Passion

"Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo much passion," Matthew 16:21.

Dictionary meaning of passion: emotion, feeling, conviction, love, devotion, desire. Obsolete meaning: suffering. It's the obsolete that Jesus mentions. The Passion of Christ. So, what's Jesus' passion? Suffering. Suffering abuse from the elders, chief priests, scribes. Beatings. Insults. Shaming. Crucifixion. Being killed. (And after 3 days resurrection!) His passion is to be God-minded, setting the mind on the things of God, not on the things of man. Thus, the uncomfortable context for his subsequent line: If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me ... whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

When we visit with a brother or sister today, we speak of the hope of resurrection following life's passions. And, together, we yield our minds gratefully to the mind of God.