Daily Readings - Mon Mar 23 2020
Isaiah
17"For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.18But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness.19I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress.20No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.21They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
John
43After the two days he departed for Galilee.44(For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.)45So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.46So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill.47When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.48So Jesus said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe."49The official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."50Jesus said to him, "Go; your son will live." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way.51As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering.52So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."53The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." And he himself believed, and all his household.54This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on hope, trust, and the transformative power of God’s presence in our lives. In the first reading from Isaiah, we hear a beautiful vision of a new creation where sorrow and pain are no more. This passage, written during a time of great exile and suffering for God’s people, offers a message of hope. Isaiah reminds us that God is always creating anew, bringing joy and life even in the midst of despair. The prophet’s words encourage us to trust in God’s promise of a future filled with peace and happiness, where the struggles of this world will fade away.
In the Gospel, we encounter a royal official whose son is gravely ill. Desperate for healing, he turns to Jesus, even though he is far away in Cana. Jesus’ response seems puzzling at first: he tells the man to go home, assuring him that his son lives. Remarkably, the official takes Jesus at his word and begins his journey home. Along the way, he learns that his son was healed at the very moment Jesus spoke those words. This story highlights the importance of faith and trust. The official didn’t see the miracle with his own eyes, but he believed in Jesus’ power and promise. His trust was rewarded, and not only was his son healed, but his entire household came to believe in Jesus.
These readings remind us that faith is not always about seeing signs or having all the answers. Like the royal official, we are called to trust in God’s word, even when the circumstances seem uncertain. Isaiah’s vision of a new creation encourages us to hold onto hope, knowing that God is always working to bring life and joy out of suffering. In our daily lives, we can apply this by trusting in God’s plan, even when we don’t see immediate results. Let us pray for the grace to have faith like the royal official, to believe in God’s promises, and to live with hope in the new creation He is always bringing about.