A Journey in Faith

Our journey through life as Christians might be described as a expedition on two levels: a level of present expectation and a level of future expectation.

We see that quite clearly during Advent, when our focus is both on the annual celebration of the Nativity of our Lord and, at the same time, on the Second Coming.

As we travel through the Christian Year, our journey is similar to a roller coaster ride as we follow the life and ministry of our Lord depicted in the Gospel accounts.

Our expectation is further heightened by the Epistles of Paul, Peter, James, and John, who shed light on the Truth revealed in the words and actions of Jesus, Who, Himself, is on a journey, a journey to the Cross.

We travel through Galilee, Judea, along the way stopping in the villages and towns, in Capernaum, Nazareth, Bethany, and finally Jerusalem.

We join the jubilant crowd leading the way as Jesus enters the city and we watch our Lord as He drives out the money changers from the Temple.

Yet, despite all the excitement, there is an expectantcy that is difficult to describe.

Having experienced a triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the mood changes and Jesus begins His final preparations for the journey to the Cross.

He gathers His twelve chosen disciples, the one who will betray Him, and the eleven who will accept His charge, and shares His final meal with them.

Though the Apostles did not quite understand at the time, this meal was unlike any other and would be the central focus in the worship of the Church for all time and the source of spiritual nourishment for each of us on our journey through life.

The events that unfolded that night and the following day are terrifying and cruel and we could follow along the way as our Lord was taken for a mockery of a trial and finally, His execution on the Cross.

We could then and we can now. We have the Stations of the Cross to guide us, marking His stops along the way.

As our Lord is nailed to the Cross, the excitement and expectation change. Hope becomes despair.

Jesus Christ dies. His disciples scatter, except for a few, in particular John. His Body is taken down from the cross and laid in a new tomb. It is sealed and so it seems to those around Him, their fate as well as their hopes are dashed.

A day passes and then something unexpected, unexplainable, happens. News that the tomb is empty and our Lord has been seen alive. He is risen from the grave!

The journey to the Cross was not the end: it was the beginning, the beginning of a greater, glorious journey that would lead us to eternal life.

We embark on our journey through life even before we are born into the world. At each point, there are the two levels of expectation: the present and the future.

Our present expectation deals with the realities of the world here and now. In one perspective, Easter Day is the here and now, the celebration of a present reality, the resurrection of Jesus Christ, His rising from the grave.

Our future expectation deals with the realities of our spiritual nature and that is so wonderfully expressed in the celebration of Easter Day.

In conquering sin, Satan, and death, our Lord Jesus Christ has paved the way for us in our spiritual journey.

That journey is based on faith. Faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour: a faith nurtured by the sacramental worship of the Church.

It is a faith predicated upon our acceptance of the reality of His Resurrection, God's abundant Love, and His Grace freely given. It is a journey from life to life eternal.