Lectionary: 124
Reading 1
Jeremiah 20:7-9
You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped;
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.
Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.
I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9
R/ (2b) My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
O God, you are my God whom I seek;
for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts
like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary
to see your power and your glory,
For your kindness is a greater good than life;
my lips shall glorify you.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Thus will I bless you while I live;
lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,
and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
You are my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.
My soul clings fast to you;
your right hand upholds me.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Reading 2
Romans 12:1-2
I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.
Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and pleasing and perfect.
Gospel
Matthew 16:21-27
Jesus began to show his disciples
that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly
from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.
Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him,
“God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”
He turned and said to Peter,
“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
Then Jesus said to his disciples,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
Or what can one give in exchange for his life?
For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father’s glory,
and then he will repay all according to his conduct.”
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
THEME: MATTER OVER MIND
"Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind." –Romans 12:2
To live a free life pleasing to God, we must have renewed minds. To live in heaven forever, we must "acquire a fresh, spiritual way of thinking" (Eph 4:23) and take on the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16).
However, before our minds become renewed, our bodies must be sacrificed to God (Rm 12:1). Jesus bought our bodies at the price of His death on the cross (1 Cor 6:19-20), so, when we offer our bodies to Him as living sacrifices, we acknowledge His ownership of them. This means that all parts of our bodies become weapons for justice (Rm 6:13). When we sacrifice our bodies to God, we discipline and master them (1 Cor 9:27). We fast frequently, do bodily penance, and fill up in our bodies what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ (Col 1:24).
Through our sacrificed bodies, God transforms our minds. Finally, through our transformed minds, our sacrificed bodies become transformed themselves. When Jesus comes a final time, "He will give a new form to this lowly body of ours and remake it according to the pattern of His glorified body" (Phil 3:21). This wonderful, and eventually total, transformation of mind and body begins with the offering of our bodies to God. Therefore, "I beg you through the mercy of God to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God" (Rm 12:1).
PRAYER: Father, may I not lose my mind by holding onto my body.
PROMISE: "Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. What profit would a man show if he were to gain the whole world and destroy himself in the process?" –Mt 16:25-26
PRAISE: Alleluia! Jesus will raise us from the dead! We will see Him face to face! (1 Cor 13:12) Alleluia!
Be an inspiration, kindly Share.
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