Daily Readings - Wed Dec 05 2018
Isaiah
6On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.7And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.8He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.9It will be said on that day, "Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation."10For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill.
Matthew
29Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there.30And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them,31so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.32Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."33And the disciples said to him, "Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?"34And Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" They said, "Seven, and a few small fish."35And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground,36he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.37And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on God’s abundant love and care for His people. In the First Reading from Isaiah, we hear a beautiful vision of a future where God will remove the veil of death and wipe away every tear. This passage is part of Isaiah’s larger vision of the messianic age, where God will restore His people and bring them to a mountain feast, symbolizing His victory over suffering and death. It is a message of hope, reminding us that even in the darkest times, God’s plan for our salvation is at work.
In the Gospel, Matthew describes Jesus’ compassion for the crowds who have followed Him for three days. Seeing their physical and spiritual needs, Jesus performs a miracle, feeding them with just seven loaves and a few fish. This miracle, similar to the feeding of the 5,000 earlier in Matthew’s Gospel, shows Jesus’ divine power and His care for both the body and the soul. The leftovers, filling seven baskets, symbolize God’s abundance and generosity. This passage reminds us that Jesus is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s vision, the one who brings life, healing, and nourishment to all people.
These readings call us to trust in God’s providence and to live with compassion. Just as Jesus saw the needs of the crowd and acted, we are called to see the needs of those around us and respond with love. In our daily lives, we may face moments of scarcity or doubt, but the Gospel assures us that God can multiply even the little we have. Let us ask for the faith to trust in His abundance and the courage to share what we have with others. May we, like Jesus, be instruments of hope and healing in a world that often feels broken and in need.