Daily Readings - Thu Jul 17 2025
Exodus
13Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?"14God said to Moses, "I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'"15God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers-the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob-has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.16"Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers-the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob-appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.17And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites-a land flowing with milk and honey.'18"The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, 'The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God.'19But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him.20So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter profound moments of divine encounter and invitation. In Exodus, Moses experiences a pivotal moment with God in the burning bush, where he is commissioned to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. God reveals His name as "I AM WHO AM," a declaration of His eternal presence and power. This encounter is not just a call to action but a revelation of God's nature—ever-present and actively involved in the lives of His people. Moses, though initially hesitant, is assured of God's mighty hand that will see the Israelites through their captivity.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus extends an invitation to all who are weary and burdened, promising rest and refreshment. He invites us to take His yoke, emphasizing that it is easy and His burden light. This invitation is rooted in Jesus' humility and meekness, offering a different kind of leadership—one of service and compassion rather than oppression.
These readings beautifully intertwine the themes of divine call and rest. In Exodus, God's call to Moses is a call to trust in His power and presence, even in the face of daunting tasks. In Matthew, Jesus' invitation is a call to surrender our burdens, finding rest in Him. Together, they remind us that our strength comes not from ourselves but from God. In our daily lives, when faced with challenges, we are called to trust in God's plan and seek rest in Jesus. The moral lesson here is clear: trust in God's presence and promises, and surrender our burdens to Him, finding rest and strength in His will.