Daily Readings - Mon Apr 28 2025
Acts
23On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.24When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord," they said, "you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.25You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: "'Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?26The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. '27Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.28They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.29Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.30Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
John
1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council.2He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."3In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "4"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"5Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.7You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.'8The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the power of faith, prayer, and the transformative work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. In the first reading from Acts, we see the early Christian community responding to persecution with unity and trust in God. After being released from imprisonment, the apostles gather with their fellow believers and pray for courage and strength. Their prayer is not one of fear or retreat but of boldness and confidence in God’s plan. They acknowledge God as the creator of all things and recall how He has always been faithful, even in the face of opposition. Their prayer is answered with a tangible outpouring of the Holy Spirit, empowering them to continue their mission.
In the Gospel, Jesus speaks to Nicodemus, a Pharisee and leader of the Jews, about the necessity of being "born anew" through water and the Holy Spirit. Nicodemus struggles to understand how this is possible, thinking in literal terms, but Jesus explains that this is a spiritual rebirth. Just as the wind blows where it wills, the Spirit works mysteriously, bringing new life to those who are open to it. This conversation highlights the profound truth that our relationship with God is not just about outward observance but about an inner transformation that only the Spirit can bring.
These readings remind us that our faith is not a solo journey but one that is deeply connected to the community and to the work of the Holy Spirit. Like the early Christians, we are called to face challenges with courage and to trust in God’s providence. Like Nicodemus, we are invited to move beyond our limited understanding and to embrace the mystery of God’s grace. May we, too, be filled with the Holy Spirit, that we might live with confidence, speak with boldness, and be open to the new life God desires to bring forth in us.