Daily Readings - Sat Feb 25 2023
Isaiah
9Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. "If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,10and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.11The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.12Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.13"If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD's holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,14then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob." The mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Luke
27After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him,28and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.29Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.30But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"31Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.32I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter powerful messages about living out our faith through compassionate actions. The prophet Isaiah challenges us to move beyond superficial religious practices, emphasizing that true fasting involves setting the oppressed free, sharing with the hungry, and comforting the afflicted. This call to justice and mercy is not just a suggestion but a divine imperative. In the Gospel, Jesus scandalizes the Pharisees by dining with tax collectors and sinners, declaring that he came not for the self-righteous, but for those who recognize their need for repentance.
Both readings highlight the importance of living out our faith in tangible ways. Isaiah's message is set in a context where the people were practicing fasting, but their actions did not reflect a commitment to justice and care for the vulnerable. Similarly, in Luke's account, Jesus challenges the Pharisees' hypocrisy, pointing out that their focus on external purity missed the heart of God's mercy and love. These passages remind us that our faith must be expressed in how we treat others, especially those on the margins of society.
As we reflect on these readings, let us examine our own lives. Are we content with outward displays of piety, or do we allow our faith to transform us into instruments of God's justice and love? Let us seek to be like Levi, who left everything to follow Jesus, and like Jesus himself, who reached out to those society had rejected. May we find joy in serving others and may our lives be a reflection of God's light in a world that often lives in darkness.