The people who waved palm branches at the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, and acclaimed Him as King, gave witness that Our Lord fulfilled the plan of God from the beginning, to bring life more abundant to His people. When reporting the Last Supper, St John says that He always loved those who were his own, but now “He loved them to the end.” (Jn 13.1)

When the Pharisees told Our Lord to rebuke his followers for hailing Him as King, He said: “If these shall hold their peace, the stones will cry out.” (Lk 19.40) His consummation of the work of the Father would be praised even by inanimate creation if there were no rational persons willing to do so.

On the Cross, Our Lord also consummated His work by means of His sacred passion, which was made necessary by the impact of sin upon the perfect goodness of the Son of God. He drank the cup of suffering to the dregs and before giving up His spirit, He cried out “It is consummated.” Thus He declared the fulfilment of His work through the atoning sacrifice which was now a necessary part of that work.

For our part, we try to follow the example of St Paul who came to the end of his life as a follower of Christ, saying “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim 4.7)