Starting on Ash Wednesday, Gulf Coast Catholic  will publish a seven-part series focused on each of the last seven messages of Jesus from the cross. The series is written by Father James Ruhlin, Pastor of Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Hudson Fl.

Hopefully this reflection will inspire you to contemplate the depths of the Lord’s message of love from the cross. 

The seventh and final word of our Lord from the cross is: “Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit.” Jesus cried out his last word with a loud voice because he was determined that he be heard. His statement was firm and confident. This word speaks to God with intimacy. It is a word of trust since Jesus entrusts himself completely and perfectly to his Father. This last word of our Lord is also one of surrender since Jesus gives up his human life to his Father. 

Our Lord’s sixth word (“It is finished”) was a cry of retrospect; whereas, his seventh word is one of prospect. The sixth word was focused toward man; yet, his last is directed toward God. The sixth word was a farewell to earth; the seventh is an entrance into Heaven. This final word of our Lord directs us to our true joy: eternal life with the Father. Shall we place our joys in time or in eternity, for we cannot have them in both.  We cannot have our reward both in Heaven and on earth. The final word of our Lord begs the question: with which shall we begin – the fast or the feast? The supreme end and purpose of life is the salvation of our soul. The last word of Christ on the cross was a word of joy and triumph. From Jesus’ sacrifice of his life in order to keep his spirit free, we must learn not to be overcome by the sorrows, trials, and disappointments of life. 

Two lessons which we can learn from the final word of Christ from the cross are:

1. The more ties we have to earth, the harder will it be for us to die.
2. We were never meant to be perfectly satisfied here on earth.

The death of Jesus on the cross reveals that we are meant to be perpetually dissatisfied here on earth. Through this cry, he reminds us that nowhere else can we be satisfied except in God. It is absolutely impossible for us to be perfectly happy here on earth; nothing proves this more than disappointment. Why is there disappointment? Because when we look forward to a future ideal, we endow it with something of the infinity of the soul. Therefore, that disproportion between the infinite and the finite is the cause for our disappointment. We have eternity in our heart, but time on our hands. The soul demands a heaven and we get only an earth. Everything can be disappointing except the redemptive love of Jesus Christ. At death, you will leave everything, but there is one thing you will not leave: your desire to live. You want the one thing that the cross of Christ brings us: life through death.

Jesus prays, “Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit,” because it is only in the Father’s hands that our spirits are safe. In speaking of the security of believers, Jesus had taught, “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:29). We are in the habit of securing our most valuable earthly treasures in a safe or a bank vault, where we know no harm will come to them. From the cross, Jesus shows us that our most valuable of treasures—our spirits—should be committed for safekeeping into the Father’s hands.

The seventh word of Jesus on the cross should inspire us to follow his lead and commit our lives to God. Jesus committed His spirit to God and so should we. Jesus’s pain and sacrifice were for a better purpose, to bring others closer to the Father. We can also commit our trials and tribulations, knowing God can use them for greater purposes and bring others closer to Him. The beginning of our life, which was God, is also the end.

Jesus prays his final prayer with peace because he knows the Father, and knows that there is life with the Father beyond death. May we always pray, with Jesus, "Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit"

God bless,

Fr. Ruhlin