Bible Diary

Daily Reading

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordrinary Time

LECTIONARY
148

FIRST READING

Ex 22:20-26

“Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction. “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless. “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. If ever you take your neighbor's cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down.

PSALM

PS 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51

Response: I love you, Lord, my strength.

I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.

My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.

The LORD lives and blessed be my rock!
Extolled be God my savior.
You who gave great victories to your king
and showed kindness to your anointed.

SECOND READING

1 Thes 1:5-10

Because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

GOSPEL

Mt 22:34-40

But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Daily Reflection

The Law is often considered as a good regulation helping people live practical, social lives. The Jews, however, had a broader concept of their Law - the Law arose from Yahweh’s relationship with them and therefore Yahweh’s actions of caring for people, ought also to be the actions of His people. Thus Yahweh’s instructions to his people in the first reading aren’t just about being good, it’s about being like Yahweh.

No wonder, then, that when the Pharisees ask Jesus about which is the greatest commandment, He joins together two well-known commands of the Mosaic Law. Only in giving oneself to others in love can one understand God’s relationship with us in Jesus – He GAVE HIMSELF to us!

Paul’s criteria in measuring the effectiveness of his preaching to the Thessalonians and their subsequent reception of God’s word, is a very practical one – the sort of reception he received from them!

The way we receive and deal with one another is a clear indication of the way we will receive and deal with God’s Word.

Want to know how you’re faring with God? Check your relationship with others!