Daily Reflection | Gospel Reading | RVA

Gospel: Luke 11:29-32 -
As the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words: “People of the present time are troubled people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins, and here, there is greater than Jonah.

Reflection:
“No sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah.”
The prophet Jonah delivered just about the lamest and most insincere prophetic utterance in scripture: “Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed.”This is a message he did not want to deliver precisely because he feared the people would repent, God would forgive them, and they would be spared the destruction Jonah thought they deserved. And that is exactly what happened. The people from king to servant all repented and put on sackcloth, and Jonah was furious. He is the epitome of an “angry prophet”—angry in this case at the mercy of God. Yet that is not what Jonah is remembered for. Instead, we recall that he was swallowed by a whale who carried him for three days toward the destination he had tried to avoid. And that, curiously, is the sign that Jesus offers to his gene- ration: the sign of Jonah.
It is doubtful that the crowd gathered around Jesus could make much of this cryptic prophecy—presumably a reference to the three days he would spend in the realm of death prior to his resurrection. But the prophet’s message—Repent, or face catastrophe—applies as much today as it did in Jesus’ time. Do we listen to the Jonahs in our midst?It is doubtful that the crowd gathered around Jesus could make much of this cryptic prophecy—presumably a reference to the three days he would spend in the realm of death prior to his resurrection. But the prophet’s message—Repent, or face catastrophe—applies as much today as it did in Jesus’ time. Do we listen to the Jonahs in our midst?

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019

Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15 -
When you pray, do not use a lot of words, as the pagans do; for they believe that, the more they say, the more chance they have of being heard. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need, even before you ask him.

This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven,
holy be your name, your kingdom, come,
your will, be done on earth, as in heaven. Give us today, our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we forgive those who are in debt to us. Do not bring us to the test,
but deliver us from the evil one.
If you forgive others their wrongdoings, your Father in heaven will also forgive yours.
If you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive you.

Reflection:
“Your Father knows what you need, even before you ask him.”
This precious prayer is part of the Eucharistic liturgy. In repeating these words we are not only following Jesus’ instructions; we are repeating the very words he spoke to his disciples. Just as he is truly present to us in the Eucharist, so he is present to us, praying through the Spirit, when we repeat his words.
Of course there is a difference between truly praying, and merely repeating “a lot of words, as the pagans do.” Yes, it is wonderful to invoke God’s holy name, to pray in confidence for our daily needs, and to pray for deliverance from temptation. But the greater part of the Gospel text is actually about what we must do: Forgive others. This is crucially tied to the forgiveness we seek. If we forgive others, God will also forgive us; if we do not forgive others, neither will we be forgiven.
When we forgive others, Jesus is truly present. When we work for a world where every- one is assured of both bread and mercy, then God’s will is done on earth as in heaven. With this prayer that revolution of the heart begins.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019

Gospel: Luke 4:1-13 -
Jesus was now full of the Holy Spirit. As he returned from the Jordan, the Spirit led him into the desert, where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. He did not eat anything during that time, and at the end he was hungry. The devil then said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to turn into bread.” But Jesus answered, “Scripture says: People cannot live on bread alone.”

Then the devil took him up to a high place, and showed him, in a flash, all the nations of the world. And he said to Jesus, “I can give you power over all the nations; and their wealth will be yours; for power and wealth have been delivered to me; and I give them to whom I wish. All this will be yours, provided you worship me.” But Jesus replied, “Scripture says: You shall worship the Lord your God and serve him alone.”
Then the devil took him up to Jerusalem, and set him on the highest wall of the temple; and he said, “If you are God’s Son, throw yourself down from here; for it is written: God will order his angels to take care of you; and again: They will hold you in their hands, lest you hurt your foot on the stones.” But Jesus replied, “It is written: You shall not challenge the Lord your God.”
When the devil had exhausted every way of tempting Jesus, he left him, to return another time.When the devil had exhausted every way of tempting Jesus, he left him, to return another time.

Lectio Divina
READ: Israel’s gratitude to God is based on remembering the history of God’s faithfulness. Paul reminds us of God’s saving action in raising Jesus from the dead. Jesus begins his mission by resisting the devil’s blandishments of power and putting all his trust in God.
REFLECT: At the beginning of his ministry, Jesus had to face the deepest temptations. Would he seek his own comfort and needs? Would he use his gifts to pursue power and influence or to amaze people with his spectacular abilities? At root, these temptations were all about seeking his own glory rather than God’s. They deflected him from his true mission. In this spirit he rebuked Peter as “Satan,” when his disciple tried to steer him from the way of the Cross. What is our own mission? What are the temptations that seek to deflect us from that path?
PRAY: Lord, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
ACT: Take each of the three replies that Jesus made to the devil. How could these help defend us against the temptations we have faced in our lives?

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019