WEDNESDAY OF THE TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Mt 7:15-20 - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

"By their fruits you will know them. Every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit." (Mt 7:16-17)

READING OF THE DAY

A reading from the Second Book of Kings

2 Kgs 22:8-13; 23:1-3

The high priest Hilkiah informed the scribe Shaphan,

"I have found the book of the law in the temple of the LORD."

Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.

Then the scribe Shaphan went to the king and reported,

"Your servants have smelted down the metals available in the temple

and have consigned them to the master workmen

in the temple of the LORD."

The scribe Shaphan also informed the king

that the priest Hilkiah had given him a book,

and then read it aloud to the king.

When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,

he tore his garments and issued this command to Hilkiah the priest,

Ahikam, son of Shaphan,

Achbor, son of Micaiah, the scribe Shaphan,

and the king's servant Asaiah:

"Go, consult the LORD for me, for the people, for all Judah,

about the stipulations of this book that has been found,

for the anger of the LORD has been set furiously ablaze against us,

because our fathers did not obey the stipulations of this book,

nor fulfill our written obligations."

The king then had all the elders of Judah

and of Jerusalem summoned together before him.

The king went up to the temple of the LORD with all the men of Judah

and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:

priests, prophets, and all the people, small and great.

He had the entire contents of the book of the covenant

that had been found in the temple of the LORD, read out to them.

Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the LORD

that they would follow him

and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees

with their whole hearts and souls,

thus reviving the terms of the covenant

which were written in this book.

And all the people stood as participants in the covenant.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Matthew

Mt 7:15-20

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 TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Mt 7:15-20

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

In God's Word today, God the Father teaches us how to distinguish between false prophets and true prophets in daily life: look at the fruits produced by these people.

False prophets are ferocious wolves, greedy for prey, they come in sheep's clothing and come among the flock. On the outside, it is tough to distinguish between wolves and sheep. However, God teaches us to look at what they do and recognize them. Because “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.”

As we know, God the Father always invites everyone to fear God the Father above all things and love others as themselves. Forgive those who make us uncomfortable, difficult to get close to, oppose us, and even persecute us. Jesus came to earth as a human. He taught His disciples many times: We must live modestly and humble ourselves before God the Father and before our brothers and sisters. To humble ourselves before God the Father means we must have a heart of repentance, change our lives, sacrifice ourselves through a life of fasting and constant prayer, always thinking about glorifying God rather than glorifying ourselves. Humility towards others means always considering ourselves of no value in order to love and respect others, putting the needs of others above our own needs. Those are the fruits that true prophets have achieved. On the contrary, false prophets are those who go against the spirit and invitation of God the Father. They lived in hypocrisy, pretending to be holy and moral. However, their souls were filled with impurity due to lust and arrogance, narrow selfishness, envy, jealousy, superiority, hypocrisy, division, and greed for worldly wealth. In short, they only focus on material values ​​in this life rather than worrying about the soul in the next life.

The Word of God today calls on everyone, especially the prophets chosen by God the Father in the new era. God calls on everyone to die to the old self and put on the new self in Jesus Christ. We must live the longing of Jesus Himself when He hung on the Cross: "I thirst", thirsting for souls. From that desire, the prophets tried to live what God taught: To be faithful to God the Father until your last breath, let your heart be free from everything, and be consecrated to God in both body and soul. Then, new prophets have the courage to live for the truth, renounce all sensual passions of the world and everything that belongs to the world to bear witness to God the Father, to bear many good fruits, to have souls return to God the Father.

As for false prophets and those who do not bear good fruit, God the Father earnestly invites everyone to be determined to give up all passions and to be determined to live pure in thoughts, words, and deeds. Return to God the Father, to be transformed by God the Father and given the opportunity to make atonement for sins right in this world, and bear good fruit for God the Father, otherwise they will be "cut off and cast into the fire” of hell that never extinguishes.

Thanks be to God. Amen.