He loved them to the end

(Jn 13:1)

 

When He says His own who are in the world it is

because He has His own in Heaven and not only in

the world like angels and spirits of the virtuous.

He loved His own who are in the world

applies to both testaments the old and the new.

Really, The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness,

The world and those who dwell therein. (PS 24:1).

Everyone are His creation and made by His hands yet

He has a specific some whom He calls His own.

His special ones are those who lived for Him in

the Old Testament like Abraham the father of fathers,

Jacob whom was said about him in the bible: God

loved Jacob, Prophet Moses and the Twelve Tribes.

 

Many of the prophets where God’s special ones.

 

He loved His own in the world, meaning that

when God burnt Sodom He said: “Shall I hide from

Abraham what I am doing” (Gn 18:17) and starting

speaking with Abraham his slave. This how is the

relation between God and His own.

Also when Israeli people built the Golden Calf and

God wanted to consume them, He first talked to

Moses and told him: “let Me alone, that My wrath may

burn hot against them and I may consume them.” (Ex

32:10). Can your servant Moses, O Lord, interfere in

Your will? But the Lord did not want to consume them

unless Moses agrees with it, and Moses did not agree

“So the LORD relented from the harm which He said

He would do to His people” (Ex 32:14). How amazing

is Your love to Your own, O Lord!!

The Lord loved His own who are in the world, He

loved them to the end to the extent that He gave

Himself for them, but there was a love also while they

are in the world, like the bible said: “My little

children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in

deed and in truth.” (1 Jn 3:18). He loved them to the

end indeed and for real.

His own in the Old Testament were known like the

big characters, and in the New Testament His own

were the twelve disciples but they were not the only,

there was also the seventy apostles and after that

among His own there was also Lazarus whom He

loved and cried at the place of his death.

And no doubt, among His own, there was

also the Lady Virgin Mary, His mother.

And among His own there were some female

characters who followed Him and spent from their

money on Him (Lk 8).

Also became of His own the thief on the right on

the cross and He told him: “today you will be with Me

in Paradise” (Lk 23:43).

Also firstborns in the Old Testament where

of His own.

He said “Consecrate to Me all the firstborn,

whatever opens the womb among the children of

Israel, both of man and beast; it is Mine” (Ex 13:2).

And after that He replaced firstborns with

Leviticus and priests. Those are His own.

And God’s anointed ones were also among

His own.

Even the twelve whom He loved, there was

three of them who were special for Him and

they were John, James and Peter, and with those

He had special meetings and in the Transfiguration

miracle He had only those three with Him, those were

among His own whom He loved to the end.

Later on, Saul of Tarsus became of His own and

He appeared to him and called him to become an

apostle for the nations. Then He appeared to him

again and told him go far to the nations. A third time

he told him to go to Jerusalem and he had many

visions between him and God.

He loved His own who are in the world to the

end.

He loved His own who left everything and

followed Him. They left the father, the mother, sisters

and brothers and the house and followed Him.

In the Old Testament, Abraham went after Him

without knowing to where he was going.

And in the New Testament, the apostles left the

nets and the fishing and Mathew left the tax office,

they left everything and followed Him.

They believed in Him and accompanied Him and

told Him once: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have

the words of eternal life” (Jn 6:68).

Those, His own, listened to His teachings and

carried His message. There is a fictional story that

says that when God ascended to Heaven, angels met

Him and asked Him: God, did you spread the faith in

the whole world? He said: No. So they said: Did you

spread the faith in Jewish land, in all of Jerusalem?

He said: No. So they said: What did You do? He said:

I prepared 12 and they will spread the faith in the

whole world. Because these are the ones who were

filled with every grace, every blessing and every

power from the Lord and He entrusted them with His

church so that they build God’s Kingdom on the

Earth.

These are His own who preached His name and

suffered for Him and when they were set before

councils they said: “We ought to obey God rather

than men” (Ac 5:29).

These people had special spirituality level and

they were strong in spirit.

9

In addition to them, He chose the seventy

apostles.

And I wish each one of us asks himself: Am I

among the Lord’s own? Do the conditions that applied

on the disciples apply on me even in limits of my

capability, am I of the world’s own or am I selfcentered

away from God?

He loved His own who are in the world, therefore

in His prayer to the Father in (Jn 17) He repeated the

sentence “whom You have given Me out of the world.

They were Yours, You gave them to Me”

I wish the statement “His own” applies to us.

He loved them to the end and He Himself is

love, for God is love.

If the Lord, Christ, loved His enemies and prayed

for them at the time of the crucifix and said: “Father,

forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Lk

23:34), so how much does He love His own this love!

He loved them, so He first chose them and told

them “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (Jn

15:16).

We also ask ourselves, God, are we among your

chosen ones? Did You chose us like You chose them?

And do You want to use us in work similar to how You

used them?

He chose them in spite of their past, He made

them fishers of men, called them His friends, called

them His stewards and trained them in a service

missionary first as was mentioned in (Mt 10). He sent

them and gave them power over demons and gave

them some advices saying: “Provide neither gold nor

silver nor copper in your money belts” (Mt 10:9),

“And when you go into a household, greet it.” (Mt10,

12) and “Freely you have received, freely give.” (Mt

10:8).

And the seventy whom He sent also and trained

them to serve for when then rejoiced and said “Lord,

even the demons are subject to us in Your name” (Lk

10:17) He said to them: “Nevertheless do not rejoice

in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather

rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

(Lk 10:20).

He trained them to serve in the miracle of

five bread loaves and two fishes.

He taught them to give people “You give them

something to eat.” (Mt 14:16)

He taught them order saying “make them all sit

down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down

in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties” (Mk 6:39, 40).

And taught them how to love others and

trained them also on loving children and said

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe

in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone

were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in

the depth of the sea.” (Mt 18:6) and told them

“unless you are converted and become as little

children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of

heaven” (Mt 18:3).

He taught them many things and broke boarders

between them and Himself. And lived with them in

simplicity, easting with them and drinking with them.

And St. John the beloved said about Him: “which we

have looked upon, and our hands have handled” (1 Jn

1:1).

He lived with them as a friend and gave them the

chance to hear all His teachings; He gave them the

chance to witness all His miracles while He wandered

doing good deeds, healing every sickness and

weakness in the people.

He made an example of Himself for them when

He washed their feet and told them “I have given you

an example, that you should do as I have done to

you” (Jn 13:15).

He said to the Father about them: “Those whom

You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost

except the son of perdition” (Jn 17:12). And He said

“and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's

hand” (Jn 10:29).

And those who He loved, He gave them power

over all demons, gave them gifts and granted them

the Holy Spirit to live in them forever and to teach

them all the right. He loved them to the end.

He gave them priesthood and granted them

the right to hold the Eucharist Sacrament.

And gave them the gifts of the Holy Spirit. One of

the greatest words that was said about Him loving

them to the end that He said to the Father: “And the

glory which You gave Me I have given them” (Jn

17:22) of course with limits. And He said “I desire

that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me

where I am, that they may behold My glory which You

have given Me” (Jn 17:24). And said “I go to prepare

a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for

you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that

where I am, there you may be also” (Jn 14:2, 3).

Not only on Earth but in Heaven too. He told them

“you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve

thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Mt

19:28).

He was with them and loved them to the end; He

comforted them in their tiredness and removed their

doubts when doubts hit them.

He talked with them about all the symbols that

came about Him in Moses and Prophets’ books as was

mentioned in Luke 24.

He spent with them after Resurrection forty days

talking about secrets of God’s Kingdoms and gave

them many promised out of His deep love to them.

And He defended them. This is the great love with

which He loved His own. And each one who become

of the Lord’s own will enjoy this love according to the

amount of grace that is given to him. Also the grace

that was given to them was one of the types of love

even St. Paul the Apostle said: “not I, but the grace

of God which was with me” (1 Co 15:10).