Daily Readings - Sun Mar 19 2023

¹The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons."⁶When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed is before him."⁷But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart."¹⁰And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen these."¹¹Then Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here."¹²And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the LORD said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he."¹³Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

Ephesians

Chapter 5

⁸for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light⁹(for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),¹⁰and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.¹¹Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.¹²For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.¹³But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible,¹⁴for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, "Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

John

Chapter 9

¹As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.⁶Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud⁷and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.⁸The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?"⁹Some said, "It is he." Others said, "No, but he is like him." He kept saying, "I am the man."¹³They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.¹⁴Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.¹⁵So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."¹⁶Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them.¹⁷So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."³⁴They answered him, "You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?" And they cast him out.³⁵Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"³⁶He answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"³⁷Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you."³⁸He said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him.

Sermon

The readings today invite us to reflect on the nature of true sight and judgment. In the first reading, Samuel is sent to anoint a new king, but he learns that God does not choose based on outward appearance. Despite Eliab's impressive stature, it is David, the youngest and seemingly insignificant, who is chosen. This reminds us that God sees beyond the surface, looking instead into the heart. In the Gospel, Jesus heals a man born blind, yet the Pharisees fail to see the miracle's true significance. They are blinded by their own judgments and traditions, unable to recognize the divine work before them. The healed man, however, comes to faith, acknowledging Jesus as a prophet. This contrast highlights the difference between physical and spiritual sight. Ephesians encourages us to live as children of light, producing fruits of goodness, justice, and truth. This light should guide us to see beyond appearances and to act with integrity. Let us ask for the grace to look beyond the external, to judge with compassion, and to live in the light of Christ, allowing His truth to illuminate our path.