Passion Week (Holy Week)

A Thought for the Passion Week!

by John Eapen, Dubai

God has given us yet another year to partake in the passion week services. Every year when we attend these services, it gives us an opportunity to draw closer to God. If we draw a graph of our Christian life, the climax is during the 50 days Lent season. But when the Easter is over, after few days, the graph may begin to descend. Only a minority could maintain a steady graph.

During the Lent season we get more opportunity to spend time in prayer collectively and personally, read the Bible, fast, and to control the food and our talk. During the season of Ramadan, the Muslim community also get more time to pray, to read Quran, to fast and to control the talk. When everybody is following the same thing, it is easy to follow it. But when others are not doing and we want to do it, it is difficult. So Lent season gives us the best opportunity to draw closer to God.

When we attend the Passion week services, it gives us opportunity to remember and meditate on the love of Christ, His sufferings and His crucifixion more than other days. We will be filled with love and meekness when we meditate on the sufferings of Jesus. It is good to meditate Isaiah Chapter 53 and the portions in the Gospel where the sufferings of Christ is written.

In St John Chapter 19 Vs 30, Jesus said on the cross that it is finished. It means whatever mission He had to complete on this earth, He did all of them. St Paul in his epistles has written Jesus has perfected our salvation and obtained eternal redemption on the cross of Calvary. In the old testament, we read birds and animals were killed for the remissions of man's sins. It is said the sheep used to die for the shepherd in the olden times, but in the new testament the shepherd died for the sheep or our Heavenly Father died for His children. In the article written by Varghese Achen we read Jesus was made a scapegoat for us. All our iniquities were laid upon Him. In John 15: 13 Jesus said greater love has no one than this to lay down one's life for his friends. He has not only died for us but is coming again to receive all of us into eternity. Let this thought abide in us everyday.

When we read Ps 73 we see Asaph had taken a decision in vs 28, it is good to draw near to God. In the psalm we read the blessings of those who trust in the Lord and the destruction of the wicked. Asaph was puzzled why good things are happening to evil people and bad things to children of God. He even thought to forsake God and to live like the wicked people. But when he went to temple and prayed, God opened his inner eyes and he knew the wicked were standing on the slippery ground and destruction will come upon them at any time. But God held his hand from perishing along with the wicked.This modern world may try to deviate us from drawing closer to God. True Christian life is a difficult life.

But God is holding our hands and preserving us from destructions just like Asaph. May this Passion Week help us to take a decision like Asaph - "It is good for me to draw closer to God".

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