In today's first reading, 1 John 3: 22-4:6, St. John reminds us that the first commandment is as follows: "[W]e should believe in the name of his son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as he commanded us." Jesus is the Son of God, who assumed human nature, remaining fully God and becoming fully human. Jesus was sent to show us God's unconditional love for us, a love revealed to us by Jesus' life, death and resurrection. We are called to believe in the truth that the Blessed Trinity---three divine persons but one God--agreed to send the second person to become a human being like us in all things but sin.
All who came to Him, Jesus healed. He took the side of sinners, ate with them, forgave them and invited them to repent and sin no more! Even on the cross when the good thief turned to Jesus and asked to be remembered in paradise, Jesus said to him: "Indeed, I promise you...today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). It was from his cross that the good thief rebuked the other thief who had joined those mocking Jesus: "Have you no fear of God at all? ...You got the same sentence as he did, but in our case e deserved it: we are paying for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong." (Luke 23: 40-42).
To believe in Jesus is to love as Jesus loved, rising above our suffering and pain. Loving as Jesus taught us to love means to reach out to others in need: forgiving, embracing and showing others the love of God within us, a love that holds nothing back!
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