First Reading: Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19
Reflection:
The words we hear in this Sunday’s first reading were originally a message to the Prophet Jeremiah from the Lord. We hear that his mission was to be “a prophet to the nations.” This mission was given to him before he was even born. In fact, the reading affirms that God knew him even before he formed him in the womb. This statement holds true for everyone who has ever existed. God knows each of us intimately before we are even conceived. He creates us out of His perfect love and forms us according to His perfect plan. God makes each of us for a particular mission in this world. He creates us in order to spread His love. From the moment of conception, therefore, we all have innate dignity and a divinely-given purpose. The Prophet Jeremiah’s purpose was to be “a prophet to the nations.” With this mission, Jeremiah was directed by the Lord to communicate all that God told Him to communicate to the people. The message would not necessarily be a popular one. In fact, God warned Jeremiah that the people would “fight against you.” This is because the truth is often hard to swallow, especially when Jeremiah was addressing people who had not been abiding by God’s truth. Still, God promised to give Jeremiah the strength He would need to succeed. That’s true in our lives too. God calls us on a mission and sometimes that mission is going to be very difficult and we will face opposition. But when God calls us, He also equips us. He gives us everything we need to succeed in our mission of serving Him.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:31—13:13
Reflection:
This is the famous “love” passage from 1 Corinthians that is often read at weddings. This passage follows directly after what we have heard the past two Sundays from 1 Corinthians regarding spiritual gifts. We each are given spiritual gifts at our baptism. Here Paul teaches us that the spiritual gifts are only beneficial when we exercise them out of love. The gifts are not for our own benefit but for the well-being of others. In fact, Paul goes as far as saying that the spiritual gifts are meaningless without love. He then defines love for us—“Love is patient, love is kind…” We throw the word “love” around so much that oftentimes we lose its true meaning. We say things like, “I love ice cream,” or “I love football.” What we mean by that is we enjoy those things and find pleasure in them. That use of the word “love” is rather self-centered. But, according to this reading, there is no selfishness in love. True love is completely self-giving. To put it simply, love is “to will the good of another person” (as defined by St. Thomas Aquinas). Ultimately, God is the source of all love. We see God’s love expressed most fully on the cross, where He gave Himself freely and completely for our sake. Our love must be modeled after God’s selfless love.
Gospel Reading: Luke 4:21-30
Reflection:
This Sunday’s Gospel reading picks up right where last week’s Gospel reading left off. Last week we heard how Jesus read from the book of the Prophet Isaiah in the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth. After reading a prophecy about the Messiah, he said what is included again at the beginning of this reading: “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” In other words, He was claiming to be the Messiah. The reaction from the Jews in attendance was at first positive. At the same time, they were perplexed, asking, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” They had known Jesus since He was young. They knew His family. They were surprised that someone so common to them could be the Messiah. Jesus’ words in response turned the tide of their opinion. He told them that they would reject Him, and compared the people to the Israelites in the time of the Prophets Elijah and Elisha who were obstinate and rejected the Lord’s messengers. Because of the people’s hard-heartedness, God sent the prophets to non-Israelites to minister. Jesus was implying that because of the hard-heartedness of His generation of Israelites that they would reject Him, their Messiah, and, therefore, He would go to the Gentiles. The truth of these words of Jesus angered the people. The truth is often hard to swallow, especially when it brings to light our sins. The Israelites in Nazareth did not like hearing the hard truth that they were like the generation of hard-hearted Israelites in the time of Elijah and Elisha. Rather than responding with repentance and then acceptance of Jesus as the Messiah, they reacted with “fury” and tried to kill Jesus by throwing Him off a cliff (referred to today as Mt. Precipice, which is pictured above). But Jesus was spared from their wrath. The simple explanation that “Jesus passed through the midst of them and went away” evidences Jesus’ power and authority over the people. It was not yet His time to die, so He was spared from their murderous intent simply by His own divine will. This entire account is reminiscent of the first reading from Jeremiah. Like the Prophet Jeremiah, Jesus’ mission was to be a “prophet to the nations.” Of course, Jesus was even more than a prophet because He is God in the flesh. Like Jeremiah, Jesus faced opposition as a result of speaking the truth to the people. Despite the opposition, Jesus would be vindicated and stand strong. His oppressors would not prevail against Him.
Application:
- Whether in our marriages, families, workplaces, circle of friends, or elsewhere, God calls us to express the love described by the Apostle Paul in the second reading. “Love never fails,” because God never fails. Take a moment to reflect on the list of descriptors of love in 1 Corinthians and ask yourself, which area do I most need to work on improving?
- Have you ever faced opposition for speaking the truth? To stand up for the truths of our faith is often unpopular in our society today. Are you willing to take a stand regardless of what people think of you? Remember to always speak the truth in love.
