FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - YEAR C - Gospel (Luke 5:1-11) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

“Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” (Lk 5:8)

FIRST READING - Is 6:1-2a, 3-8

First reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah

In the year King Uzziah died,

I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne,

with the train of his garment filling the temple.

Seraphim were stationed above.

They cried one to the other,

"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts!

All the earth is filled with his glory!"

At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook

and the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, "Woe is me, I am doomed!

For I am a man of unclean lips,

living among a people of unclean lips;

yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!"

Then one of the seraphim flew to me,

holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

He touched my mouth with it, and said,

"See, now that this has touched your lips,

your wickedness is removed, your sin purged."

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying,

"Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?"

"Here I am," I said; "send me!"

SECOND READING from the Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians - 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

I am reminding you, brothers and sisters,

of the gospel I preached to you,

which you indeed received and in which you also stand.

Through it you are also being saved,

if you hold fast to the word I preached to you,

unless you believed in vain.

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received:

that Christ died for our sins

in accordance with the Scriptures;

that he was buried;

that he was raised on the third day

in accordance with the Scriptures;

that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.

After that, Christ appeared to more

than five hundred brothers at once,

most of whom are still living,

though some have fallen asleep.

After that he appeared to James,

then to all the apostles.

Last of all, as to one born abnormally,

he appeared to me.

For I am the least of the apostles,

not fit to be called an apostle,

because I persecuted the church of God.

But by the grace of God I am what I am,

and his grace to me has not been ineffective.

Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them;

not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me.

Therefore, whether it be I or they,

so we preach and so you believed.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Luke 5:1-11

From the Gospel according to Luke

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening

to the word of God,

he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.

He saw two boats there alongside the lake;

the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.

Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,

he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.

Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,

"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."

Simon said in reply,

"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,

but at your command I will lower the nets."

When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish

and their nets were tearing.

They signaled to their partners in the other boat

to come to help them.

They came and filled both boats

so that the boats were in danger of sinking.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,

"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."

For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him

and all those with him,

and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,

who were partners of Simon.

Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;

from now on you will be catching men."

When they brought their boats to the shore,

they left everything and followed him.

FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - YEAR C - Gospel (Luke 5:1-11)

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

Today's Word of God: God wants to tell all humanity that the power and strength of the Word of God will spread throughout this earth.

The Word of God is the Word of power. The Word has the power to save and bring life to humans, never bringing death, suffering, or darkness. Therefore, the Word must be spread throughout the universe. The Word must resonate down to the depths of hell so that all creatures can hear and receive salvation. Hence, God calls His apostles to cooperate in the work of salvation and the sanctification of God by living the Word and preaching it to all creatures, bringing the Good News of the Kingdom of Heaven to call all creatures to repent, turn back, and make peace with God, to be loved and cleansed by God with the water of salvation, to be clothed with the garment of love, and to restore the original nature that God had created.

Today's Word of God shows the power and strength of God over all mankind. God knows everything. He understands what each person is thinking and what they need. He knows that humans are very weak and limited; they cannot fully comprehend God's thoughts and ways, so He always accompanies them to teach them, step by step.

Just like in today's Gospel, where it recounts: after the disciples toiled all night without catching any fish, Jesus said to Simon, 'put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.' The disciples listened and followed His instructions, and they caught a great number of fish. The image of the disciples pulling in a net full of fish when they obeyed God is a lesson for today’s apostles: we must always learn to obey and carry out God's commands. Only by completely obeying God can we fulfill the duties that He has given us. No matter how educated or knowledgeable we are, we cannot fully understand God's ways.

Therefore, today's Word of God calls His children to:

Ask for a simple, humble heart, so you can always listen to and obey God in everything, following His words. Do exactly what He teaches you.

Do not rely on your own reason or limited human thinking, but wisely accept the teachings of God. Listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit’s Word to walk in God’s path of Truth.

Live humbly and humble yourself before God, for all people are sinners and lowly before Him.

Have absolute trust in the power and strength of God. He always accompanies His people. He sees and knows clearly what people are doing and what they need. Run to Him and pray.

Be confident and live your faith before God, for He is the God of love, the true God, and the true man. No one has greater love than He.

In today's world, God calls all His children: to run to rely on His loving heart. He will care for and watch over His children as He had cared for the apostles in the past. Run to God and let Him teach you how to live to please Him.

Thanks be to God. Amen.