As we have heard this Eastertide the prayer of the Bridegroom, let us hear two portions of it again. Firstly: Behold, the Bridegroom comes at midnight, and blessed is the servant whom He shall find watching. And we know what it means to be found watching by Our Lord. It means as He taught us in the Farewell Discourse of S. John’s Gospel: it means to abide in Christ’s love. “If you keep my commandments,” Jesus says, “you will abide in my love.” And the first commandment is to love Him and Him in other people. The first commandment is to love Him as He lives in each of us, and to love Him as He lives in others. To love Christ is all the ways we are able to love Him is what it means to watch.
And there are so many ways to love Him! First and foremost, we love Him by worshiping Him, by attending Liturgy and participating with fervent desire for Him and focused attention. When Liturgy is being celebrated and we choose not to attend when we could, we are not loving Christ, simple as that. We love Him by faithfully receiving the Sacraments, which are extensions of His Life and Love. We love Him by reading Scripture and meditating and contemplating Scripture, for Christ is found in Scripture, and makes His presence available in Scripture. We love Him by prayer; prayer which is our relationship with Him: a prayer of thanksgiving to Christ is like giving Him a kiss on His cheek, even a kiss on His hand. We love Him by remembering Him every day: every day as much as we can: remembering Him Who laid down His life for us; remembering Him Who is risen from the dead; remembering Him Who trampled down death by death; remembering Him Who sacrificed Himself for us, and Whose suffering was for our freedom in Him; remembering Him Who bestows life abundant upon us; remembering Him in Whose image we are made to grow up into; remembering Him through Whom everything is made, including you and me; remembering Him Who is Alpha and Omega; remembering Him Who is the Bridegroom, for He made us to be His bride; remembering Him Whom God sent into the world, His only Son, so that we might live through Him, indeed, so that we would marry Him so as to partake in the Marriage Feast, the heavenly banquet.
And the second part of the Bridegroom prayer: Beware, O my soul, do not be weighed down with sleep, lest you be given up to death and lest you be shut out of the Kingdom. We will not be shut out of the kingdom if our flasks are full of oil. We will not be shut out of the kingdom if our flasks are filled with the mercy given us by Christ as we do acts of mercy: to Him as He lives in us, and to Him as He lives in others. For if our flasks are full, it is because we day by day confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and thus God abides in us; and with God abiding in us, we do works of mercy, for God acts through us, for as God abides in us, we abide in Him. And doing acts of mercy, we love; and through loving we know God, for God is love. Through loving we are born of God.
And through this, we can have confidence for the day of judgment, when the Bridegroom comes at midnight, because He will know us. He knows those who love. He knows those who love in His Name. He knows those who suffer for loving His Name. He knows us because He sees our hearts aflame with light from the mercy He has given us. He knows us because He sees our hearts aflame with knowledge of Him Who is the Bridegroom, Whose very nature is love. He knows us because in us He sees Himself, because He sees love.
How can we not love the Bridegroom? How can we not love Him Who out of His love creates us, loves us, and keeps us? How can we not love Him Who laid down His life for us? How can we not love Him Who took away all power death might have over us? How can we not love Him Who died that He might continually give Himself as our Bread: in Scripture and in Blessed Sacrament? Let us ask God to pour mercy into our hearts that they are hearts full of grace and love for Christ: O God, Who hast prepared for those who love Thee such good things as pass man’s understanding: pour into our hearts such love toward Thee that we, loving Thee in all things and above all things, may obtain Thy promises, indeed the very Wedding Banquet, which exceed all that we can desire; through the same Jesus Christ, Who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, unto the ages of ages. Amen.
On Loving the Bridegroom