The Servants
of the Word have as their motto“To
Love Him and to Make Him Loved.” It
was love that motivated the Lord Jesus to
suffer and die on the cross for our sake as
the atoning sacrifice for our sins. He died
and rose again to give us abundant life and
freedom to live as the redeemed sons and
daughters of God. Our love for Christ is a
response to his exceeding love and mercy
towards us. We can never repay the debt we owe
to God. It is pure grace - the free gift and
favor of God's love which has been poured into
our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has
been given to us (Romans 5:5).
As Paul the Apostle states,
"The love of Christ compels us because we
are convinced that one has died for all -
therefore all have died. And he died for
all, that those who live might live no long
for themselves but for him who for their
sake died and was raised" (2 Corinthians
5:14-15).
Christ has loved us without reserve. We want
to love him with all that we have and are.
Christ's love poured out for us on the cross
is the reason we make it our aim to love him
and to make him loved. Making the Lord Jesus
known and loved through word and deed is the
mission of the whole Christian people - the
mission which Christ invites each one of us to
undertake as his ambassadors (2 Corinthians
5:20).
May this issue inspire you to love Christ
more and to make him loved by those you serve
and reach out to with mercy, compassion, and
conviction that Christ died for all to bring
us new life and salvation.
In this issue
Tadhg
Lynch and Fr.
Raniero Cantalamessa explore what it
means to know the love of Jesus Christ and
to love him in return through lives of
conversion, repentance, sacrificial love,
and proclaiming the Gospel - the good news
of Jesus Christ - to others.
Bob
Tedesco, Bruce
Yocum, Carlos
Mantica, and John
Keating
focus on the readiness to change in
order to follow the Lord Jesus more
closely and to love and forgive others
as Christ has loved us.
And don't miss
some fresh sharings from young people
who are serving
on mission throughout Europe. May
their stories inspire all of us to be
missionaries in our homes, schools, work
places, and neighborhoods as well.
