Daily Gospel Reflection for October 30, 2015

Today's Gospel: Luke 14:1-6

Jesus obviously hit a nerve here, eh? Hitting them under the belt as it were, where it hurts possibly or at the very least, where they are most invested—their family! What parent in their right mind would allow their child to drown in a well for the sake of tradition! For the sake of some religious law let their ox die and lose their ability to farm for a living? The Pharisees couldn’t answer Christ’s question in front of the others in the room. Jesus had a definite sense about Him that was both humbling and thought-provoking at the same time. The thing is He came to bring us the new covenant between God and man. Christ is the new covenant; no longer do we have to be bound to old laws and traditions that left God out of the picture and man as the lawyer and judge, and no longer must we abide in empty, meaningless rules that actually prevented man from becoming closer and more intimate with our Heavenly Father. But what was new to the Pharisees was also very hard for them to hear and let go of the old traditions and their authority. Did you notice that Jesus went ahead and cured the man with dropsy on the Sabbath in front of the Pharisees and the others, but he also excused him from the room, since the man was not the object of the discussion, but of whose authority it was to create “new” laws was?

Ponder:

There is a time and a place for everything and in this gospel, Jesus is caught up in the issue of working or curing on the Sabbath. Have you ever thought about what is considered working on Sunday? As moms, we have to prepare a meal for our family at least two times during Sundays; then what about the dishes and kitchen clean-up? But what if we go out to a restaurant on a Sunday, causing someone else to work?

Pray:

Dear Father, you gave us a day to rest; thank you for this gift. Please help us to appreciate it and use it to our good. We are so caught up with activity that we forget that we need to rest in order to be refreshed and ready to carry on the work you have set out for us to do. We ask this through your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit one God forever and ever. Amen.

We thank our friends at The Word Among Us for providing our gospel reflection team with copies of Abide In My Word 2015: Mass Readings at Your Fingertips. To pray the daily gospels with this wonderful resource, visit The Word Among Us.

Copyright 2015 Ebeth Weidner