THE TRIUMPH OF GOD’S LOVE
In this Sunday’s Second Reading, Saint Paul extols the eternal, unfathomable, life-transforming love of God for us in Christ Jesus, our Lord. As we navigate the challenges and uncertainties of our present lives, this eternal truth is the source of our trust and confidence in God. No truth will transform our lives more than God’s gracious love for us, in spite of our weaknesses and sins. To the extent that we understand God’s love and live daily with a deep sense of its reality, will we live in victory over temptation and sin and be able to persevere through trials.
God’s great love for us is not diminished or terminated by our failures, short- comings or sins, because it goes back to God’s choice of us before the foundation of the world. In fact, He loved us so much that He delivered up His own Son for us on the cross. Since God did all of this for us while we were yet sinners, His love for us is not conditioned on our worthiness or our performance. We can’t earn or deserve His love. Rather, it stems from His very nature, “for God is love” (1 John 4: 8).
However, it is important to remember that a close relationship with God is reciprocal. Our obedience to Christ reflects our love for Him and we will only experience the love of the Father and the Son if we obey Him and strive to do His will. Daily prayer and frequent reception of the Sacraments of the Most Holy Eucharist and Reconciliation are the channels of grace God has given us to grow in union with Him.
In today’s passage from Romans, the Apostle Paul was soaring to the heights in his contemplation of God’s love. Of all the wonders that we can ever see in this life, nothing surpasses the fact that God loves you and He loves me, loves us with an everlasting and unchanging love, a love which will not finally be satisfied until we are all home in Heaven, conformed to the likeness of our Lord, Jesus Christ. The love of God for us is the basis for our peace and for our joy. Let us take time this week to contemplate God’s love for us!
God love and bless you!
Sr. Kathleen Fitzpatrick, IHM