The whole story of Good Friday speaks about loyalty to the truth. Loyalty is not about what happens when things are good, but more about what you do when things get difficult. The call to discipleship is a test of loyalty.
We can find this element in the readings today, when Jesus calls for faithfulness from each of His disciples as He emptied Himself. If we are ready to join in His mission, we should also be ready to commit to His passion. Faith has everything to do with trust, and trust cannot stand without truth. Loyalty depends on what you are willing to give, not on what you have to gain.
The story of Jesus cannot be told without stating that he emptied himself in loyalty to the Father in order to draw loyalty from everyone. He put everyone on trial to prove how loyal we are to the truth. Are we friends and followers because of what we have to gain, or what we bring to the table?
The Cost
The Passion narrative today began with the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, who led the cohort and the Jewish guards to arrest Jesus. He was more interested in what could be gained, not knowing that he was giving credence to the lesson of Jesus’ passion – loyalty, the cost of discipleship.
The whole story showed the importance of all the roles that helped or hurt Jesus: Judas who betrayed Him, the disciples who abandoned Him. Peter who denied Him. His mother who suffered with Him. The women who followed Him all the way, the elders who accused Him. The Chief priest who questioned Him, Pilate who condemned Him, the soldiers who crucified Him. The thieves who died with Him. Joseph and Nicodemus who buried Him. And the guards who watched His tomb – each of them did something to be remembered. All these roles make up the story of our redemption, the cost of discipleship.
We must recognize that our actions today may help or hurt others, and sometimes we may not know the cost of our choices, only the future will prove whether we are on the right or wrong side, on the side of confidence or convenience. So we must trust and obey to be happy in Jesus. Whatever the case may be, we must know that loyalty is about giving, not receiving, and it is good not to be on the wrong side when posterity calls us to account.
[Readings: Is 52:13—53:12; Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9; Jn 18:1—19:42]
