Daily Readings - Mon Sep 03 2018
1 Corinthians
1And so, brothers, when I came to you, announcing to you the testimony of Christ, I did not bring exalted words or lofty wisdom2For I did not judge myself to know anything among you, except Jesus Christ, and him crucified3And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and with much trembling4And my words and preaching were not the persuasive words of human wisdom, but were a manifestation of the Spirit and of virtue5so that your faith would not be based on the wisdom of men, but on the virtue of God
Luke
16And he went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. And he entered into the synagogue, according to his custom, on the Sabbath day. And he rose up to read17And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. And as he unrolled the book, he found the place where it was written18"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because of this, he has anointed me. He has sent me to evangelize the poor, to heal the contrite of heart19to preach forgiveness to captives and sight to the blind, to release the broken into forgiveness, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of retribution.20And when he had rolled up the book, he returned it to the minister, and he sat down. And the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him21Then he began to say to them, "On this day, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.22And everyone gave testimony to him. And they wondered at the words of grace that proceeded from his mouth. And they said, "Is this not the son of Joseph?23And he said to them: "Certainly, you will recite to me this saying, ‘Physician, heal yourself.’ The many great things that we have heard were done in Capernaum, do here also in your own country.24Then he said: "Amen I say to you, that no prophet is accepted in his own country25In truth, I say to you, there were many widows in the days of Elijah in Israel, when the heavens were closed for three years and six months, when a great famine had occurred throughout the entire land26And to none of these was Elijah sent, except to Zarephath of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow27And there were many lepers in Israel under the prophet Elisha. And none of these was cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian.28And all those in the synagogue, upon hearing these things, were filled with anger29And they rose up and drove him beyond the city. And they brought him all the way to the edge of the mount, upon which their city had been built, so that they might thrown him down violently30But passing through their midst, he went away
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter two profound moments that invite us to reflect on the nature of God's message and our response to it. The First Reading from 1 Corinthians reminds us of Paul's humble approach to preaching, where he relied not on human wisdom but on the power of the Spirit. He emphasized the crucifixion of Christ as the core of his message, teaching us that true wisdom comes from God, not human intellect. This humility is a powerful lesson in trusting God's power over our own abilities.
In the Gospel, Jesus faces rejection in his hometown of Nazareth after declaring the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. Despite initial amazement, the crowd turns hostile when Jesus challenges their assumptions about who deserves God's grace. This rejection mirrors Paul's experience, highlighting the theme of trusting in God's plan, even when it leads to discomfort or rejection. Both readings remind us that God's grace often appears in unexpected places, urging us to be open to His work beyond our limited perspectives.
As we apply these teachings to our lives, we are called to humility and trust in God. Let us embrace the truth that God's ways are not our ways and remain open to His message, even when it challenges us. May we, like Paul and Jesus, trust in God's power and grace, allowing it to guide us in our daily lives. This is a call to look beyond our own understanding and prejudices, recognizing that God's work is not confined to our expectations.