I Thirst...

After being scourged, crowned with thorns, spat upon, pushed and shoved to the ground, stripped of His clothes and human dignity, and nailed to the wood of the Cross, Jesus was left to die on the Cross from blood loss, exhaustion, dehydration, and I imagine fluid buildup in the chest cavity.  Yet, on the Cross Our Lord was concerned only with the Father's will.  When the time had come, Jesus said to those keeping watch - "I thirst."

Not really for water, but Jesus was saying "I thirst for love of you."  The Cross was and remains the loudest and greatest expression of the Father's love for His children, us.  By dying Jesus destroyed death, and by rising He restored life.  Jesus destroyed death in that those who are baptized never really die despite bodily death, and He restored life by bringing about eternal life when he descended into Hell and broke through those gates.  From the pierced side of Jesus flowed the living waters that wash away our sins and restore us to life and the sanctifying blood that sustains us and make us like Himself.  Jesus died for us.  And He did so willingly.  

 Jesus' "I thirst" is an invitation to allow the Father to love you.  Allow the image and the reality of the crucified Christ to move you to let the Father love you.  When people tell us something, we sometimes say "Prove it."  God loves you. "Prove it."  Look at the Cross.  That is how much He loves you.

Know that you are loved beyond all imagining.  

 Spend some time looking at and meditating on the painting below.  Put yourself at the foot of the Cross and listen to Jesus say to you, "I thirst.  I thirst for love of you."  

The Crucifixion by Dreux Budé Master
     

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