Daily Readings - Sat Aug 09 2025
Deuteronomy
4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:5And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.6And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:7And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.8And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.9And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.10And it shall be, when the LORD thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not,11And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full;12Then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.13Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.
Matthew
14And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,15Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.16And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.17Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.18And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.19Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?20And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto 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.