Daily Readings - Sat Aug 09 2025
Deuteronomy
4"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.5You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.6And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.7You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.8You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.9You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.10"And when the LORD your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you--with great and good cities that you did not build,11and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant--and when you eat and are full,12then take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.13It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.
Matthew
14And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him,15said, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water.16And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him."17And Jesus answered, "O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me."18And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly.19Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"20He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the nature of faith, trust, and our relationship with God. In the first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people of Israel of the fundamental commandment: to love God with all their heart, soul, and strength. He emphasizes the importance of living out this love by keeping God’s words close to their hearts and passing them on to future generations. This passage is set in the context of Moses preparing the Israelites to enter the Promised Land, a land they did not build or cultivate, but one given to them by God’s grace. Moses warns them not to forget the Lord who has brought them out of slavery and into freedom, lest they become complacent in their prosperity.
In the Gospel, we see a father’s desperate plea for his son’s healing. The boy suffers from epilepsy, and the father has already tried seeking help from Jesus’ disciples, but they were unable to heal him. Jesus responds with a rebuke, not of the father or the boy, but of the disciples’ lack of faith. He heals the boy, and later, when the disciples ask why they couldn’t cast out the demon, Jesus tells them it is because of their unbelief. He then reminds them that even a small amount of faith—like a mustard seed—can move mountains. This passage underscores the importance of trusting in God’s power and not relying solely on human effort or understanding.
Both readings call us to examine our own faith and relationship with God. Deuteronomy challenges us to remain faithful and grateful, even in times of abundance, while the Gospel reminds us that true power comes from trusting in God. In our daily lives, we often face challenges that seem insurmountable, just like the father of the epileptic boy. These readings encourage us to deepen our prayer life, to trust in God’s providence, and to remember that even the smallest act of faith can lead to extraordinary outcomes. Let us strive to love God wholeheartedly, as Moses commands, and to approach life’s difficulties with the humility and trust that Jesus exemplifies.