Daily Readings - Wed Dec 06 2023
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
In today's readings, we encounter powerful visions of God's providence and compassion. Isaiah 25:6-10a paints a vivid picture of a future feast on Mount Zion, where God will abolish death and wipe away every tear. This passage, written during a time of exile and hardship for the Israelites, offers hope of a messianic era where God's people will be comforted and restored. It speaks to the deep human longing for healing and joy in the face of suffering.
In Matthew 15:29-37, we see this vision of God's abundance and care realized in the person of Jesus. After healing many who were blind, mute, and lame, Jesus feeds a vast crowd with just seven loaves and a few fish. This miracle, like the one in Isaiah, reveals God's desire to satisfy the deepest hungers of humanity—both physical and spiritual. Jesus' compassion and willingness to provide for those in need remind us that God's love is not abstract but concrete, meeting us in our most basic human needs.
These readings invite us to reflect on how we encounter God's care in our own lives. Just as the crowds trusted Jesus enough to bring their sick and their hunger to him, we are called to trust in God's providence, even when resources seem scarce. The miracle of the loaves and fish also challenges us to share what we have, however little it may seem, so that others might experience God's abundance through us. Let us ask for the grace to see the world with the eyes of faith, trusting that God can bring life out of emptiness and hope out of despair.