Love is laying down our lives for our brothers and sisters (1 Jn 3:16). If we have this love, we know we have passed from death to life (1 Jn 3:14). If we do not love, we are "among the living dead" (1 Jn 3:14). Love is not just talk, but actions (1 Jn 3:18). If we have love in action, we know "we are committed to the truth and are at peace before" God (1 Jn 3:19). Therefore, love is a sign of true commitment to God and true peace in Him.
Because God is Love (1 Jn 4:16) and love is the essence of the Christian life, "love never fails" (1 Cor 13:8). Therefore, "seek eagerly after love" (1 Cor 14:1). Seek the Holy Spirit, Who pours out God's love in our hearts (Rm 5:5; Gal 5:22). Then we will be able to love others, even our enemies (Mt 5:44), for we "love because He first loved us" (1 Jn 4:19).
| PRAYER: | Father, You are Love. Help me to live in love and live in You (1 Jn 4:16). |
| PROMISE: | "We have found the One Moses spoke of in the law – the prophets too – Jesus, Son of Joseph, from Nazareth." –Jn 1:45 |
| PRAISE: | St. John lay down his life for others by his devotion to God's people. This devotion led him to establish schools and parish churches in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. |
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