To the Ends of the Earth: Character – Catholic Men’s Devotionals, Week 7 – Man of Joy

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 

Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Hebrews 12:1–3

It is easy to think of Jesus as joyful when he was teaching the people, holding little children in his arms, healing the sick, or seeing men and women coming to faith in him. It is a little more difficult to picture him as joyful in the midst of his suffering, when he sweat blood in the Garden of Gethsemane, when he was beaten and tortured by the Romans, and when he was nailed to the cross for our sins. Yet the Bible tells us that it was the joy that was before him that led him to that cross. That joy allowed him to refuse the shame of crucifixion, withstand the temptations of the enemy to come down from the cross, and endure the utter sense of abandonment as he took all the world’s sins on himself.

In all that Jesus said and did, it was this joy that carried him to the end of his journey. Though he wept at the tomb of Lazarus and shed tears over Jerusalem; though he experienced righteous anger at the money changers in the Temple and the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees; and though he was often distressed at the lack of faith and the outright sins of the people around him, he never lost sight of the joy set before him. Jesus knew that his mission would save us from sin and open once more the gates to Paradise. All the horror of humanity and the cruelty of the crucifixion could not diminish that perfect, blessed joy.

The question we as Catholic men must ask ourselves is this: Are we willing to endure whatever may come our way in order to experience the perfect joy that is ours in Christ? The answer for many of us, if we are honest, is no. We avoid pain at all cost. We whine about the simplest struggles and moan and groan when things don’t go our way. We have moments of joy in our journeys, but they are broken so easily by the slightest breeze of adversity. This week, we will focus on our call to joy, considering five key concepts:

1.         We are joyless because we are burdened.

We cling to an easy and safe life, not realizing that it is really a burden, a barrier to the joy that can be ours if we set our eyes on the victory at the end of the road to the cross. Joy does not mean freedom from suffering, but it is the realization that suffering does not have the final say.

2.         We are called to run the race with joyful strength.

We are not called to walk the race, but to run with all our strength, as we anticipate the prize that awaits us in Christ. We must persevere, give it our all, and never surrender as we strive to reach our goal.

3.         We must fix our eyes on Jesus, the source and finisher of our faith.

Jesus began the good work in us, and he will complete it. We must keep our eyes on the One who came among us as a man, died on the cross, and now reigns in heaven, knowing that resurrection waits for us as well.

4.         We must endure as Jesus did, so as not to lose heart.

Jesus triumphed because the joy within him overcame the opposition of sin. We have that same strength within us, and we too can persevere with joy until the end, if we rely on his grace and do not lose heart.

5.         There is a cloud of witnesses cheering us on.

So many have gone before us, saints who endured the trials and scorned the shame of suffering to take hold of the joy that Christ had set before them. Their prayers and their example will help to carry us across the finish line.

A Call to Action

This week, consider the incredible truth that Jesus endured the cruelty of men, the agony of the cross, and the burden of all our sins so that he could set us free and bring us home to heaven. When you feel like giving up, fix your eyes on the One who never took his eyes off the joy of saving humanity through the cross.

You can learn more about the To the Ends of the Earth devotionals HERE