John 17:26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.

This was part of Christ’s prayer to his Father for all believers. We who know the risen Christ have a mission – to live and love like he did. He died so that we can use the fact of his sacrifice to persuade men that he loves them. Without the cross we have nothing to say, because as human beings we are incapable of pure love. Only God’s love, when it invades our lives, makes it possible for us to deny ourselves for his glory and the good of others. His love has the power to transform us and those it touches.

It is his love demonstrated on the cross that makes us know that when we pray “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10) it requires actions on our part. Our giving is part of that response. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) God gave till it hurt, so must we.  Give love, time, prayer, food, shelter, empathy, sympathy, money, opportunity, a listening ear, anything at all that can make a positive difference in someone else’s life to remind them that God cares.