FIRST READING
Jeremiah 20:10-13
I hear the whisperings of many:
“Terror on every side! Denounce! let us denounce him!” All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. APerhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him.” But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph. In their failure they will be put to utter shame, to lasting, unforgettable confusion. O LORD of hosts, you who test the just, who probe mind and heart, Let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause. Sing to the LORD, praise the LORD, For he has rescued the life of the poor from the power of the wicked!
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 18:2-3a, 3bc-4, 5-6, 7
R. (see 7) In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
I love you, O LORD, my strength, O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
My God, my rock of refuge, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold! Praised be the LORD, I exclaim, and I am safe from my enemies.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
The breakers of death surged round about me, the destroying floods overwhelmed me; The cords of the nether world enmeshed me, the snares of death overtook me.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
In my distress I called upon the LORD and cried out to my God; From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL
See John 6:63c, 68c
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life; you have the words of everlasting life.
GOSPEL
John 10:31-42
The Jews picked up rocks to stone Jesus.
Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of these are you trying to stone me?” The Jews answered him, “We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy. You, a man, are making yourself God.” Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, AYou are gods”‘? If it calls them gods to whom the word of God came, and Scripture cannot be set aside, can you say that the one whom the Father has consecrated and sent into the world blasphemes because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I do not perform my Father’s works, do not believe me; but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” Then they tried again to arrest him; but he escaped from their power.
He went back across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized, and there he remained. Many came to him and said, “John performed no sign, but everything John said about this man was true.” And many there began to believe in him.
REFLECTIONS:
Is your life consecrated to God? The scriptural understanding
of consecration is to make holy for God – to be given over as a
free-will offering and sacrifice for God. Jesus made himself a sin-offering
for us, to ransom us from condemnation and slavery to sin. He spoke of
his Father consecrating him for this mission of salvation. Why were the
religious leaders so upset with Jesus that they wanted to kill him? They
charged him with blasphemy because he claimed to be the Son of God. Jesus
made two claims in his response: He was consecrated by the Father
to a special task and he was sent into the world to carry out his
Father's mission. Jesus challenged his opponents to accept his works
if they could not accept his words. One can argue with words, but
deeds are beyond argument. Jesus is the perfect teacher in that he does
not base his claims on what he says but on what he does. The word of God
is life and power to those who believe. Jesus shows us the way to walk
the path of truth and holiness. And he anoints us with his power to live
the gospel with joy and to be his witnesses in the world. Are you a doer
of God's word, or a forgetful hearer only?
"Write upon my heart, O Lord, the lessons of your holy word, and grant
that I may be a doer of your word, and not a forgetful hearer only."
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