“Did you pay to get out of the mine?” I asked comically.
“Of course not!,” he replied, “it didn’t cost me anything. I just got into the cage and I was lifted up out of the mine.”
“Weren’t you afraid to trust yourself to that cage?,” I asked
“Wasn’t it too cheap?,” I added almost immediately.
“Oh no. The ride was free. But the company has paid a lot of money to sink the shaft into the mine, and particularly to make sure it is safe,” he concluded prompting me to come in immediately.
Christ came so that all may have life and have it more abundantly (Jn 10:10). What we do not understand is the fact that the salvation which we got free was actually very costly to the redeemer. We were not redeemed with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of the son of God (1Peter 1:18-19). The problem with human beings is that they de-value whatever is given free.
Suddenly the truth dawned on to him. The salvation I had been preaching to him was actually free to us, but it had cost the son of God tremendous price. He had come down from heaven to become man, to suffer, die, only to resurrect on the third day. In Luke 22, we get a faint glimpse of the agony that swept over Christ as he prayed in the garden. Looking ahead to the cross, he saw the terrible physical and spiritual suffering that he would have to endure to save us. By his death, we received salvation which we did not merit.
Our salvation, though free, was therefore purchased at an infinite price. This is what makes discipleship hard, heavy or difficult. Why? The greater the value of a gift, the greater the cost of maintaining it and the greater the risk of losing it. Having given us an example, we are therefore challenged to take up our crosses and to follow our saviour. Today our crosses include hunger, poor wages for our efforts, pollutions of environment, poor education systems, etc. We have the responsibility to make the world a better place to live, and this will not be easy in a world where competition is valued more than cooperation for common good, and capital is valued over labour. As Christians we have the duty to continue the mission of Christ here on earth, and this remains a daily challenge for all of us. Being the month of mission, and given that this second week is dedicated to suffering, let us pray that our daily suffering offered to God may boost the growth of the Church. Luckily, God has given us the Holy Spirit to guide and protect us, so we have no cause for fear and anxiety. Let us pray therefore that God may enable us to become efficient tools of his mission.
