6th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Matthew 5:17-37) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
- NHA CHUA CHA
- 3 days ago
- 6 min read
FIRST READING - Sir 15:15-20
"He never commands anyone to sin."
A reading from the Book of Sirach
15 If you choose, you can keep the commandments;
loyalty is doing the will of God.
16 Set before you are fire and water;
to whatever you choose, stretch out your hand.
17 Before everyone are life and death,
whichever they choose will be given them.
18 Immense is the wisdom of the Lord;
mighty in power, he sees all things.
19 The eyes of God behold his works,
and he understands every human deed.
20 He never commands anyone to sin,
nor shows leniency toward deceivers.[a]
SECOND READING - 1 Cor 2:6-10
"God’s wisdom, mysterious, hidden, which God predetermined before the ages for our glory."
A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians
6 Yet we do speak a wisdom to those who are mature, but not a wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are passing away. 7 Rather, we speak God’s wisdom,[a] mysterious, hidden, which God predetermined before the ages for our glory, 8 and which none of the rulers of this age[b] knew; for, if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written:
“What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,
and what has not entered the human heart,
what God has prepared for those who love him,”
10 this God has revealed to us through the Spirit.
For the Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mt 5:17-37
"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, but I say to you."
✠From the Gospel according to Matthew
17 [a]“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.[b] 20 I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
[c] 21 “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’[d] 22 [e]But I say to you, whoever is angry[f] with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. 23 Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, 24 leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.
27 [g]“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 [h]If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.
31 [i]“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
33 [j]“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all;[k] not by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 [l]Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.
6th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Matthew 5:17-37)
THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
Dear people of God,
In today’s Word of God, God teaches all humanity that He is the Almighty One.
He is the Absolute and the only One.
From the heights of heaven to the depths on the earth, God encompasses everything, and He sees everything; nothing is outside the loving embrace of God.
God reveals to humanity that within His loving plan, there is always a divine pedagogy (a gradual progression): in the beginning, the love and laws that God bestowed upon humanity were simple, for humanity was still weak, not yet ready to receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit, nor to fully receive the boundless love that God bestows upon humanity.
Therefore, God gave the first laws in a simple form so that people could easily follow them; but when the time came, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, came into the world as a man. He came to fulfill the law that God had given to humankind from the beginning.
He made the law perfect, to be fulfilled in the very humankind that God created.
God teaches humanity that His love demands perfection in each person, both in soul and body. He calls upon all humanity to fulfill God's commandments from their hearts.
God is wise and understands everything. He sets the door to eternal life and the door to eternal death for humanity, so that people may freely choose: either to follow God, which means practicing what He has commanded, as in today's Scripture: to love with all soul and body, that is, not to be angry, jealous, or selfish; not to be unfaithful or disloyal to God, and to be at peace with one's fellow human beings.
From the beginning, God gave the laws that ensured justice among people, such as an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But in the time of Jesus and up to the present day, God invites everyone to go deeper into selfless love and wholehearted forgiveness toward their brothers and sisters.
Before coming to God to receive the gift of life, humanity must first embrace love for our fellow human beings, as the Word of God teaches in today's Gospel: before you offer your gift to God, you must first reconcile with your brothers and sisters; for only a pure and clear heart is worthy to present an offering most pleasing to God.
God lets humanity know that He sets the gates of life and death right before humankind. Whoever chooses to follow the path of living according to the law of love and forgiveness as God teaches will enter the gate of eternal life; but whoever harbors hatred and resentment will have their soul drawn to Satan through the gate of death.
Today's Word of God aims to awaken everyone, so that we may know how to choose the path of the law of love that God has taught and Jesus has exemplified for all humanity.
Only the path of love—by sacrificing one's own life for those one loves—will bring eternal life; and that love will erase hatred and always bring forgiveness to our brothers and sisters.
This is God's call that has been taught to everyone: before offering a gift to God the Father, one must reconcile and forgive one's brothers and sisters; and God's Word also teaches that to receive God's forgiveness for one's sins, one must first know how to forgive one's fellow human beings.
This is the lesson that God teaches people in the world today: by living and doing what God teaches, the door to eternal life will be granted to one's soul and body. -
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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