jesus the savior: our hope, our lord, our god!
"But now in Christ Jesus..." —Ephesians 2:13
Almost everyone reading One Bread, One Body is a Gentile, that is, not Jewish. In the Bible, we Gentiles were described as:
- having "no part in Christ" (Eph 2:12),
- "excluded from the community of Israel" (Eph 2:12),
- "strangers to the covenant and its promise" (Eph 2:12), and
- "without hope and without God in the world" (Eph 2:12).
"But now in Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:13), we Gentiles:
- "have been brought near through the blood of Christ" (Eph 2:13),
- have been reconciled to God "in one body through His cross" (Eph 2:16),
- "have access in one Spirit to the Father" (Eph 2:18),
- "are strangers and aliens no longer" (Eph 2:19),
- "are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God" (Eph 2:19),
- "form a building which rises on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the Capstone" (Eph 2:20),
- are "a holy temple in the Lord" (Eph 2:21), and
- are "a dwelling place for God in the Spirit" (Eph 2:22).
Jesus has changed our nature and changed our future. He has changed us from weeping in the night to rejoicing with the dawn (Ps 30:6). He has changed our mourning into dancing (Ps 30:12). He has changed our lives from living death (see 1 Jn 3:14) into eternal life. Thank Jesus. Love Jesus. Worship Jesus. Live and die for Jesus.
Prayer: "Jesus, my Lord, my God, my All!"
Promise: "It will go well with those servants whom the Master finds wide-awake on His return." —Lk 12:37
Praise: St. Paul dedicated his life to Jesus from his youth. He served Jesus until he died at the age of eighty. He founded the Passionist order and taught his disciples to meditate every day on the sufferings of the crucified Jesus.
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The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.
Nihil Obstat: Reverend Robert L. Hagedorn, April 4, 1998
Imprimatur: †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, April 8, 1998