Humble Obedience

We have made it to Holy Week. For Year C, we have a beautiful letter from St. Paul to the Philippians that summarizes how Christ died for us.

“Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name, which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Two words that come to mind when trying to summarize why Jesus died for us: Humble Obedience.

Christ became each of us. He came in human likeness to suffer for us. He obeyed the will of God even to the point of his death.  He did this because of his boundless love for humanity when he died in reparation for our sins. God exalted Christ because of his obedience to him.

Fulton Sheen puts obedience well when he writes, “Obedience does not mean the execution of orders that are given by a drill sergeant. It springs, rather, from the love of an order and love of Him Who gave it. The merit of obedience is less in the act than in the love; the submission, the devotion, and the service that obedience implies are not born of servitude but are rather effects that spring from and are unified by love. Obedience is servility only to those who have not understood the spontaneity of love.”

We obey because we love and want to serve. Let our obedience reflect our desire to love God not man.