FIRST READING
Amos 9:11-15
Thus says the LORD: On that day I will raise up the fallen hut of David; I will wall up its breaches, raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old, That they may conquer what is left of Edom and all the nations that shall bear my name, say I, the LORD, who will do this. Yes, days are coming, says the LORD, When the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the vintager, him who sows the seed; The juice of grapes shall drip down the mountains, and all the hills shall run with it. I will bring about the restoration of my people Israel; they shall rebuild and inhabit their ruined cities, Plant vineyards and drink the wine, set out gardens and eat the fruits. I will plant them upon their own ground; never again shall they be plucked From the land I have given them, say I, the LORD, your God.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 85:9ab and 10, 11-12, 13-14
R. (see 9b) The Lord speaks of peace to his people.
I will hear what God proclaims; the LORD–for he proclaims peace to his people. Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him, glory dwelling in our land.
R. The Lord speaks of peace to his people.
Kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven.
R. The Lord speaks of peace to his people.
The LORD himself will give his benefits; our land shall yield its increase. Justice shall walk before him, and salvation, along the way of his steps.
R. The Lord speaks of peace to his people.
ALLELUIA
John 10:27
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GOSPEL
Matthew 9:14-17
The disciples of John approached Jesus and said, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast much, but your disciples do not fast?” Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one patches an old cloak with a piece of unshrunken cloth, for its fullness pulls away from the cloak and the tear gets worse. People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”
REFLECTIONS:
Which comes first, fasting or feasting? The disciples
of John the Baptist were upset with Jesus disciples because they did not
fast. Fasting was one of the three most important religious duties, along
with prayer and almsgiving. Jesus gave a simple explanation. Theres a
time for fasting and a time for feasting (or celebrating). To walk as a
disciple with Jesus is to experience a whole new joy of relationship akin
to the joy of the wedding party in celebrating with the groom and bride
their wedding bliss. But there also comes a time when the Lord's disciples
must bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there
is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his
goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility and fasting and
for mourning over sin. Do you take joy in the Lords presence with
you and do you express sorrow and contrition for your sins?
Jesus goes on to warn his disciples about the problem of the closed
mind that refuses to learn new things. Jesus used an image familiar to
his audience new and old wineskins. In Jesus times, wine was stored
in wineskins, not bottles. New wine poured into skins was still fermenting.
The gases exerted gave pressure. New wine skins were elastic enough to
take the pressure, but old wine skins easily burst because they were hard.
What did Jesus mean by this comparison? Are we to reject the old in place
of the new? Just as there is a right place and a right time for fasting
and for feasting, so there is a right place for the old as well as the
new. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings
out of his treasure what is new and what is old (Matthew 13:52). How
impoverished we would be if we only had the Old Testament or the New Testament,
rather than both. The Lord gives us wisdom so we can make the best use
of both the old and the new. He doesn't want us to hold rigidly to the
past and to be resistant to the new work of his Holy Spirit in our lives.
He wants our minds and hearts to be like new wine skins open and ready
to receive the new wine of the Holy Spirit. Are you eager
to grow in the knowledge and understanding of Gods word and plan for your
life?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow in the knowledge
of your great love and truth. Help me to seek you earnestly in prayer and
fasting that I may turn away from sin and wilfulness and conform my life
more fully to your will. May I always find joy in knowing, loving, and
serving you.
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