“Christ became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every other name.” 

He could have escaped. 

This is the thought that takes over my mind when I contemplate the night Christ was arrested. 

He could have lived a long, even peaceful life.

What was it that strengthened Jesus as He allowed Himself to be captured? Though I can imagine the night in my mind, in my heart I can’t imagine the fear He may have felt. The Garden of Gethsemane, the place where Jesus prayed the night He was arrested, was located just outside of the Temple of Jerusalem. As Jesus prayed in the garden, and as his friends slept, Jesus would have seen the lit torches of those who would come to arrest Him.

He had time. He could have escaped. He allowed Himself to be arrested. Why?

A person who has explored Ignatian spirituality may have come across the word vocation. A vocation, more than a career or a job, is who we are called to be. Almost as difficult as discovering one’s vocation is accepting it. Accepting our vocations might mean less prestige and less money. It might mean more ridicule or more discomfort. It might mean that we will have to risk our lives. Jesus knew this.

Our faith describes Jesus’ nature as 100% God and 100% man. As God in the flesh, Jesus would have always known the right thing to do. How many of us have struggled with what is right and what is wrong? How many of us desperately seek advice only to remain unsure of what do to? Who would want the clarity Jesus had regarding who we are called to be? We might like the idea of it, but could we handle the weight of that cross?

Like Jesus, we are human. How often does the “right thing” conflict with what we want? Though we might look for someone else to take action due to fear, cowardice, or judgment, Jesus couldn’t resist. He showed us how to be like God by letting go of our desire to be gods. He showed us how to truly be human – to love others unconditionally, as God does.

Imagine, if you can, yourself in Jesus’ position. He understood who He was called to be. He had to be counter-cultural and “speak truth to power.” For years He had shown those discarded by the world that they are loved, they are worth it, they are children of God. He forgave sins and gave value to those who were always told they were valueless. He showed how love is the most powerful force in the universe – a force not bound by time or space.

He was also rejected.

There were those who wouldn’t be caught seated at the same table as Him and His other “sinful” guests. He endured the insults and the dismissals. The Gospel of John tells us that Jesus was nearly stoned to death.

Imagine this was your vocation? Imagine knowing that God’s purpose for you would be to endure all of this?

He couldn’t run.

Yes, it is easy to imagine that Jesus saw the torches as they made their way towards Gethsemane. He knew what was going to happen if He stayed. He would be arrested. He would be killed.

So, why not run? It would have been much easier than staying put. Jesus was smart, persuasive, and literate. In His time, those characteristics and abilities would have given Him as successful a life as one could hope to have. But if He ran – if He showed that the fear of death was strong enough for Him to reject who He was called to be – it would have discredited all that He had done and taught. To run would be to show that the fear of death is more powerful than love.

Imagine knowing that, to give credibility to your life’s work, you would have to accept an early death?

“But it was easier for Him, He is God!” It was harder for Him because He was also one of us. He always knew what the right thing to do was. He also felt the same emotions we feel when faced with a challenge. He couldn’t claim ignorance as we do. He knew exactly what His vocation required of Him and He accepted it.

He was obedient to the Will of God and God raised Him up.

For we do not have a high priest

who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,

but one who has similarly been tested in every way,

yet without sin.

This Good Friday, this Easter, and each day after, I pray that we all be blessed with the grace of Christ’s obedience to the Will of God. May we rely on Him for our strength, for through Christ all things are possible. Amen.

Corey Milazzo teaches theology at Fairfield Prep.