Original Broadcast: December 2008
Monthly Theme: Jesus' Humiliation
Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor,
so that you through His poverty might become rich.
(2 Corinthians 8:9)
The sufferings of Jesus are typically remembered only through the line in the Creed: "suffered under Pontius Pilate." But His sufferings didn't start there. "A scribe came up and said to Him, 'Teacher, I will follow You wherever you go.' And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head'" (Matthew 9:19-20). Jesus went from one place to another with nowhere to call home. You could say He wandered through the region of Galilee and Judea much like Israel wandered through the wilderness after leaving Egypt.
He suffered the pangs of poverty and desertion so that He might feel the same pains and frustrations that we do. Where were the disciples when He was on trial? St. John the Evangelist was there beside Him until the end. St. Peter was out in the courtyard denying Him. The rest had left the scene as soon as they had a chance. In a crowded room, He was truly alone. His sufferings began long before the Crucifixion. His sufferings began when Adam and Eve refused to repent for falling prey to the serpent's temptation in the Garden. The same time your suffering began. The suffering that He came to take away forever. Amen.
