On the evening of the first resurrection day, the risen Jesus said to us: "As the Father has sent Me, so I send you" (Jn 20:21).
The Father sent the Son to reveal His love for the world (Jn 3:16). In the same way, we are sent to reveal the Father's love. The Father sent the Son to preach the good news of liberation and restoration to the poor (Lk 4:18). We likewise proclaim the eternal jubilee year (Lk 4:19).
The Father sent Jesus to destroy the devil's works (1 Jn 3:8). We too are sent to attack the gates of hell (see Mt 16:18) and to quickly crush Satan under our feet (Rm 16:20).
The Father sent Jesus to do good works and heal "all who were in the grip of the devil" (Acts 10:38). The Father sends us to do the works of Jesus "and greater far than these" (Jn 14:12). The Father sent the Son to die and rise; so we die to ourselves, take up our cross daily (Lk 9:23), and share in Jesus' resurrection.
Christians don't do their own thing or go their own way. They go only where they are sent. They go to the highways and byways (see Lk 14:23) and even to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Eventually, the Father sends them to their death and resurrection.
| PRAYER: | Father, here I am, send me (Is 6:8) anywhere. |
| PROMISE: | "The favors of the Lord I will sing forever; through all generations my mouth shall proclaim Your faithfulness." –Ps 89:2 |
| PRAISE: | Mark, a young college graduate, has chosen to teach at a small, inner-city Catholic school because that is where God sent him. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College