Daily Readings - Wed Sep 16 2020
1 Corinthians
31But earnestly desire the higher gifts.And I will show you a still more excellent way.
1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.2And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.3If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.4Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;6it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.7Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.8Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.9For we know in part and we prophesy in part,10but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.12For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.13So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Luke
31"To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?32They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, "'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.'33For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'34The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'35Yet wisdom is justified by all her children."
Sermon
In today’s readings, we are invited to reflect on the essence of love and wisdom in our Christian journey. The first reading from 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13, often referred to as the “Hymn to Love,” reminds us that without love, even the most remarkable gifts and actions are meaningless. Paul emphasizes that love is patient, kind, and enduring, and it is the greatest virtue among faith, hope, and charity. The Gospel from Luke 7:31-35 presents Jesus comparing the current generation to children who are never satisfied, highlighting their inconsistency in criticizing both John the Baptist and Himself for their different approaches to ministry. Jesus concludes that true wisdom is justified by those who embrace God’s message with openness and love.
The context of these readings is crucial. In Corinthians, Paul addresses a community divided by rivalries and a focus on spiritual gifts, urging them to prioritize love as the foundation of their faith. In the Gospel, Jesus responds to Pharisees who judge Him and John the Baptist, illustrating their inability to see the truth beyond their preconceptions. Both readings underscore that true wisdom and understanding come from a place of love and openness to God’s message.
These readings relate by emphasizing that our actions and judgments must be rooted in love and discernment. Paul teaches that even the most selfless deeds without love are hollow, while Jesus shows that true wisdom is not about outward criticism but about receiving God’s message with an open heart. In our daily lives, this means that our efforts, no matter how noble, must be guided by love. We must cultivate love and discernment to truly follow God’s path. The moral lesson here is clear: love and wisdom are the heart of Christian living, and without them, our efforts are empty. Let us strive to embody love and discernment in all we do, embracing God’s message with open hearts.