Saturday of the Fifth Week of Lent
(Ezekiel 37:21-28; John 11:45-56)
When the high priest Caiaphas tells the Sanhedrin “’… one
man should die instead of the people,’” he does not know half the truth he is expressing. Caiaphas thinks he is making what might be called
a utilitarian argument – better that one man dies than one million. However, his words have a more profound
spiritual meaning. He is saying that one
man, namely Jesus, will die to save not only the Jewish nation but the entire
world from sin and death. Since Caiaphas
is high priest, his words carry God’s sanction and special import.
It is likely that when we say, “God loves us” or “Jesus
saves us,” we likewise do not know the half of it. God loves us so much that he
allows His own son to be humiliated, tortured, and crucified to redeem us from
our sins. Jesus saves us not just from
sin and meaninglessness but from extinction.
As we begin Holy Week tomorrow, these realizations should permeate our
minds and hearts. In this most sacred
time, we should want to offer God all the glory and honor that are His due.
