Matthew 26:1-5: a reflection

As the events of his Passion draw near, Jesus tells his disciples plainly what is coming. You know that after two days the Passover is coming, he says, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified. Even as the chief priests and elders are plotting in secret to seize and kill him, Jesus is not caught unaware; he knows what lies ahead, and he says so plainly. He goes toward the cross with open eyes, foretelling his own death, not as a victim caught by surprise, but as one who knows and willingly accepts what is coming. The Passion was not something that overtook Jesus against his will; he foresaw it, spoke of it plainly, and went toward it knowingly and willingly, for the sake of those he came to save.

Notice that Jesus foreknew and willingly accepted the cross. He was not swept along by events beyond his control, taken by surprise when the plots against him closed in. He knew what was coming; he told his disciples plainly that he would be delivered up and crucified. And knowing, he went forward. The cross was not something that happened to Jesus against his will; it was something he foresaw and willingly accepted. While others plotted in secret, thinking to seize him by surprise, Jesus already knew and had already accepted what lay ahead. He went to the cross not as a helpless victim but as one who knew and chose to go, for love of those he would save. His foreknowledge and willingness show that the cross was his own gift, not merely his fate.

That is worth resting in, for Jesus went to the cross knowingly and willingly, not as a victim caught by surprise, but for love of us. We can think of the cross as something that merely happened to Jesus, a tragedy that overtook him; but he foreknew it, spoke of it plainly, and willingly accepted it. He went to the cross with open eyes, not swept along against his will, but choosing to go for the sake of those he came to save. His willing acceptance of the cross was love. When you consider the cross, remember that Jesus went to it knowingly and willingly, not as a helpless victim, but out of love for you. Rest in the love shown in Jesus going to the cross knowingly and willingly, foretelling his death and accepting it rather than being caught by surprise, as he told his disciples the Son of Man would be delivered up to be crucified; for the cross was not a fate that merely overtook him but a gift he foresaw and willingly gave, going toward it with open eyes for love of those he came to save.