WEDNESDAY OF THE 12TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Mt 7:15-20) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

“Every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.” (Mt 7:17)

FIRST READING - 15:1-12, 17-18

A reading from the Book of Genesis

The word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision:

“Fear not, Abram!

I am your shield;

I will make your reward very great.”

But Abram said,

“O Lord GOD, what good will your gifts be,

if I keep on being childless

and have as my heir the steward of my house, Eliezer?”

Abram continued,

“See, you have given me no offspring,

and so one of my servants will be my heir.”

Then the word of the LORD came to him:

“No, that one shall not be your heir;

your own issue shall be your heir.”

He took him outside and said:

“Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can.

Just so,” he added, “shall your descendants be.”

Abram put his faith in the LORD,

who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.

He then said to him,

“I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans

to give you this land as a possession.”

“O Lord GOD,” he asked,

“how am I to know that I shall possess it?”

He answered him,

“Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat,

a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”

Abram brought him all these, split them in two,

and placed each half opposite the other;

but the birds he did not cut up.

Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses,

but Abram stayed with them.

As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram,

and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him.

When the sun had set and it was dark,

there appeared a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch,

which passed between those pieces.

It was on that occasion that the LORD made a covenant with Abram,

saying: “To your descendants I give this land,

from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River the Euphrates.”

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - 7:15-20

From the Gospel according to Matthew

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,

but underneath are ravenous wolves.

By their fruits you will know them.

Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?

Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,

and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,

nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.

Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down

and thrown into the fire.

So by their fruits you will know them.”

WEDNESDAY OF THE 12TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Mt 7:15-20)

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

In today's Word of God, God the Father teaches us how to distinguish between false prophets and true prophets in our daily lives. He tells us to look at the fruits produced by these individuals.

False prophets are like ravenous wolves who come among the sheep dressed in sheep’s clothing. On the outside, it is difficult to tell the difference between wolves and sheep. However, God teaches us to recognize them by their actions, by the fruits they bear. Because “a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.”

We know that God the Father always calls each person to fear Him above all things, to love others as ourselves, to forgive those who make our lives uncomfortable, those who are difficult to approach, or those who oppose and even persecute us. Jesus came to Earth to become a human being. He repeatedly taught His disciples to live humbly before God the Father and their brothers and sisters.

To humble ourselves before God the Father means that we must repent, change our lives, and sacrifice ourselves through a life of fasting and constant prayer, always seeking to glorify God rather than ourselves. Humility toward others means always considering ourselves unworthy so that we may love and respect others, placing their needs above our own. These are the fruits borne by true prophets.

In contrast, false prophets are those who reject God the Father's spirit and calling. They live in hypocrisy, pretending to be holy and moral while their souls are filled with lust, pride, selfishness, jealousy, rivalry, division, and greed for worldly wealth. In short, they are concerned only with the material values of this life and neglect the soul and the eternal life to come.

Today’s Word of God especially calls on those chosen by God the Father in this new era to die to their old selves and put on the new self in Jesus Christ to have the same concern that Jesus had as He hung on the Cross: “I thirst”—a thirst for souls.

From that desire, the prophets strive to live according to what God teaches and remain faithful to God the Father until their last breath. They seek to have hearts free from all attachment, consecrated to God in both soul and body. Then, the prophets will have the courage to live for the truth, to stand for the truth, and to renounce all worldly passions and possessions. In doing so, they will bear witness to God the Father and produce many good fruits which are souls returning to God the Father.

As for false prophets and those who do not produce good fruit, God the Father earnestly calls everyone to renounce all sinful passions and to live in purity of thought, word, and deed. He calls us to return to Him, to be transformed by His grace, and to embrace the opportunity to redeem our sins here on earth by producing good fruits for His glory. Otherwise, they will be “cut down and thrown into the fire” of hell, which never goes out.

Thanks be to God. Amen.