Daily Readings - Mon Apr 09 2018
Isaiah
10Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz,11"Ask the LORD your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights."12But Ahaz said, "I will not ask; I will not put the LORD to the test."13Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also?14Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Hebrews
4because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me;6with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.7Then I said, 'Here I am--it is written about me in the scroll--I have come to do your will, O God.'"8First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them" (although the law required them to be made).9Then he said, "Here I am, I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second.10And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Luke
26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary.28The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.30But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."34"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"35The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.36Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.37For nothing is impossible with God."38"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the profound mystery of God’s plan of salvation and the role of faith in our lives. In the first reading from Isaiah, we hear the prophet’s invitation to King Ahaz to ask for a sign, a gesture of trust in God’s providence. Ahaz’s refusal is met with the promise of a greater sign: a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, Emmanuel, “God is with us.” This passage, written centuries before Christ, points to the coming Messiah and the fulfillment of God’s promise to be with his people.
The Gospel reading brings us to the moment when this promise is fulfilled. The Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear a son, Jesus, who will be the Son of the Most High and reign forever. Mary’s response, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word,” is a model of faith and surrender. She does not understand how this will happen, but she trusts in God’s plan. This moment, the Annunciation, is the hinge of salvation history, where the Word of God becomes flesh in the womb of Mary.
The second reading from Hebrews bridges the Old and New Testaments, emphasizing that Christ’s sacrifice is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s plan. The blood of oxen and goats could never take away sin, but the sacrifice of Christ’s body, offered once for all, sanctifies us and makes us holy. This reading reminds us that our faith is rooted in the sacrifice of Christ, who came to do the will of the Father.
In our daily lives, these readings call us to trust in God’s plan, even when it seems impossible or unclear. Like Mary, we are invited to surrender to God’s will, knowing that He is always with us. The moral lesson is clear: faith is not about understanding every detail but about trusting in God’s love and providence. Let us ask for the grace to say, like Mary, “Let it be done to me according to your word,” and to live each day with the confidence that God is with us, Emmanuel.