Daily Readings - Thu Sep 20 2018
1 Corinthians
1Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.2By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,5and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.6After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles,8and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.9For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.10But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.11Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.
Luke
36Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.37When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume,38and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.39When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."40Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you.Tell me, teacher," he said.41"Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.42Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?"43Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.You have judged correctly," Jesus said.44Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.45You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet.46You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.47Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."48Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."49The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"50Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
Sermon
In today’s readings, we encounter two powerful reflections on God’s grace and forgiveness. The first reading from 1 Corinthians reminds us of the core of the Gospel: Christ’s death and resurrection for our sins. Paul humbly acknowledges his unworthiness as an Apostle, yet he recognizes that it is solely by God’s grace that he has become a vessel for spreading the Good News. The Gospel from Luke presents a vivid contrast between the Pharisee and the sinful woman. While the Pharisee judges the woman’s past, Jesus reveals the depth of her love and the greatness of her forgiveness. He teaches that those who are forgiven much, love much, while those forgiven little, love little.
These readings are deeply connected. Paul’s emphasis on the resurrection underscores the ultimate act of God’s love and forgiveness, while the Gospel story illustrates how that forgiveness transforms lives. The woman’s extravagant love for Jesus is a response to the immense mercy she has received. Similarly, Paul’s zeal for preaching the Gospel flows from his own experience of grace, despite his past as a persecutor of the Church. Both readings call us to reflect on how we respond to God’s forgiveness in our own lives.
As we apply these readings to our daily lives, let us ask ourselves: Do we truly recognize the depth of God’s forgiveness in our own lives? Do we allow that forgiveness to transform us, to move us to love and serve others with the same extravagance as the sinful woman? Let us not be like the Pharisee, who focused on judgment rather than mercy. Instead, let us embrace the grace of God with humility and gratitude, and let that grace flow through us in acts of love and compassion. The moral of these readings is clear: God’s grace is abundant, and our response should be a life of love, rooted in the knowledge of how much we have been forgiven.