Reading 1
1 Jn 4:19–5:4
Beloved, we love God because
he first loved us.
If anyone says, “I love God,”
but hates his brother, he is a liar;
for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen
cannot love God whom he has not seen.
This is the commandment we have from him:
Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God,
and everyone who loves the Father
loves also the one begotten by him.
In this way we know that we love the children of God
when we love God and obey his commandments.
For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,
for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.
And the victory that conquers the world is our faith.
Ps 72:1-2, 14 and 15bc, 17
Responsorial PsalmR. (see 11)
Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
From fraud and violence he shall redeem them,
and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
May they be prayed for continually;
day by day shall they bless him.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
Gospel
Lk 4:14-22
Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.
He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
Meditation: Luke 4:14-22
“The eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.” (Luke 4:20)
Let’s try something a little different with today’s Gospel reading. Rather than simply reading it and trying to understand what it means, let’s use our imaginations and place ourselves in the story.
The first step is to set the stage. Jesus has recently been baptized in the Jordan River by his cousin John and has heard the stirring words, “You are my beloved Son” (Luke 3:22). After beating back an assault by the Evil One, he begins his public ministry by preaching and healing in Capernaum. Then he returns to his hometown and enters the synagogue.
This is where today’s passage comes in, so try to imagine yourself in the synagogue with the other Nazarenes. Look around. See the people nudging each other as Jesus enters. Listen to the quiet buzz among them: “That’s Jesus, the carpenter’s son. Did you hear that miracles happen wherever he goes?”
Now Jesus stands up to read from the Scriptures. He carefully selects a passage from Isaiah and reads it out. Then he sits down in front of all of you, assuming the posture of a teacher. In that brief moment before he speaks, join the other people who are looking intently at Jesus. With a sense of authority you never heard before, he had just said that the Spirit of the Lord was upon him to bring good news, release, and new vision. What hopes and desires stir in your heart? What promise is God giving you?
“Glad tidings to the poor.” Perhaps God wants to transform your spiritual poverty into a rich and deep relationship with him. “Liberty to captives.” Does he want to liberate you from a persistent habit? A pattern of negative thinking? The consequences of a past mistake? “Recovery of sight to the blind.” Maybe he wants to open your eyes to help you see him at work in your life in a new way today.
Now is the acceptable time. God wants to do mighty things in you this year. Throw open the doors of your heart and let the “gracious words” that Jesus spoke back then come alive for you today.
“Jesus, open our eyes to see you at work in us and all around us. We want to embrace your call, confident that you will fulfill all your promises.”
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