Gospel reading: Matthew 17:22-27
Don’t we sometimes say, “I have bad news and I have good news”? Thus Jesus tells his disciples about himself, “they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day.” (v.23a). How did his disciples take it? “And they were overwhelmed with grief.” (v.23b). They focused on the bad news but then seemed to be unmindful of the good news.
As Christians, we must always look to the good news. We are saved, and our Savior is Jesus. The bad news? We will have to suffer much in order to enter the Kingdom of God. But then, that is good news too. Jesus needed to die in order to be raised. We need to embrace our cross in order to be Jesus’ worthy disciples. When the grain of wheat dies, it produces much fruit. No pain, no gain.
This also points to another reality: we endure the here and now, but we look forward to the hereafter. We are in a valley of tears, but we will live forever in perfect heaven. Death is only the gateway to eternal life.
Now we can see how Paul can exhort us to rejoice always, despite all the challenges and sorrows of life. In the Lord, everything is gain. Indeed, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Comments