Daily Readings - Thu Oct 12 2017
Malachi
13"You have said harsh things against me," says the LORD. "Yet you ask, 'What have we said against you?'14"You have said, 'It is futile to serve God. What did we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the LORD Almighty?15But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly the evildoers prosper, and even those who challenge God escape.'"16Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name.17"They will be mine," says the LORD Almighty, "in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him.18And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.
1"Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire," says the LORD Almighty. "Not a root or a branch will be left to them.2But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.
Luke
5Then he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,6because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.'7"Then the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.'8I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man's boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.9"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.10For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.11"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?13If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Sermon
In today’s readings, we are reminded of the importance of faith, persistence, and trust in God’s providence. The first reading from Malachi speaks to a people who have grown weary in their faith, questioning whether serving God is worth the effort. They observe the prosperity of the wicked and begin to doubt God’s justice. Yet, Malachi assures us that God is attentive to those who fear him and remain faithful. He promises a day of reckoning where the arrogant will be purified, and the righteous will find joy and healing in the “Sun of Justice.” This passage calls us to remain steadfast in our commitment to God, even when the world around us seems unjust.
The Gospel from Luke complements this message with Jesus’ parable of the persistent friend. Jesus teaches us that prayer requires perseverance and trust. Just as the friend in the parable eventually receives what he needs because of his persistence, so too will God respond to our prayers, though not always in the way or timing we expect. Jesus reassures us that God, as a loving Father, desires to give us good things. He invites us to approach him with confidence, knowing that our prayers are heard and that he will provide for us in his own way.
These readings invite us to reflect on our relationship with God. Do we approach him with the persistence and trust of a child, or do we allow doubt and discouragement to weaken our faith? In a world that often values immediate results and instant gratification, the readings remind us of the value of patience and perseverance. Let us take heart in God’s promise to reward the faithful and to provide for us abundantly. May we, like the just in Malachi’s vision, walk in the light of the Sun of Justice, trusting that God’s plan for us is always good.