, we do not add anything new to You, even when
you emptied Yourself taking the form of a slave, many events showed Your
glory. You were glorified on Your birth, by the angels who brought the good
tidings to the shepherds, and by the three wise men who brought You gifts that
suited Your glory and worshipped You. You were glorified when the idols of
Egypt fell on Your visit while still a child, (Isaiah 19:1). John the Baptist
glorified You saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose
sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.” (Mark 1: 7-8).
Your glory was shown during the Baptism, when the Holy Spirit descended
on You like a dove, and a voice from heaven said, “You are My beloved Son; in
You I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22).
Your glory was also shown on the Mount of transfiguration, when Your face
shone like the sun and Your garments became white as light, and God’s voice
from a cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear
Him!” (Matthew 17:2-5).
You showed Your glory, Lord, in numerous miracles, even the devils could
not help but bear witness. And when You were tempted by Satan on the
mountain, You showed Your glory. You rebuked the devil and he was gone,
then the angels came and ministered to You. (Mark 1:13).
Your glory was shown through the Revelation to St. John the beloved, who
saw You in the midst of the golden lampstands. Your face shone as when the sun
shines in its full strength, Your eyes were like a flame of fire, and Your voice
like the sound of many waters. When St. John saw You, he fell at Your feet as
though dead. (Revelation 1:13-17).
In Your second coming, You will also come in Your Glory, on clouds of
heaven, as it is said, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy
angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” (Matthew 25:31).
“Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and Justice are the
foundation of His throne, His lightning illumines the world. The mountains melt
like wax before the Lord.” (Psalms 97:2-5).

WE ALSO GLORIFY YOU:

When we glorify You, our mouths are sanctified, but that does not add
anything to You. When we glorify You, Lord, we do not give You glory, but
rather admit Yours. You are like the sun; it shines with or without our
acknowledgment. What we say does not add to its light; it illuminates by itself.
We do not glorify You only in Your second coming, when Your glory will
be obvious, but we glorify You in the depth of Your pain. We follow You, step
by step proclaiming, “To You is the Power and Glory …. Emmanuel our God
and our King.” We Glorify You with the beautiful hymn “Pekethronous”, the
magnificent, immortal melody which is incomparable in the world of music, in
which we say, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A sceptre of
righteousness is the sceptre of Your Kingdom.” (Psalm 45:6).
By glorifying You, Christ, we protest against the deeds of those who plotted
and crucified You. We protest against what the ungrateful human beings did to
You, and see Your true glory on the Cross which You endured for our sake. By
glorifying You in Your crucifixion, we have pride in the glory of the Cross,
taking it as a life and support for us in our ministry. We even sing with St. Paul,
“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in
me.” (Galatians 2:20).
With this beautiful hymn we glorify the Lord at the end of the prayers of
Good Friday, after He paid His blood a price for the world’s salvation, and
began to reign on a tree. We sing to Him, “Your Throne, O God, is for ever and
ever.” With the same hymn, we also glorify Him on Tuesday of the Holy Week,
the day on which He announced to the disciples the time of His crucifixion,
“You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be
delivered up to be crucified.” (Matthew 26:2). And with the same beautiful tune
we glorify the Lord with another hymn (i.e. Ausnon). We glorify You, Lord, in
Your crucifixion not only in Your miracles.

TO YOU IS THE BLESSING

We follow our Lord Jesus Christ in the Crucifixion, whispering in His ear,
“To You is the Blessing.” As the Holy Bible says, “Cursed is everyone who
hangs on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13). Hence, a criminal who was put to death in
that way had to be buried on the same day and not remain all night hanged on
the tree lest he should defile the land, as the hanged is accursed by God
(Deuteronomy 21:22-23). And so the Lord took away the curse of the Law on
our behalf and became accursed for our sake. But we know that He is holy,
without sin, and the curse He took away was ours; the wages of our sins
according to the Law (Deuteronomy 28:27). He is not a sinner, certainly not, but
He takes away the sins of others, of the whole world. We therefore, follow Him
regretting our bad deeds that resulted in Him carrying it, saying to Him from the
depths of our hearts, “To You is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing... Emmanuel
our God and King.”
For this curse, they crucified Him outside the camp, so that He would not
defile it, and we follow Him in His Holy Week, as St. Paul said, “Therefore, let
us go forth to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.” (Hebrews 13:13).
We bear His reproach, as said about the Prophet Moses, “Esteeming the reproach
of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.”
(Hebrews 11:26).
Therefore, the Church remains outside the camp, away from the altar, away
from the sanctuary, away from the first Chancel, the Chancel of Saints,
remembering our sins that took us outside the camp like Adam when he was sent
forth from the Garden of Eden. We follow the Lord outside the Camp saying,
“You are righteous, we are evil, we deserve the curse and banishment, but You,
To You is the Blessing forever Amen, my Lord Jesus Christ, the Good Saviour.
While the Jews see in the Cross of the Lord Christ a symbol of shame and
humiliation, we say to Him, “To You and to Your Cross is the blessing. With
Your Cross we are blessed in everything. The priests, with the sign of the Cross,
bless the Congregation, and with the sign of the Cross, consecration and
sanctification are completed. With the sign of the Cross in the baptistery, we
obtain the blessing of the new birth and each member of our body is blessed and
sanctified with the sign of the Cross in the sacrament of the Holy Baptism.
Besides, all the Holy sacraments of Eucharist, Priesthood and the other
sacraments of the Church are completed with the sign of the Cross by which we
obtain grace, blessing and gifts. So, we cry out from all our hearts, “To You is
the Blessing...”
To You, O Lord, is the blessing that we lost since the fall of Adam, and of
which we are still, to this day dreaming and waiting for You to grant to us. By
You all the nations of the world are blessed. When Man was created, God
blessed him, and when he fell, a curse came unto earth, as God said to Adam,
“Cursed is the ground for your sake.” (Genesis 3:17). Then the curse spread
among human beings themselves, so God cursed Cain (Genesis 4:11), then Cain
and his descendants too. The curse extended and reached every sinner, as it was
said in the Law, “But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the
Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes
which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and
overtake you. The Lord will send on you cursing, confusion, and rebuke in all
that you set your hand to do, until you are destroyed and until you perish
quickly.” (Deuteronomy 28:15-20).
Amidst the curses of the Law, mankind dreamt of God fulfilling His promise
to Abraham, “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis
22:18). Mankind waited for Your coming, Lord, then You came, our loving,
kind Lord to take away the curse of the Law and in You all nations were
blessed. We stand by Your side while on the Cross, trusting Your promise to
Abraham. We look at You, Lord, while You dipped hyssop in Your Holy Blood
and sprinkled us to become clean. We sing for Your Glory and Holiness, “To
You is the Blessing, forever Amen.”
To You is the Blessing, thine is the blessing that You gave to the world in
whom are blessed, all nations and generations. But for this blessing of Yours, the
whole world would perish in its sins.
To You is the blessing as we say to You in the Holy Liturgy, “You blessed
my nature in You.” To You is the unlimited blessing by which the whole world
is blessed.
To You is the blessing You gave to us, the nation who was called
uncircumcised, “That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the
commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no
hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12). With Your blessings
Lord we “are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the
saints and members of the household of God.” (Ephesians 2:19).
To You is the blessing because You are Holy. So, on the day of Your
crucifixion, we sing this hymn saying, “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal,
who was crucified for us, have mercy upon us.” As we sing the hymn of Your
Holiness, we clear You from all accusations. When we sing the “AGIOS” hymn
i.e. “The Trisagion” with a sorrowful tune, our sorrow is not for You, but for
those who led You to the Cross as a sinner and charged You wrongly. But You,
the Holy, born of the Holy Spirit, the only Holy One, To You is the blessing
forever Amen.
You first gave blessing to the thief on the right hand, when You brought him
with You to Paradise. With this blessing, You blessed the foolish of the world
and disgraced the wise, You blessed the weak vessels that carried Your Holy
Name.
Who ever thought that those weak fishermen would become in Your hands,
like the five loaves and fill up the whole world, “Their line has gone out through
all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” (Psalm 19:4). Who would
ever have thought this scared group, hiding in the upper room would go and face
emperors, philosophers and religious leaders, and fill the whole world? It is
Your blessing that was given to our mother Rebecca, when You said to her, “Our
sister, may you become the mother of thousands of ten thousands; And may your
descendants possess the gates of those who hate them.” (Genesis 24:60). Indeed
Lord, To You is the Power.
The sin hid the blessing, so, when the sin was taken away from us, the
blessing returned. You restored Man to his first rank, as You said to him in
compassion, “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your
name great; And you shall be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:2). We ask You to keep
Your blessing on us, with all its grace and abundance. Let the blessing we heard
on the sixth day return to us, when You said, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill
the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1:28), by which You also blessed our father
Noah (Genesis 8).

TO YOU IS THE HONOUR

 “To You is the Honour,” and if You refused the earthly kingdom, You
reigned in the hearts, and Your kingdom is inside us. And those who did not let
You reign inside them feared You.
“To You is the Honour”, because You have the charisma, the respect, and
the awe. You were able to overcome Your dignity and abandon Yourself in
humility, but without diminishing Your greatness and Your worth.
How many times did You abandon Your true nature, allowed Your enemies
to throw stones at You, but they could not do anything to You. But you passed
in the midst of them and went Your way (Luke 4:30) and no one was able to
touch You. And they could not seize You until the hour had come, the hour
which You alone had set, which You would deliver Yourself. All were afraid of
You. Even when they questioned You and argued with You, You were gentle
with them. Even when You were young they listened to You, were surprised
and admired You.
Even the devil felt deep within himself that You are strong and undefeatable.
Your humility allowed him to approach You. But Your glory overwhelmed him
when You rebuked him. Hence, he escaped and was unable to continue his
conversation with You. Thus his temptations towards You ended here.
You were glorious all Your life, feared and respected, and the story of the
crucifixion is nothing but a reflection of Your enemies’ fear of You. They felt
that You were stronger than them in everything, closer to the hearts than they
and more convincing to the people. So they were fearful for their positions
because of You.
We stand at Your cross O Lord, saying to You, despite the insults and
suffering, “To You is the Glory forever, Emmanuel our God and our King.”

LET US FOLLOW THE LORD BY PARTICIPATING IN

HIS SUFFERING

During this week we follow Christ step by step. We follow Him in His
suffering, in all the events which He passed through and we sing praises to Him
saying: “To You is the Power and the Glory.” To this praise we add more words
according to the events of the day. We live with Him day by day, with our
emotions, our thoughts and our spirit, with all our being. We know the events of
the day and its prophecies from the Holy readings and we live the events with
Him, just as St. Peter said, “See, we have left all and followed You.” (Matthew
19:27). During Holy Week we leave everything and follow Him.
We also remember what was said about the blessed women that followed
Jesus from Galilee and ministered to Him (Matthew 27:55). And the many other
women who came up with Him to Jerusalem (Mark15:41). We hope that we can
live with Him during this week with the same purpose, feelings and passion,
following Him and going up with Him. Just as the beautiful words which Ruth
said to Naomi, “Entreat me not to leave you.” (Ruth 1:16-17). In the same way
we follow Christ day by day through the week, wherever He went. Our thoughts
and contemplations go with Him, all along singing the same praise “To You is
the Power and the Glory.”
Here we express our protest to our fathers whom he said “Indeed the hour is
coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will
leave Me alone.” (John 16:32). Lord we are not leaving You alone, separated
each one to his own, but we will gather around You. We will gather around You
in Your suffering, with all our feelings and our hearts. We can not leave You,
and You who did not leave anyone in their suffering, and You did not leave
anyone during Your suffering.
We excuse the three apostles whom You asked to stay with You, “Stay here
and watch with Me.” (Matthew 26:38) and they could not stay. You admonished
them saying, “What, could you not watch with Me one hour?” (Matthew
26:40). Unfortunately, they left You and could not stay awake. But here O
Lord, we will stay awake the whole night in prayer, not just one hour, for we like
to stay awake the whole of Pascha Week.
I admire what St. Paul said in Philippians 3:10, and this can be used as a
slogan for this week, “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection,
and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His own death.” Many
have lived with our Lord Jesus and until now do not know Him yet! But even in
during Holy Week we hear the Lord admonishing His disciple Phillip saying,
“Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Phillip?” (John
14:9). It seems to me that the Lord Jesus says the same thing to most of us. And
many knew Him but did not enter into a relationship with His suffering. Thus
during Holy Week we would like to say to Him, “Allow us Lord, even from far a
distance, to share Your suffering with You or even to just be with You.”
We will follow the events and the account of this great week. We offer our
feelings on each day, the Scribes, the Pharisees and the priests did not know
You, but we know You, and the mistakes of those who took advantage of You.
So let us go back to the events of these days. Although Lazarus Saturday and
Palm Sunday were not days of the Holy Week, we will talk about them as a brief
introduction.
 PALM SUNDAY AND CLEANSING THE
TEMPLE

LAZARUS SATURDAY

I t was the great miracle of our Lord raising Lazarus from the dead that
caused many to believe. This miracle, however, did not spiritually affect the
country’s leaders, or the priests and Pharisees. Rather, Christ said of them, “If
they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though
one rise from the dead.” (Luke 16:31). They did not have faith, but chose
instead to turn the people against Christ, “Then the chief priests and the
Pharisees gathered a council and said, ‘What shall we do? For this Man works
many signs,’” “Then from that day on they plotted to put Him to death.” (John
11:47, 53).
Why did these people miss the message? Of course it was their ego and their
hardness of heart. Their ego stood in the way of Christ and themselves. They
were preoccupied by their own personal grandeur and their positions of power,
so they saw Christ as a threat to their status and to their influence over the
people. They sought to kill Him, and they did not say, as St. John the Baptist
said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John3:30). We hope that on this
day we can contemplate on how many times our ego gets in the way of loving
God. The ego includes our pride, our desires and the love of praise.
Also, the hardness of the heart quenches any work of the Holy Spirit. It is
strange that the previous two miracles of Holy Week had been performed on the
Sabbath, that is, the restoration of the blind man’s eyes and the raising of
Lazarus. Did God want to rectify the thinking of the Jewish people about doing
good on the Sabbath, or to prove that humans should not depend on their pride?
Let us take this idea of doing good on the Sabbath, and trust that God can
raise us from our sins if we repent and repair our spiritual eyes if they have been
lost. We know that sin is spiritual death and that Christ can raise the body and
the spirit even after a long time. So let us prepare for Lazarus Saturday, and let
us have Holy Communion on Palm Sunday. As we remember Lazarus’ death
and resurrection, we remember our sins and being raised from them and we
prepare to have Holy Communion on Sunday as we receive Christ as our King.

PALM SUNDAY

Because this is a major feast, we celebrate it with the joyful tunes before
entering into the sorrowful tunes of Pascha week. On this day the Jewish people
welcomed Christ as their King to rule over Jerusalem and save them from the
Romans. However, Christ refused this type of earthly kingship because His
Kingdom was a spiritual one.
 Although Jesus refused to reign in Jerusalem He is delighted to reign in your
heart.
Your heart to God is greater than Jerusalem; it is the temple of the Holy
Spirit and the dwelling place of God. Contemplate on whether the Lord rules in
you completely: in your heart, your thoughts, your senses, your body and your
time.
Say to Him, “Come Lord and reign. Here I am, I am Yours”
If Your kingdom is not of this world, then come, I have a kingdom befitting
of You, rest Your head and relax. Perhaps You will find Your rest in my heart.
We hope that You will not find disobedience or rebellion (Psalm 44). Do not be
preoccupied with the palm leaves on this day, but rather prepare your heart to
welcome Christ as your King, to rule over you and manage your household.
On this day Jesus entered Jerusalem as a King. He had no problems with the
Romans because He was not competing with Caesar. The problem was from
within His people and from the Jewish leaders. They quarrelled amongst
themselves over the meaning of King.

DISPUTE OVER THE MEANING OF KING

Our Lord accepted to enter Jerusalem as a King, as His kingdom draws near.
Yes the day was approaching which would destroy Satan’s kingdom, trample
death, the death that brought sin into the world. So our Lord established a
special Kingdom, but the Jews did not understand this type of Kingdom.
Christ wanted a spiritual kingdom, but they wanted an earthly one. Christ
wanted to establish a Kingdom not of this world, but rather a spiritual one built
on love with Christ ruling not man. But they wanted a worldly kingdom built on
power and strength like their previous leaders Samson, Gideon and Joshua. To
have God reigning on them was a concept they could not understand.
They shouted saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” The word ‘Hosanna’
means ‘Save us’. But they asked for salvation as the Son of David, as an
inheritance of David’s crown and kingdom not as the Son of God. Thus they
only wanted salvation from the oppression of the Romans. Christ, however,
wanted to save His people from their sins, so His name Jesus means Saviour
(Matthew 1:2). He wanted to save them from Satan’s slavery, from sin and from
the world. The slavery of Caesar is confined to this world, but Satan’s slavery
leads to complete loss of one’s eternity.
 Our Lord Jesus wants the heart, but the Jews wanted the throne. Christ
wanted to release them from sin, but they wanted to be released from the slavery
of their oppressors. The spiritual side of the salvation as the following words of
Christ reveal, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”
(John 8:36). So the difference in thoughts eventually had to clash.
When Christ entered Jerusalem as a King the meek people were happy. But
the priests, elders, scribes and Pharisees were annoyed. The people were happy
with Him because He was modest and did not oppress them, “Behold, your King
is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey,
a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9) so too; “And when He had come
into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, ‘Who is this?’” (Matthew
21:10), also because of the many miracles which He had performed, “Then a
great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’
sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the
dead.” (John 12:9). Also St. Luke said, “And were unable to do anything; for
all the people were very attentive to hear Him.” (Luke 19:48). They all shouted
praises to Him and placed their clothes on the road welcoming Him.
Therefore the leaders were threatened by Him due to their ego. This ego
tired their hearts and controlled their actions, produced malice, and led to
conspiracy and corruption. It contradicted their positions as the spiritual leaders
of Israel, it undermined their understanding and their principles.
They were troubled by the way the people greeted Him and were filled with
jealousy and envy. They criticised the yelling of His disciples and the children’s
shouting and they said, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the
world has gone after Him!” (John12:19).
It is surprising to see them troubled, what damage would have happened if
the world went after Him. John the Baptist said he who has the bride is the
bridegroom and the friend of the bridegroom, stands afar off and looks on and
rejoices greatly (John 3:29). But the leaders and the teachers were not like John
the Baptist. And when Christ asked them where the baptism of John the Baptist
was from, they claimed that they did not know, but in fact they did (Luke 20:3-
7).
Their prejudice led them to love their leadership position over the crowd.
Their love of self, of falsehood and lies and the love of external appearances led
them to look upon Christ as a competitor and therefore hated Him.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem as a king, they did not welcome Him and
refused to have Him reign over them. Later they shouted and said, “We have no
King but Caesar!” (John 19:15). They were awaiting the coming of the Messiah
who would save them from the oppression of Caesar, this was their
understanding. Truly, it is clear that the love of self and flattery leads to
hypocrisy. Their understanding is completely misguided.
By refusing to allow the people to worship Christ they have not harmed
Jesus, but themselves. This offended them and not Him. The Lord was
establishing the kingdom which they deprived themselves of. He was building
the Church and He prepared the plan of salvation. These priests, elders and
teachers were too busy with their negative thoughts, organising conspiracies,
encouraging treason, seeking false witnesses, and plotting to have Christ put to
death. Satan was there helping them to satisfy their sinful desires. Yet the
objections of those priests and their plots, did not prevent the kingdom of Jesus.
This meek King who came to Jerusalem rode on a donkey. He refused to
reign in Jerusalem, but preferred to rule on the cross and He established His
spiritual Kingdom, and with the nails in His hands His kingdom spread to the
ends of the earth in spite of all the plots.
And you, what is your contemplation on Palm Sunday? This day which the
people wanted Jesus to be King over Jerusalem? Tell Him, “Come Lord and
reign.” Let your Kingdom come into my heart, and into the hearts of all the
people. Let your Kingdom come on all the people and in all the countries, so the
earth and all the Gentiles will know Your salvation (Psalm 66).
Lord take away anything which is preventing Your Kingdom from reigning
in me. Take away my ego which prevents Your kingdom. Take away the letter
of the Law which relegated the Pharisees from Your kingdom. Take away from
me the envy and the jealousy which caused the scribes, elders and the leaders to
be away. Ask The Lord to reign over your heart, but do not close it by yourself.
Open your heart to all holy influences and accept the work of God in you. Do
not quench the spirit. Do not ignore the voice of the Lord inside you.

JESUS IS KING

We all confess that Jesus is King. He did not refuse to reign in general, but
He refused an earthly reign. Jesus’ reign is eternal. It is written twice about
Him in the Book of Revelation, “And He has on His robe and on His thigh a
name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Rev 19:16) and
“These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He
is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called,
chosen, and faithful.” (17:14).
Since His birth He was honoured as King. The Wisemen came asking,
“Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2). The first
gift which was presented to Him was gold which symbolises His Kingship.
During the Annunciation of Archangel Gabriel to St. Mary it was said, “He will
be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give
Him the throne of His father David.” (Luke 1:32).
So what is the spiritual meaning of sitting on the throne of David His father?
Because David was anointed at a young age he did not receive his kingdom
straight away. It was only after King Saul died that David became King. Also
our Lord Jesus was anointed as King and David said of Him, “Your throne, O
God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your
kingdom.” (Psalm 45:6), but He waited until He saw Satan cast out, “Now is the
judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out,” (John
12:31). He waited till he saw the devil, head of this world (John 12:31), and He
said unto them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” (Luke 10:18), and
then our Lord Jesus, in the end, reigned on a cross.
We also say of our Lord Jesus that He is King of Peace. In the hymn Eporo
we say, “O King of Peace, give us Your peace.” Also, facing the East in the
Church, we find an Icon of the Lord, sitting on His throne, surrounded by the
four living creatures which symbolise the four Gospels.
Jesus is the King of all mankind not just a specific group of people. The Jews
wanted to make Him King over them alone, in a specified region of land and for
a limited period, but His Kingdom has no end. On our Lord’s Cross was placed a
sign: “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Matthew 27:37).
Even the thief who was on His right side on the Cross confessed that He was
God and King and asked the Lord, “Remember me when You come into Your
Kingdom.” (Luke 23:42). So Jesus has a spiritual reign which rules over the
heart and a heavenly reign which is eternal.
We believe that His kingdom will come to judge the living and the dead and
His Kingdom has no end. The Gospel of Matthew says He will be the Judge of
His Kingdom, “And before Him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall
separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats;
and He shall set the sheep on the right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall
the King say unto them on His right hand, “Come, you blessed of My Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
(Matthew 25:34). So we wait for the time when He will come in His Father’s
glory, on the clouds, with the Angels and the Saints.
Our Lord Jesus refused the sort of reign which the people wanted. After the
miracle of the five loaves and two fish, the people wanted to take Jesus by force
and make Him King (John 6:15). On Palm Sunday, they shouted out wanting to
make Him King. Christ refused this for two reasons: because it was an earthly
kingdom and because it was not appropriate for Him to take the Kingdom from
the hands of the people. As He said, “I do not receive honor from men.” (John
5:41). He has His Kingdom with His Father through His divine nature, and He
has His Kingdom by blood as He bought us by His blood. He paid His Holy
blood to redeem us. He bought our life, for Him after we were sold to death
because of sin. With that blood we become owned by Him. Thus, it is said, “He
reigned on the cross.” Hence, Satan tried many times and using many different
methods to prevent His reign, which was His by the Cross, displaying different
kinds of reign.
Satan tempted Jesus by offering Him a reign on earth, “Again, the devil took
Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of
the world and their glory.” (Matthew 4:8). The Lord refused this reign, rebuked
the devil and he left Him. The Lord has His own Kingdom and does not take
sovereignty from any one. On Palm Sunday, our Lord began His spiritual reign
by cleansing the temple and confronting the Pharisees and their wrong
behaviour.

CLEANSING THE TEMPLE

CLEANSING THE TEMPLE FROM THE MONEYCHANGERS

When Christ cleansed the temple He demonstrated His power and authority
(Matthew 21:12-13), (Mark 11:16) and (John 2:14-16). This shows us that the
meek Christ was also firm. No doubt Christ’s personality was complete with all
virtues. So, although He was meek and humble of heart (Matthew 11:29), when
it was needed He was firm. He had never behaved in this way before and there
were mixed feelings on the action, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a
house of prayer.’” (Matthew 21:13). Therefore, Christ did what was necessary
to correct the wrong.
The temple needed to be cleansed by any means. The temple is the house of
the Lord and it is holy. This holiness needs to be preserved; holy zeal calls for
that. Christ gave us an excellent example of this holy zeal and later Christ’s
disciples remembered this, “Then His disciples remembered that it was written,
“Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.” (John 2:17). The Lord had compassion
on those who sinned in the temple for a long period and treated them with
calmness, and when they did not change by calmness and patience, He used a
more severe approach.
In order to bring about change in a person the Lord uses calmness and
gentleness. He, However; can also use firmness as was demonstrated in the
temple. So, which method would you prefer to bring about reform in you? If
you have a sensitive nature your heart will reproach itself quickly from within.
It can respond to a spiritual word which you have read or heard, from a sermon,
from a hymn or from a video. This is enough for the Lord. If you do not
respond quickly to such things our Lord may use more severe methods to make
your heart respond such as illness, temptation, an accident, an affliction and so
on. And the Lord chooses what suits you, in the same way a doctor uses
medicine. If the medicine doesn’t work, the doctor may have to resort to
surgery.
Our Lord Jesus did not only cleanse the temple, but also warned of the
destruction of the temple, and the destruction of Jerusalem. He cried for
Jerusalem and said, “For days will come upon you when your enemies will build
an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and
level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in
you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your
visitation.” (Luke 19:43-44). And He also said, “See! Your house is left to you
desolate.” (Matthew 23:38). He also mentioned to His disciple, “Then Jesus
went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him
the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these
things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another,
that shall not be thrown down.’” (Matthew 24:1-2). And said, “Therefore when
you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those
who are in Judea flee to the mountains.” (Matthew 24:15-16).
You also my beloved children, when you hear during Holy Week that the
Lord cleansed the Temple and warned of its destruction, you then shout saying,
“Come Lord in power and clean my heart too.” Aren’t we an altar of the Lord
and the Spirit of God dwells in us? “Do you not know that you are the temple of
God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of
God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you
are.” (1 Corinthians 3:16). Then come Lord and clean my temple, turn the
tables in me, before it turns on me and I lose my eternity. Do not leave my heart
to desires and emotions, so that it becomes a marketplace for selling and buying.
But purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean. Then I can say with You that my
house is a house of prayer. Lord do it quickly before the temple is destroyed.
Our Lord Jesus did not only cleanse the Temple from sellers and buyers, but
He also cleansed it from its corrupt religious leaders. This cleansing was a
prelude to His spiritual leadership and His spiritual Kingdom.

CLEANSING THE TEMPLE FROM THE LEADERSHIP

In order to understand why our Lord did this we need to follow the events of
what led to this action.
How did the Jews react to this cleansing? They could not confront Jesus or
make Him stop and they were afraid of what the people would do, as the people
were amazed by His teachings, “And the scribes and chief priests heard it and
sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people
were astonished at His teaching.” (Mark 11:18). So they waited for an
opportunity to implement their plot, “And He was teaching daily in the temple.
But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy
Him.” (Luke 19:47).
What they did instead was try to trick Him through their questioning, “Now
when He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people
confronted Him as He was teaching, and said, ‘By what authority are You doing
these things? And who gave You this authority?’” (Matthew 21:23), “and spoke
to Him, saying, “Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things? Or who
is he who gave You this authority?” (Luke 20:2). Christ did not answer them,
but rather asked them a question about John the Baptist. In this way He silenced
them.
The Lord planned to appoint leaders for His Church. It was natural for Christ
to change the spiritual leadership as these people did not understand His spiritual
Kingdom. They were not spiritual, instead they mislead and controlled the
people.
These leaders vowed that if any one who confessed that Jesus was Christ was
to be taken out of the synagogue, “His parents said these things because they
feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He
was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue.” (John 9:22). So these
leaders became a hindrance for the way of the Kingdom of God, therefore they
needed to be changed. The Lord waited patiently with these people, the Scribes,
the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the priests, and the elders. He bore with them in
long suffering, in calmness and in meekness. But now the time has come and
there were only a few days left till the Golgotha.
This Jewish type of leadership needed to be changed for two reasons:

1 Christianity would be based on another type of priesthood; that of

Melchizedek. This differed from the priesthood of Aaron which presented
animal sacrifices, symbolising Christ’s sacrifice. But the era of animal sacrifices
was over. Also, the priesthood of Aaron was by inheritance from his offspring,
but the Christian priesthood would be according to individual merit and would
not adhere to any particular tribe or family line.
“Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it
the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest
should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to
the order of Aaron? For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also
a change of the law. For He of whom these things are spoken belongs to another
tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar.” (Hebrews 7:11-13).

2 The Jewish leaders were corrupt and committed many sins. They were
not worthy of the priesthood. Christ needed to rebuke them publically so
that they would not be a stumbling block to others and in front of the new
Christian priesthood that would follow.
Therefore our Lord made a public example of them. Christ told them,
“Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to
a nation bearing the fruits of it.” (Matthew 21:43). Christ showed them that by
rejecting Him they would be ruined. He also said, “The stone which the builders
rejected has become the chief cornerstone.” (Psalm 118:22). And He warned
them, “And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls,
it will grind him to powder. Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His
parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them.” (Matthew 21:44-45).
They did not repent and they did not benefit from His warnings. But after they
heard the warning the Bible says, “But when they sought to lay hands on Him,
they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet.” (Matthew
21:46). But after a day of these teachings they agreed with Judas that he would
betray Christ, his Master, and deliver Him to them in exchange for money. Our
Lord destroyed the idols which were present during His time, to ease His
disciples before He delivered His Spirit into the Father’s hand.
So the Lord rebuked the Scribes and the Pharisees. Our Lord met their
criticism and insults calmly and taught them patiently. However, they were not
affected and they did not benefit, even after cleansing the Temple. He confuses
them during these discussions and they were embarrassed especially after they
questioned Him about the relationship between Jesus and David, “If David then
calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son? And no one was able to answer Him a
word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.” (Matthew
22:45-46).
Therefore the Lord rebuked them sternly saying, “Woe to you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and
when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.”
(Matthew 23:15). Then He told them what would happen after two days, “You
know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered
up to be crucified.” (Matthew 26:2).
Christ told them that their leadership was blind, “Woe to you, blind guides.”
(Matthew 23:16). He told them that they love the best seats and love the praise
of people and they cause the people to carry heavy weights. He warned them
saying, “Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of
hell? Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of
them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your
synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the
righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood
of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the
altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.”
(Matthew 23:33-36).
He also silenced the Sadducees and those who followed the Law of Moses.
The Sadducees did not believe in the spirit, in angels or in the resurrection,
although they had a very good standing amongst the Jewish people and from
them came many religious leaders.
During this week they tried to trick our Lord and embarrass Him by
questioning Him regarding the resurrection of the woman who married one man
after the death of another. They asked him whose wife will she be after the
resurrection? Christ silenced the Sadducees when He answered them saying,
“You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the
resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage.” (Matthew 22:29).
Thus the Lord led the movement of cleansing. He did not leave it to His
disciples in case it was difficult for them, but He Himself led it. He stood up to
the priests, religious leaders, scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees and the lawyers.
Then they all conspired against Him saying crucify Him. But this was the
reason why He came, to give Himself for the whole world, and to give the
people the correct teachings.
Our Lord is not going to put a new piece on an old dress. Likewise in
Christ’s Church, all these old communities have disappeared. No more scribes,
Pharisees, Sadducees nor the followers of the Law of Moses. The Lord Himself
paid the price for this cleansing and He suffered on our behalf and bore the
injustice of the wicked for us.
As you are standing before the cleansing of the altar ask yourself:
Am I one of the wicked? Or is my service accepted?
Am I one of those who are against Christ?
Am I causing others to carry a heavy load?
Am I working with Jesus to cleanse my altar?
Am I resisting Him like those who resisted Him and He took the Kingdom
from them?
By Jesus’ cleansing of the temple, I ask Him to cleanse every holy place
which has His name on it and say with Christ, “My house is called a house of
prayer.”
THE HOUSE OF BETHANY
 IN THE HOUSE OF BETHANY

I n loyal and loving and who welcomed Him in the House of Bethany and He
contrast to those who plotted against Him, there were those who were

lodged there. “Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He
lodged there.” (Matthew 21:17)
The House of Bethany represents the loyal heart which loves the Lord and
He finds comfort in it, just as He found comfort in Bethany after facing the many
problems in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was a great city full of conspiracies, full of
noise and tired leaders. But in Bethany there was Lazarus whom the Lord cried
for until the people said, “See how He loved him!” (John 11:36). And Bethany
has those loving people who surrounded Him after He raised Lazarus from the
dead. And there is also Mary who represents contemplation and Martha who
represents service and there was simplicity which is not found in the city of
Jerusalem.
This blessed village had loyal hearts to God. Therefore He preferred it in
His last days before the crucifixion. Yes, He preferred it to Jerusalem. Jerusalem
the big city, but her heart is not big like it. Jerusalem is the city of the great
King. It conspired against the great King and did not deserve Him, “He came to
His own, and His own did not receive Him.” (John 1:11). Therefore, He left it
and lodged at Bethany. This great city Jerusalem has no love and the Lord cried
out saying, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones
those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together,
as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!”
(Matthew 23:37).
Jerusalem had a famous name, but Bethany did not. Perhaps many of you do
not know the history of Bethany or where it is. It is not famous like Jerusalem.
But it is full of loyalty, sincerity and love. So the Lord found His rest there.
Therefore, our Lord looks at each persons love and not how great or famous they
are. The Jews were famous in their faith but the Gentiles were not. Their hearts,
however, were ready, so they reached God’s heart and arms before the Jews and
the Lord found His rest in them.
The Gentiles represented the House of Bethany. St. Paul experienced this;
when the Jews rejected his preaching, he turned to the Gentiles, and found there
open hearts filled with more readiness than those who followed the Law of
Moses, “Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent
to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!” (Acts 28:28).
There are many examples in the Bible of the spiritual symbolism of the
House of Bethany.

1 Many times we find ourselves in the midst of darkness, but with the
memory of Bethany, the light restores us. These ‘lights’ are the beginning
of a new start and covenant between God and people, when God finds, amongst
sinners, loving hearts and finds rest in them. And here we give examples from
the bible other than the example of the Gentiles.

2 In time, the whole world was full of evil and all became corrupt and
moved away from God. So God decided to destroy all life on earth. But
in the middle of all that widespread corruption He found loving and obedient
hearts in Noah and his family. So God took and placed them in the ark and He
began with them a new history to mankind, as He found His rest in them.
The ark was the House of Bethany, so He rested there. The ark was a
dwelling place for God with the people, the only place which God could lay His
head. He found love, fulfilment and purity of heart, in that dark era.

3 The same thing was repeated when the Lord wanted to destroy Sodom and
Gomorrah. Her evil was great and her sin was greater. And the Lord
could not find anyone in Sodom, other than Lot the righteous, and the two angels
went to his house (Genesis 19:3-4).
So Lot’s house was the House of Bethany for the two angels and for the
Lord. It was the only house in the city which provided rest for the Lord away
from the noise of the outside world. Therefore, God rescued Lot from the
destruction which came upon Sodom and its people.

4 Our Father Abraham was Bethany to the Lord - The evil was great on
earth, even in the offspring of Lot the righteous. People practised the
worship of idols and it spread among them. So the Lord searched for a heart to
rest in, so it can be a new start for people to know Him and have a covenant with
them. He found Abraham, blessed him and had a new people. So by his
offspring the tribes of the earth were blessed, “And in you all the families of the
earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3). Thus, Abraham became a friend of God
and God opened His heart to him and did not hide anything from him, “And the
Lord said, ‘Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing?’” (Genesis 18:17).
This is a picture of the House of Bethany.

5 Also Joseph in Egypt was a House of Bethany - All of Egypt worshipped

many idols according to her old religion under the gods Ra and Amon.
The only one amongst them who worshipped the true God in Egypt was Joseph,
and then his family joined him later. So the Lord found His Bethany in Egypt,
so He rested there.

6 Moses the Prophet on the mountain - He went up the mountain to receive

the tablets of the Law from God. He stayed with God for 40 days. When
the people found that he delayed, they made an image of a molded calf and
worshipped it. And there was no one left in all the earth who worshipped God
other than Moses. He was Bethany to God, the only heart which He found to
rest in.

7 Elijah and the seven thousand knees - The worship of idols had spread far and
wide during the reign of King Ahab and his wife Jezebel. And the people
worshipped Baal and killed God’s prophet and destroyed His temples, until
Elijah said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children
of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your
prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.” (1
Kings 19:10). But the Lord kept for Himself 7000 knees which did not bow to
Baal, “Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not
bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” (1King 19:18).
Elijah, Obadiah and the 7000 were the Bethany for God during the days of
Ahab. They were the only people loyal to God, so He rested there.
The Lord did not leave Himself without witness, “Nevertheless He did not
leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven
and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” (Acts 14:17).
And the loyal souls are many, some are visible and others work in secret,
without being seen. And everywhere in the world there is a House of Bethany
for the Lord.

8 The twelve disciples were the first Bethany in Christianity.They were the
sincere hearts towards the Lord whom He trusted over His Kingdom and
His message. They were His own and the Bible said about them, “Nevertheless
He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from
heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” (Acts
14:17). They defended Him with all their power and they witnessed to Him
everywhere, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon
you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8). They were Bethany to the
Lord. He rested there all the days of His life on earth. Perhaps John the Beloved
was the most and he is the one who followed Him to the cross.

9 He found Bethany on the Cross - The people denied and mocked Him,
even one of the thieves who was with Him, but The Lord found other
hearts which loved in sincerity and confessed Him to others and He was
crucified in front of them. Before them was St Mary, John the Beloved, Mary
Magdalene and Mary the wife of Cleopas. Those who were close to His Cross to
the last moment, did not leave Him even after His death. Nicodemus and Joseph
of Arimathea joined them and they were Bethany to the Lord who rested in them
when all left Him. (Matthew 26:56-57; John 19:26-27).

The thief on the right of Christ was Bethany to the Lord - He shared the
10 suffering, accompanied Him on the cross, he witnessed to the Lord, and
Christ was in the depth of His suffering, and the Lord was comforted in his
presence. Our Lord took him from the Cross to paradise. He was the first
Bethany, entered from Golgotha to paradise. He took the Lord inside himself, or
the Lord took him inside Himself, or both of them on the cross. Other than
remembering the House of Bethany, the house of Lazarus, Mary and Martha,
which the Lord took His rest in before His crucifixion, we also remember
another house:

11 The House of Mary the mother of St. Mark - In that house, the Lord
washed the feet of His disciples, He celebrated the Passover with them,
and established the Sacrament of the Eucharist. And in this house He spoke to
His disciples.
He had many long discussions with them which are recorded in 4 Chapters
of the Gospel of St. John (John 13:17). He promised to send the Holy Spirit to
them. The Holy Spirit came upon them in that house on the day of Pentecost. In
that house, became the first Church in Christianity (Acts 12:12). It became the
House of Bethany, not only for the Lord, but also for His disciples and the whole
Church. All found their rest in this house. Finally, we salute the women who
offered their homes to the Church.
Mary and Martha and Mary the Mother of St. Mark. We also give tribute to
all the saintly women who opened their homes to God to become Churches, such
as Lydia the Seller of Purple. Her home became a Church and a Bethany to St.
Paul and Silas who went there after their stay in prison, “And when she and her
household were baptised, she begged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be
faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ So she persuaded us.” (Acts
16:15). And also like Acquila and Priscilla who risked their life for St. Paul. St.
Paul mentions their home, “Likewise greet the church that is in their house.”
(Romans 16:5).
There are many examples of Saints in the Old Testament. Like the widow
who opened her house to Elijah the Prophet and he stayed in her upper room
(1King 17:9-19). Her house was Bethany to him and he lived there during the
famine. We remember also the Shunamite woman, who opened her house to
Elisha the Prophet. He also stayed in the upper room which she had prepared for
him (2 King 4:10). It was Bethany for him. He loved it, sanctified it and was
happy in that house, and he rested there.
It is the love that these people give to God and His people. The Lord Jesus
loved the love of this Bethany village, and their hearts, which were open in
wondrous sincerity, away from the noise of Jerusalem and its conspiracies. The
days before His crucifixion, He used to spend His days in the House of Bethany,
then go to the temple, and come back again to Bethany and lodge there.
The holy house of Mary and Martha. This house was sanctified by the Lord
during the days leading up to His crucifixion. And Mary, the sister of Lazarus,
who took an expensive jar of Spikenard fragrant oil and poured it on the Lord’s
head when He was in their home. Also St John the Beloved said, on this
occasion, that she wiped Jesus’ feet with the perfume and anointed His feet and
wiped them with her hair and the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil
(John 12:2-3).
He visited the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany where a woman came to
Him having an alabaster flask of very costly fragrant oil and she poured it on His
head. His disciples were indignant saying, “To what purpose is this waste?”
Christ replied, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work
for Me. For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have
always. For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial.”
(Matthew 26:7-12). And Christ said of her, “Assuredly, I say to you, wherever
this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also
be told as a memorial to her.” (Mark 14:9).
Blessed are these houses which received Jesus. Mary and Martha’s house
was not the only house which the Lord visited during these days. There were
many others, who were sincere in their love and opened their homes to Him.
They did not leave Him when the others left. There were many houses which
the Lord visited as a preacher or a teacher, such as the house which they opened
from the ceiling (Mark 2:3), or hosted Him like Simon the Pharisee (Luke 7:36),
or invited Him as a guest like at the Wedding of Cana of Galilee (John 2), or
accepting the sinners like when He entered the house of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:7)
and other tax collectors.
Here we want to just focus on the houses which the Lord visited and who
opened their doors for Him during Holy Week only, while the Jews conspired to
kill Him, especially the houses in which He lodged in Bethany.
So is your house also one of the houses which were opened to Jesus? Is your
house ready to receive Jesus during these days? The Lord is ready to come into
your house. But it is important that you should be ready to receive Him and not
be too busy for Him. Your house needs to be holy so as to be fit for the Lord to
come in. We hope that you welcome God into your heart and mind during these
days.
The Lord was in the House of Bethany, and then, on Monday morning, on
His way to the Temple, he passed the Fig Tree. So He approached it. Allow me
here to contemplate together with you on the story of the Fig Tree.

THE FIG TREE

HUNGRY ON THE ROAD

On His way back from Bethany to Jerusalem, the Bible says, “Now in the
morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.” (Matthew 21:18). I was
surprised when I read this verse as a man can be hungry at night if he has been
fasting all day, but what does it mean that Jesus was hungry ‘in the morning’?
There is only one explanation; that He had spent the whole of the previous day
in fasting and perhaps even many days before and He had not eaten in the
evening. So He became hungry, and we understand from the following:
When He went to Mary and Martha, He did not eat there. Perhaps He was
alone, and had spent the whole night in meditation. Perhaps He stayed on the
mountain for some time (Luke 21:37), or perhaps He had spent some time
guiding His disciples and followers how to live after His crucifixion. Could it be
that Martha had prepared food for Christ, but He did not desire food? There
were many issues occupying Him.
When a person is sad, he cannot eat. When one’s mind is preoccupied it is
difficult to put these things aside to eat. Food becomes more of a disruption.
There is no doubt that, during these days, our Lord was preoccupied with what
was to come; how He would save the world from the punishment of sin and save
even those who conspired against Him, and those who would, in just a few days,
shout out ‘crucify Him, crucify Him.’ So, in the morning, when He was
returning to the city, He was hungry.
 Or perhaps, when He was in Bethany, He was nourished by the love of the
faithful hearts around Him. And therefore, when He left Bethany and
approached the treacherous Jerusalem which conspired against Him, He was
hungry. We are surprised by the words ‘was hungry’ and we say: If He did not
clear Himself and become like us, He would not become hungry! And would
not be thirsty on the cross!

THE FIG TREE

When He was hungry He saw that the fig tree had leaves, so He came toward
it hoping to find fruit. However, He did not find any, just leaves; beautiful from
the outside but nothing on the inside. The fig tree reminds us of the sin of our
father Adam who tried to cover his nakedness with the fig leaves.
Perhaps Jesus came to give him salvation before the time he committed his
sin, that is, the time of the appearance of the fig leaves. He came to the fig tree,
thinking perhaps it would change its old behaviour and would no longer
remember sin, but He found it in the same state.
The fig leaves symbolise covering the sin without treating it. Adam covered
his nakedness with fig leaves. On the outside this appeared to be covered. On
the inside, however, he lost his purity and simplicity. So Adam took care of his
external appearance, without curing the inside. From that, the fig leaves became
a cover for the nakedness of Adam and Eve, symbolising hypocrisy, caring for
the external appearance and the covering of sin without treatment.
The same hypocrisy was found in the fig tree – leaves without fruit.
Beautiful appearance from the outside, but empty from within. Leaves do not
cover fruit, but rather cover nakedness just as in the story of Adam and Eve.
And when the Lord found in it leaves not fruits, He cursed it (Matthew 21:19).
Immediately the fig tree withered away.
By cursing the fig tree, He cursed external appearance and hypocrisy. This is
exactly what the Lord found during these days, external appearances and
hypocrisy, white washed tombs from the outside. And immediately the fig tree
withered away, the cup which they cleaned from the outside. They care only
about frequent washing of the hands while their hands are stained with blood.
The leaves give an illusion of fruit, but there is no fruit at all.
The Lord’s rebuking of the fig tree symbolises the hypocrisy of the Scribes
and Pharisees. The Scribes and the Pharisees were just like the fig tree - with
leaves, but without fruit. So he rebuked them by cursing the fig tree. After that
He said, “Woe to you, scribers and Pharisees, hypocrites!” (Matthew 23:13).
Christ gave many examples showing their hypocrisy and love of external
appearances.
The Lord saw in the fig tree the picture of hypocrisy during his time. He saw
the fig tree in the priests, whom God placed among the people to lead them in
the law and in goodness, but instead they led Judas into treason, and paid many
to give false witness, and they persuaded the guard at the tombstone to take a
bribe, and they misguided many and trapped them into their conspiracy. Christ
likened them to the wicked vinedresser in the parable of the Wicked
Vinedressers in Matthew 21:33-43. He also saw in the fig tree the picture of the
Temple, which was supposed to be used for worship but instead they made it a
den of thieves (Matthew 21:13).
During this week Christ placed all the sins of the world before Him. Wasn’t
it the plan that during this week He would carry it all? So He contemplated on
all that was to come and His soul was filled with bitterness as He saw before
Him the hypocrisy even between the teachers and the priests. Just as in Isaiah 5,
He did not find good fruits in the vineyard, but rather bad fruits and not only in
the vineyard, but also in the temple and in the blind leaders. Therefore in the
end He was hungry as He did not find anything to eat. What can we say about
all this hypocrisy and corruption which He had seen? So He cursed and
condemned it, but:
He will carry it all on His cross to forgive the repentant. These whitewashed
tombstones from the outside, for everyone who believes and repents the Lord
Jesus carried all inside Him, from fetid bones, and He paid His Divine justice on
the Cross. You too my brothers and sisters, look at yourself and examine it in
that week. Are you also a tree that has leaves, but no fruit? Do you have an
active service and a well known name in the Church and yet your heart is
without the fruits of the Holy Spirit, free from the love of God and the
knowledge of Him?
Are you covering your sins with the leaves of the fig tree so that they are not
visible? These leaves of the fig tree could be your excuses and your justifications
to cover yourself. Or they could be causes taking you away from the truth which
you know inside yourself is lack of sincerity. Or you cover one sin with another
sin, or place your sins upon someone else for them to carry the responsibility.
Ask yourself, is your life leaves or fruits? what are the fruits in my life?
What are the fruits of the Spirit in me? As St. Paul said, “But the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23). And what are my fruits in the
service and in building the Kingdom of God? And your work which is without
fruits? What are the causes of being without fruits? Are the motives wrong?
Are the means wrong? Are you doing it with laziness and complacency?

TREASON AND THE KISS OF JUDAS

 F rom Tuesday night greeting one another with a kiss is not permitted, in
protest of Judas’ kiss of betrayal to the Lord. This continues for the
remainder of Holy Week until the Easter eve. During the Covenant Thursday
liturgy, the deacon does not say, “Kiss one another with a holy kiss,” and
likewise during the morning of the Joyous Saturday liturgy. All this is to instil
in the believers how wrong were the actions of Judas the traitor towards his
teacher. We also remember this act of treason every Wednesday throughout the
whole year. We fast in order to remember this betrayal.
The Lord’s disciple participated in this awful conspiracy. During this Holy
Week, the believers sing a hymn which reproaches Judas and his actions. This
painful hymn leaves deep and painful sentiments on the Church. Judas,
however, was not the only person who betrayed Jesus during these days as there
were many who betrayed Him. Many who treated Him well then later shouted,
“Crucify Him, crucify Him. So why do we focus entirely on Judas? Because
Judas’ betrayal was of the worst degree.
The betrayal of Judas was a result of his deceptive heart. He came together
with the soldiers, and when they had come closer to Him he gave Jesus a kiss.
This kiss was a sign between him and them. St. Mark said, “Now His betrayer
had given them a signal, saying, ‘Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him and
lead Him away safely.’” (Mark 14:44) and “Immediately he went up to Jesus and
said, ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ and kissed Him.” (Matthew 26:49). Truly we
remember Judas with the fig tree which the Lord cursed.
Green leaves from the outside, but from within it is naked and without fruit.
On the outside Judas kissed Jesus, but from within he betrayed Him and sold
Him with money. On the outside he greeted Him, but in reality he betrayed Him
to His enemies. He said to Him, “Peace my Master”, but there was no peace in
his heart and no respect or loyalty to his Master. His words ‘peace’ and ‘Master’
did not reproach Him, but his kiss reproached Him.
And the gentleness of Jesus did not stop him. Jesus knew what Judas
intended to do and as the time drew nearer and He was in the garden, He said to
His disciples, “Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.” (Matthew
26:46). And even with that, he was not ashamed in front of the soldiers and the
guards. He did not stop him from approaching and kissing Him and He did not
use the word traitor to describe him, but rather said to him, “Friend, why have
you come?” (Matthew 26:50). And He rebuked him gently and said, “Judas, are
you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:48).
It looked very bad when Judas betrayed Jesus because Jesus had been very
good to him before. If the Lord offended him in any way in the past this would
have been considered revenge and not betrayal. But his great Teacher was good
to him, and He knew in advance his evil thoughts. It was enough that He chose
him as one of His 12 disciples knowing his nature, “Jesus answered them, ‘Did I
not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?’ He spoke of Judas
Iscariot; the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the
twelve.” (John 6:70-71).
Just as He did with the rest of the disciples, He sent him to preach, “And
when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over
unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of
disease.” (Matthew 10:1).
Did it suffice that He chose him to be a disciple and also leave the money
box with him? So he was not just an ordinary disciple, but was given a greater
responsibility than the rest of the 12. He was charged with giving to the poor
from the box, and spent from it on the needs of the disciples, such as the needs
for the Feast, “For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus
had said to him, ‘Buy those things we need for the feast,’ or that he should give
something to the poor.” (John 13:29). Even though Judas did not care for the
poor, because he was a thief, and he was taking money from the box, “This he
said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the
money box; and he used to take what was put in it.” (John 12:6).
The Lord did not reveal his true character and He did not take the money box
from him. The box, however, stayed with him until he died. And the Lord did
not punish him according to his work, although the Lord knew of his betrayal,
but He did not expel him as His disciple, and did not remove him from the
twelve.
His position, nevertheless, remained as one of those closest to Him. As one
of the twelve, he was with Jesus day and night, followed Him everywhere, and
before everyone he was one of His own, lived with Him, ate and drank with
Him. This was the general view, and on the private side he was close to Him.
He sat very close to Him at the table, he could even dip into the same dish, “He
answered and said, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray
Me.” (Matthew 26:23).
It is a sign of love and intimacy to dip into the same dish. The Lord allowed
him to do this. What special treatment? What a sign of love. Perhaps he should
have been ashamed of this love and been deterred from following out his plan.
He, however, did not benefit from this love, nor from eating with Jesus. This
fulfils the prophecy, “Who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.”
(Psalm 41:9).
It was enough that the Lord was His teacher. So Judas sold his teacher, and
his spiritual father and guide and his friends who lived with him for three years,
listening to the Lord’s teachings and witnessing His miracles. Perhaps he even
saw the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead five days before he betrayed
Him and the faith of many because of it (John 11). Perhaps he saw the miracle
of opening the eyes of the man born blind (John 9). All that did not affect him,
and did not stop him from carrying out his betrayal.
He sought to sell His Master and this made his betrayal even worse. The
Jewish leaders did not approach him and tempt him or bribe him. It never
entered their minds that one of the Lord’s 12 would deliver Him! It was Judas
who went to them, and the Bible says about Judas, “Then Satan entered Judas,
surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way
and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to
them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he promised and
sought opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.”
(Luke 22:3-6). And “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the
chief priests and said, ‘What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?’
And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver. So from that time he sought
opportunity to betray Him.” (Matthew 26:14-16).
Therefore he sold his Master, in his betrayal, with a small sum. Thirty pieces
of silver is the price of a slave! Perhaps the reason for the small amount is that
he was the one who wanted to sell and he asked for the amount.
If millions were offered him, one could say that he was tempted by the
money, but here there is no temptation, it was only thirty pieces of silver. This
indicates how cheap Christ was in his heart and mind. Here we can mention the
impressive action of Mary the sister of Lazarus when she poured the expensive
perfume of spikenard oil on Christ. Its price was about 300 denari, but she did
not care (John 12:3-5). She did not have money in her heart, but that disciple
sold Him for thirty pieces of silver!
And he continued in his plan of betrayal for two days and his conscience did
not rebuke him. If it had happened suddenly, perhaps we could say that he did
not have a chance to review himself. But he continued through Wednesday to
Friday, without thinking to go back on his plan, but rather he, “Sought
opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude,” (Luke 22:6),
in spite of many warnings from Jesus.
Out of love Jesus tried to warn Judas. The Lord did not leave him in this
temptation alone, but he gave him many warnings to alert his heart:

1 After Christ washed the feet of the disciples He said to them, “’You are
clean, but not all of you.’ For He knew who would betray Him; therefore
He said, ‘You are not all clean.’” (John 13:10-11).

2 During the Passover He said to them, “The Son of Man indeed goes just
as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is
betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”
(Matthew 26:24). And as they ate, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and
gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” This was a
frightening warning from Christ who wanted Judas to turn back from his plan of
betrayal. But he did not pay any attention and was not frightened

3 The Lord narrowed the circle by saying, “Now as they were eating, He
said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.’ And they were
exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, ‘Lord, is it I?’ He
answered and said, ‘He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray
Me.’” And Judas’ heart was still not moved.

4 The Lord said, “’It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have
dipped it.’ And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the
son of Simon.” (John 13:26). Christ did this in love that he might return. The
Lord fed him with His own hand, He put the bread in his mouth but Judas did
not benefit.

5 At last Judas said, “Rabbi, is it I?” and the Lord said to him, “You have
said it.” (Matthew 26:25). The matter became exposed and Judas had to
work for his eternity and it would have been better for that man to never have
been born. But Judas did not repent, instead the devil entered him.
Truly it is a tragedy that he allowed himself to reach this end, to deliver
himself to the devil. The Bible says, “Now after the piece of bread, Satan
entered him. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly.’” (John 13:27).
He then made the decision to deliver the Lord, in spite of all the warnings.

6 So the Lord admonished him, “What you do, do quickly.” (John 13:27). It
was his chance to throw himself at Jesus’ feet and say “Forgive me, I will
not go ahead with my plan.” But he did not repent and the Bible says, “Having
received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.”
(John 13:30). He went at night, to carry out what was organised in the dark.
And he knew that Jesus was aware of his plans and He told him.
By his exit he forever separated himself from the Lord and the disciples. The
Lord did not remove him from His group of disciples, but Judas separated
himself by his own hands. He chose a way different than the way the others
went, and he joined the enemies of the Lord and became the traitor that all
generations talked about.
So the devil did not only enter him after he took the bread, he entered him
well before this when he approached the Jewish leaders and agreed with them to
deliver the Lord. The Bible says, “Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot,
who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way and conferred with
the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them.” (Luke 22:3-4).
The devil entered one of the twelve twice! What a tragedy. This is a warning
that all should be careful that the devil works in everyone, even the twelve. The
Lord said to His disciples, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that
he may sift you as wheat.” (Luke 22:31). Yes, he sifted them and took from them
mud, which is Judas and left the pure wheat for the whole world to feed on their
faith and their preaching.
The Lord, however, presented to Judas a final loving touch. In reproach and
compassion, He said to him when he was delivering Him “Friend, why
7 have you come?” (Matthew 26:50). Is it with a kiss you deliver the Son
of man?! Befitting from you as a friend to deliver Me? And deliver Me with a
kiss?! This was the last sentence he heard from the mouth of Jesus and the last
interaction he had with Him, forever. And the Good Teacher was arrested. He
was tried, convicted and pushed to the Cross.
At last Judas’ conscience was awakened, after Jesus was condemned! As if
he was unconscious and woke up. And the words of Jesus echoed in his ears and
he remembered the holy atmosphere in which he lived for so long, close to the
Lord and he remembered the last words of Christ to him, “with a kiss you deliver
the Son of Man?” and he could not bear it. The Bible says, “Then Judas, His
betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back
the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, ‘I have sinned by
betraying innocent blood.’ And they said, ‘What is that to us? You see to it!’”
(Matthew 27:3-4).
He regretted and said I was wrong. But it was too late! The betrayal was
complete and the matter ended, whether he has remorseful or not. His remorse
did not prevent him from seeing before him the result of his actions; Jesus before
him on the Cross, Jesus his teacher, his guide, his spiritual Father, his friend and
his Master, disgraced in front of him, flogged and crucified, all because of his
betrayal.
The remorse crushed him, perhaps it echoed in his ears the sentence of Cain,
“And Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear!’”
(Genesis 4:13). The devil did not leave him for his remorse, but came to
complete his work with him.
Perhaps the remorse would lead him to repent, and repentance leads to
forgiveness, and perhaps inflicted by the words of Christ on the Cross, “Father
forgive them for they know not what they do,” (Luke 23:34), although he knew
what he was doing, and the Lord warned him of this dangerous plan.
Therefore the devil filled him with despair and hopelessness and he perished.
His tragedy ended with this sentence, “Then he threw down the pieces of silver
in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.” (Matthew 27:5). And
the Lord’s words were clear, “It was better for that man if he has not been
born.” And that was the end of the betrayal, Judas lost everything. He lost
Jesus, the discipleship, thirty silver pieces and the Jewish leaders who said to
him, “What is that to us? You see to it!” (Matthew 27:4). He lost earth and
heaven, his eternity and his reputation and became a stain in the history of
mankind.
What did he benefit from his betrayal? Nothing. The Lord did not escape
from Judas’ betrayal and He knew it. But He received him in the Garden of
Gethsemane. He did not change it, but He was waiting for him, and bore his
betrayal in silence, and changed it to be the salvation of the human race.
The Lord changed the evil into good. Not only the betrayal of Judas, but the
betrayal of the people who said, “Crucify Him, crucify Him.” Throughout
history Judas was not just a person, but he became a symbol of whoever follows
his example and his name represented shame on anyone who did what he did.
The Lord did not punish him on earth, but He left him to himself. And Judas
could not bear himself. He found himself despicable in his own eyes and felt he
did not deserve to live.
What is harsher than a person who despises himself? Perhaps he can bear the
scorn of others, but who can bear to despise himself? As it was for Judas; he
could not bear himself, and went and hanged himself. And he died in his sin as a
killer of himself. He lost hope and lost faith in life after death. But the Lord
trampled death, and Judas’ betrayal did not harm Him.
How was Christ so cheap in the eyes of the one who sold him? There are
those who sold Jesus for less than thirty silver pieces. Those who shouted,
“Crucify Him, crucify Him.” They sold Him for no price. They did not take
anything in return for their sale. And the Jewish nation who sold Him to the
Romans, what did they take in return? Nothing! But they became dispersed.
They were dispersed for seventy years during the reign of Titus the Roman
soldier after the Crucifixion of Jesus by less than 40 years. And the Temple and
the city of Jerusalem were destroyed. If someone sells their enemy, perhaps they
have an excuse, that this enemy abused them. But who sells his friend or his
teacher, what is his excuse?
It is betrayal! At this point some may ask, what is the difference between
Peter and Judas? Peter the disciple denied Jesus out of fear and weakness, but
within his heart he loved Him, “He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of
Jonah, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third
time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You
know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed My sheep.’” (John 21:17).
Judas, however, did not have that love inside him and externally there were no
dangerous threats against him which would have caused him fear. But he is the
one who led himself to deliver his Teacher by his betrayal, “and said, ‘What are
you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?’ And they counted out to him
thirty pieces of silver.” (Matthew 26:15). And also the Jews betrayed Jesus, and
they asked for Barabbas to be freed instead of Him.
In spite of that He prayed for them on the Cross and said, “My Father forgive
them.” They had been led by their evil leaders and did not know what they were
doing. So He forgave those who believed and repented.
How astonishing is the heart of Jesus! He loves without return, when we
look at the Lord Jesus in His love and bearing with the suffering, and we sing to
Him our renowned hymn, “To You is the Power and the Glory and the Blessing
and the Honour, forever. Amen.”
We are definitely not selling You, and if they put the treasures of the whole
world at our feet, we will always remember that You bought us with Your
precious blood. Whoever sells You for any worldly desire will lose their Godly
image, and go down to the level of Judas, whom, when his eyes were opened, he
could no longer see His image.
JOB’S WEDNESDAY
 Our Church gave Holy Wednesday of Pascha Week the name ‘Job
Wednesday’. This may be due to two reasons:

1 On Holy Wednesday the Church reads the entire Book of Job. This book
is a story of agony.

2 Throughout the Book of Job we see numerous parallels between the

suffering of the Righteous Job and Christ. There are so many, but we can
summarise them into the following:

• Job faced tremendous suffering just as Christ did.

• God said about Job, “That there is none like him on the earth, a blameless
and upright man.” (Job 1:8, 2:3). Here he resembles our Lord Jesus
Christ.

• The trials which have happened in Job’s life came from Satan’s envy
towards him (Job 1:9, 2:4). Likewise, Christ’s sufferings came about
when Satan entered the heart of Judas (Luke 22:3) and all of His enemies.

• Job’s three friends hurt him as did Christ’s friends hurt Him.
• Job’s tribulations ended in a positive way when God restored all that he
once had and more (Job 42:10). Our Lord Jesus’ death was followed by
His glorious resurrection, which granted salvation to the whole world.
 We too, when we remember the sufferings of Christ and the sufferings of the
Righteous Job, are consoled in all our pain and suffering and hence we are able
to comfort others.

COVENANT THURSDAY
 THE BLESSING OF THE WATER PRAYERS (LAKAN)

O ur Lord Jesus Christ washed His disciples’ feet on Covenant Thursday.

He washed their feet before the Holy Communion, before He offered to
them the Holy Sacrament. He said to them, after washing their feet, now you are
purified. Perhaps here our Lord wants to give us a lesson on purity before
Communion. We should be purified before going to the Holy Sacrament. Our
Lord also wanted to teach us some spiritual teachings from this action.
He wants to teach us that purity is a gift from Him and that He is the only
one who can give us this gift. By washing us we become pure. We notice here
that He washes the disciples’ feet without them asking. In the same way He
offered us redemption without us asking.
Our Lord wants to teach us humility. How humble He is, our great leader
who bows down to wash the feet of His disciples. And how humble the Lord is
to wash His own creation. In order to explain this lesson to His disciples Christ
said to them, after washing their feet: “Do you know what I have done to you?
You call me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. If I then, your
Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s
feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.
(John 13:12-15).
 By washing His disciples’ feet, Christ wants to give us a lesson on love.
Because of His great love to His disciples, Christ granted them purity, so He will
grant them the same degree in love, His body and His blood. So it has been said
of Him before washing His disciples feet, “Having loved His own who were in
the world, He loved them to the end.” (John 13:1).
We meditate on the water and take out of it so many lessons for our benefit.
Let us contemplate on the water which we will use to wash the feet after the
Lakan rites. What is water in the Holy Bible? And what does it represent for us?
Water in the Holy Bible has at least three meanings or three symbols. We
will have some meditation on it as we continue our discussions.

WATER SYMBOLISES PURITY AND CLEANLINESS

The Bible readings of the Lakan prayers, tells of the washing of the feet of
the disciples. Here we clearly see the work of cleanliness. There are many more
examples in the Holy Bible.
In between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar in the Old Testament was
a basin for washing which contained water. “For Aaron and his sons shall wash
their hands and their feet in water from it. When they go into the tabernacle of
meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made
by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die. And it shall be a
statute forever to them - to him and his descendants throughout their
generations” (Exodus 30:19-21).
It was important to wash and be purified first before approaching the Altar
and the sacrifice. This washing was of equal importance to the washing in the
Jordan, the washing in the pool of Siloam and the washing in the pool of
Bethesda.
Here we stop to meditate on the story of the purification of Naaman the
Syrian. This man had leprosy. In the Old Testament leprosy symbolised sin and
required purification. So how did he become clean and pure from his leprosy?
Elisha ordered him to be washed in the Jordan River in order for his flesh to be
restored and for him to be healed (2 Kings 5:10). The Jordan River reminds us of
John the Baptist. It was here that he used to baptise the Jewish people who came
to be washed, to receive forgiveness of their sins and be cleaned spiritually.
We can see from this story that the water of purification also symbolises
baptism. Another story offered to us from the Bible is the one of the healing of
the man from Bethesda. Once again this healing is linked to water. The most
beautiful part of this story is the angel who went down at a certain time once a
year into the pool and stirred up the water (John 5:4). The person healed was the
one to step into the pool first after the water was stirred. The water was given
power and healed effectively.
This reminds us of when the priest holds the cross in his hand and stirs the
baptismal water. Or the water in the Lakan, when the priest does the sign of the
cross on it and it becomes holy water for healing. Also there is the pool of
Siloam which the Lord sent the man born blind to wash in and he returned with
his sight restored. (John 9:7).
Tears can also be linked to water. Tears are water which cleans the soul and
heals the spirit as we see in the pool of Siloam and the pool of Bethesda. In the
story of the sinful woman who brought an expensive alabaster flask of fragrant
oil to the house of the Pharisee, we see her tears as she washes the Lords feet,
and wiped them with the hair of her head, and she kissed His feet and anointed
them with the fragrant oil (Luke 7:38).
Which is greater, the perfume or the tears of this repentant woman? Believe
me it was definitely the tears. The tears of this woman were the greatest and
most precious and the Lord Himself blessed her. So water relates to purity; even
the tears from the eyes. As in Psalm 51, “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be
clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”
In Christianity, washing can be one of two ways; either baptism or
repentance. In Ezekiel 16 the Lord said, “When I passed by you and saw you
struggling in your own blood. Then I washed you in water; yes, I thoroughly
washed off your blood, and I anointed you with oil”. The water here resembles
the water of baptism which cleanses the person from all his old sins, the oil
resembles the Holy Myron oil which gives us the Holy Spirit, but it comes after
the water.
The water still represents cleanliness. Even when the priest starts the liturgy,
he washes his hands three times and says, “I will wash my hands in innocence;
so I will go about Your altar, O Lord.” (Psalm 26:6). He doesn’t say: “I wash my
hands with water,” but he says: “I wash my hands in innocence”. The washing
of the hands symbolises purity, and innocence as is also the white vestments the
priest wears during the service. In the Old Testament, Aaron and his sons wash
with water before offering the sacrifices on the altar.
The water symbolises purity. The gentiles also viewed water as a symbol of
purity and innocence. When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all and that a
tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude,
saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.” (Matthew 27:24). We do
not say here that Pilate was innocent, but rather we highlight that washing with
water represented innocence.
We can meditate here on the water of the flood. We don’t deny that the flood
waters were due to God’s punishment. But do we stop here? These flood waters
were to clean the earth from sins and from the sinful people and to cleanse the
earth from corruption and impurity. So the Lord washes the earth from its sins
and renews it so that it becomes alive again in purity.
The washing of the disciples’ feet by the Lord also symbolises purity. This
was important in the feast of Passover and the Leaven Feast. We notice in the
Church readings of Covenant Thursday that this blessed hour and the hour
before it, that washing of the feet happened on the first day of the Passover Feast
and the Leaven Feast. The leaven represents the purity and the cleanliness which
befits the Passover communion, and the leaven of the yeast represents evil. The
Lord washes the feet of His disciples on this holy occasion in which He linked
the Feast of the Passover and sacrificing Himself on our behalf.
St. Paul the Apostle highlighted all these things by saying, “For indeed
Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not
with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the
unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Corinthians 5:7-8). They used to eat
the lamb of the Passover with the leaven bread (Exodus 12:8) which symbolises
purity. Truly the lamb of the Passover saved them from death, and the angel of
death passed over the homes which had blood on the doorposts. In order to enjoy
this salvation, they were not permitted to have yeast in their homes for 7 days.
“Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove
leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day
until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel.” (Exodus 12:19).
The Lord Jesus Christ washed the disciples’ feet while the Passover symbolises
the purity which has been indicated by the leaven bread.
Washing with water represents Baptism. The Holy Bible called it washing or
the second Birth (John 3:6). In Baptism, there is a process of cleansing from all
your old sins by the water and spirit. We will return to this topic later on. It will
be enough now to talk in this occasion of Lakan on the water and its work in the
cleaning process as we approach this great Sacrament which is the Holy
Communion of the body and blood of our Lord.
WATER SYMBOLISES THE HOLY SPIRIT
This is seen in the Lord’s words in the Holy Bible: “‘He who believes in Me,
as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’. But
this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would
receive.” (John 7:38). Because the Spirit of God symbolises water, so the
disciples of the Lord full of the spirit were identified with the rivers and were
moved by the Holy Spirit.
It is said about the Holy Church in Psalm 24, “For He has founded it upon
the seas, and established it upon the waters”. It was good what is written about
the creation that it parted and became four riverheads that watered the Eden
(Genesis 2:1-14). It could be that these 4 rivers symbolise the 4 Gospels which
watered all the believers which was written by the Holy Spirit “who spoke in the
prophets”.
As water symbolises the Spirit, the Lord Himself is identified by the water.
He said: “They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn
themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.” (Jeremiah 2:13).
Then the person who lives a life filled with the Holy Spirit is like a tree
planted by the rivers of water; living with this water, growing with it and dying
without it. Water is linked to life and so the Bible is the fountain of the living
water.

THE LINK BETWEEN WATER AND LIFE

Even physical life is linked with water whether it be the life of a person, a
plant or an animal. It was said in the creation, “Let the waters abound with an
abundance of living creatures.” (Genesis 1:20-21).
The spiritual life is also linked with water. It starts with the birth from God,
the birth which is from above, from water and the Holy Spirit (John 3: 3, 5), and
why the water? Because the Holy Spirit works through the water, and with it. It
will be purified and be alive, giving purity, cleanliness and life.
The person is washed with the baptismal water and becomes clean and pure.
The old man has died and a new person is alive as the image of God. He has
received life and has been saved from death. This is Baptism and it has so many
symbols.
 St. Paul the Apostle said: “Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be
unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all
were baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” (1 Corinthians 10:1, 2).
The cloud was water and both were to the Baptism.
It is the water that our fathers entered as slaves, under Pharaoh’s bondage
and exited as free people under the guidance of God and Moses. These people
who flee from slavery, the water and the death followed them, but they went out
with a new life conquering death. It was a great miracle that these people passed
through the waters. The cloud was always covering them throughout their time
in the wilderness as strangers just as we are strangers in the modern world.
The Lord Jesus Christ invites us to His water and says, “If anyone thirsts, let
him come to Me and drink.” (John 7:37). The Lord also invited the Samaritan
woman to take from His living water and said, “But whoever drinks of the water
that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will
become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John
4:14).
David the prophet called Him in the Psalm of the Shepherd “The restful
water.” The shepherd said on the Lord, “He leads me beside the still waters”,
which means “to the living water”, the water of the Holy Spirit. What is the
outcome? It says, “He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of
righteousness”. This is truly the work of the Holy Spirit in humans which leads
us to repentance and a spiritual life and gives joy, the Joy of salvation, or as
David says, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation” (Psalm 51).
Also, “There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God.”
(Psalm 46). It is the spiritual joy, one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians
5:22). This water, which makes glad the city of God, reminds us of another truth
about water; we remember it when we approach the Holy Communion in the
Holy Liturgy, after washing our feet with water. It reflects 2 words:

THE WATER AND THE BLOOD

When the soldier pierced the side of Jesus with a spear, and immediately
blood and water came out (John 19: 34). St John the Beloved witnesses to this
in his first Epistle (1 John 5:6), “This is He who came by water and blood, Jesus
Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood.” and he also said, “And there
are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and
these three agree as one.” (1 John 5:8).
How astonishing this verse is in our salvation? What is this mystery and
what does it mean? This means that the salvation which the Lord offered with
His blood on the Cross, you received with water and spirit in Baptism. These
three: the Spirit, the water and the blood witness for your salvation. Without
blood, there is no life, because “Without shedding of blood there is no remission
and no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:22). How can you receive this salvation offered
to you with blood? The Lord Jesus Christ says, “He who believes and is baptized
will be saved.” (Mark 16:16). In Baptism you will be born of water and the
Spirit (John 3:5) and receive the remission of sins (Acts 2:38).
The water and the Blood, are in the Eucharist. The Priest, in the Holy
Liturgy, mixes the wine with the water and says in the prayers of the Holy
Liturgy “Likewise after supper, He took the Chalice, mixed it of wine and
water...” With this blood that we drink, mixed with water, we receive life. We
can see from both the blood and the water the relationship with life.
Before I finish, I would like to say a word on the Lakan prayers and the
washing of feet. Jesus Christ washed the feet of the disciples. Why did He
specifically wash the feet? In addition to what we said earlier on the humility of
washing feet, I want to meditate on St Augustine’s words about the bride in the
Book of Song of Songs 5:3. “I have taken off my robe; how can I put it on
again? I have washed my feet; how can I defile them?”
St. Augustine said, the person is washed by Baptism, purified and exalted
over worldly things. As he still lives on the earth, however, he is still bound to
materialistic things and his feet become dirty from the soil.
Therefore, the bride in Song of Songs; when the Lord called her to serve
Him, she was freed from the conflict which affects her purity, which she
received from Baptism. So she took off her robe, the old person, not wanting to
return to its problems after having washed her feet, which were defiled earlier in
the soil. How can she return back to it?
The Lord Jesus calms the soul when it has been troubled due to problems.
He solves our problems and attracts us to Him. So the Lord says to us, “Even if
your feet defile you, I will come back and wash them just as I washed the feet of
the disciples and told them, ‘Now you are pure.’”
Something else about washing the feet - washing of the feet replaces
washing of the whole body. When St Peter the disciple asked for his whole body
to be washed, the Lord said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his
feet, but is completely clean.” (John 13:10).
When the priest washes his hands before the Liturgy he says, “I wash my
hands to be clean and I go around Your altar Lord.” There is no need to wash
the whole body, but only one part on behalf of the rest of the body. Just as when
one part of our body sins, it is considered that the whole body received that sin.
The washing of the feet in the Lakan of Covenant Thursday, symbolises
purity which is a precursor of the Holy Communion. So make the Lakan prayers
of importance to all of you. I was once contemplating the verse said by the
Prophet Samuel, when he went to Bethlehem and called on the sacrifice by
saying: “Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” (1 Samuel
16:5). It is not proper for someone to come to the offertory without having
repented. Therefore, sanctify yourselves first, be purified by repentance and
then come and receive the Holy Communion.
The Church first washes the feet of the congregation and says, “Now you
have all been purified and cleansed.” And this is then followed by Holy
Communion. This does not mean that you only come to Church on Covenant
Thursday for the washing of feet, without repentance. If so you will hear the
frightening words, “And now you are clean, but not all of you.” (John 13: 10).
“Not all of you”? No Lord, we need all to be clean and pure. Wash us with
hyssop and we will be clean. Wash us so we will be white like snow. Yes, this is
the aim of Lakan, to be clean and pure before Holy Communion.
The water which resembles cleanliness is found in the Church during every
liturgy and not just in the Lakan liturgy. At the conclusion of the liturgy the
priest sprinkles the holy water on the congregation before giving them the final
blessing. It reminds us of when the Lord said in Ezekiel, “Then I will sprinkle
clean water on you, and you shall be clean.” (Ezekiel 36:25).

REPENTANCE AND HOLY COMMUNION

We thank God that when we were outside the city, carrying the shame of sin,
the Lord opened the door of the holy of holies to us. He opens to us His holy
altar and gives us His Holy Body and Holy Blood. It is a great blessing that the
Lord remembered us during His week of suffering and cared for us after giving
us the essential blessing of washing our feet.
Just as in the celebration of the old Passover, with all its symbols, He offered
to us the Passover of the New Covenant. St. Paul said about the Passover, “For
indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.” (1Corinthians 5:7). And so
the two Passovers united on one day, symbolically. And who is this symbol
for? The Lord Jesus Christ gave this holy mystery to His disciples and said:
“Do this in remembrance of Me.” (Luke 22:15) and we do the same now
according to His holy commandments.
The Lord celebrates the Feast with His disciples in His deep sufferings. He
celebrates the Feast with them and says, “With fervent desire I have desired to
eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” (Luke 22:15). He sings praises with
them that night, before they went to the Mount of Olives, “When they had sung a
hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” (Mark 14:26, Matthew 26:30).
Truly, He celebrated with them and rejoiced, “Knowing all things that would
come upon Him.” (John 18:4).
Truly how great is His heart, who rejoices with the joyful hearts. In the joy
of the Passover, He talked to them about His Body which He sacrifices for them,
and His blood which is shed for them ( Luke 22:19,20). Consequently, He gave
His Disciples a new feast and a new covenant. He gave them an idea that He
would sacrifice His Body and shed His Blood for their sake and the sake of
others, for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24) and He said, “This
is My body for the New Covenant.”
He gave them warnings so that they would be prepared when they saw His
blood shed in front of them. He told them before it happened so that, “You may
believe that I am He.” (John 13: 19). It is unusual that someone speaks of
shedding their blood with a calm spirit. He talked objectively about shedding His
blood in the midst of joy and praising, during the celebration of the Passover
Feast. He is the loving and gentle Christ, who thinks of the salvation of all
humanity and before thinking about Himself or His sufferings.
We observe here that He said My blood which is shed and not which will be
shed. Likewise He said My body which is sacrificed and not which will be
sacrificed. This is because His blood was shed on Friday and His body was
sacrificed on Friday, the day which gave salvation.
On Thursday, He spoke of the salvation which would be on Friday. The
Passover Feast which was celebrated on Thursday is the symbol of the true
Passover of the New Covenant, which was sacrificed on Friday for our sake.
The Lord wants to say, “This Passover which you eat today symbolises My body
which will be sacrificed for your sake tomorrow and My blood which is shed for
your sake tomorrow also.
 These are the offerings that I give and eating the bread and drinking the wine
you do this in remembrance of Me. The words, “Do this in remembrance of Me”
indicate continuity of this Holy Sacrament until the end of age, “For as often as
you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He
comes.” (1 Corinthians 11:26). And the words “till He comes” indicates that
practising this great mystery will continue until the second coming to the end of
age.
He said this is My blood which was shed for many for the remission of many
sins. The meaning of many is, of who believes in Him, in His great redemption,
in the effectiveness of His blood for the remission of many sins, and also their
faith in His holy mysteries for practicing it. It requires from them to repent
because the Lord Himself said, “Unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”
(Luke 13:5).
Repentance is then required for the believers to have the Holy Communion.
This is an essential condition in order to deserve the Holy Communion. St. Paul
explained it as, “Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord
in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. For he
who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself,
not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among
you, and many sleep.” (1 Corinthians 11: 27-30).
Then, this is very dangerous and very serious. Therefore, whoever receives
the Holy Communion in an unworthy manner, will be guilty of the body and
blood of the Lord, not discerning the Lord’s body. This can even extend to a
penalty in the body such as sickness or death as the Apostle said: “Let a man
examine himself before the Communion. For if we would judge ourselves, we
would not be judged.” (1 Corinthians 11:28,31).
Then what does the word ‘Worthy’ mean? If we are to talk of being worthy
no one would deserve it. The Great St. Roweiss, the Miracle Performer, was in
awe when he approached the Holy Communion . He said, “Whoever approaches
the Holy Communion must have purity and cleanliness inside them just as St.
Mary who carried Jesus inside her womb!”
For this reason, the Priest says inaudibly in the Preparation Prayer of the
Liturgy, “Lord who knows everyone’s heart, the Holy One who rests in His
saints, who alone is sinless and is able to forgive sin. You O Lord know that I
am not worthy, nor prepared, nor deserving of this holy ministry which is Yours,
and I dare not approach and open my mouth before Your Holy glory, but
according to the multitude of Your compassion, forgive me, the sinner and grant
unto me that I may find grace and mercy at this hour.”
As a resultof this, each person should say before Holy Communion, “Lord,
not because I am worthy, but because of my need, not because I am worthy, but
for my healing.” We all recognise that we are not worthy, as we say to the Lord,
“It is not because of our purity that we approach His body and His blood. We
have not been purified to have the Holy Communion but we approach the Holy
Communion in order to be purified.”
We have the Holy Communion, “For the purification of our souls, bodies
and spirits.” As we say in the beginning of the Litanies in the Holy Liturgy. The
purity which which is due in order to approach the Communion, as the Prophet
said, “Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.”(1 Samuel 16:5).
This purity can be summarised in the following points:

FAITH, REPENTANCE, RECONCILIATION AND PHYSICAL PURITY.

Faith: this means the true, right, Christian Orthodoxy which is free of
heresies. Also, belief in this Sacrament and its effectiveness, following the Laws
which the Lord established and has been kept by the Apostolic Succession.
Repentance: this means to leave sin with true determination not to go back
coupled with the confession of sins and repentance from it. Some doubt that their
repentance is genuine and avoid Holy Communion, giving the excuse that they
still sin after Holy Communion. Then they are not truly repenting and are not
worthy, so for some it is better not to have Holy Communion. We answer these
people by saying:

THE HOLY COMMUNION PURIFIES AND CLEANSES

There is no one without fault, even if we are saints or righteous, even if we
confess and have Holy Communion. We are still weak until the end of our life.
Weakness has many levels which will differ from one person to another.
“Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord,
the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also
to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:8). On that day there
will be no more sin. Have Holy Communion and each time you do, it brings
strength. Even if you have sinned, your heart will be troubled by this sin and you
will repent quickly and you will rebuke yourself. But the life of negligence and
carlessness prevents you from having Holy Communion. You will become a
slave to sin and you will be obsessed with it and keep returning to it with no
repentance.
The Lord commanded that we reconcile with one another. He said, “If you
bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something
against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be
reconciled to your brother.” (Matthew 5:23.24).
Therefore, reconciliation with others must come before having Holy
Communion. You cannot approach the “Sacrifice of love” when you are void of
love. Here we remember that we pray the prayer of reconciliation before we
begin the Commemoration of the Saints. We say in this prayer, “Make us all
worthy our master, to greet one another with the holy kiss, to share Your
immortal and heavenly gifts without falling into condemnation” Not reconciling
causes us to fall into condemnation.
What does reconcile mean? And is it important to reconcile with others? The
reconciliation means that the heart is free from hatred and is truly able to
reconcile and return back to a amicable relationship. As the Apostle said, “If it
is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” (Romans
12:18).
Many can not have peace with one another. The scribes, Sadducees,
Pharisees and the Chief Priests who tried to arrest Christ did not have
reconciliation with Him. What He needed is to have reconciliation first with
them to have a pure relationship with the Father. St. Paul the Apostolic was not
required to leave his gifts before the altar and go and reconcile with Alexander
the metalworker, who did evil against him and wanted to harm him and wanted
to overcome the word of God (2 Timothy 4:14,15).
For this reason the Apostle said be reconciled with others “If it is possible”
and said “According to your limit.” This is because there are some cases which
are impossible to reconcile. It is not held against you if others do not want to
reconcile with you or if it is for a spiritual benefit.
Try to live in peace with others, and if it is not possible because of them not
because of you, then you have done your best. Some examples include those
who envy you because of your success, or gifts that the Lord has given you, or
due to evil in their hearts, as what happened with Cain when he envied his
brother Abel, and the case with the Jewish leaders when they envied Jesus.
In the Psalms David said: “Those who hate me without a cause are more than
the hairs of my head.” (Psalm 69: 4). Therefore, those who hate you without a
cause, if you can’t reconcile with them then you are excused and this should not
prevent you from having Holy Communion. Likewise for those who persecute
you (John 16:2).
Also there are those who you try to avoid for fear of them causing you to
stumble and you want to protect your spirituality. As it is said in Psalm 1: “The
path of sinners and the seat of the scornful” and also, “Evil company corrupts
good habits.” (1 Corinthians 15:33). In this case you don’t have to leave your
offerings and to go and reconcile with them.
Now when you leave your offerings before the altar and go to reconcile first,
this is when: You have sinned against someone. The Lord said, “If you
remembered something against your brother”, and he has something towards
you, that is, you sinned against him, then you have to go to him and reconcile
with him before receiving Holy Communion and obey the commandment of the
Lord, even if he sinned against you. So you need to go and apologise to him
(Matthew 18:15) to regain the love between both of you.
In all circumstances, you are one of two: either you are the offender or
someone offended you. If you are the offender, leave your sacrifice, go and
reconcile with your brother, and correct your mistakes. If you are not the
offender and someone has offended you, reproach him or at least forgive him,
because there are many kinds of people where reproach does not work and it
may lead to the opposite consequence of what you intended. Or it may be that
they are in a position where you can’t reach them to reproach them. With these
sorts of people it is better to forgive them and not make them your enemy.
Remember the word of the Bible: “Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke
6:37).
There is a request in the Prayer of Our Father, “forgive us as we forgive
them” and the Lord explained this saying: “For if you forgive men their
trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive
men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew
6:14-15).
So far we have spoken about reconciliation, what about the preparation of
the body. It is important first to prepare yourself with fasting, and the only one
who can be excused is the sick or whoever has special circumstances to be
exempt from fasting. The Church believes that a person requires at least nine
hours of fasting before Holy Communion. This means not eating anything from
midnight, the night before Holy Communion. If there are any exceptions it
needs to be dealt with by the confession father.
The purity of the body also requires abstinence from sexual relationships so
that the body may be pure and clean as it is cleansed by the spirit. There are
many commandments written in the Bible on this topic.
We don’t want anybody to abstain from communion if their excuse is they
are not worthy or not deserving. If it is a matter of uncertainty always consult
your confession father.
Let us then prepare for repentance as this is in our hand. Repentance is a
work that happens inside the heart, so it is our choice then and it is not beyond us
that we are unable to do anything about it. You are able to hear the voice of God
inside you, so don’t harden your heart, return back to God, benefit from the
spiritual impact that you will receive during Holy Week. It is in your hands. The
Bible says, “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in
the rebellion.”(Hebrews 3:15).
Let everyone give an account of himself and return to the Lord, and join in
the joy of these holy days which the Church considers to be a Feast, having Holy
Communion on the Great Covenant Thursday. All liturgies have Holy
Communion originating from that day. Let us try and approach the Holy
Communion with a pure heart.
You will not benefit anything from Holy Communion unless you have kept
your heart pure. On Covenant Thursday, not all the disciples benefited from
Communion to the same level. The disciple who loved the Lord the most, St.
John the Beloved, after Holy Communion, followed Christ to the Cross. He
heard one word from Him and the blessings. Peter the impetuous one, who was
zealous in his love, followed Christ half way, but could not continue. He denied
the Lord and repented although he received Holy Communion with the Lord just
as John did.
The rest of the disciples also received Holy Communion at the same time,
but they fled when the Lord was being arrested. They did not walk with Him
even one step of His journey, they submitted to their weakness.
This reminds us of the seed which fell on the good soil. It produced fruit; the
seeds were the same, the farmer who planted the seeds was the same, but some
of his fruits produced thirty fold, some sixty and some one hundred. Let us
prepare our hearts to also give one hundred.
Always remember the many blessings received from the Holy Communion.
The Holy Bible spoke of this, the Lord said, “I am the living bread which came
down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.” (John
6:51). “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will
raise him up at the last day. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in
Me, and I in him.” (John 6:56).
In the Liturgy we say, “Given for salvation and remission of sins, and eternal
life for those who partake of them” and we also say, “Having Holy Communion
from Your holies to purify our body, our soul and our spirits.” Why then do we
not approach for this purity, for this salvation and remission, and abide in the
Lord and eternal life?
Christ grants us the grace of the Holy Communion and the results of this are
so many blessings. At the same time, He made a Covenant between Him and us.
Yes, we entered through the Communion in a Covenant with the Lord, for every
time we eat and we drink from these holy mysteries, we preach His death, we
confess His resurrection and remember Him till He comes.
We preach His death, which is His death on our behalf; we receive the
salvation, the redemption and become holies with His blood. This Blood
purified us from every sin (1 John 1:7). He said, “This is My blood of the new
covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Mark 14: 26). In
this verse the Lord explains two things:
1- His blood is for the New Covenant
2- It is for the remission of sins, i.e for salvation.
Do we realise that every time we have Holy Communion it is a feast, “This
is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Also,
Covenant Thursday is a Feast. Do we truly understand how the Lord purified us
with this blood which is shed for the remission of our sins, and we became
saints, as is said in the Liturgy, “The holies are for the Holy people.”
Perhaps this word “Holy” convicts us from within in a way we don’t deserve
and are not worthy. It encourages us to behave like people who have been
sanctified by the Lord with His blood and purified from all sin.
How beautiful then to preach His death, who gave us all these blessings.
Another verse which makes a Covenant between us and the Lord is, “To
remember the Lord till He comes.” What does the word “remember” mean?
Does it mean that the Lord is constantly inside our minds as David said, “I have
set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be
moved.” (Psalm 16:8). How lovely is Your name Lord and to praise You all day.
We remember that everything the Lord did was for our sake. He put Himself,
His incarnation, His teaching, His love, His suffering, His crucifixion, His
resurrection and His ascension to heaven and sitting on the right hand of the
Father, with all of these memories that carry great meaning and spiritual
benefits. It means that we must remember all of this and continue to remember
it till He comes.
In the words “Till He comes”, believe and have faith in the Second Coming
of the Lord. Prepare for this coming, watch always and prepare because,
“Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find
watching.” (Luke 12:37). Don’t forget also that the Holy Communion is a
gathering of believers, which are united together in one faith, one table and one
priesthood. May the Lord give us the blessing of this day. Amen
 THE LORD CARED FOR HIS DISCIPLES

T he most important thing in Christ’s relationship with His disciples is this

great love that He came down from heaven. But the love of the Lord
appeared in its deepest form in the last week, the Holy Week. This following
verse demonstrates this, “Having loved His own who were in the world, He
loved them to the end.” (John 13:1). The words “to the end” can be meditated on
in depth and there will still be even deeper meanings.

THE FAREWELL GATHERING WITH HIS

DISCIPLES
The Lord knew that the crucifixion would affect His disciples deeply as they
see their great teacher, who performed great miracles, scorned and nailed to the
Cross and then die in the midst of mockery. Therefore, during this week we see
the Lord giving all His attention to His disciples and preparing them spiritually
and psychologically to face His death.
This matter affected Him greatly. He was not worried about Himself, nor
His arrest, nor His trial or false witnesses, nor the insults that He would receive
from hitting and slapping, nor the abusive and offensive words, nor from going
from one place to another, facing Caiaphas, Pilate and Herod. He did not care
about His sufferings, torture with thorns, whipping, nails and crucifixion.
His whole heart was deeply with others. He had two matters in mind: How
to save the world and how to keep His disciples safe during the tribulation. He
wanted to keep them safe during these dreadful hours so that the whole Church
may believe and its faith to be not shaken. He wanted to strengthen the faith of
His disciples, in the events before, during and after the crucifixion.
In order to strengthen their faith, He appeared to them after the crucifixion
and the resurrection. He appeared to Mary Magdalene, to Peter, to the disciples
of Emmaus, to the blessed ladies, to the eleven disciples and to around five
hundred others. He also appeared to Saul of Tarsus. He remained with His
disciples for forty days after the resurrection to strengthen them and to talk to
them about important matters relating to the Kingdom of God.
All of this was after the resurrection, but how did He strengthen them before
the crucifixion?

1 Six days before the crucifixion He raised Lazarus from death (John 11).
Four days after Lazarus’ death, they said that there was a stench. Many
believed after this great miracle and the Lord gave them an idea of the
resurrection from death, giving them hope even after death. It was a miracle to
strengthen their faith in His great power and His resurrection when they will see
Him dead.

2 Before Lazarus was raised up from the dead, He gave the man who was
born blind sight (John 9). This miracle was very obviously showing His
divinity as it showed the power of His creation. He created eyes from the mud
of the ground. This miracle had a huge impact and after his sight was restored
this man said, “Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened
the eyes of one who was born blind.”(John 9:32). In the end this blind man
believed that the Lord Jesus Christ was the Son of God and worshipped Him.”
(John 9:38).
With these two miracles the Lord wanted to increase the faith of the
Disciples. These two miracles had the results of some believing instantly and
some stored these events until the crucifixion in order to strengthen the faith of
the weak.

3 He showed them His power during the cleansing of the Temple. This
happened on Palm Sunday, the day after raising Lazarus from the dead;
He entered Jerusalem as a King and all the multitudes cheered Him and rejoiced.
They laid down the olive branches and the Palm leaves.
On this occasion He cleansed the Temple with power and force, He rebuked
the Chief Priests and scribes saying, “This is My Father’s and you have made it a
den of thieves.” No one was able to overcome Him, He was the master. Each
word He heard He answered in strength which no one could argue. All of these
made His disciples strong and lifted their self-esteem.

4 With the same power He rebuked the Jewish leaders. He rebuked the
Chief Priests with the Parable of the Vineyard. He said: “The Kingdom of
God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.”
(Matthew 21:43).
He silenced the Sadducees concerning the resurrection of the dead (Matthew
22:34) and He did the same with the lawyers. He rebuked the Pharisees and the
scribes with strength, saying, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees.” (Matthew
23:13). He was stronger than all and St. Matthew said about Him, “And no one
was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question
Him anymore.” (Matthew 22:46).
All of this increased the self-esteem of the disciples, strengthening them by
seeing their teacher with such power and preparing them for the trial which was
coming. And what else?

5 He cursed the fig tree which had no fruits and thus it withered away so
quickly. This tree resembles hypocrisy in its appearance by having green
leaves, but no fruits. By cursing the fig tree, He cursed hypocrisy and the Lord
revealed His divinity and His power over nature. With one word the tree
withered, “And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, ‘How did the
fig tree wither away so soon’”? (Matthew 21:20). The Lord gave them a lesson
about faith and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do
not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say
to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea’ it will be done.’”
“If you have faith and do not doubt”, Christ wanted these words to stay with
them during the time of the crucifixion of their master, His death and His burial.
And what else?

6 The Lord washed their feet symbolising cleansing and purification. After
He washed their feet, He said to them, “You are now clean.” (John 13:10).
Hoping by this cleansing they will be firm in their faith with the power that they
receive after the Lord washed their feet. And what else?
 He gave them the Sacrament of Eucharist. He granted them His Holy Body and
7 His Holy Blood to give them spiritual power and strength. He told them,
“He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.” (John
6:56). This sacrament was to hold on to the Lord and benefit the disciples during
the time of tribulation. The Lord strengthened their weak nature by giving them
a different, stronger and great nature.
At the same time He was preparing their minds to accept the news, “This is
My body which is given for you; and this is My blood, which is shed for you.”
(Luke 22:19,20). “Which is shed for many” (Mark 14:24), “Which is shed for
many for the remission of sins.” (Matthew 26: 28). The words “shed His
blood”was given to prepare the disciples for what would happen that night and
on the following night.

8 He disclosed the truth so that they are not surprised. He told them many
times, “He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders,
chief priests and scribes, be killed, and be raised on the third day.” (Matthew
16:21). He also said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of
Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will
condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge
and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again.” (Matthew 20:18,19). So He
linked the crucifixion and the resurrection and He talked to them providing them
comfort.
Two days before the Passover, He repeated the same news to them and said,
“You know that after two days is the Passover…one of you will betray Me.”

9 After the Passover and Last Super He stayed with them for some time.
This time was recorded in the Gospel of Saint John in Chapters
13,14,15,16. He talked openly with them, comforting them with many words.
He spoke of the resurrection, the Holy Spirit and His work with them and gave
them guidance.

10 He continued to care for them even while they arrested Him. When the
soldiers came to arrest Him, He said to them, “I am He. Therefore, if
you seek Me, let these go their way, that the saying might be fulfilled which He
spoke, Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none.” (John 18: 8,9).
And so He pitied His disciples at the time of the arrest. He cared for them
more than He cared for Himself. It was so important for Him that they were
free, but He offered Himself to be arrested.

11 Even when He was on the cross. He cared for everything that is His,
even in His deep sufferings. He didn’t leave His mother, the Virgin St.
Mary alone, but promised that she would be with His disciple, St. John the
Beloved. “From that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” (John 19:27).
It was a great blessing for this disciple, as the Lord cared for him and granted
him a spiritual mother. She is the most holy and gentle mother in the world.

12 Jesus’ farewell to His disciples and His long prayer for their sake also
indicated His care for them. Is it true He had a farewell with His
Disciples? Farewell means leaving, Jesus never left them. Earlier He said to
them, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in
the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20). Also, before the Ascension He said to
them, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20). In
all circumstances He only left them in the flesh and for a while. However, it was
very hard on them. The Lord knew it and that is why He sat with them to
comfort and to ease them.
He knew it would be hard to take. This was revealed when He said to them,
“But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.” (John
16:6). So what did He say to them which made them sad? He said, “But now I
go away to Him who sent Me”. He said, “Little children, I shall be with you a
little while longer”. And as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot
come.’” (John 13:33). He had to answer the question they asked Him, “Where
are You going.” (John 13:36). “We don’t know where You are going.” (John
14:5). He had to answer them in truth. So how did He answer? He said, “I go to
the Father.” (John 16:16). “A little while, you will not see Me.” (John 16:17).
And what else? “You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.” (John
16: 20). There was another truth He had to tell them, “If they persecuted Me,
they will also persecute you.” (John 15:20).
The Lord gave them hope in every thing in order to comfort them. They will
not see Him, but in a little while, they will see Him. The words “Not see Me”,
are the half truth, the agony part. So what is the other part which gives comfort?
The Lord said to them, “A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little
while, and you will see Me.” (John 16:17). “A little while longer and the world
will see Me no more, but you will see Me.” (John 14:19). It means that the
world will not see You, You will die, so how can we see You then? Jesus will
answer this by saying, “I am alive.” “At that day you will know that I am in My
Father, and you in Me.” “He who loves Me… I will love him and manifest
Myself to him.” (John 14:19-21).
He gave them an idea of His resurrection, and they will see Him. He said to
them that the Son of Man will be crucified and on the third day He will rise up.”
(Matthew 16: 21; Matthew 20:18,19). This day He emphasises the truth in a few
words which are full of love, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
(John 14:18).
Half the truth: “You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.” What
is the other half, the lighting one then? It is, “You will be sorrowful, but your
sorrow will be turned into joy … I will see you again, your heart will rejoice,
and your joy no one will take from you.” (John 16: 20,22).
It hurts Him very much that His disciples are sad because He is leaving
them. He knows very well how much they love Him. About His love for them, it
is enough to say what the Bible says, “Having loved His own who were in the
world, He loved them to the end.” (John 13:1). The Lord‘s heart is so sensitive
that He got all those around Him, who love Him and He loves them to be
comfortable. He then told them, “I will not leave you orphans.” The word
“orphans” tells them that they are His children. On this occasion, He used the
words “My little children.”
“Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer.” (John 13: 33). You
are My children, and I know that you will be orphans after I leave you, but I will
not leave you and I will not let you be sad, I will come back. I will see you and
your heart will be joyful, I will never leave you to grief because I can’t see you
sad.
I want, in this difficult farewell, to make your hearts happy, and to tell you
that your sorrow is only for a while, a little while, and after a while you will see
Me.
You are not only just My children, but my beloved too. “You are My friends
if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants... but I have
called you friends.” (John 15:14,15). I will lay down My life for your sake,
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”
(John 15:13). “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My
love.” (John 15:9).
It is very nice to have a farewell with so much love. The Lord added, for
their comfort, this beautiful parable, showing them that there is no separation
between Him and them. It is the vine and the branches. He said to them, “I am
the vine, you are the branches.” (John 15:5). We are together, “You are in Me,
and I am in you.” My relationship to you is the relationship of the head with the
body, you are not a stranger. “Abide in Me, and I in you”, just like the branches
are attached to the vine. Therefore, there is no farewell between you and Me
because there is no separation at all. How beautiful is this comparison with all
this love, passion and comfort at a time like this. Blessed are You Lord in all
your great comfort.
Adding to that, His departure is for benefit and joy. He says to His disciples,
“ Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. You have heard Me say
to you, ‘I am going away and coming back to you.’ If you loved Me, you would
rejoice because I said, ‘I am going to the Father.’” (John 14: 27, 28). Yes,
because at this stage the words “Made Himself of no reputation.” (Philippians 2:
7) are ended. Now I return back to what is before these words: It is great, for if
you love Me, you will rejoice because I am going.
My departure is beneficial for you in order to prepare a place for you “Let
not your heart be troubled... In My Father’s house are many mansions... I go to
prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again
and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:1-
3). Yes, we will be all together.
Our presence will be over there not here. Let not your heart be troubled; this
is the best, but here, Peace I leave with you, “My peace I leave with you, My
peace I give to you.” (John 14:27); this is a different type of peace, spiritual
steady peace, not like the peace that the world gives. How can we have peace
Lord and You are away from us?
This is the third benefit from My departure. I send to you the Holy Spirit.
The Lord has elaborated here on this point specifically. He said to them that the
Holy Spirit is the Comforter, the Helper, which will be their comfort. He
repeated the words “The comforter and the Helper” several times. He said to
them, “If I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will
send Him to you.” (John 16:7). Also He says, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth.
It is to your advantage that I go away.” (John 16:7). “But the Helper, the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and
bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:26).
When the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit
of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will
bear witness.” (John 15:26). However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come,
He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). He comforted them by adding that
the Comforter will abide with them forever, “And He dwells with you and will
be in you.” (John 14:16,17).
This reminds us of what Christ said before His Ascension, “But you shall
receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be
witnesses to Me.” (Acts 1:8). Speaking of the Holy Spirit gave great comfort to
the disciples. We note Jesus’ farewell to His disciples was very honest. He
wanted to comfort them according to the truth and reality, to strengthen their
heart, but without hiding any of the truth. He was also honest with them in their
mistakes and the problems they would face after His crucifixion.
This was beneficial for their faith and took away the element of surprise. He
said to them, “Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass,
you may believe that I am He.” (John 13: 19, John 14:29). “But these things I
have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of
them.” (John 16:4).
He was very honest with them in telling them of their sins. He told them that
the devil will fight you and will make you doubt this night. He said there will
come a time when you will be scattered and will leave Me. He told Peter that he
would deny Him and even that Judas would betray Him. He emphasised that by
saying, “I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And Jesus
convicting him, “What you do, do quickly.” (John 13:21,26,27).
He was honest with them, telling them the troubles they would face. He said
to them: “When they hate Me, they will hate you all,” If the world hates you,
you know that it hated Me before it hated you.” “You are not of the world …
therefore the world hates you.” (John 15: 18-20).
He also told them more than that, “They will put you out of the synagogues;
yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God
service.” (John 16:2). Truly, honesty is a very important matter. Therefore , He
said to them in these circumstances, “These things I have spoken to you, that you
should not be made to stumble.” (John 16:1).
The Lord Jesus Christ was very clear in this situation from the beginning,
since starting with the narrow gate and carrying the cross. But He mixed
speaking of the tribulations they would face with giving them comfort. He told
them, “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world.” (John 16:23) and as long as My strength is with you, you
will overcome it.
 We notice in this farewell that the Lord gave them many promises. Some are
related to His appearances to them like, “I am coming to you.” “After a little
while, you will see Me.” “I prepare a place for you... I come and take you to
Me.” There were more promises about sending the Holy Spirit to them, the work
of the Holy Spirit inside them and staying with them till the end.
Also, there were more promises that were related to their needs. He said to
them, “Whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.” “Ask, and
you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:23, 24). “Whatever you
ask in My name, that I will do... If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”
(John 14:13,14).
Perhaps one of the promises which gave comfort to them was when the Lord
told them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I
do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do.” (John 14:12).
In the farewell gathering, He gave them commandments. Regarding their
relationship with one another, He gave them only one commandment: “This is
My commandment, that you love one another.” (John 15:12).
To what extent Lord was that love? He continues by saying, “To love each
other as I have loved you.” (John 15:12). Who can do this? That we love with
the same measure as You have loved us, even to give Yourself for our sake. The
love that He spoke of: “Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved
them to the end.” (John 13:1).
The Lord repeated the same commandment and in the same farewell
gathering by saying: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13:34). The
Lord feels that this love, which is the same kind of love as His love, is a part of
discipleship and He says: “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you
have love for one another.” (John 13:35).
It is a great type of love that the Lord asks us to have. We love one another,
as He loves us. How did He love us? The Lord deepens our understanding
towards that love, He says: “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you;
abide in My love.” (John 15:9). I speak out truthfully to You Lord, that this love
is hard to understand and hard to fulfill. Here we reveal the commandment of
love as it is given to us, in three points:

• The Father loves the Son (this love is unlimited without doubt).
 • The Son loved us, with the same love (unlimited) in which the Father
loved Him.

• It requires us to love one another in the same way.

This is a submission to You Lord. I repent but I still haven’t reached and
will definitely never reach that kind of love. Truly it is a new commandment.
This is a new commandment in its understanding and in its level. No matter how
much we have loved or given ourselves for others, we can never reach the level
of the love of the Son to us or the love of the Father to the Son.
So we humble ourselves before You Lord and we ask You to pour the love
from You, from the Holy Spirit, because it is impossible for human nature to
love one another as You loved us! The Lord loved His disciples in their love
towards Him and in their weakness. As He loved them they loved Him. He
loved them in their fear, in their weakness, in their escape. He said to Peter,
“You will deny Me three times.” He didn’t say that in anger or sorrow, but in
love and kindness. He said to them: “I asked for you so your faith will not
perish.” He loves us in our weakness and our mistakes, to save us from our sins,
“While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5: 8).
In the garden, when they left Him alone and slept, He accepted their
weakness with sympathy. He referred the weakness in the body and said to
them: “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41).
“Sleep now and have rest.” The time will come for the body and the soul to be
refreshed together. Now you are weak, this is true, “ Behold, I send the Promise
of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued
with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49). “This power you shall receive when
the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me.”
(Acts1:8).
I don’t despise weakness, but in My love I grant strength. This is My love to
you. Then what is your love to Me? I will give you an example of this love: “I
am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15:5). We love You Lord, as the
branch loves the vine. There is no life in the branches without the vine and if it
separates from it, it will dry up and whither away.
The Lord said to them in His farewell gathering: “Abide with Me in love.
He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do
nothing.” (John 15:5). What about those who do not abide? The Lord said to
them: “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered;
and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
Therefore, “Abide in Me, and I in you. Abide in My love.” (John 15:6,5,4).
Perhaps the disciples were wondering:
How Lord can we love You, and abide in Your love? The Lord answered
them in His farewell gathering: “If you keep My commandments, you will abide
in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His
love.” (John 15:10). Therefore, love is not just emotion, “Let us not love in word
or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:18). Therefore our love for the
Lord is evident in knowing and keeping His commandments.
Here the Lord reminds His disciples of His commandments and all that they
heard from Him before, so they can do it. What happens if they forget what He
taught them? He calmed them regarding this point too and said to them: “I am
sending the Holy Spirit the Helper, He will teach you all things, and bring to
your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:26).
The Lord cares for His disciples and trusted them to preach the Gospel. He
taught them with love so that they could endure and keep the faith which they
would struggle in. The Lord spoke to His disciples about matters of faith. He
included the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, He talked about the Father, the Holy
Spirit and Himself. We remember what He said about the Holy Spirit, His work
in them, His presence in them, His guidance.
He also talked in abundance about the Father: “I am going to My Father. I
came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the
world and go to the Father.” (John 16:28). “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in My name. The Helper comes, whom I shall send to you
from the Father”, “Proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.” (John
15:26, John 14:26). These two verses very clearly speak of the Holy Spirit.
About the relationship between the Father and the Son, He said to them: “I
am in the Father and the Father in Me.” (John 14:10). He said to them: “I and
My Father are one.” (John 10:30). He repeated the same words in His prayers for
their sake. He said to the Father: “Keep through Your name those whom You
have given Me, that they may be one as We are.” (John 17:11). He announced
here that He and the Father are One. He repeated the same in His prayer saying:
“That they may be one just as We are one. I in them, and You in Me; that they
may be made perfect in one.” (John 17:22-23), and He also said: “That they all
may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one
in Us.” (John 17:21). He presented this doctrine to them in His words and in His
prayers.
 He talked to them about the Father who loves them. He said: “He who loves
Me, will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to
him.” (John 14:21). “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father
will love Him and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” (John
14:23).
He wants them to be united with the Father, so He talks to them about the
Father and His love for them. That is why He said: “The time is coming when I
will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly
about the Father.” “Because the Father Himself loves you, because you have
loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.” (John 16:25,27).
In His prayers for their sake, He wanted them to know the Father. So He
said: “Father... Glorify Your Son... this is eternal life, that they may know You,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17: 1-3). The
disciples knew Jesus, but He wanted them to know the Father too, and all things
are from the Father. He succeeded in this as He said in His prayers to the Father:
“I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the
world. Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from
You.” (John 17:6,7).
When Jesus was going to the Father, He unites them with the Father. He
said: “I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world... Holy Father, keep
through Your name... I do not pray that You should take them out of the world,
but that You should keep them from the evil one.” “While I was with them in the
world, I kept them in Your name... But now I come to You, keep them through
Your name.” (John 17:11-15).
Jesus prays to be with them always, He said: “Father, I desire that they also
whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am.” (John 17:24). These are
extraordinary words which indicate that the love of Jesus Christ towards His
disciples is very deep. The love of Jesus and His protection towards His disciples
was very important. Because the devil’s work will be to destroy them therefore,
Jesus is working to keep them, guard them, care for them, strengthen and
comfort them and prepare them for the tribulations which will follow. He did
this through His love, His protection, His words and His prayers for their sake.
This love in His heart towards them encourages us. He reminds us that we
are not alone, but He is with us all our days until the end of the age. He reminds
us of His divine Helper, preparing His children before the tribulation, and also
reminds us of the love of the Father and His protection. He reminds us that the
prayer of Jesus includes us too: “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those
who will believe in Me through their word.” (John 17:20).
Blessed are You Lord in all Your love, protection and care. We ask You to
be with us, as You were with Your disciples and the apostolic Saints, with the
same degree of love, protection and care. Truly Your prayers kept the disciples,
even though they had some weakness, but their faith was still strong and firm,
never hesitating.
The faith inside us reaches us, through their preaching. In the end Lord they
brought many fruits just as You commanded them to. All of this is through the
Holy blessings of Your sufferings Oh Lord, Your love to Your disciples,
strengthening them on Covenant Thursday when You washed their feet, cleansed
them, purified them, granted them Your Body and your Blood, sat with them to
comfort and strengthen their faith.

To You is the Power, the Glory,

the Blessings and Honour.
Forever Amen.
 GOOD FRIDAY

O n sacrifice. Love reaches its depth and its peak when You are raised on the
Good Friday we see Jesus Christ in His great love and His great

Cross. Love is tested by pain, experienced in tribulation. If one loves, he offers

and sacrifices himself for others. When he increases his love towards others, he
increases in sacrifice until he offers everything. When He reaches the pinnacle of
this love and sacrifice, He offers Himself up on the Cross and offers Himself for
others. This is the lesson which we take from Good Friday, “For God so loved
the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16).
 The Lord demonstrates His love to the world in many different ways. He
gave the world the grace of existence, gave knowledge and blessings. Also, He
gave the world spiritual gifts. He offers the world His care and His love. But His
love towards us reaches its peak when He offered and sacrificed Himself when
He gave His life a ransom for many for the redemption of sins. He said to His
disciples: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and
to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45).
The first thing the Lord did was to offer Himself and He took the form of a
slave (Philippians 2:7). He offered His glory and His greatness when He was
incarnated for our sake, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the
likeness of men. He offered His comfort too, and went around to do good and He
had nowhere to lay His head (Matthew 8:20).
And in the end He laid Himself on the Cross for our sake. He showed His
never ending love for our sake. And so the image of the crucified Jesus Christ is
the greatest image in all of humanity as it shows the enormous sacrifice and
deepest love.
The image of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor and the image of Christ
entering Jerusalem are rare pictures which are not found frequently, but the
image of Christ crucified on the Cross is found everywhere. It is the most
treasured image and leaves the deepest feelings inside every heart.
Mahatma Gandhi stood before this picture and cried saying: “It is a complete
and great love, the full giver.” “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay
down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13).
So the Apostle St. Paul said: “But God forbid that I should boast except in
the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me,
and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14). Every time we look at the image of Jesus
on the Cross, we remember the great and amazing love. We remember our
strong God, unlimited in His greatness and capacity. He laid Himself down,
taking the form of a bondservant and sacrificing His life. He shed His blood
because of His love to those who deserve death.
The finest expression written about this image of the crucified Jesus is, “He
loved till He offered Himself.” A sign was written about the Cross of Jesus,
“Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews (INRI)”, but a much more appropriate sign
is one which reads, “The love and the sacrifice.” “For God so loved the world
that He gave His only begotten Son.”
The lesson which we should take away from the crucifixion of our Lord is
His love, His giving and His sacrifice. We don’t love ourselves, but we love
others, we love the Lord. We don’t love our comfort, but we love to comfort
others no matter how it affects us or our comfort. If you don’t love and you don’t
sacrifice, then you didn’t benefit from the lesson of the Cross of Jesus and you
didn’t use Him as a role model in your life.
The Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ teaches us to love until death. In our love
to God we can do this, and in our love to people we can do that. “We don’t love
with words or by tongue, but by works and truth”. What is this true expression of
love? It is the giving and the sacrifice until death. We like the love that leads us
to the Cross, the love that reaches us to death for the sake of the one we love, or
at least you are ready in your heart to go until death or offer yourself.
Consider repentance as an example of Love, how the Apostle reproaches us
saying: “You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.” (Hebrews
12:4). Do you want to love the Lord? Then you have to love Him till bloodshed.
Resist the sins till bloodshed, rise to the Cross, and crucify your ego. “And those
who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
(Galatians 6 :4). Crucify the world inside your heart, so you crucify your ego so
it disappears, and then the love reaches its peak, and now you can become proud
of the Cross of Jesus Christ saying: “Whom the world has been crucified to me,
and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14).
We learn that the Cross of Jesus Christ is to love and to sacrifice, and we
can’t do that unless we crucify ourselves. Before our Lord Jesus sacrificed
Himself, He was incarnated for our sake, taking the form of a bondservant. So,
if you want to love and you want to give, then you have to put away all the love
you have towards yourself and feelings for yourself, that means to humble
yourself, taking the form of a slave and then you can sacrifice.
 Sacrifice is a true expression for love. Abraham, father of all fathers, showed
his love towards God by first leaving his family, his tribe and his country for the
sake of God and he became a stranger living in tents. Of all the things which
Abraham has done, the greatest love was when he sacrificed his only son on the
altar. He carried the wood of the burnt offering and he took the fire in his hand
and the knife to offer the burnt offering to God.
There are some obstacles which prevent one from sacrificing. For example,
the love of rest, the love of dignity and the love of the self. The true love is one
that does not care about his own rest, but rather the person who loves.
Jacob the father of all fathers, when he loved Rachel, he offered himself. He
worked twenty years for her; working in the sun during the day and in the cold
during the nights. All these years were only like a few days in his eyes, because
of his love towards her.” (Genesis 31:40, 29:20).
Love can do miracles. Love bears all things, endures all things. If you can’t
sacrifice, then you love yourself and you don’t love others. If the obstacle is your
dignity, then you love dignity more. Also the obstacle can be the love of life or
the love of freedom.
When Daniel loved the Lord, he didn’t mind to be thrown in the den of the
hungry lions. He wasn’t afraid and he didn’t see that his life was more important
than the love. The love in Daniel’s heart was stronger than the fear and worth
much more than life itself. Just like the three youth (Daniel’s friend) in their
love, they didn’t mind to be thrown in the fire, they didn’t fear the fire nor death
nor life for God’s sake.
St. Paul the Apostle said when he was expressing his love to Jesus: “I also
count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my
Lord.” (Philippians 3:8). “But what things were gains to me, these I have
counted loss for Christ and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ.”
(Philippians 3:7).Therefore, we find a life of sacrifice is agreeable and there are
no regrets but with all enthusiasm is counted as rubbish and loss.
The Cross of Jesus Christ teaches us to offer ourselves in love. These
offerings, however, may require some training. The spiritual person may be
trained to sacrifice first by giving from his money, his obsession, before he can
sacrifice himself. Truly, if one can not sacrifice his belongings, how can he
sacrifice himself?
If you can’t give your money to your Lord, your tithe and your first of every
thing, how will you give him your life? How can you shed your blood for His
sake? How? If you are not able to give one day of the week, how can you give
Him your entire life?
During the era of the Martyrs, the Church trained her children to be able to
die and not fear death. The Church trained her children to leave material
belongings, leave home and family. “The time is short, so that from now on even
those who have wives should be as though they had none, those who weep as
though they did not weep, those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice, those
who buy as though they did not possess, and those who use this world as not
misusing it. For the form of this world is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:29-31)
For all to believe that “the world is passing away”. The Church teaches her
children in every Liturgy: “Do not love the world or the things in the world... the
world is passing away, and the lust of it” (1 John 2:15,17). Whoever loses
interest in life and all that is in the world can easily offer himself and sacrifice
his life for the sake of the Lord. You can say then “my kingdom is not from this
world”, wanting eagerly to be a child of Jesus in eternal life. Under those
circumstances one can offer himself for the sake of his brothers and sisters and
for the sake of Christ.
If one does not even want to offer just a bit, how can he offer much? And
how can he sacrifice his life? How can he resemble Jesus in sacrifice. He refuses
glory, refuses rest, no proper home, no money or wages, but offers His blood for
the life of the whole world, in order for us to live by His death, and to live with
His love to us.
The Lord Jesus Christ always offered before He died on the Cross. His love
was everywhere, surrounding the people, giving them kindness, love and mercy.
He gave healing, comfort and food. He called for the captives and the prisoners
to be freed, worked continuously in order to give rest to all, but all of that was
not enough. He was waiting for this love to give sacrifice, to rise on the Cross
and shed blood on all humanity. The Lord Jesus Christ walked to Golgotha to
offer Himself as a burnt love offering. He showed His love by His incarnation
and His great sacrifice of love.
Satan was surprised with all this love. He tried to resist all this with his
strength. He summoned all his powers and trickery to prevent the love of Christ
reaching the Cross. It requires a great water to surround this huge, fiery love.
This great water was in the form of mockery, challenging and aggravating
insults using the horrible words, “If You are the Son of God, come down from
the cross” and “He saved many but Himself He is unable to save.”
 The love of the Lord towards us was even more powerful than these
challenging words.
The Lord defeated the war, He overcame all the insults and mockery to give
us victory over death. He put in front of Him, His purpose for coming, which
was to die in order to give us life. And so His love was raised to its peak on the
Cross. In suffering and agony, He overcame every obstacle until, He reached the
top where redemption was, which is crowned by great glory.
The Cross became a symbol of love for redemption and giving. On the Cross
the Lord gave to the whole world full redemption and the remission of sins. Also
on the Cross, He gave a promise to the thief on the right to be in Paradise with
Him. He gave forgiveness to those who put Him on the Cross, if they repented.
On the Cross, He gave John the Beloved a spiritual mother, St. Mary the Virgin
and He gave the Virgin Mary a son who is John the Beloved.
Although Jesus was suffering on the Cross, He did not focus on His pain and
sufferings or on Himself, but on the salvation of the whole of humanity and
offering the price of the divine judge, the Father. Our eyes are focused on the
Cross and His gift of giving to us. The Cross, which gives remission, salvation,
life and hope until the joyful eternity. The Cross gives a great picture of the
great sacrifice and great giving, with unlimited offering of yourself for others.
The Cross gives us the picture of giving in the midst of great suffering and
the last drop of bloodshed to show His great love. And in return the world did
not offer. The best offering can be the profound tears which flow from a loving
heart. This has a great meaning of love.
Let us ask the Lord to bless us, to train us for that love and sacrifice, to give
more than to take. Let us grow and give our souls for His sake for, “To You is
the Power, the Glory, the Blessings and the Honour, forever. Amen.”

THE FATHER PREPARED THE BURNT OFFERINGS

On this day the Holy Church celebrates the presentation of Jesus Christ, a
sacrifice for our sake. Here we want to explain the meaning of the burnt
offerings with some detail.
Since the Lord announced salvation to Adam by saying that the woman’s
seed will bruise the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15), He taught him how to offer
sacrifices and to pass it on to his descendants. Adam learnt his first lesson, which
is redemption. When Adam sinned he knew he was naked. The fig leaves were
not enough to cover him so the Lord made a tunic of skin and clothed him. This
skin was an offering to cover him. He knew that nakedness came with sin and
the sacrifice was to be covered from sin. This was the first lesson, furthermore
the offerings were from a clean animal. A clean soul doesn’t sin, to die on behalf
of human soul who sinned.
We read that the offerings of the Righteous Abel (Genesis 4) were offered
“from his first born of his flock and of their fat”. Where did Abel know that he
should offer a burnt offering to the Lord? Perhaps he knew this from tradition
which was handed down from his father Adam who received it from the Lord.
This tradition of offerings was passed down through the generations as
happened with our father Noah (Genesis 8) from clean animal. The same lesson
is learnt here, “A clean soul died for the sake of a sinful soul.” This is the
second lesson.
Also we read about the offerings made by the Righteous Job and his
children: “It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.”
(Job 1:5). Thus, Job did sacrifice regularly for the sake of the forgiveness of his
children’s sins. From the blood which is shed from these offerings and burnt
offerings we get the third lesson, which is: “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans
6:23) for the sinner or a soul on its behalf.
Moses the prophet explained in detail the offerings and the sacrifices for sin.
Each one of them resembles Jesus Christ from a different point of view. Let us
take a look and get an idea of each so that we know what our Lord offered for us
on this day, the great day of redemption.
We understand that man has sinned and his sin was against God Himself. It
is enough that it is disobedience and rebellion to God and it is separation from
God and not loving Him. The sin of mankind had two results: First, it hurt God
and second it was destructive. Jesus Christ came to correct these two things.

• Reconcile God the Father, bear his anger and pay the ransom of sin.
• To free mankind by dying on their behalf, whose punishment was death.
Pleasing God’s heart symbolises the burnt offerings. That is why it is at the
beginning of all sacrifices. Chapter 1of Leviticus repeats this three times,
“Offering is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the
Lord.” (Leviticus 1:9,13,17).
 Because it was especially for the Lord Himself, no one else could eat from it,
no priest, no Levi, not the person who offered it, not even their friends, but it
could only be eaten by the fire that was on the altar. This indicates the divine
judge, the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it until it turns into ashes.
Then the priest takes up the ashes of the burnt offering, which the fire has
consumed on the altar, and he carries the ashes outside the camp to a clean place
(Leviticus 6:8-12). This indicates that God’s right is met through reconciliation
and was the ransom of sin. He was pleased from the fire consumed on the burnt
offering until the end.
This pleases the heart of God, but what about man’s salvation? The sin burnt
offering is the offering that carries mans sin and has died so that man could be
saved. Just like the trespass offering. Therefore there are two burnt offerings:
one is for intentional sin and the other for unintentional sin which is later
discovered (Leviticus 4,5). The two burnt offerings: the sin and the trespass
burnt offerings must be pure and clean without fault.
The burnt offerings did not sin, but they carried sin. The person who carries
the offering is the one who sinned, but when he lays his hands on the head of the
offering, then the sin passes to the offering which dies on his behalf (Leviticus
4:4,15,24,29,33).
The Bible says this offering is most holy. “In the place where the burnt
offering is killed, the sin offering shall be killed before the Lord. It is most holy.
In a holy place it shall be eaten, in the court of the tabernacle of meeting.
Everyone who touches its flesh must be holy. It is most holy.” (Leviticus 6:24-
29). Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering (Leviticus 7:1,2, 6) “it is
most holy”.
All these are symbols in the Old Testament. So what happened to Jesus
Christ, who is the symbol of these sacrifices and offerings? On Good Friday,
God the Father prepared the burnt offering on the Mount of Golgotha. Jesus
Christ approaches by carrying the wood of the burnt offering. He raises Himself
on the altar. No one compelled Him to, but He Himself said: “I lay down My life
for the sheep. No one takes it from Me. But I lay it down of Myself. I have
power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.” (John 10:15-18).
The Lord Jesus Christ raises Himself on the altar of burnt offerings and the
fire burnt the offering. The fire surrounded the burnt offering. Fire from
everywhere. Fire from the different generations. It is all related to the sin of the
people, from everywhere, it is the fire of the divine judgment on all the sins. The
fire was alive for a full three hours, from the sixth hour through to the ninth
hour.
The fire was consuming the burnt offering. The smoke went up and it
pleased the Father to smell the sweet aroma. His hand remained on the burnt
offering as it had on Isaac. Then the burnt offering cried out with a loud voice,
“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
The Father did not leave the burnt offering for a single moment or a twinkle
of an eye, but He left the fire of the divine judgment to burn until the end to
please the Father and to remit every sin, every trespass and every unintentional
sin. For everyone, in every place and for all generations.
Before the burnt offering was completely converted to ashes, the Lord said:
“It is finished.” “O Father, I have finished the work which You have given Me to
do.” (John 17:4). When the soul of Jesus Christ was laid in the hands of the
Father, the Father took the ashes of the offering, according to the Law, and put it
in a holy place in Paradise first, then on the right hand of the Father.
At the same time, on the same mountain, the mount of Golgotha, Jesus
Christ offered Himself as a burnt offering for sin. To carry the sins of the whole
world, as John the Baptist said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the
sin of the world!” (John 1:29). And as St. John the Beloved said, “And He
Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the
whole world.” (1 John 2:2).
Whether it be the new sins at the time of the crucifixion, or the old sins since
Adam or the sins that will take place in the future till the end of age. Therefore,
all have hope, by putting their hands on the head of the burnt offering and accept
the offering on their behalf for the remission of sins.
The blood of the burnt offering is sprinkled across the whole earth. “He
placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which
turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:24). This
angel saw the blood, flowing from the burnt offering to atone for all sins and
thus the angel said, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” (Exodus
12:13).
The road to the Tree of Life is open to whoever is able to overcome.So, as
the Lord said to the Church of Ephesus, “He who has an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give to eat from
the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” (Revelation 2:7).
But the Holy Church stands in front of the burnt offering and the sin
offering, to sing praises everyday during the Holy Pascha saying:
Christ our Saviour came and suffered for us, that He may save us through His
suffering. Let us glorify and exalt His Name according to His great mercy.”
As the people mock the Crucified, thinking of Him as weak, the Church
continues chanting the well known Holy Week praise, “To You is the Power, the
Glory, the Blessing and the Honour, Emmanuel our God and our King.”
When the people mocked the Crucified saying to Him: “If You are the Son
of God, come down from the cross and save Yourself”, the whole Church chants
the hymn “Omnogenees”: “You the only Son and the word of God the immortal
and the everlasting.” When “He was numbered with the transgressors” on the
Cross, the Church continues, during the sixth and the ninth hour, singing the
long hymn “Agios” which means, “Holy... Holy... Holy...” He carried the sins of
the whole world. The Church praises our Lord in the Trisagion hymn. The
Church knows that His holiness is unlimited. He died on the Cross for us
because He loves us.
It must be an offering without blemish, to carry the sins of all people. It
must be a Man without sin, and if He dies, He will die on behalf of the sins of
others, so He can redeem them. So the person who dies must be unlimited, to
offer an unlimited redemption, enough for all the sins, for all people, throughout
all generations.

PETER’S DENIAL, THE WEAKNESS OF HUMAN NATURE

The readings of Friday Eve of the Holy Pascha clarify an important truth:
The Lord created us knowing the weakness of human nature. Although this
human nature doesn’t know itself and most of the time can be very arrogant and
overly confident.
The Lord knows everyone’s weaknesses. He knows that His courageous,
zealous disciple, Peter, could deny Him three times in just a short time, in front
of the high priest’s servant girl and not the high priest himself, who has a higher
status. And so the human nature is before the Lord. Our Lord warned Peter
saying: “Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat, but I
have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail.” (Luke 22: 31,32). But Peter,
who was very confident in himself, not thinking of his weakness said: “Lord, I
am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” (Luke 22:33).
 I thought that perhaps our teacher St. Peter would have a different answer!
Forgive me my brethren, I am not criticising the Saint’s actions and I am not
deserving even of the dust that St. Peter walked on, it is just my opinion. When
the Lord said: “Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat”
and in the result of that: “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this
night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be
scattered.’” (Mark 14:27; Matthew 26:31). When the Lord said: “All of you will
be made to stumble” and He didn’t exclude Peter. Then St. Peter should be
humble and ask for help.
He should have knelt at the feet of Jesus, pleading: “Lord help my weakness,
give me grace to overcome my weakness, so that I don’t deny You.” He could
say it in humility, “I am sure that if Your grace leaves me, perhaps I will deny
You seven times and not just three in spite of my love towards You.” “For
without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). I am weak if I conduct myself
with my own strength. But with You I can do everything, “I can do all things
through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13).
Peter didn’t do this! He was so confident in himself, He was sure of his love
towards the Lord and his capacity to withstand. Also, he was confident that he
could endure more than the rest of the disciples!! He said, debating with the
Lord: “Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.” (Mark14:29; Matthew
26:33).
It is even more puzzling when the Lord looked at him intensely and said:
“Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows
twice, you will deny Me three times.” And Peter said all the more vehemently,
“If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” “And they all said likewise.”
(Mark 14:30,31; Matthew 26:34,35).
How easy it is for the soul which is ignorant of her true nature, to say to the
Lord: “I will lay down my life for Your sake.” (John 13:37). To say it so
confidently and the actions that follows are in complete contrast to what was
said! This soul, which is overly confident in themself needs to appreciate St.
Paul’s words: “For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do,
that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. But now, it is no longer I who do
it, but sin that dwells in me.” (Romans 7:15,17).
We can offer some advice here: This person needs to understand the
weakness of human nature and the power and tricks of the devil. We need
always place our spiritual struggle before us, and know that Satan, our enemy:
“walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8). It
is said that when Satan becomes free from his shackles, he will decieve the
nations “And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for
the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.” (Matthew 24:22). Because Satan
has power, trickery and deception, he can even change his appearance: “And no
wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.” (1
Corinthians 11: 14).
Then our first advice, is to be humble, and to be broken from inside. We are
meek and humble on the inside by the power and the strength of God’s hands.
Don’t think that you have power over sin, and over the wars of the devil: “For
she has cast down many wounded, and all who were slain by her were strong
men.” (Proverbs 7: 26). With meekness then, we realise that we can at any time
fall into sin.
In addition to humility, we need to pray continuously. So that the heart
always says: “Lord, give me grace, Lord, give me strength, protect me, I am
weaker than sin, hold me to be saved.” With humility and prayer we are vigilant.
There are some sins we don’t notice, we think they are only for the
inexperienced! We have trained ourselves in a more spiritual life, lived always
in Church, always practicing God’s gift of grace. We do not fall into these sins
easily and so we don’t watch! And because we don’t watch, we fall into the sins
of the inexperienced!
Perhaps St. Peter thought the same, that he would never deny! Peter in whom
the Lord said: “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not
revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17,19).
Peter in whom the Lord gave the keys to heaven and the power to bind or to
loose: “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in
heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew
18:18). Peter who is one of the pillars of the Church and St. Paul said of him:
“Who seemed to be pillars.” (Galatians 2:9).
Peter, the most courageous of all the disciples who followed the Lord, who
was zealous, who within seconds stretched out his hand and drew his sword
striking the servant of the high priest and cutting off his ear, was the same person
who denied Jesus. Don’t you think this is impossible and unheard of for him? If
Peter himself denied Jesus shouldn’t we be humble? Shouldn’t we say: “We are
not any stronger than others who fell and we should be watchful.
If the Lord holds us tight and helps us in some instances and we don’t fall, it
is not due to our own strength, our steadfastness and our resistance to falling.
Then we say with David in the Psalms: “If it had not been the Lord who was on
our side... Then they would have swallowed us alive, Blessed be the Lord, Who
has not given us as prey to their teeth.” (Psalm 124).
Then let us maintain humility, prayer and vigilance. We shouldn’t divide sin
into big sins, which require lots of prayer and attention and other sins which
don’t require much strength, but we fall by them. The Lord, who knows our
weak nature, when we say: “If I have to I will die with You”, it is just superficial
courage and a soft heart. But the truth of the matter is the will is not on the same
level as courage.
Yes, you have the courage and the way, but the determination doesn’t
support it. The heart may be affected if the tribulation was difficult, where your
weakness might show. Notice that the Lord said to Peter: “But I have prayed for
you, that your faith should not fail.” (Luke 22:32). Is it to that degree Lord that
our faith would “fail”? Instead, the Lord could have said: “So your faith does not
weaken , or your faith will not waiver. But “fail” is a very harsh and tough word,
especially since He said it to a strong, Great Apostle like Peter. Yes, it was a
harsh word, but it was the truth. Peter, your denial was the easiest of all and it
was because He prayed for you! Without prayer, especially for you, it is possible
that your faith will fail.
Lord, I am under Your feet. I don’t say that I am strong. I am the weakest
of the weak. I am too weak to fight even the smallest of all and I am not able to
fight anyone. Hold me tight to be saved. If one day I manage to defeat sin then I
will definitely say, “The right hand of the Lord does valiantly. The right hand of
the Lord is exalted.” (Psalm 118: 15). Without the Lord with us, they could have
swallowed us and yet we are still alive.
The humble soul is the one who passes through tribulations in peace. But the
arrogant soul, will hear the words of the Bible: “Pride goes before destruction
and a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18). The power of God protects
us and not our strength. It protects the humble. Therefore the Lord said to the
Father: “While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those
whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost.” (John 17:12).
Yes, You kept them, not because of their strength, their caution, their
wisdom, their will, their determination or their love for You (Peter loved You
too), but because You kept them. Keep us Lord as You kept them. Gives us the
power as You gave them: “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in
triumph in Christ.” (2 Corinthians 2:14). When You held Peter’s hand, he was
able to walk on water with You, but with his own power he fell. He tried, but he
fell in the water.
 If you walked on water my brethren and you didn’t fall, know very well that
the Lord was holding your hands very tightly. So keep these Hands with you,
and watch and do not depend on yourself so you don’t fall. Those who depend
on their strength and their power (like Peter) need to transform these feelings
into prayer.
Peter depended on his strength from two sides; his personality and his
comparison. Peter depended on himself by his pride: “I put myself for your
sake.” He compared himself to others saying: “Even if all are made to stumble,
yet I will not be.” (Mark 14:29). He believes himself to be more senior than the
others, more loving than them and stronger than them. But humility teaches us to
seek others first before ourselves.
The Holy Spirit allowed only the recording of Peter’s denial in the Gospels.
The Lord said: “All of you will stumble” and: “The sheep will be scattered.” He
said that Satan will: “Sift you as wheat.” Therefore, it is not only Peter’s trial,
but it is for all. The Bible only recorded Peter’s fall because he boasted over the
rest. Also, he believed that he loved the Lord more than the rest. Perhaps
because of this our Lord reproached him after the Resurrection saying: “Simon,
son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these? (John 21: 15). Pay particular
attention here, our Lord called Peter by his old name, Simon son of Jonah, and
not Peter (the name he received by Christ’s blessing, Matthew 16:18). Here, he
returned to the old man, a fisherman and not Simon Peter (John 21:3). He is not
Peter the rock because he stumbled before the servant.
But the Lord returned him back to the apostolic position by saying: “Tend
My sheep... feed My lambs.” He didn’t give account to what he had done: “But
whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in
heaven.” (Matthew 10: 33).
The Lord allowed Peter’s denial to be recorded in the Bible, so that later he
does not boast over the rest of the disciples, because he said: “If the others
stumble, I will never.” When the Lord reproached Peter saying: “Do you love
Me more than these,” he replied: “You know Lord that I love You” and he didn’t
say “more than these”. This was a lesson. Because of this lesson, when St.
Peter’s time of Martyrdom came he asked to be crucified upside down, because
his heart came first before thinking.
As if he is saying to the Lord: “I am very embarrassed from You and my
brothers, ashamed of my past confidence and strength. I thought that I was
better than my friends and this caused me to say: “If all doubt, I will never.”
Now my head is inverted before You and the others and I say I am not worthy.
 Likewise, when the Lord healed the paralysed man in front of the Beautiful
Gate, by the hand of St. Peter, and the crowds surrounded him; he said to them
together with St. John the beloved: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this?
Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had
made this man walk?” So he diverted their eyes towards the Lord Jesus and said:
“And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong.” (Acts 3:
12-16).
Yes, not with our power nor with our strength, I tried that before! When
Peter healed the paralysed man, he wasn’t just trying to be humble, but he was
convinced with all his heart that this power came from our Lord Jesus and not
from himself. I tried my own strength and power before and I didn’t benefit at
all. There is no strength other than the Lords: “The Lord is my strength and
song, and He has become my salvation.” (Psalm 118:14). Peter used his strength
and his power when the Lord Jesus Christ was struggling for our sake in the
Garden of Gethsemane.
On that night there were two other pillars of the Church with Peter; James
and John. The three of them couldn’t stay awake with the Lord even one hour,
although He asked them three times. “He found them asleep again, for their eyes
were heavy.” (Mark 14:40).
St Peter, one of the pillars of the Church, couldn’t stay awake with the Lord
for one hour in such a difficult time, when He was struggling for our sake and
His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. He
reproached Peter saying: “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one
hour?” (Mark 14:37).
Where is “our strength and our power” then? And where is the talk of “The
rock?” If the eyes of these pillars were heavy sleeping, shouldn’t we then be
humbled? Shouldn’t we then cry out to the Lord and say: “You know our weak
nature.” He definitely knows, without a doubt, as David said in the Psalms: “For
He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:14).
As He knows our weakness, He doesn’t reproach us too much, or blame us
too much. Who should be reproached or blamed? Dust or ashes? David said:
“Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no one living is
righteous.” (Psalm 143:2). He also said: “If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O
Lord, who could stand?” (Psalm 130: 3). “Yes, no one can stand, all we like
sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the
Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53: 6).
 Pity that person who tries to justify himself saying: “I... I...” We all are
sinners so there is no point in saying “I”. Believe me; no one can be saved if the
Lord were to judge us all. It is the grace of God which helps us so that “your
faith should not fail.”
The Lord Jesus Christ was strengthening, encouraging, protecting His
disciples, giving them grace and keeping them from stumbling. Therefore, in
His preaching, He told them, because He knows their weakness: Don’t pass
through to the gentiles, and do not enter the country of the Samarians. Why?
Because they will reject you and you may not be able to handle the rejection.
You can’t accept rejection; you are not at this level yet in the difficulty and
hardship of the service. Instead, go now to the stray sheep of Israel, perhaps
their service is easier.
The Lord tested them and they couldn’t stand. He went to a village of the
Samaritans, they didn’t receive Him, they closed their door in His face. His
disciples were angry and said: “Do You want us to command fire to come down
from heaven and consume them?” (Luke 9:54).
Is your personal dignity at this level, that you can’t even tolerate doors being
closed in your faces! Don’t you know that the Son of Man came to save the
world and to protect everyone from destruction?
The unusual thing here is that one of these disciples was John the Beloved,
who was filled with love or he became filled with love after he accompanied the
Lord. He and his brother were called Sons of Thunder. The Lord knows that
their nature is weak and made of dust (Psalm 103).
During Holy Week the Lord dealt with dust, the dust in which when water
was mixed with it became mud. He was patient with His enemies and all the bad
friends.
He bore the evil, injustice and the weakness of the righteous.He bore the
plots of the enemies and with the fear and denial of friends. He bore all of us. He
came not to punish us for our mistakes, but to save us, and His name shall be
called Jesus. (Matthew 1:21).
When He found His disciples weak and full of fear, He did not reproach
them, but said to them: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me.” (Acts 1:8). Then, but not
now, what I say now is, sleep and rest (Mark 14:41).
Now, you are leaving in fear, I don’t blame you for your fear. But you will
receive power from the Holy Spirit, and you will be changed. At that time you
will no longer be afraid of the Jewish leaders, but you will say: “We ought to
obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5: 29). When you receive the Holy Spirit, you
won’t be afraid and hide in the Upper Room and you won’t deny Me, but you
will be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria and to the ends of
the earth. It will not be you speaking, but your Father and you will stand before
kings and leaders for My name’s sake.
With the power that you will receive from the Holy Spirit, you will be able
to preach and teach the entire world. I will reward you on the work of this power
which is not from you, but you will be a good vessel to carry it.
See and understand well what I teach you. I will forgive your weakness and I
will reward you in all the power that you will have upon receiving the Holy
Spirit. I will forgive you of your present shortcomings and I will not remember
them. But the righteousness that you will receive from the Holy Spirit, it will
remain until the end. I will record it in the Book of Life. I will never forget your
labour of love, even a cool cup of water that you give to the poor in My name.
That is how the Lord Jesus Christ spent the week, struggling by Himself. He
carried the evil injustice, and the weakness of the righteous. Stood firm with
friends, family and His disciples, bore their denial, fear and fleeing, bore all of
this and did not leave them. Here Lord we ask You, after You saw all their
weakness. Although they were, You will serve them in Your Kingdom. You
tried them and found the denial, the doubtful, the fearful and the weak. Do they
deserve to serve You after all of this? Yes, they are My children, their sins I have
forgotten and forgiven. And their weakness I will strengthen. I will clean them,
make them holy and write their names in the Book of Life. O Lord, You are so
gentle, there is no God like You .

LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

PLACE OF DARKNESS

On this Day, Good Friday, we stand and meditate quietly to see a picture
which combines two things, The love of God and His great salvation on one
side, and the ungratefulness of mankind and their betrayal of the Lord on the
other side.
In His great love, meekness and giving, we see the Lord on this day, offering
an unusual redemption to all of mankind; a complete forgiveness of sins, even to
those who crucified Him and He made promises to the thief on the right.
In contrast to that love is the ultimate unimaginable cruelty and ugly
betrayal. Although there was such joy in heaven, because of the great salvation
which the Lord offered to humanity, at the same time there was darkness on the
whole earth!
Everything was truly dark, idols dominated the whole world. What about the
Jews who were committed to the prophesies of God, His promises and His
covenants? (Romans 3:2). What about the Holy city which worshiped God?
What about the Holy temple in which the sacrifices were offered and the prayers
of praise, psalms and hymns? What about the people in which its members boast
that they are sons of Abraham “to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the
covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom
are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came.” (Romans
9:4,5).
Unfortunately, Jerusalem, during this entire week, was the centre of betrayal
and intrigue. The Jewish Leaders and the priests planned the most dreadful crime
in the whole of history. They planned to kill the great Redeemer who came to
save them! They searched for charges to place on the Holy One, who is without
sin and the whole world had never seen anyone like Him before.
They screamed against the great, soft heart, who loved everyone. He was
good to all and they offered all their power to get rid of the Good Shepherd who
gathered all people around Him. Even the plots, the false witnesses, the envy and
the cruelty; all of this was found in the Jewish priesthood during this week.
“Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony
against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none. Even though many false
witnesses came forward, they found none.” (Matthew 26:60).
At this particular time, He did not find joy in Jerusalem, the holy city, the
city of the great King. He cried and said: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who
kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to
gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but
you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate.” (Matthew
23:37,38). Yes, the holy temple at that time was a centre of planning, plotting
and crime and it had lost its holiness. The Lord wanted for the Holy temple to
be seen on Palm Sunday, but the Jewish leaders didn’t.
The plotting started on Sunday and humanity showed its ugliness. The envy
started in their harden hearts and they said: “You see that you are accomplishing
nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!” (John 12:19).
One of the twelve disciples was tempted, the Lord Jesus’ disciple! He was a
well known one who had the money box with him. He was one of those who the
Lord chose to be His followers! He was a traitor who sold his Master and
Teacher for thirty pieces of silver. This is the price of a slave. He couldn’t sit
with Him at the table and eat from the same plate. The Bible said: “Who ate my
bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.” (Psalm 41: 9). If the enemies of the
Lord stand against Him this is normal and not a surprise; but dishonesty from
one of the group, that was outrageous.
Worst of all is to betray Him with a kiss. So, in remembrance of the kiss of
Judas, the Church prevents any form of greeting starting from the eve of
Wednesday (Tuesday night) until the end of Holy Week. It is for this reason (the
plot of Judas), the Church fasts every Wednesday.
It is absurd what humanity brings to us this week, all related to the One who
loved and gave Himself for her sake! An example of this is what the Jews did
after claiming Christ as their King on Palm Sunday. They said He was the one
who would save them from Caesar and they were focused on the destruction of
the Roman Empire, but they went back on their claim and sided with Caesar
against Jesus, saying He was against Caesar (Luke 23:2). They ran to Pilate the
Roman to save them from Jesus and to have Him killed!
Surprisingly, Pilate said to them: “Shall I crucify your King?” They
answered him saying: “We have no king, but Caesar!” (John 19:15). How much
they lied and were disgraced in order to get rid of Jesus their Saviour, whom
they called only a few days earlier their King!! How strange was their rejection
and to be written on His cross, “King of the Jews” (John 19:21). Now they
defend Caesar, who used to humiliate them and held on to him, who mixed their
blood with their sacrifices.” (Luke 13:1).
Judas was not the only one who betrayed Jesus in the crucifixion story.
Didn’t these also betray Him, who cried out saying: “Crucify Him, Crucify Him,
His blood be on us and on our children.” (Matthew 27:25). These are those who
were healed by Jesus, who had demons cast out by Jesus, who were fed by Jesus
when they were hungry. He performed so many miracles as had never been seen
before. And in the end, they forgot all that He did and freed a thief and murderer,
Barabbas, in His place! (Matthew 27:20).
They didn’t just stop at accusations and complaints, but they threw on Him
many other cruel things: they mocked Him, they treated Him with contempt,
they exposed Him, they spat on Him, they beat Him and struck Him and said:
“Prophecy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?” (Matthew 26:68).
All of these things against Jesus the meek, the gentle, who the Bible said
about Him: “He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in
the streets. A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not
quench.” (Matthew 12: 19, 20; Isaiah 42:3).
Truly, how cruel was humanity on Good Friday. These horrible actions were
done by His enemies, but what about His disciples? It is true when He said:
“Indeed the hour is coming yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each
to his own, and will leave Me alone.”(John 16:32). Who would have thought that
all eleven disciples would leave Him! But this is what happened in the Garden of
Gethsemane, during His hardest and most difficult time, for our sake. The great
pillars of His disciples, the great three, Peter, James and John, these were the
ones who Jesus told: “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here
and watch with Me.” (Matthew 26: 38). They slept and left Him alone, although
earlier He reproached them several times saying: “Could you not watch with Me
one hour”, even during this difficult hour, “Their eyes were heavy.” (Matthew
26:43).
We read a very sad verse in the Bible when He was arrested: “Then all the
disciples forsook Him and fled.” (Matthew 26: 56). Although this was
humanities position, He did not get upset because His disciples left Him and
fled, but He wanted them to leave for their safety so that they were not harmed
because of Him. Let the enemies do as they like as long as His disciples were
safe. So He said to the soldiers who came to arrest Him: “I am He. Therefore, if
you seek Me, let these go their way. That the saying might be fulfilled which He
spoke, ‘Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none’”. (John 18: 8,9).
When Jesus stood for His trial, no one stood beside Him. No one defended
Him, He was the one who protected the evil sinners. No one was courageous to
say a word of truth. No one brave enough to stand up against these false
witnesses. Jesus Christ accepted all these injustices. He didn’t defend Himself.
Isaiah prophesised about Him: “I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the
peoples no one was with Me.” (Isaiah 63:3).

It was painful that His disciples not only just left Him alone, but He said
about them: “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night.”
(Mark 14: 27). How hard this must have been on a soft, gentle heart, to doubt the
loving one, all of them, to injure Him in their house: “Those with which I was
wounded in the house of my friends.” (Zechariah 13: 6). How hard and cruel it is
to be denied by your friends! Who can tolerate such a thing? But Jesus endured
Peter’s denial 3 times on one night in front of a servant. He swore and cursed
and said: “I do not know the Man.” (Matthew 26:70-74).
Did humanity reach this level on Good Friday? The enemies plotted against
Him and delivered Him up to death. The friends who were afraid left Him and
fled. Jesus stood alone, endured the evil betrayal, bore the weakness of His
loving friends, and took pity on these, and said to God the father: “Father,
forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
The Lord Jesus Christ is the only light in the middle of this darkened
humanity. He said to those who conspired against Him: “But this is your hour,
and the power of darkness.” (Luke 22:53). The darkness was in full power and
then the grace started.

THE WORK OF GRACE:

Truly the whole thing was dark, powered by the prince of darkness (Satan).
In the midst of all this, the work of grace began to work in people. As the
apostle said: “But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” (Romans
5:20). So we find the lights appearing on that day. Truly the light was shining
and it kept on shining in spite of the prince of darkness. Some had light, but then
the darkness covered it and the light came back again to continue glowing.
This last type resembles St. Peter the Apostle. This saint was very excited,
grace worked very powerfully on this day. He followed Jesus Christ even after
He was arrested. His courage appeared when he drew his sword, struck the
servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. Truly it was the wrong way to
behave and the Lord scolded him saying: “Put your sword in its place, for all
who take the sword will perish by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52). But in spite of
all this, he had a holy zeal, was full of courage and a willingness to fulfil all that
was needed.
All these good qualities, however, quickly disappeared. He became weak,
fearful and denied the Lord Jesus three times. He cursed and swore! But the
grace of God was working in him and he repented and cried bitter tears. He
became enlightened by repentance and this radiated after receiving the Holy
Spirit.
Amongst those who had grace working in them, but it was swept away like
the wind, was Pilate. No doubt grace was working in Pilate and without a doubt
he responded initially. There was a very strong voice inside, warning him so
that he doesn’t fall.
Grace also worked in Pilate’s wife through a dream. She sent for her
husband and said to him: “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have
suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.” (Matthew 27: 19).
We notice that grace worked in Pilate when he said three times about Jesus
Christ: “I have found no fault in this Man.” (Luke 23). The Bible says: “Pilate
invited the chief priests, the leaders and the people, and said to them: ‘You have
brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having
examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning
those things of which you accuse Him; no, neither did Herod, for I sent you back
to him; and indeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. I will
therefore chastise Him and release Him.’” (Luke 23:13-16; Luke 23:4).
Then he said to them a third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have
found no reason for death in Him. Pilate, therefore, wishing to release Jesus
instead of Barabbas.” (Luke 23: 20; John 18:39). Pilate believed that the Lord
Jesus was righteous. Pilate, however, was afraid to lose his position and desired
to please the Jews, so he didn’t respond to the grace hidden as a light inside him
and instead surrendered to the devil (the power of darkness). So he betrayed the
Lord Jesus to be crucified. In an unsuccessful attempt to please his conscious, he
washed his hands with water and said: “I am innocent of the blood of this just
Person. You see to it.” (Matthew 27:24).
St. Peter reminds the Jews that Pilate wished to free Jesus; after he healed the
lame man, “Jesus whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate,
when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy One and the
Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you.” (Acts 3: 13,14). The work
of grace in Pilate gave him the awareness of Christ’s righteousness and
innocence and he wanted to free Him, but he didn’t respond to this grace for
long.
The work of grace in the person doesn’t force him to do good, it is the
person’s responsibility to accept it and act on it. Pilate is a perfect example to
demonstrate this. He responded to the work of grace for a while, but due to his
own desires, the grace left him to his own will. The grace of guidance can not
override free will.
Another example of the work of grace is Judas Iscariot. Even Judas betrayed
Christ, the grace didn’t leave him, it continued to work in him and produce the
great outcome of making him aware of what he had done wrong. His conscience
reproached him and he tried to correct the damage which he did by going to the
leaders and the elders and returning the 30 pieces of silver. He confessed in
front of them that he sinned and said: “I have sinned by betraying innocent
blood; he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed.” (Matthew
27:3-5).
Until this point the work of grace was beneficial and Judas was responding
well. Now we can see that Judas’ conscious was awake. After that, the people
plotted against Jesus to have Him put to death. They had Him bound; they led
Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor, then “Judas, His
betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful.” (Matthew 27:1-
3). Seeing that He had been condemned and the whole matter finished he
became remorseful!
His betrayal and conscious worked to deliver Jesus, but the results of the
betrayal were too much and he reproached himself and was remorseful. Then the
devil took the chance of this remorse and reproach and converted it into despair.
He went and hanged himself. So the light in which grace worked was destroyed
by the power of darkness.

THE SOULS WHICH WERE ENLIGHTENED DURING THIS TIME

Although the events of Good Friday were saturated in betrayal, plotting,
weakness, fear and denial, and although humanity appeared very cruel and was
dominated by the power of darkness; there were souls which were enlightened
and we remember these souls with pride on this day and we honour them.
We greet those who stood at the Cross with our Lord Jesus Christ. They
were firm till the last minute at the time of the crucifixion.

• The Virgin Saint Mary

• Her sister Mary the wife of Clopas
• St. John the Beloved
 • St. Mary Magdalene
Those who accompanied Jesus till the Cross did not leave Him during this
difficult time. They were not afraid of Pilate, or Herod, or Ananias and
Caiaphas, or of the soldiers, or of all the powers of revolt and the noisy crowds
saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” The Bible says: “Now there stood by the
cross of Jesus, His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and
Mary Magdalene.” (John 19:25).
These women stood beside the Cross in Christ’s suffering. It was not a time
for miracles, but rather a time when the Romans and Jews believed He was
defeated, weak and was unable to save Himself. The Jewish people believed that
they were rid of Him at last! These women, along with John the Beloved, stood
with Him with all their hearts and their love, while the people mocked Him and
nailed Him. They were with Him during all His suffering. It was the love that
united Him to them not the glory. We should also honour, the other women who
followed the Lord, the people who followed Him earlier. Those who the Bible
said of them: “And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women
who also mourned and lamented Him.” (Luke 23:27).
“But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee,
stood at a distance, watching these things.” (Luke 23:49). St. Matthew said about
these women: “And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering
to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene,
Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.”
(Matthew 27: 55,56), also mentioned in the gospel of St. Mark. (Mark 15:
40,41).
We greet all these women who showed their sincere love in every step they
took following Jesus. We greet also the women who went to the tomb carrying
the spices which they had prepared; although they were aware of the Jewish
leaders and the elders, the scribes and the Pharisees who hated Him; in contrast
to Peter who was afraid and had denied Him in front of a servant girl. They were
not afraid of all of these, but instead their deep and sincere love for Him was
demonstrated at a time when everyone else left Him.
On this day we greet Joseph of Arimathea. During this difficult time
“coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.”
(Mark 15: 43). He took Him: “Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a
clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock;
and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb.” (Matthew 27: 57-60;
Luke 23: 52,53).
Joseph of Arimathea was courageous, brave and bold. How many followed
Jesus in His glory, but in His sufferings we saw fear? It seems the crowds
followed the glory and not the person Himself. Joseph of Arimathea, however,
went to Pilate the Roman to take the body of a person who was sentenced by
Pilate who had delivered Him to death, crucified by the Jews outside the city in
order not to defile it! The leaders followed Him to destroy Him and even the
disciples fled and hid. Joseph didn’t flee. He wasn’t afraid, but instead:
“Approached Pilate and took Jesus’ body.” It is very emotional.
On this occasion we remember the beautiful words said in the Bible about
Saint Joseph. St. Luke said: “Now behold, there was a man named Joseph, a
council member, a good and just man. He had not consented to their decision
and deed. He was from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who himself was also
waiting for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 23: 50-51). St. Mark also said about
him: “A prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the Kingdom
of God.” (Mark 15: 43). And St. Matthew said: “When evening had come, there
came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a
disciple of Jesus.” (Matthew 27: 57).
The true disciples of Jesus appear here, who had genuine love in their hearts,
courage and were not afraid. The unusual thing here is that the Bible never
mentioned the name of Joseph of Arimathea before this moment, but it appeared
at the right time in order to finish a job which no one else could do.
On this day we also greet Nicodemus. Nicodemus the Pharisee and a
member of the Sanhedrin; he also came and shared with Joseph of Arimathea in
wrapping the body of Jesus. St. John said: “Nicodemus, who at first came to
Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a
hundred pounds. Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen
with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury.” (John 19: 39-42).
His position was critical because he was one of the members of the
Sanhedrin who had judged the Lord Jesus with injustice; but Nicodemus did not
side with them. Instead Nicodemus said: “I shall announce my fellowship to
Jesus, even if He is dead, crucified and counted among the sinners. I will not
leave Him during this time; I will carry all the consequence on me. Truly, what a
great soul which enlightens us until today.
If the Lord Jesus came today raising people from the dead and performing
miracles, people would shout saying, “We are His followers.” But to see the
Lord crucified as a sinner and died, and then one of the leaders comes and says:
“I am His follower,” and then takes the Body and wraps it; what a great, noble,
loving, caring and compassionate person this is? This is exactly what Joseph of
Arimathea, Nicodemus and the women did and we greet their shining, glowing
souls on this day and we also greet with them Simon of Cyrene, the man who
fell under the heavy Cross on Good Friday. Simon of Cyrene came to carry the
Cross on Jesus’ behalf. He joined with Jesus in carrying the Cross (Luke 23: 26).
Jesus before said: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I
will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). When He was in physical pain He allowed
this saint to come and comfort Him, therefore He enters in “joining His pain.”
We greet also on this day, a gentile, Saint Longenos the Centurion. This man
who was a member of the army and the rulers, whose name was well known in
the country and was appointed by the Roman Governor to guard the convicted
man who was executed; proclaimed Jesus, in front of all, and glorified God
saying: “Certainly this was a righteous Man!” (Luke 23: 47). “Truly this was the
Son of God!” (Matthew 27: 54). “Truly this Man was the Son of God!” (Mark
15: 39). Later this commander believed and became a martyr. The Church
celebrates this occasion in the Synaxarium on two days:
a- 23rd Abib: the day of his martyrdom (he was beheaded)
b- 5th Hatour: the appearance of his holy head
We greet the Commander Saint, as a soul shining its light, by grace on this
day, for he gave the glory to Jesus Christ.
We also greet him who was on the cross, the thief on the Right hand of
Jesus. He is another saint among all the saints; it is enough that the Lord said to
him: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke
23:43). The thief was attacking and reviling Jesus Christ along with his friend, as
is mentioned in the Gospels (Matthew 27:44, Mark 15:32).
Then the grace worked in him and changed his heart when he was on the
cross. When he heard his friend blaspheme Jesus, he rebuked him saying: “Do
you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we
indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done
nothing wrong.” (Luke 23: 39-41).
It wasn’t enough for him to confess his sins which were deserving of death,
reprimand his friend, defend Jesus Christ, but he confessed that Jesus Christ is
the Lord, the King and that He was able to save him and he said to Him: “Lord,
Remember me when You come into Your Kingdom.” (Luke 23:42). And so he
believed and deserved the salvation. He died with Jesus Christ and because of
this his death is considered his baptism.
Let us praise him who confessed his sins and his acceptance of the work of
grace and believed although he saw Jesus suffering, crucified with him,
blasphemed by the crowd. The Church calls this saint the blessed thief, and
praises him on Good Friday with a long tune hymn, which is called, “The Creed
of the Thief on the Right.” He is one of the luminous souls on this day which
were enlightened in paradise; although he is given the name ‘thief’ and this
name will follow him even in the commemoration of the saints; but he is a thief
who was able to steal paradise in his last moments of life.
Praise also on this day, a group which are not human. We praise nature: the
sun which darkened, the earth which shook, the tombs which cracked and the
veil of the temple which was torn in two. Nature was unsatisfied with the evil
injustice and praised Jesus in its own way. It was a brilliant thing that happened
on that day. Maybe it was because of what happened that the centurion, the thief
on the right and later Dionysius the Areopagite (Acts 17: 34) all believed. Nature
responded on this day to what Christ had said: “If these should keep silent, the
stones would immediately cry out.” (Luke 19:40).
All these are lights on Good Friday, but the true great light is the light of
Jesus and His redemption. The light of love was radiating, the light of
redemption, and it was giving, more than the sun; it was shinning especially on
that day by eliminating the forces of darkness by trampling death by death. As it
was shining with love, it was shinning too on the dead in hell through hope and
He transferred them to paradise.

JESUS IS THE KING

Some believe that the greatest picture of Jesus as King is when He entered
Jerusalem and the crowds surround Him with palm branches, crying out:
“Hosanna! Blessed is He the Son of David.” But in my opinion the greatest
picture is Christ the King on the Cross. It fulfils the spirit of the words found in
the Psalms: “The Lord reigns on a wood (the Cross).” It is because on the Cross,
He bought us with His blood (Romans 5:9), so we became His own. He is the
King. And so a spiritual Kingdom is started.
We see the King who bought us, and praise Him on this Good Friday with
the hymn (Pek Ethronos) i.e “Your Throne, O God is forever and ever, a sceptre
of righteousness is the sceptre of Your Kingdom.” Then we say: “Gird Your
sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One, With Your glory and Your majesty. Gird
the sword and be King.” (Psalm 45).
How did He reign on a wood? The Lord owned us from the beginning; He
created us and brought us from nothing. From our sins we became separated
from the Kingdom of God, and with sins death reigned over us (Romans
5:17,14), so we were under His judgement. The Lord Jesus Christ was on the
Cross and by death trampled death and saved us from the judgement of death
and gave us life and we became His. He reigned over sin and death, but Satan
also reigned and the Bible gives him many names, one of which is “The ruler of
the world.” (John 12: 31). That is the world was under sin and death.
On the Cross, the Lord Jesus overcame the kingdom of the devil and also on
the Cross, He trample death by His death and paid the price of sin. The Lord said
of the devil, “Because the ruler of this world is judged.” (John 16:11). He also
said: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” (Luke 10:18).
The Lord Jesus Christ defeated Satan in all his tricks and his wars but with
the Cross, He destroyed his kingdom. Everything the devil gained over the past
thousands of years, he lost when Jesus was on the Cross and He redeemed
mankind from their sins. Satan is frightened from the Cross because it reminds
him of his defeat. And so the sign of the Cross has power over Satan.
On the Cross, redemption is complete in which it destroyed the kingdom of
Satan. Satan knows that redemption destroyed his kingdom and the Redeemer is
the Son of God who offered unlimited redemption, which is sufficient for the
remission of sins to all generations. Therefore, Satan shouted in the voice of his
followers the famous verse: “If You are the Son of God, come down from the
cross.” (Matthew 27: 40; Mark 15:30). Come down from the Cross, so
redemption is not fulfilled and so that the spiritual Kingdom can not be
established.
Jesus was silent and He did not answer, because He is the Son of God, He
rose on the Cross and He reigned. The thief on the Cross was admitted into
Jesus’ Kingdom. He said: “Remember me O Lord when You come into Your
Kingdom.” The thief may have been thinking of the coming Kingdom, in which
He will come on a cloud, to gather the elect and take them to His Heavenly
Kingdom. Our Lord alerted the thief of a very important point. He did not have
to wait till He comes in the eternal heavenly kingdom, but there is a new
Kingdom which began today on the Cross. Instead of the word “When I come”,
He said to him “Today” you will be with Me. Rejoice that today is the Kingdom
of Jesus, you blessed thief. Gird Your sword upon Your thigh and lock Satan for
a thousand years. And Satan fell like lightning from heaven.

Jesus on the Cross is more majestic and stunning than any king with a
crown. We praise Him in the last Psalm of the sixth hour, which is especially for
the crucifixion, saying: “The Lord reigns, He is clothed with majesty.” (Psalm
92:1). He refused the kingdom which the Jews wanted for Him on Palm Sunday,
and said: “My kingdom is not of this world.” (John 18: 36). On the Cross He
established the spiritual Kingdom. When we say to Him: “A scepter of
righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom” we mean that He reigned with
righteousness and with justice, by paying the ransom of sins and with a divine
justice. Blessed is He in His Kingdom.

JESUS’ SUFFERING

The Lord’s divine nature doesn’t correspond with the sufferings, but He took
our human nature and suffered instead of us. The humble and the meek,
delivered Himself to the proud. “He gave His back to those who struck Him, and
His cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; He did not hide His face from
shame and spitting.” (Isaiah 50:6). He bore all of these things from the weak
human beings, who are made of dust. And if the grace of God leaves a person
for one second, he will be lost. He bore with the false accusations and didn’t say
a word in defence of Himself.
If He defends Himself, He will contradict His actions and become innocent,
and then we will be judged. He preferred to carry the judgement instead of us,
and become guilty in order to be justified. He was charged with death in order to
give us life. He didn’t defend Himself, but instead was incarnated to offer
Himself in order to fulfil the divine justice on behalf of our sins. Our sins don’t
need defending, they need redemption. It requires a sacrifice to die and to
redeem. It requires a pure soul to die on behalf of evil souls; a Soul to die on
behalf of other souls.
The only solution is to offer Himself as a sacrifice as a ransom for our sins.
This means that He offers His pure Holy blood to be shed for many for the
remission of sins. So the Father will smell the pleasing aroma, and say to all:
“When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” (Exodus 12:13).
Jesus’ defence is not for Himself, but He defends us. It is not by words or by
mouth, but by true work to please the divine justice, by His death on our behalf.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prepared Himself to carry the sins of the
whole world; with all its cruelty and fornication. It was a cup full of bitterness.
The Lord said: “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.” (Matthew 26:
38). He grieved over the whole of humanity, which reached the lowest level and
lost its divine image in which we were created.
Although the Lord is the source of all comfort and joy, He said: “My soul is
exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.” This is due to the terrible images of
human sin before His eyes, the hidden and the visible, with all their thoughts and
feelings; all were before Him.
How can the Holy carry all these abominations? “O My Father, if this cup
cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” (Matthew
26:42). The righteous person can not bear to look at abominations and sin, how
much more so can the complete Holy of Holies be able to see and carry it all as
though He were the unrighteous, on behalf of all, to die and stand before the
Father?
My brethren, do not think that Jesus’ sufferings were only of the body, but
they were suffering of the soul and the spirit. The suffering of the flesh was seen
by scourging, thorns, nails and crucifixion. Also they struck Him, spat on Him
and He was made to carry the cross. More so He fell underneath the cross into
the roughness of the road while He was carrying it. Not to mention He was
thirsty and more and more.
There was a different kind of suffering which is revealed here: “My soul is
exceedingly sorrowful, even to death”, the pain of sadness on the fallen
humanity, the pain that He encountered on the way from betrayal and cruelty and
from ignorant people who screamed saying: “Crucify Him, crucify Him.” Truly
they did not know what they were doing. Also there was the pain towards His
disciples, who were afraid, doubted, fled and hid and the Jewish leaders
monitored them in order to destroy them.
The Lord was in the Garden and, “He knew that His hour had come.” (John
13:1), “Knowing all things that would come upon Him.” (John 18:4), He
struggled till His sweat was drops of blood. “I have trodden the winepress
alone.” (Isaiah 63:3). Even His disciples, left Him in this critical hour; they
couldn’t stay awake for even one hour, although He asked them 3 times, “Watch
and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” (Matthew 26:41).
I want you to be awake for your sake and not for My sake. Keep awake, not
to help me in my trouble, but watch and stay awake for your sake so you don’t
enter into temptation, because my enemy is near, the darkness is creeping with
all its power and the devil wants to sift you as wheat. His aim is to knock the
Shepherd down so the sheep will go astray.
Peter, wake up and watch before the rooster crows, stay awake with the Lord
and struggle in prayer, so that you don’t enter into tribulation if you are armed
and protected. Peter, perhaps if you are awake, you will not deny! But the
“heavy eyes” don’t see the coming tribulation and don’t even prepare for it. If
one says to his teacher, “I put myself instead of You, even if it leads me to die
with You.” If you say all these things, shouldn’t you be able to stay awake even
for one hour?!
If you can’t stay awake with Him, so how can you die with Him?! Watch
yourself then and be prepared. How hard it is when it comes to the people and
they are found asleep and their eyes are heavy! So that is how the Lord suffered
for His disciples. If you can’t do it, sleep now and rest. I will stay awake for you.
I am not asleep nor resting like you, because I am awake and watching for your
salvation.
The Lord Jesus Christ carried His own body, soul, peoples suffering and the
whole of humanities sins. Of all these our sins are probably the heaviest, carried
by Jesus for us; the One who is without sin, “to be sin for us.” (2 Corinthians
5:21) “All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his
own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6).
Because of the weight of all the sins, He expressed this great pain by saying to
the Father: “Why have You forsaken Me.” He was left to bear and carry all of
humanities sin since Adam.
If repentance causes heaven to be joyful what about sin? The Bible said:
“There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents.” In contrast
there will be sadness for all who fall. Imagine then how much sadness the Lord
had to bear, for it was the sin of every person. This encompasses millions upon
millions of terrible pictures before the eyes of the Lord; to carry on our behalf.
The impurities that the Lord carried especially in our sins. Each sin, for each
one of us, was a bitter drop in a bitter cup which the Lord was obliged to drink.
Unless the Lord Himself erased all our sins with His blood, they would never
been forgiven. That means that we hurt the Lord so much as we were a part of
His agony on Good Friday.
Every time we sin, we should say to Him, against You only have I sinned
and done this evil in Your sight. If we did hurt You Lord, don’t allow us to hurt
You again, and don’t allow us to add further bitter drops in Your cup. Purge me
with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let
Your joy be with our salvation, more than Your pain from our sins.
THE WORDS OF OUR LORD JESUS ON THE
CROSS

T here were seven words which the Lord said on the Cross during His
suffering and they were all life-giving. He did not speak during the trial,
during the torture, or the mockery. He rarely spoke. He was silent. He
surrendered His own rights, His own dignity. “Love does not behave rudely,
does not seek its own.” (1Corinthians 13:5). But on the Cross He spoke, for our
sake, for our benefit and for our salvation. Each word had a goal and a meaning;
each word had its impact. We will look in depth at each word shortly; but first
some general observations:
We noticed that each word of Christ on the Cross had the element of the
giver. We wonder how it is that while He was on the Cross, with the image of
weakness and defeat He was giving. He gave forgiveness to the people who
crucified Him, He gave Paradise to the thief on the right, He gave to the Virgin
St. Mary a spiritual, caring and attentive son. He gave to the beloved St. John the
blessing of the Virgin in his house. He gave to the Father the ransom of the
divine judgement. He gave to the whole of humanity the redemption and the
remission of sins. He gave us also the contentment for the completion of
salvation. He gave to everyone. He is the one who didn’t receive anything from
anyone. He offered everything and in return all He received was the bitterness of
vinegar.
 The first and the last words on the Cross were directed to the Father. The
first word was directed to God the Father in saying: “Father, forgive them.” The
last word was directed to God the Father in saying: “Father, into Your hands I
commit My spirit.” In between the first and the last words, there were two words
also directed to the Father: one of them “My God, My God, why have You
forsaken Me” and the other “It is finished”. Although it is a general declaration it
carried a formal message to the Father; “The work that You gave Me to do, I
finished it.”
Then the majority of the words of Jesus or at least half of them were directed
to the Father; this bears tranquillity to humanity. We noticed that when He
speaks to the Father He used the words, “Father, My God.” By using the word
“Father”, He was responding to those who said: “If You are the Son of God...
come down from the Cross.” He proved that He is the Son of God, but He didn’t
come down from the Cross, instead He was raised up to the highest heaven.
By using the word “Father”, He proved His divinity and in the words “My
God” He proved His humanity. God was made manifest in the flesh (1Timothy
3:16). The word “Father” answers the Arian Heresy which denied His divinity
in the fourth Century. The word “My God” answers Eutychus, who denied
Jesus’ humanity in the fifth Century. In the first, He spoke as a Son to God, in
the second, He spoke as a Son of Man, therefore He represents the whole of
humanity. As He spoke He was not just addressing the Father only, but all of
humanity; the Saints who were represented by the Virgin St. Mary and John the
Beloved and the repentants in the thief on the right.
His words were blessing and grace. It was the time for salvation. He spoke
words of forgiveness, salvation, paradise and blessing. He did not curse or
punish anyone on the Cross. Although He suffered, He did not destroy the world,
but he saved the world.
The sequence of the words spoke by Jesus on the Cross indicates His
wisdom; others first, then Himself and Himself for the sake of others. He started
first by asking forgiveness of the people; because He is on the Cross, the Holy
Blood is actually doing the forgiveness. When He opened the door for
forgiveness, the second word came especially to open Paradise; since He paid
the ransom with His blood for forgiveness to open Paradise. We noticed also that
Jesus Christ mentioned His enemies first and then His friends. His first word is
specific to His Cross, then the thief, St. Mary the Virgin and St. John.
In His conversation with God the Father, He talked to Him as a Father then
as God. First as a loving Son, the only Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the
Father; He has declared Him (John 1:18), then as a Son of Man born in all ages.
The first three words were specifically for forgiveness and shepherding. His
last four words were declaration the redemption and its completion. The words
“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me” means that the Father left Him
to pay the ransom of redemption. They are also an expression of His
psychological pain towards God’s anger due to the sins of humanity. The words
“I am thirsty” means the physical pain of the flesh for the sake of all people.
Both words indicate that He will pay the ransom.
The words “It is finished” ensure that the ransom is paid. The words “In
Your hands I commit My spirit” means death worthy of sin, and by Him
salvation will be completed. All four words bear serenity to all humanity
regarding the redemption. We noticed that the last two words have cheers of joy
and victory. The Lord declares His redemption through suffering. And also
declares His joy by completing the redemption.
The words “It is finished” mean that everything with regards to the
redemption is finished. The Lord was happy to finish His work and He didn’t
allow anything to prevent its completion. The words “Into Your hands I commit
My spirit” have the same meaning. With these words, He defeated Satan. The
battle is finished and with His death the Lord wiped out the power of death... and
declared joy and victory.
All of this gives us the idea that while He was on the Cross, He was working
for our sake. It is not only redemption while He was on the Cross which He
stressed; He was a teacher, He proclaimed His salvation.
In His first word, He put into practice His teachings on forgiveness and
tolerance and the love of ones enemies. In the last word “In Your hands I
commit My spirit” He educates us regarding the immortality of the soul and the
transmission of the spirit after death to God. In His third word, He educates us
on the genuine care for others with sincere effort and the practical application of
the 5th commandment; He honoured His mother.
There is so much more to learn and to contemplate on these seven words.
Note that the number seven is a symbol of perfection or completion. Let us now
go deeply into each word one by one.

THE FIRST WORD:

 “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

(Luke 23:34)

O ur loving Lord Jesus, in His deep suffering on the Cross, thought of

others not Himself. He forgot His pain, His sufferings, His wounds, He
didn’t worry about the lash on His back, nor the nails in His hands and feet, the
tingling of the thorns in His forehead, nor His aching body. He put all these
aside and all that He thought about was His love towards humanity. The first
thing we need to remember is how He forgave His enemies and the people who
crucified Him. And so was the first word on the cross “Father , forgive them, for
they do not know what they do.” (Luke 23: 34).
The Lord cared for his enemies first, before his friends and before Himself.
He forgave those who persecuted Him, then forgave the thief who mocked Him
first before believing. Then he cared for His mother and then, after all of that, He
spoke of Himself. “Father, forgive them” He said these words when He was in
the deepest agony and bodily pain. He suffered so much at the hands of these
people and then He asks for their forgiveness! But He loved them far more than
despising them.
Not only did He ask for their forgiveness, but He made excuses for them!
These are the people who were not able to give excuses for themselves, and they
shouted in audacity “His blood be on us and on our children.” (Matthew 27:25).
These are the people for whom the Crucified Himself made excuses for by
saying: “Because they don’t know what they do.” How great is the Lord’s love;
He did not pour on them the curse, He did not respond to them or think
negatively about them, but His love was immensely positive. Instead He asked
for their forgiveness and excused them, defending them before the heavenly
Father, proclaiming that their sins were due to their ignorance.

As humans we blame these terrible acts of sin on envy, jealousy, hatred, the
bad influence of the Jewish leaders, denial, sins of cruelty, swearing, mocking,
attacking, scorn of the soldiers and the authorities, sin of injustice, fear, apathy
from Pilate and in addition to all this murder, torture, lying, false witness during
the trial. But our loving, crucified Lord, the gentle One never mentioned these
sins, but instead excused them as ignorance, “They don’t know what they do!”
How great and immense is Your heart Lord and full of love; it is above our
understanding.
In His forgiveness to them our Lord Jesus practically demonstrated how to
implement His commandment of loving your enemy, “Love your enemies, bless
those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who
spitefully use you.” (Matthew 5:44). Here He practised what He asked the
people to do. The Lord does not give a commandment to others without
practising it and implementing it Himself. Thus He was a role model for us in
this deep and incredibly perfect way in which He implemented this
commandment; He forgave His persecutors.
And you my blessed brothers and sisters, what is your position now from this
verse: “Father, forgive them”? I wish for you that when you hear this verse on
Good Friday and each time you remember it you say, “And me too Lord, I will
do the same; all who hated me and whom I hated, all those who wore me down
and persecute me, all who annoyed me, I will forgive them because they don’t
know what they do. And so my brethren you join with Christ in His work and
His love.
What do you benefit if the Lord forgives His enemies and you don’t? What
do you benefit if the Lord loves His enemies, while you do not love and have no
tolerance? What do you benefit? Then you are not joining with Christ in His
work and you don’t follow in His footsteps.
We know now that the Lord forgave us so that we can forgive others and
enjoy the blessings of forgiveness which come upon us when we forgive. When
we remember those who have abused us, we think deeply about these words
“Forgive them, for they don’t know what they do”, although it differs from the
Lord Jesus’ situation. He said: “Father, forgive them, because I paid the ransom
of their sins.”
Therefore, they don’t owe anything anymore. I fulfilled the divine justice; I
paid all that was owing so forgive them. Here I am, I will die for their sake. I
will die for those who crucified Me and those who love Me and when I say
“Forgive them”, I didn’t mean only these, but all who are under My cover in
sharing My blood, all sinners who have repented from Adam till the end of all
ages; forgive them, for that is why I came: “For this purpose I came to this
hour.” (John 12: 27).
 One of those who fit into the description “They don’t know what they do” is
the great St Longenos, the soldier who pierced Christ’s side with his spear. He
pierced Jesus’ side with a spear; he didn’t know what he was doing so the Lord
forgave him, and not just that, but He led him to His kingdom. This Saint
believed and preached Christianity in Cappadocia and he was martyred during
the time of Tiberius Caesar. The Lord honoured him with miracles after his
death.
There was another saint who fits the description, “They don’t know what
they do”. He was an immense advocate of torture and murder of the Christians.
If we say that Emperor Diocletian was the most vicious of all people in his
manner of torturing the Christians, there was another who assisted him in his
torture, who was a terrifying giant and there was none like him in the whole of
the Roman Empire. He was the one who the Christians were sent to for his
different forms of merciless tortures.
This man was Saint Arianous, who was the governor of Ansena. He shed the
blood of thousands and ten thousands of innocent Christians. Even he, who
savagely murdered them, did not know what he was doing. He continued in his
tortures until he drew closer to Jesus, believed and was martyred, in the name of
Jesus, on 8th Baramhat by the hands of Emperor Diocletian. His name was
written in the Synaxarium and the whole Church celebrates his feast day just like
all the other great saints.
Saul of Tarsus also was another who did not know what he was doing. He
made havoc for the Church, entering homes and dragging out men and women,
committing them to prison (Acts 8:3). He watched on as St. Steven, the first
deacon and the first Christian martyr, was being persecuted (Acts 7:58).
He was a terrifying and frightening person, but still he doesn’t know what he
is doing. He continued in this manner until the Lord appeared to him on his way
to Damascus. He found him a good vessel and He drew him to Himself and then
he believed, was baptised and his name became Paul. He preached in the name
of Jesus Christ, worked harder than the rest of the disciples, was persecuted
more than they were and received martyrdom at the hands of Emperor Nero. He
became a pillar among the Christian pillars in the Church, and a light to ignite
the lighthouse. He said: “But I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in
unbelief.” (1Timothy 1:13).
His life would have ended if not for the Lord Jesus, the soft hearted, who
said “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they do.” “Father, forgive
them”, I don’t want revenge; I don’t want to treat them the same way they
treated Me. Some of these people who crucified Me, “I am going to prepare a
place for them, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am,
there you may be also.” (John 14: 3).
The words of Jesus Christ “Father, forgive them”, does not mean He forgave
all who crucified Him without exception. Not anyone can enjoy forgiveness
whether they crucified Him or didn’t crucify Him. Forgiveness comes with two
conditions: faith and repentance along with the rest of the Lord’s
commandments. This is essential for salvation because without these two no one
can receive salvation or forgiveness.
Father, forgive them to whoever is a believer and a repentant and does good
works deserving of repentance. The Bible says: “For God so loved the world that
He gave His only begotten Son.” He loves the whole world; He gave His only
begotten Son for the sake of the whole world. Does the whole world enjoy this
salvation? Definitely not! Jesus’ salvation is given to “whoever believes in
Him”, so that the verse continues, “should not perish but have everlasting life.”
(John 3:16). This is the essence of belief, but the essence of repentance, the Lord
says: “unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:3).
These words “Forgive them”, does not apply to the Jews of today as they still
live according to the Judaic beliefs, which is: denial of Christ, denial of the
virginity of St. Mary and that Jesus of Nazareth, who was born 2000 years ago,
had gone astray and was misguided and deserved to be crucified according to
their forefathers. So they participate in the sin of their fathers, living in
agreement of what they did and they are therefore deserving of judgement. If
they, however, repent, believe and become Christians, then they will receive the
Lord’s forgiveness and so they will not be called Jews.
The Lord Jesus Christ offered His salvation to the whole world, but only to
those who take pleasure in it, that is; to repent, to believe and follow His path
and those who enjoy the work of the Holy Spirit through His sacraments.
To the believer and the repentant, the Lord offered forgiveness, but to the
stubborn the Lord Jesus said about them, “Where I am you cannot come” (John
7: 34) and also, “You will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He,
you will die in your sins.” (John 8:24). Three times in Chapter 8 in the Gospel
of St. John the Apostle, Christ says: “If you do not believe in Me, you will die in
Your sins.”.
When Christ and His disciples entered a town in Samaria its people drove
them out. His disciples, James and John asked the Lord, “Do You want us to
command fire to come down from heaven and consume them,” He turned and
rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of, for
the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” (Luke 9:
52-56). This is how He answered His disciples, but to the Father, no doubt He
said the words “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they do.” And
so He waited patiently till they knew Him, they loved Him and believed in Him
(John 4:42).
The words “Father, forgive them” carried a deep love and deep forgiveness
and to understand its depth imagine that they are for yourself. You can forgive a
person who annoys you, but to forgive a person who makes up false witness
against you, judges you with injustice, aggravates people and leaders against
you, mocks and hangs you on a cross, puts nails in your hands and feet and after
all this, from the depth of your pain and suffering, you forgive them, pray for
them and defend them; this requires a great love which is above normal
boundaries and above natural ability.
Many people came to Christianity by this verse alone, “Father, forgive
them.” For this reason, I came, this is a consolation that pleases the heart in the
midst of all the pain on the Cross, in the midst of the hurt of the mockery and all
the pain of loneliness. They are defeated by their sins, defeated by the devil who
worked in them, defeated also from low self esteem and ignorance. My feelings
towards them are feelings of sympathy and compassion. I don’t remember what
they are doing to Me, because love doesn’t seek its own (1 Corinthians 13:50),
but I look to their need for forgiveness.
Forgive them, because this makes Me happy as I fulfil My mission and
achieve My goal. Truly, why was Jesus incarnated? Isn’t it because the Father
forgives these, the reason why He took the form of a bondservant, and came in
the likeness of men (Philippians 2:7)? Isn’t it in order to forgive them? Why did
He carry our sins? Why was He crucified to the Cross? All of these, with no
doubt, to forgive them and us.
These words are the beginning of the covenant of forgiveness, not the
promise of forgiveness, but it is forgiveness by paying the ransom. It is a
declaration of the divine justice that was fulfilled on the Cross, it is a breaking of
the bonds of our sins, the evidence of the purchase of the one who paid the
ransom.
He bought us with His blood so that we could enter Paradise with Him and
enjoy the Kingdom of Heaven with Him. Wherever He is, we are too... and by
these words, He says to the Father: “What do you want from these? What were
their debts to You? Isn’t death the wage of sin? Here I am, dying on their
behalf. Here I am to free them from their debts. Free them from the death
sentence. Now all Your rights are complete and after a while I will say to you “It
is finished” so I forgive them.
The Lord Jesus Christ, with these words, proclaims victory over Satan. All of
Satan’s work is to take away people from God, away from forgiveness and to be
in the way of salvation. The way of salvation is opened to the people and the
wounded Lord is able to pour blood on the tabernacle for our sins to become
Holy. His Love triumphed over hatred, “His humility was victorious over
Satan’s pride.”
They said: “If You are the Son of God, come down from the Cross.” But He
declared that He is the Son by saying, “Father”. He is the Son and He will
remain on the Cross in order to forgive them. If He came down from the Cross
He would not be able to say “Forgive them”. Now the sacrifice of Love is able
to complete its work towards forgiveness.
All those who have died since the beginning of creation have been waiting
and hoping to hear the words “Father, forgive them”. If the Lord loved His
persecutors, the people who crucified Him and He forgave them; how much then
is His love towards His friends and followers and how much is His profound
forgiveness and rewards. These were words which amazed the soldiers at the
Cross and the thief on the right and now the second word, “Today, you will be
with Me in Paradise”.
 THE SECOND WORD

Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise

(Luke 23:43).

T his thief was the first one who spoke to the Lord on the Cross. He did not
have a righteous life, but engaged in sins till the cross. He even reviled
the Lord on the cross with the other robber (Matthew 27:44). Suddenly, his heart
changed, he believed in Christ and became a defender instead of a reviler and
turned from being a man of mockery to a man of prayer. How did he reach this
faith? And how did he change? How did he believe in the Lord at a time when
the Lord was in deep suffering and not in His glory, and with people mocking
Him instead of seeking Him for blessings and healing?
Perhaps His forgiveness of those who crucified Him, deeply affected the
thief’s hardened heart. The kindness of the Lord’s heart overcame the cruelty of
the thief, or perhaps he changed because of the countenance of the face of Jesus,
His expressions, His kindness and His gentle voice. The Lord’s look at the thief
may have softened his heart we don’t know. Perhaps the thief’s heart was ready
to change and repent and it was good soil. He found the One who could clean it,
extracting all the dirt and thorns and planting a good seed which will sprout
goodness.
This thief was able to reach the Lord with those of the eleventh or the twelfth
hour. He prayed a prayer and it was answered very quickly. Many have long
prayers, with vigilance, requests, supplications, sweating and tears, but this thief,
with only one short, concentrated word, was able to receive everything. His
prayers became a great contemplation for others, in which the whole Church
repeats several times with him.
He is the only thief which the Lord Jesus answered rapidly, although many
others did not even receive one word. Imagine the Lord not answering anyone
during His trial, torture and crucifixion, “Yet He opened not His mouth, He was
led as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He
opened not His mouth.” (Isaiah 53: 7). He didn’t answer Caiaphas the High
Priest until he put Jesus under oath by the living God (Matthew 26: 63,64). Also
Pilate the Governor marvelled greatly, “But He answered him not one word.”
(Matthew 27:14).
Many mocked and blasphemed Him yet He answered not a word. They
challenged Him by saying: “If You are the Son of God, come down from the
cross.” (Matthew 27:40). Then one of the criminals who was hanging with Him,
the thief on the left, blasphemed against Him saying: “If You are the Christ, save
Yourself and us.” But this thief on the right said: “Remember me when You
come into Your kingdom” and he received the answer very quickly, “Assuredly,
I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23: 42,43).
How strange this friendship with the Lord! He was a friend at the Cross, a
good friend!! The Lord extended this friendship to beyond the Cross, to be with
Him in Paradise! He promised him saying, “Today, you will be with ME in
Paradise”. He said “With Me”, that means, wherever the Lord is, he will be with
Him. How happy and how lucky is that thief? He wasn’t offended by the thief,
but on the contrary, He found his heart full of virtues. He had a conversation
with him on the cross and the Lord was happy to promise him and assured him
of his fate before he died.
You will be with Me in Paradise, because your heart is with Me on the earth.
You gave Me your heart, your fate on the cross and because you suffered with
Me, so you will be glorified with Me, You were crucified with Me, and suffered
with Me and you will live with Me.
How great is that meeting on the cross! So many meet with the Lord in
Church and in prayer meetings. Others meet with Him in their locked rooms
during the time of prayer. But to be able to meet with Him at the time of His
crucifixion on the Cross, truly this is amazing! Did he ever think that one day he
would repent and see the Lord this way?
The Kingdom of God does not come with observation, “The kingdom of God
does not come with observation.” (Luke 17: 20). We don’t know when grace
works in a person and how. The spirit, as the Lord said is like, “The wind blows
where it wishes, so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3: 8). This thief
lived all his life in sin and sin was attached to him until the cross when he
blasphemed the Lord with his friend. Does this mean that grace was far from
him? Or that the Lord forgot about him till the end? No, of course not, the Lord
is merciful. He was waiting until the right time to work in him. It was at this
point that He found him and He saved him, just a few moments from death.
We don’t know who the elect are. Who would have imagined that this thief
would be one of them! Who would have thought that within an hour he would
receive what others have struggled to gain for tens of years? We are judging
according to outer appearances, criticise some and lament others while they may
be better off then we are. We say truly that this thief entered paradise with merit
and deserving of it.
He was very unusual, truly unusual in all what he did. He confessed Jesus as
the Lord, and he said, “Remember me O Lord.” He confessed that He is a King
by saying: “When You come into Your Kingdom.” He confessed that He is a
Saviour, able to take him to paradise. On the cross, he declared all his private
sins and that he was deserving of death, and he scolded the other thief saying:
“We indeed justly deserve, for we receive the due reward of our deeds.” He
rebuked his friend because he blasphemed Jesus Christ saying: “Do you not even
fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? But this Man has done
nothing wrong.” (Luke 23: 40-41). And so He confessed Jesus’ righteousness
and that He was free from sin and so He should not be crucified for His own sin,
but it is due to the sins of others that He is crucified.
It is amazing that of all the thousands of people who should defend Jesus, it
was the thief on the cross! It was not one of the twelve disciples or even the
seventy apostles, He was not defended by someone who had been healed by Him
or raised from the dead. No one defended Him, He went alone.
He didn’t allow anyone to say bad things about Jesus, he even rebuked his
friend. Who would have thought of all His disciples and the believers that it
would be the thief on the right that would be the only one to defend Him? Truly,
as the Lord said: “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones.”
(Matthew 18: 10).
Don’t think my brother that you are something, or you are better than
someone else. Don’t think that you are like one of the Apostles or one of those
close to the Lord. All were silent, no one defended Jesus and the only one was
the robber that no one would imagine and no one had heard of. The best thing
about the thief, other than defending Jesus, was he looked for his eternity.
He was interested in his eternal fate. He wasn’t concerned about his bodily
pains, but about his fate after death. He shouted and asked for mercy and sought
forgiveness, “Remember me O Lord.” Remember me according to Your mercy
and not according to our sins. David the Prophet said: “Remember, O Lord,
Your tender mercies and Your loving kindnesses, for they are from of old. Do
not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; according to Your
mercy remember me, for Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.” (Psalm 25: 6,7).
“Remember me,” and do not include me amongst those whom You said: “I do
not know you.”
It was a memorable hour in my life when I was beside You on the cross. It
was the most joyful hour of my life, enjoying Your suffering and I can boast in
You, “I have been crucified with Christ.” (Galatians 2:20); therefore remember
me. I was crucified beside You, I am a shame for You, but I am proud eternally.
It was enough for me, these joyful hours and I wanted to invest in them.
The words “Remember me” which I said to You mean that I knew You
before and they also mean that I am well known to You. My name is written in
Your book and is carved on Your palms. “He was numbered with the
transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:12), and crucified with sinners, it was counted shame
to You, but it was a blessing and grace for me.
How sweet it is to be beside You. You made me forget all my pains, I don’t
feel them, but I feel Your spirit permeating inside my whole body, cleansing and
purifying me and making me a different person. You are like a ray of sun which,
when it stands beside a dirty body makes it pure and clean. I am happy with
Your friendship, I wished I knew You before, so Remember me.
Let everyone cry with the thief saying, “Remember me, O Lord.” Remember
that you have a son in a far country, a prodigal slave. Remember me in my
weakness, in my downfall, waiting for You to raise me up. Remember me
because I am one of those who has no one to remember them, “I have no man to
put me into the pool.” (John 5:7).
The story of the thief on the right gives us something to contemplate on; that
the time of death is different for each one of us. We shouldn’t say that we will
remember the Lord and repent at the last hour of our life, just as the thief did.
No, the other thief was at his last hour too, but the Bible says that he
blasphemed Him and He did not fear God and eternal life was not important to
him. He was only interested in getting rid of the cross (Luke 23: 39), in order to
return to the world to enjoy his previous life and that he deserved to be rebuked
by his friend. At the time of death, rather then repenting, he exceeded his
number of sins with cruelty of heart! This thief on the left was close to Christ in
body, he was beside Him on the cross, but his heart was far away, even at the
time of death!! This time of death was not able to remind him of repentance or
even to prepare him at all.
He wasn’t affected by Christ’s love in forgiving those who crucified Him, he
wasn’t even jealous of the promise that his friend received of entering Paradise,
he didn’t believe after he saw the earth quake, the rocks split and the darkness
covering the whole land, he was busy not thinking of his eternity even at the last
hour of his death. He still loved the world, he didn’t want Jesus or His
friendship, he just wanted to use Him as a way of getting down from the cross.
This is a very potent lesson to those who postpone their repentance believing
that they need only repent in their last hour of life, in which they know not even
the time!! Many are in the situation of the thief on the left, blaspheming and
loving the world!!! Whoever is a slave to a habit will find it hard to break, even
if his hands and feet are nailed and only have a few minutes to live! Unless one
cooperates with the work of grace in their heart at the time of death, then they
will also sin at the last hour.
Many people cry with heavy tears at the time of death, not crying because of
their sins, but because death will prevent them from the pleasures of life! They
cry because death will separate them from their friends and from their pleasures.
The world is still in their heart even at the time of death. Don’t think that death
brings submission to the person!!! Not to all people. The thief on the right
benefited from this last hour of his death, but the thief on the left did not. While
the thief on the left blasphemed and mocked, the other was praying and asking
for supplications saying: “Remember me when You come into Your Kingdom.”
The Lord did not abandon this repentant thief, but his request was speedily
answered more than he would have expected. In the thief’s last hour of life, he
didn’t loose hope in God’s mercy. The Lord also amplified his hope and
confirmed it by saying to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with
Me in Paradise.” You are now with Me. After a little moment, you will be with
Me. As you were with Me in suffering and pain, you will be with Me “In
paradise”, you are now suffering, but over there you will have comfort.
The Lord says “In Paradise”, he corrected the thief who said “In Your
Kingdom” but He corrected him in a very gentle and soft way. The thief said,
“Remember me O Lord when You come into Your Kingdom.” That is good, he
believed that Jesus has a spiritual Kingdom in heaven, and His Kingdom was not
of this world, as the worldly people asked for. The heavenly Kingdom is where
people will enter after the general resurrection, but straight after death they go to
a waiting place for the righteous people, which is called “Paradise”. So the Lord
didn’t say to the thief, “Today you will be in My Kingdom” but He said “in
Paradise”. The Lord initiated His work as a good teacher even on the Cross,
with His usual soft and gentle way of teaching, explaining the mistakes of the
people without telling them that they are wrong or sinful.
You will be with Me in Paradise, as a reassurance. You will come with Me
on the cloud in the second coming, and you will be with Me on my right side on
the day of judgement, as you are now on My right side on the cross which is a
symbol of the righteous, and you will be with Me in My kingdom and you will
be with Me in the eternal life which is never ending. I will be with you all the
days till the end of ages.
Perhaps this promise made the thief wait happily to die, to be with Christ,
which would be much better. Here we say how sweet is death?! “O Death,
where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55). Death is frightening to the wicked,
but is joyful to those who die for hope, to whom received the promises, and saw
the crowns, and calmed their fate after death and now they hear what Jesus said:
“Today you will be with Me in paradise.”
By saying, “you will be with Me in paradise”, He didn’t announce to the
thief his mistake and his sins, but rather He announced the opening of the doors
of Paradise for the first time since the sin of Adam. The thief was the first one
Christ announced this truth. Paradise had been closed from this time and no one
deserved to enter because of sin. These words which the Lord spoke are said
during every farewell of a soul departing from this world. We say in the funeral
prayers, “Open to him/her the door of Paradise as you did for the thief.”
The remission of sins which the thief received was a divine work and the
opening of Paradise was a divine work too. The Lord did two things on the Cross
which reveals His divinity. He told the thief on the right, with all Power, “Today
you will be with Me.”
Now He the Righteous Judge; it is His right to issue a pardon for the eternity
of a person. He made the judgment that the thief would enter into Paradise on
that very day. No human being has this power! It is a divine power. Likewise,
the command to open Paradise is one no one has the power to do, neither the
leaders nor the prophets. Who did open the door of paradise or who was able to
enter it? It is a divine action; it is also a declaration that the shedding of His
blood is enough to open the door of Paradise.
Truly, He is the owner of this authority, “ He who opens and no one shuts,
and shuts and no one opens.” (Revelation 3: 7; Isaiah 22:22). He holds the keys
of Hades and of Death (Revelation 1:18). He holds the keys of heaven and of
earth. He gave this power as a gift to His disciples; His agents on earth. He
opened to the wise virgins and the foolish virgins pleaded with Him saying,
“Lord, Lord, open for us.” (Matthew 25:11). But He does not open His Paradise
unless the heart was opened to Him before, like the thief on the right who
deserved Christ saying to him: “Today, you will be in Paradise with Me.”
The words “Today, you will be with Me” is a definite indicator that there is
no Purgatory as some believe. The thief enters paradise on the same day of his
death, without passing through Purgatory even for one hour!! Also the words
“Today you will be with Me”, refutes the idea that the soul of the dead person
still comes into the place where it lived until the third day until the Church prays
on the third day for the soul to leave the house! Did the soul of the thief stay
until the third day or did it go to Paradise on the same day?! The Lord explains
the fate of the person after death, and how Paradise is a waiting place for the
righteous, and how they will be there with Jesus and enjoy His presence.
Today you will be with “Me”, it is an enjoyable time to be with the Lord.
The presence of the Lord is more beautiful than Paradise, it is the most joyful
aspect of Paradise and the presence of the Lord is Paradise itself; it is the true
Paradise to be with Him. This is what the Lord said and promised, “I will come
again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John
14: 3). How beautiful is this promise, which is our dream to reach.
All of our spiritual life is to “Be with the Lord.” With this promise the Lord
pleased the heart of the thief; He didn’t care about His own pain on the Cross
and spoke to him in a calm and comforting manner. The Lord totally forgot
about His pain, He forgot the nails and the thorns, the wounds and His aching
body and instead He listened to the thief, talked to him and calmed and
comforted him saying: “Love does not seek its own.” (1 Corinthians 13:5) but
cares for others (1Corinthians 10:24).
There are so many times people come with their problems and agony to us
for help, we got annoyed and say to them “Ok my brother, later, I am busy now,
wait for a while.” But the Lord Jesus, even on the Cross, even in His pain, He
didn’t say these words, but He gave His attention to the thief. He answered what
he asked for, and He made him happy. The Lord Jesus shows us although He is
on the Cross, He helped others. By this He showed us the importance of serving
individuals as opposed to serving groups. In addition to the great redemption for
the whole world, given to whoever believes in Him and His forgiveness on the
Cross, there was an individual service with the thief, because one person, to
Jesus, is not lost among the group. He is still important and worthy in the eyes of
the Lord.
Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ, in His entire earthy mission, worked in two
fields: with individuals and with groups. The group work was among the crowd
of five thousand who surrounded Him during His Sermon on the Mount and He
fed them with five loaves and two fish. The individual work was among the
twelve disciples, with Peter, James and John, with Nicodemus, in the house of
Mary and Martha and with the Samaritan woman near the well. In the midst of
His pain He didn’t leave the individuals in order to work with the group. He
never forgot the individual. He goes after the lost sheep while He is busy with
the other ninety nine. He also saved the thief on the right while He was in the
middle of taking care of the salvation of the rest of the world.

THE THIRD WORD

“Behold your son... Behold your mother”

(John 19:26, 27).

C aring for others was the most important issue for the Lord whilst on the
Cross. Just as He cared for those who crucified Him by saying, “Father, forgive
them” and He cared for the thief on the right by promising him Paradise,
“Today, you will be with Me in Paradise,” He cared also for His mother and
promised her John the Beloved to care for her.
He promised the virgin to His celibate disciple. He promised His mother who
often carried Him on her chest, to His disciple the beloved who often rested on
His chest. He promised His mother who stood beside Him on the Cross, to the
only disciple who followed Him until the Cross. He promised His mother who
carried Him in her womb, to His disciple who later wrote a Gospel to emphasise
His divinity. He said to her: “Behold your son” and He said to him, “Behold
your mother.” “And from that time, the disciple took her to his house.” (John 19:
27).
Therefore, the Lord gave us an example of caring for our family members
and our relatives in the flesh, especially the mother. He cared for the one who
carried Him nine months. He cared for His mother and He lived His life giving
her honour (Luke 2:51).
Usually people care for a person who is suffering, but Jesus in His pain and
suffering, cares for others. Living a life of devotion, serving the Lord and
keeping busy serving the big family, the Church, should be no excuse for you to
neglect your family (1Timothy 5:8), or exempt you from honouring your parents
and looking after your mother.
There was a link between Jesus Christ and His mother St. Mary. Her pure
face was the first thing He saw when He came by flesh to the world and it was
the last face He saw before His soul departed into the hands of the Father. It is
the heart of the loving mother who always sought Him and followed Him
wherever He went and was attached to Him in His suffering with love, saying to
Him the impressive words, “But the world rejoices at the acceptance of
salvation, while my heart burns when I look at your crucifixion, which You
endured for the sake of all, O My Son and My God.”
It is also the heart of the Son who cares for the mother in His severe pain and
sufferings. And so the Lord Jesus Christ has to care for His mother during His
sufferings by saying words of comfort to her even though a sword will pierce
through her own soul (Luke 2:35). He shall comfort her during His sufferings
by giving her a son suitable to look after her. He comforted her in 3 ways: by
talking to her, by caring for her, by arranging her matters and giving her a
spiritual son to comfort her and give her company.
 The conversation on the Cross between the Lord and His mother is different
from the conversation between Him and the thief on the right. The thief started
first, but with Saint Mary, the Lord started first. She is His mother and He
doesn’t need to wait until she begins. He doesn’t wait for her to complain, she
never complained. St. Mary was always silent and never talked, even when she
was next to the Cross. No one saw her crying or making even a sound, but she
was quiet and strong in her sufferings. The Lord understood her silence and He
heard it. He knows her feelings and her emotions. He talked to her without her
asking Him. She obeyed His words and went with the beloved disciple to his
house.
St. Mary was a blessing to John, blessing to his house, given from Jesus as a
reward for His love. The disciple took her as a precious jewel, more expensive
than the whole world. She stayed in his house as a costly deposit until she
departed. It was said that John the disciple didn’t leave Jerusalem until she
departed. If John was able to reach such a level of love for the Lord to follow
Him till the Cross and stay there, then he should receive a reward for that, here
and in eternity. On earth he received the blessings of the Virgin in his house.
Whoever followed Jesus benefited from His blessings and His grace.
The Virgin took John as her son; the Lord gave her the most gentle, loving,
sincere and compassionate disciple. John the Beloved was the disciple which
spoke the most about love. He is the one who said: “God is love.” (1 John
4:16). He is the disciple, “who lent on Jesus’ bosom”, He was loved by Jesus.
He was the one who offered to St. Mary the closest picture of her Son.
It appeared that Jesus owned nothing on the Cross, even His clothes, they
took it and divided it between them. But He owned John and He gave him His
mother. John who offered His heart to Jesus, He took it and gave it as a gift to
His mother, and so the Lord gathered all His beloved together. He also cared for
His mother emotionally and materially. Who was then looking after who: the
Virgin or John? The Virgin was in John’s house, to fill him with grace and
blessing and to grant him knowledge about Jesus, deeper and wider than the rest
who knew Him.
This is a strong evidence to prove that St. Mary had no other children as the
Protestants say. Because, if she had children, then they would ask for her and
get her blessing by her presence in their home instead of a stranger. The Virgin
was lonely at that time: she had no children, no Joseph the carpenter who had
departed earlier, so He promised her to one of His disciples. The word “He is
your son” gives us an idea about the spiritual sonship and also to honour the
Virgin by all the disciples.

THE FOURTH WORD

“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

(Matthew 27:46).

T hese words don’t mean His divinity departed from His humanity or that
the Father left the Son. It does not mean separation, but it means that the
Father left Him for suffering. His divinity never departed His humanity not even
a single moment or a twinkle of an eye. We believe in this and we pray it in the
Holy Liturgy.
His redemption is unlimited, giving unlimited salvation, required to forgive
all sins in all ages. Then there is no separation between His humanity and His
divinity. His relationship with the Father: He didn’t leave Him, “Believe Me that
I am in the Father and the Father in Me.” (John 14: 11).
Then what do these words mean “Why have You forsaken Me”? They do not
mean separation, but it means: You left Me for the suffering. You left Me to bear
the divine anger over sins. This is from the side of the soul, but from the flesh
side, so You left Me to feel the pain, the suffering. It would have been easy for
Him to not feel the pain with His Divine power, if so it would have meant that
the crucifixion was just a picture and not true suffering and so He would not
have paid the ransom of sin and there would have been no redemption and no
salvation.
But the Father left the Son to suffer, the Son accepted it and He suffered and
that is why he came, it is leaving by an agreement. He left Him by love, “Yet it
pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief.”(Isaiah 53:10). Here is
an example to help you understand better. Imagine a father taking his son for an
operation. The father holds his son’s hand and the doctor starts his work. The
child screams calling his father saying, “Why have you left me?” Actually the
father didn’t leave his child, but was holding him tightly, although he left him
for the pain and the suffering. He left him with love. This is a type of leaving
without separation. This is just an example to make it easier to understand
although there is a big difference between the two.
The words “Left Me” means that the suffering of the crucifixion was a real
pain, and pain of the divine anger towards sins is so extensive. During this time
of leaving, all the suffering and pain is concentrated and augmented, as well as,
the pain for salvation. Here Jesus stood as a burnt offering and a sacrifice for sin,
ignited by the divine fire until the offering becomes ashes in order to complete
God’s justice.
Many have interpreted these words saying that the Lord only mentioned
these words to remind the Jews of Psalm 22 which started with these words.
“You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew
22:29), although these books, as the Lord says “are they which testify of Me”
(John 5:39). So the Lord gave them this particular Psalm to remind them,
because it used to be known not by its number ,but by saying the first few words
of it just as the monks do now a days.
What about this Psalm then? In this Psalm, “They pierced My hands and My
feet; I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. They divided My
garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.” (Psalm 22:16-18). It
was obvious that David, who wrote this Psalm, didn’t have his hands or feet
pierced, nor did anyone divide his garments or cast lots on his clothing. But this
Psalm was inspired by prophecies about Jesus as Jesus said to them on the Cross:
“Go, read the Psalm ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’”, and see
what has been said about Me. You will see that they were saying about Me also:
“A reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see Me ridicule
Me; they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, ‘He trusted in the Lord,
let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!’” (Psalm
22: 6-8).
We don’t have the time to talk about the whole Psalm; it is a great image of
the immense suffering of Jesus on the Cross. They face Him, “He opened their
understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.” (Luke 24; 45). All
that was written in the Psalms has been achieved. Therefore, He said in a little
while “It is finished”. But why didn’t He say “It is finished” straight after “My
God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” because there was another word in
the Psalms which wasn’t yet fulfilled and that was, “My strength is dried up like
a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws” (verse 15). This will also be
fulfilled in a little while when He says, “I am thirsty” and then He says afterward
“It is finished.”
Why did Jesus say “My God, My God”? He said it on behalf of the whole of
humanity. He said it because He made Himself of no reputation, and took upon
Himself the “form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men”
(Philippians 2:7,8). He said it because, “He humbled Himself, and became
obedient unto death even the death of the Cross.” (Philippians 2: 9). He spoke
now as a son of man, He took on the human nature, He took his place, all the
sins are put on Him, and He is paying the ransom on behalf of all of mankind.
Here we see all humanity speak on His mouth, because all the sins of the
people are on Him. Sin is separation from God and it is the wrath of God. So the
whole of humanity cries out saying: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken
Me?” The Lord Jesus Christ represented the whole of humanity in several things
if not all!
He represented us in fasting, on our behalf: Adam and Eve were not able to
fast from the fruit which was prohibited; they cut it and ate it. He began His life
by fasting from even the permitted food. He wasn’t in need of fasting, but He
fasted 40 days on our behalf as we chant in the praises at Church.
He represented us in the obedience to the Law: “The Lord looks down from
heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who
seek God. They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there
is none who does good, no, not one.” (Psalm 14:2,3).
Jesus came, and on behalf of all humanity in the obedience to the Father and
to the law, “To fulfil all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15) as when He was being
baptised, and so He represented humanity by giving Himself a clean, pure life
acceptable before the Father.
He also represented us in death and in paying the ransom of sins, “For He
made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us.” (2 Corinthians 5:21). He bore all
the curses of the law, He bore also the wrath of God onto the sinner with all
bitterness. So He represents the whole of humanity by saying, “My God , My
God why have You forsaken Me.”
He who helped everyone and never left anyone, they all deserted Him, even
the Father. And so He paid the ransom for sin, and carried the wrath. He
received the victory after He went through the suffering alone in flesh and soul.
In order to be careful, He gave us a lesson from what He has gone through.
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise.” (Ephesians
5: 15). Be fearful to leave God otherwise He will leave us. The son Himself left,
the pain of leaving was harsh. In all of this let us thank the Lord Jesus Christ and
praise Him for all His love and His giving.
The words “Why have you forsaken Me” give us much comfort each time
we experience tribulation. If God the Father allowed His Son to experience the
pain, suffering and sadness, why do we then complain about the pain in which
God the Father allows? The Father was pleased to allow His only Son to be
crushed with sadness: “He is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”
(Matthew 3: 17). We haven’t been exposed to any of these pains although we
deserve it, so why then do we complain about our tribulations?
The Son drank from the cup which was given by the Father; He said to Him:
“According to Your will”, He obeyed till death, the death of the Cross in all
submissiveness. The words “Why have You forsaken Me”, wasn’t a type of
protest or complaint, but a recording of His pain, proving its truth and
proclaiming that the salvation process is on its way to completion.
 THE FIFTH WORD

“I Thirst”

(John 19: 28).

B ecause of my sins, my brethren and because of your sins the mouth of our
crucified Lord was dry: “My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My
tongue clings to My jaws.” (Psalm 22:15). His body’s water drained and bled
from many causes. Some was due to the heavy sweat, falling like great drops of
blood while He struggled for our sake in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke
22:44). The sweat which fell down to the ground while carrying the Cross, and
during the scorching hot weather, in the middle of the day and also the pain and
the exhaustion of the trial, the beatings and the hitting, all contributed to His
condition.
In addition to all of this, the great loss of blood is due to the crown of thorns
and the nails. So His tongue clings to His jaws, He bears it all until He has no
strength and says: “I am Thirsty.” He proclaimed that the fire started to eat up
the burnt sacrifice. He declared that the Divine Justice took its part, and the
divinity, His covenant, did not interfere to reduce the pain of His humanity. It
was a complete pain with the acceptable aroma that pleased the Father, and the
Son expressed it by the words “I am thirsty”. Let Eutychus be ashamed because
he took away from the Lord’s humanity. If His humanity was not complete, He
would not say “I am thirsty”.
It is strange that the fountain of water is thirsty. He who grants the
everlasting water to all thirsty people (John 4:14). He who said to the Samaritan
woman: “But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.
But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water
springing up into everlasting life.”
What did He mean by the words “I am thirsty”? No doubt, He was truly
thirsty according to the flesh, but from the spiritual side He was thirsty for the
salvation of the whole world. He was thirsty for the words “It is finished” which
He will say later. As He said to the Samaritan woman “Give Me a drink”, He
didn’t mean normal water, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again.”
(John 4:13), He didn’t take the water from her, but He was thirsty for her
salvation and for all of the city of Samaria.
He didn’t say “I am thirsty” in order to take water from people for He knew
that they would offer Him vinegar! (Matthew 27:48). He knew this by His
divinity that reveals the unknown and the future. He knew that also from the
prophecy which says: “For my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” (Psalm
69:21).
He didn’t say “I am Thirsty” for them to give Him water, the Lord doesn’t
need help from human beings. Also He meant to drink the cup of suffering until
the end. They gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink, to anaesthetise
Him to reduce His pain, “But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.”
(Matthew 27:34).
The Lord wanted to complete the prophecies about Him and to declare that
the ransom is paid for, to reassure the people. The sinful human race mocked
Him although He paid for its salvation. They gave Him vinegar for His thirst to
increase the pain. We do this to Him also. Every time He asks to drink for our
salvation, from the fruit of His vineyard which passes through our veins, do we
offer Him vinegar of our sin, and our negligence?! My brother, put down this rod
which you lifted up to Jesus’ mouth, and take away this sponge filled with
vinegar. You have wounded the One who loves you; do good deeds worth of
repentance.
If you heard the Lord saying “I am thirsty”, say to Him, “It is me Lord who
dried Your mouth with my sins, I wish to give you my tears instead. I wish for
You to hit this hard rock of mine, which is my heart, and blow water out of it so
that it may flow.
 THE SIXTH WORD

“It is finished.”

(John 19: 30)

J esus our Lord, the Righteous and complete in all things, the holy One who
is without sin, who lived on earth a full life who pleased God the Father,
He Himself fulfiled all this in His preaching, in His mission and in His service.
He managed to fulfil His mission.
“I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” (John 17:4). He
was able to complete all righteousness, fulfil all the law of righteousness, and
cry out to all the people, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46).
He also fulfils the prophecies regarding Himself and the related ones to the
great redemption in a few years, around three years and a few months. He
managed to do the work that nobody else could do before. He preached the
annunciation of the Kingdom of God, He said to the Father, “I have glorified
You on earth, I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given
Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have
kept Your word. For I have given to them the words which You have given Me;
and they have received them, and all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I
am glorified in them. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them
is lost, I have given them Your word, I know them.” (John 17).
So He fulfilled the prophecies, the obedience, the righteousness, the mission,
the preaching, the deeds and the love. “Having loved His own who were in the
world, He loved them to the end.” (John 13:1). Then He was on the Cross to
finish the work of sacrifice, the redemption and the salvation, to fulfil the
reconciliation in which He reconciled heaven with earth.
On this Altar, the Lord put all our sins. He put all the sins of the people from
all generations, from Adam till the end of ages, which includes all weakness,
fornication, betrayal, adultery, lying, stealing, murdering, envy and arrogance;
till the Son cried out loudly saying: “It is finished”. Now we put our hands on
this pure sacrifice and repent every day with new sins adding to His sufferings
and pain in order for Him to delete them with His honoured blood.
He carried all the sins on His shoulders. He said about this, “I gave My back
to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I
did not hide My face from shame and spitting.” (Isaiah 50:6). He said also: “All
those who see Me ridicule Me; a reproach of men, and despised by the people.”
(Psalm 22: 7,6). He was attacked by hitting, insults, beating, mocking,
contempt, blasphemy and sarcasm.
They spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him saying:
“Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?” (Matthew 26: 67,68).
“They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him, twisted a crown of thorns,
they crucified Him between two robbers to fulfil the prophecy which is written
‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree,’” (Galatians 3:13, Deuteronomy
21:23) and so He became “a curse for our sake”. On the tree, they filled Him
with insults and mockery, He looked at all of these and said: “It is finished.”
As He fulfilled His curse, His sufferings were complete, as well as the wrath
and the ransom and He offered Himself as a sacrifice. The fire burnt the burnt
offering until it became ashes (Leviticus 6:10). When the Lord saw that the work
of redemption and salvation was finished and gave the divine judge all that He
asked for, He cried out saying: “It is finished.”
 The salvation for all is finished; the redemption is complete, able now for the
woman’s Descendant to crush the head of the serpent. The Lord was able to
destroy the kingdom of Satan and, as psalm 93 says, “The Lord reigns.” Now
the redemption is completed in full, enough for all. Now the veil is torn in two,
the way to the holy of the holies is open, reconciliation is finished, the hope for
the sleeping Saints who departed. The only thing left is for the Lord God to ride
prosperously “Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One, With Your
glory and Your majesty.” (Psalm 45:3). The Lord says with joy: “It is finished.”
The words “It is finished” are filled with cheers of joy and victory. The Lord
cheers those who struggle and reign. He was able to buy us with a ransom, build
a spiritual foundation, destroy Satan’s kingdom in which he used to be called,
“the ruler of the world.” (John 14:30).
Are you able my brother to succeed like the Lord? Are you able to be on the
cross and crush the head of the serpent? Are you able to see your works in which
the Lord gave you and you say “It is finished”? I wish that you will always put
these beautiful words before you, “The work that You gave me to do, I finished
it.” Always put the image of Jesus, who finished His work, in front of you.

THE SEVENTH WORD

“Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit”

 (Luke 23:46)

T he Lord finished His work on the Cross. He also finished the work before
the Cross. There is still extra work left to do after He submits His Spirit
on the Cross. “He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” (Ephesians 4: 8).
He needed to go down to Hades and preach to the dead for hope and to move
these sleeping saints, who departed, from Hades to Paradise thereby opening the
doors of Paradise which were closed since the first sin.
Once he finished the work of redemption, there was no time to delay. He
needed to get out of the flesh to continue the salvation necessary for those who
departed too. He yielded up His Spirit in the Hands of the Father, so He will be
able to do the work that is required to be done after death. So He cried out
loudly, “Father, in Your hands I commit My spirit.”
In Your hands I committed it and in no other hands, but Yours, “The ruler of
the world is coming and he has nothing in Me.” (John 14:30), “I came forth from
the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the
Father.” (John 16:28).
How much the ruler of this world needs this soul; to capture like he did with
other souls in prison? But he wasn’t able to take this special soul in which the
Father will take in His Hands, this soul no one else is able to take. “I have power
to lay it down; I have power to take it again.” (John 10: 18). Lazarus the beggar
died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom (Luke 16:22). The soul
of St. Mary was carried by Jesus, but the soul of Jesus was carried by the Lord
God the father.
The Apostle Matthew said that Jesus, “Cried out with a loud voice.”
(Matthew 27:50), and yielded up His spirit. So what do we understand from this
word, “Cried out with a loud voice”?
There was no doubt He was very exhausted and worn out in the flesh. After
all this pain, He carried the Cross even though He fell underneath it, after the
whipping, spitting and beating, after the blood and the water flowed from His
flesh, after His mouth dried and He said: “I am thirsty.” How could He cry with
a loud voice with His tongue clinging to His jaws?!
His crying out at the time of death “with a loud voice” indicates that He had
another power over the power of humanity; which is His Divinity. His crying
with a loud voice indicates His victory. With death, He trampled and conquered
death; this loud voice threatened and conquered Satan. Truly, in Christ’s death
there is victory; the victory of the redeemer who is able to save the whole world
and crush the head of the serpent.
These words “In Your hands I commit My spirit” assures us and show us
the immortality of the spirit. It doesn’t end in death. Death is like a passing over
or transition from life to life. The most important matter is where the spirit will
end up after its death? If one is assured of this point, then he will accept death
with joy and happiness, saying I am delighted to leave.
And you, my brother: Are you calmed about the fate of your spirit? Will you
commit it into the hands of Jesus, and the angels will carry it like Lazarus’ spirit,
or will Satan capture it and say: “This is mine, it is from my army, it was living
under my obedience and so I will take it to be with me.” Oh what a terrifying
thing!!! So calm yourself my brother, where will your spirit go? Also, put this
beautiful hymn before you: “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my
end be like his!” (Numbers 23:10).
Commit yourself into His hands from now on. Stay away from all evil
things and be close to the Lord. Be like the angel of the seven churches in which
the Lord holds His hands with them. Put yourself also in the hands of Jesus and
be sure that He will let you hear His beautiful voice saying: “I give them eternal
life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My
hand.” (John 10:28). Every time a sin comes by thought or desire, ask yourself
explicitly: “Is my spirit with the Lord, with the Father?”
 THE EFFECTS OF THESE WORDS IN OUR LIFE

These precious words in which the Lord spoke on the Cross; let us put them
in our heart, let them work in our life. Read each word with meditation and
respond to them. We are going to give two examples on how the heart responds
with these two words:
“My Father, forgive them.” The Lord taught us to pray in the Lord ’s Prayer,
“Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Then
the words, “My Father, forgive them,” must be a condition we must follow for
the remission or forgiveness of our sins. We can not think that forgiveness is
granted to others when we say, “My Father, forgive them”; in reality, he is
taking this forgiveness for himself, because the condition that you take, is to
forgive others, “Forgive and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6: 37).
When the Lord Jesus Christ taught us the Lord’s Prayer, He didn’t comment
on any other supplication other than this one. So He said: “For if you forgive
men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do
not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses.” (Matthew 6:14,5).
Therefore, if you don’t forgive others, you will prevent forgiveness for
yourself and not for others. If you say, “Father, forgive them”, He will answer
you saying, “And also I will forgive you.” So then, your forgiveness to others is
a must; you have to do it in order to receive forgiveness. Perhaps this
forgiveness makes you troubled from within, and it is not easy on your heart.
How could I forgive those who did such and such to me; they humiliated me,
troubled me and crushed me into the dust! I say to you, when you grant this
person forgiveness, you give it to yourself. Forgive so the Lord will forgive you.
I say to you, forgive with love, and not by force.
The Lord Jesus Christ came on the Cross to take forgiveness from the Father
for all the sins of all of humanity. He forgave those who crucified Him first. He
was saying to the Father: “I will forgive them all that they did to Me, so that in
order You Forgive Me.” Not for Him to forgive His sins, because Jesus is with
no sin (John 8:46). But to forgive the sins that He carried as He is “The Lamb of
God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), “And the Lord has laid
on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53: 6).
You may say: “How can I forgive what they did to me? It is enough for me
to be silent, not answer evil for evil.” No, my brother, this silence is not enough.
In order to triumph yourself from within you have to forgive. When you have
triumphed from within and forgive, you will then be raised to the Cross.
When you reach the Cross, you will be able to say: “that I may know Him
and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings.”
(Philippians 3:10). I entered in His fellowship, reached the Cross and have
received forgiveness of my trespasses because they do not know what they are
doing.
Today you will be with Me in the paradise. Tell yourself: “In order to hear
this promise from Jesus, I have to say like the thief, ‘we receive justly, for we
receive the due reward of our deeds.’” The thief on the right did not complain of
his sufferings, but he asks for forgiveness in eternal life. So be like him, and
don’t be like the other thief who asked Jesus to go down from the Cross and take
him with Him: “Save Yourself and us.”
This poor ignorant person; when Jesus goes down from the Cross He will
destroy the whole world. This thief could have sought to be saved. He could
have said: “Wait for a while on the Cross, for my sake, so I am not destroyed...
Please Lord, bear it for my sake, bear it to pay the ransom of my sins till death.
My brother, be in the spirit like the thief on the right who was thinking of his
eternal life, and was not in the flesh like the thief on the left who only thought of
his own salvation. Try not to escape from tribulation when it comes upon you,
but in every problem say these words which the thief on the right said: “We
indeed justly deserve, for we receive the due reward of our deeds.”
As you want the Lord to remember you in His kingdom, then remember Him
on earth and let your heart be filled with His love. Don’t ask the Lord to
remember you only on earth, but ask Him also in His kingdom. If there are nails
and crosses on the earth, don’t worry, the important thing is your fate in the
Kingdom. It is nothing if you lived your earthly life on the cross, but it is
important to be with Him in His paradise.
Don’t think to go down from the cross, but bear and have patience. The Lord
said to the thief, “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise”, because Christ
accepted his faith, his confession and his repentance. And you, did you offer the
Lord your confession, repentance and faith in order to deserve to be with Him in
Paradise? If you haven’t, then start from now. Join with Him in the sufferings so
as to be glorified also with Him.
Remember the words, “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise” are very
encouraging words which grant hope. If the thief received the promise of
Paradise in spite of all his sins and his evil deeds you should not despair
whatever your sins are. If the thief’s repentance was accepted while it was the
last hour of his life, then do not despair if your old life was eaten by locusts and
was completely wasted
The words “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise” gives us a practical
example for speedy answers to prayers. As soon as the thief said, “Remember
me O Lord”, the Lord answered quickly, “Today, you will be with Me in
Paradise”. Then don’t get bored from prayers and supplications, and don’t let
the words “Remember me Lord” leave your mouth, saying all the time, from
deep within your heart, with faith and trust that He will answer.
Don’t let the devil fight you with embarrassment so you don’t ask. The Tax
Collector, in his deep shame said, “Lord, have mercy”. The thief knew his sins
and said, “Remember me O Lord.” And so all of us, although there is shame
covering our faces because of our sins, and we are not able to raise our face to
the Lord, but it is only because of His mercy, His love and His forgiveness that
we can still say the words, “Remember me O Lord” until we receive the promise
from Him to be in Paradise.
The Lord didn’t stop by just giving the thief a promise to Paradise, but more,
he received a promise that He will be with Him, because the most important
thing in Paradise is to be with the Lord. Yes, Paradise without the Lord is
nothing, no pleasure, no value and not even worth the word Paradise. True
pleasure is to be with the Lord, the presence of the Lord with His people,
enjoying His presence, His love, His company, His light, His Fatherhood and
His gentleness.
 Then don’t ask for Paradise , but ask for the Lord Himself. Ask to be with
Him, meditate on His smile and His joyful face, as David said: “To You, Lord,
Do not hide Your face from me.” It is strange that the thief received the promise
to be with the Lord in Paradise, although he was beside the Lord on earth.
Although, it was a very little time he spent with the Lord, he was able to be
granted continuous company with the Lord, forever. It was a very intense hour
which reached to the depth of our Lord’s heart. It is therefore, not by increasing
the time spent with the Lord, but by the depth. One word uttered in depth is
worth a great deal. Say this word, live with this deep relationship, so you can
reach the depth with the Lord.