Daily Readings - Sun Mar 15 2020
Exodus
3But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?"4Then Moses cried out to the LORD, "What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me."5The LORD answered Moses, "Walk on ahead of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.6I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink." So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.7And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the LORD saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
Romans
1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.6You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.7Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
John
5So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.6Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.7When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?"8(His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)9The Samaritan woman said to him, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans. )10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water."11"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?12Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?"13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."19"Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet.20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem."21Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.22You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."25The woman said, "I know that Messiah" (called Christ) "is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us."26Then Jesus declared, "I who speak to you am he."39Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did."40So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days.41And because of his words many more became believers.42They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world."
Sermon
In today’s readings, we encounter powerful reminders of God’s faithfulness and the transformative power of faith. The first reading from Exodus describes the Israelites’ thirst in the wilderness and their murmuring against Moses. Despite their doubt and impatience, God provides water from the rock, a sign of his providence and mercy. The second reading from Romans emphasizes the hope and love that flow from being justified by faith. Paul highlights how Christ’s death for us while we were still sinners demonstrates the depth of God’s love, a love that strengthens us in times of weakness. In the Gospel, Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well reveals his desire to quench our spiritual thirst with the living water of eternal life. The woman, moved by Jesus’ words, becomes a witness to her community, showing how faith can inspire others to seek the truth.
These readings are deeply connected by the theme of trust in God’s plan, even when we face uncertainty or doubt. The Israelites in the wilderness, like the Samaritan woman, were at a crossroads of faith. They questioned God’s presence in their lives, yet God responded with grace and revelation. Similarly, Paul reminds us that Christ’s sacrifice for us sinners is the ultimate expression of God’s love, a love that gives us hope and strength. Jesus’ offer of living water invites us to look beyond the physical and material to the spiritual nourishment that only he can provide. Together, these readings call us to trust in God’s faithfulness and to open our hearts to the gift of his love.
In our daily lives, these readings challenge us to reflect on our own faith and how we respond to challenges. Do we, like the Israelites, doubt God’s presence when we face difficulties? Or do we, like the Samaritan woman, allow God to reveal himself to us in unexpected ways? Jesus’ offer of living water reminds us that true fulfillment comes not from the world but from a deep relationship with him. Let us ask ourselves: Are we thirsting for God? Are we open to the ways he wants to quench that thirst? May we, like the Samaritan woman, encounter Jesus anew and share his love with others, trusting that he is indeed the Savior of the world.