Daily Readings - Sat Jul 04 2020
Amos
11"In that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen and repair its breaches, and raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old,12that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by my name," declares the LORD who does this.13"Behold, the days are coming," declares the LORD, "when the plowman shall overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes him who sows the seed; the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.14I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.15I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them," says the LORD your God.
Matthew
14Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"15And Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.16No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made.17Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved."
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter powerful messages of renewal and transformation. The first reading from Amos 9:11-15 speaks of God's promise to restore the tabernacle of David, rebuild the fallen, and bring prosperity to His people. This prophecy, delivered during a time of social injustice, offers hope to a nation in despair, promising a future where the land will be fertile and the people will thrive under God's care.
In the Gospel, Matthew 9:14-17, Jesus addresses the question of fasting posed by John's disciples. He uses the analogy of a groom and the parables of patches and wineskins to illustrate the incompatibility of old practices with the new message He brings. Jesus emphasizes that His presence brings joy and that the old traditions cannot contain the new life He offers, just as old garments and wineskins cannot hold the new without causing damage.
These readings together invite us to embrace the newness that God brings. Just as Amos foresees a restored Israel and Jesus introduces a new way of living, we are called to openness and trust in God's plan. In our daily lives, this means letting go of outdated ways and being receptive to the renewal God offers. The moral lesson here is clear: trust in God's plan for renewal and be open to the changes that bring new life and growth.