Daily Readings - Wed Jul 05 2017
Genesis
5Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.8And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.9But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, laughing.10So she said to Abraham, "Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac."11And the thing was very displeasing to Abraham on account of his son.12But God said to Abraham, "Be not displeased because of the boy and because of your slave woman. Whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through Isaac shall your offspring be named.13And I will make a nation of the son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring."14So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.15When the water in the skin was gone, she put the child under one of the bushes.16Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot, for she said, "Let me not look on the death of the child." And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept.17And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, "What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.18Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation."19Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.20And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.
Matthew
28And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way.29And behold, they cried out, "What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?"30Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them.31And the demons begged him, saying, "If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs."32And he said to them, "Go." So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters.33The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men.34And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.
Sermon
The readings today present us with two powerful narratives that invite us to reflect on trust, faith, and the mysterious ways of God. In the first reading from Genesis, we encounter Abraham, a man of deep faith, who is grappling with a difficult situation. Sarah, his wife, insists that Hagar and her son Ishmael be cast out, and though Abraham is grieved, he trusts in God’s plan. This trust is rewarded when God provides for Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness, opening her eyes to a well of water and promising a future for her son. This story reminds us that even in moments of uncertainty and hardship, God’s providence is at work.
In the Gospel, we meet Jesus, who demonstrates His authority over evil spirits by casting demons out of two men and into a herd of swine. The people of the region, however, are more frightened than moved to faith by this display of power. They ask Jesus to leave, revealing a lack of understanding and trust in His mission. This contrast between Abraham’s trust and the fear of the Gerasenes invites us to examine our own response to God’s presence in our lives. Do we, like Abraham, trust in God’s plan even when it seems unclear, or do we, like the Gerasenes, allow fear to dominate our hearts?
These readings call us to a deeper faith and trust in God’s plan. Like Abraham, we are often called to let go of what is familiar and to trust in God’s promise, even when the future seems uncertain. And like the Gerasenes, we are invited to move beyond fear and to embrace the transformative power of Jesus in our lives. Let us ask for the grace to trust in God’s providence and to open our hearts to His presence, even when it challenges us to step out of our comfort zones. May we, like Hagar, come to see the wells of water that God provides for us in the wilderness of life.