Words uttered by God the Father at the Transfiguration of Christ: Hic est filius meus dilectus (Behold my beloved son)
God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the world of reconciliation.
Acquaint yourself with him, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you.
2 Corinthians 5:19; Job 22:21.
The media publish bad news every day. But we should like to continue telling you some good news that is never out of date. It has been proclaimed for twenty centuries.
There is still a way to approach God and experience a happy relationship with Him. That way was opened by His Son, Jesus Christ. He agreed to become Man in order to die on a cross, bearing the punishment of our sins. This divine salvation, which speaks of peace and joy had already been proclaimed by the Old Testament prophets (cf. Isaiah 52:7). Man did not seek God, but God came down to seek those who were lost so as to offer them salvation. God first loved us (1 John 4:19). Jesus, the light of the world, was not accepted on earth: “men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). Since making that choice with its fatal consequences, the world that rejected the gospel has no hope and is on its way to perdition.
However, God is patient and does not want anyone to be lost, but that all should come to repentance (cf. 2 Peter 3:9). And just as Jesus proclaimed it, the gospel is preached today throughout the whole world for the benefit of those who feel the weight of their sins. “Today, if you will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 3:7).
Image: By Lorenzo Lotto – The Yorck Project (2002) 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei (DVD-ROM), distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH. ISBN: 3936122202., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=154179