As Our Lord Jesus Christ descends into hell, the devil says, “Who are you? You look like an ordinary human, but you stride about like someone who’s in charge. Are you not afraid?”
In reply, Jesus says, “I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid of the terror of war. I’m not afraid of the horror of famine. I’m not afraid of the panic in pestilence. Because I’m not afraid of death or hell. And I’m not afraid because you because I am God’s Son.”
Satan answers again, “So are you claiming to be God? The God who can overrule my God-given claim over the dead; my authority over the grave?”
Our Lord responds, “I am indeed the Lord God. I am the Lord who cast you to the earth, and permitted you to rule the underworld. I am the Lord who allowed you to terrorize men and women so that they might seek Me.”
“So then what are you doing here?” says the Accuser of all mankind.
“I am,” say Our Lord. “I am the One who has now entered your territory in order to reclaim and take back all those who are Mine, all who recognize Me and wish to follow Me out.
“So I am here to release all people from all their fears: the fear of war, the fear of being shorted, the fear of pestilence, the fear of death. I know that when they see Me and My love, they will no longer fear. For perfect love casts out all fear. And I know that when have no fear, they will live boldly. The fearless disregard their own danger. And so the fearless live for others.”
“How did you get here? Who let you in?” the diabolical one wonders.
“You let me in. You foolishly thought that when I took a body, you could defeat Me. You thought that, when we met in the wilderness, you had not won because I was not yet weak enough. And so, as I determined, as I willed, evil men abused and tortured Me, and put Me to death. And, like a fish seeing a shiny object, you were hooked. By my death on the cross, I captured you. For you thought that you had swallowed a man, like all other humans; but you encountered God Himself.
“And here is my real intent. I will undo your envy, your cruel deception. You tricked humans into ruining my creation, but I will make all things new again. So I’m here to ‘let the whole world perceive and know that things cast down are being raised up, things grown old are being made new, and all things are returning to their perfection.’”
“But I,” says the devil, “I continue to work on earth. Look, I have made wars. I have raised up evil tyrants and terrorists. I have people in the same nation, and state, and city against each other. I have weakened economies, and governments, and relationships. And even now, I’ve returned with pandemic.”
Jesus, shaking His head, said: “You have done nothing. For nothing happens without my say-so. And nothing is outside of the works of my salvation. So I’ve permitted these things, as I let you weaken Job. But what you’ve not learned, what you will never learn, is that I know Mine, and Mine own know Me. They know that I will never leave them, I will never forsake them; no matter how bleak things look, no matter how hopeless things feel. They know this, because they know that in this combat stupendous, when Life and Death contended, the victory always remains with the Life of the world.”
And with that, the earth quaked in wild jubilation so that “the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after Christ’s resurrection.”
Beloved, in our baptism and the holy sacraments, in the cup of salvation, we have taken a sip of this resurrection of Christ and His saints. May we, by our faith and love, merit draining the entire cup when we are “caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
NOTE: Inspired by the latter half of sermon 65 (On the Resurrection of Lazarus)
by St Peter Chrysologus.
You must be logged in to post a comment.