And he said to them, “Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are my witnesses of these things. And [behold] I am sending the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” Then he led them [out] as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven. They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple praising God.
Luke 24:46-53 (NABRE)
The essence of missionary work: preaching conversion in the name of Jesus Christ.
Jesus’ parting message to His disciples contains a command to preach repentance. This is the core message of the missionary. It is a message that we all must take to heart, too. This repentance is for forgiveness of sin. Thus do we see the mercy of Jesus expressed in this address to His disciples. Repentance is not just a sad face that we wear. It is our move in the dance of merciful grace, and repentance is also a free response to grace. It leads to conversion, a change in how we live our lives. When we trade lust for chastity, harshness for gentleness, or unbelief for faith, we begin to see not only peace in our lives, but peace in the world. Conversion is how we become better citizens of the Kingdom. It is how we change the world and make it more like Heaven. Every “yes” we say to God makes this world a better place. The fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5) always sweeten this bitter world!
Thank you for reading. Peace.
Eat the Scroll 