the knock of love
"Here I stand, knocking at the door." —Revelation 3:20
Jesus is knocking on the door of your lives. Why not open the door? He wants to have supper with us (Rv 3:20). That doesn't sound so bad. However, supper with Jesus isn't all there is to Jesus entering our lives. Jesus comes to stay (see Lk 19:5), and He comes to be the Lord of every detail of our lives. When we open the door to Jesus, we are in effect saying: "It is no longer I that live but Christ that lives in me" (Gal 2:20, our transl). If we open the door to Jesus, we must:
- deny our very selves, take up the cross each day, and follow Him (Lk 9:23),
- repent of being lukewarm in our love for Jesus (Rv 3:16),
- be hot for Jesus (Rv 3:15),
- give some, half (see Lk 19:8), or all of our belongings to the poor (Mt 19:21),
- make restitution to those we have defrauded (Lk 19:8),
- be a witness for Jesus (see Acts 1:8),
- suffer for and with Jesus (see Phil 1:29), and
- live and die for Jesus (see 2 Tm 2:11).
Why would we open the door to Jesus? We open ourselves to Him because He loves us so much that He died for us and because we love Him with all our hearts.
Prayer: Jesus, I, compelled by love, will no longer live for myself but for You (2 Cor 5:14-15).
Promise: "Today salvation has come to this house, for this is what it means to be a son of Abraham. The Son of Man has come to search out and save what was lost." —Lk 19:9-10
Praise: St. Elizabeth gave her life to Jesus at an early age. She loved God, her husband, her four children, and all the poor of her country. She was holy and blameless in God's sight, and was "full of love" (Eph 1:4).
Rescript: ..
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