Lectionary: 212
Reading 1
1 Jn 3:22–4:6
Beloved:
We receive from him whatever we ask,
because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
And his commandment is this:
we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them,
and the way we know that he remains in us
is from the Spirit whom he gave us.
Beloved, do not trust every spirit
but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God,
because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
This is how you can know the Spirit of God:
every spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ come in the flesh
belongs to God,
and every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus
does not belong to God.
This is the spirit of the antichrist
who, as you heard, is to come,
but in fact is already in the world.
You belong to God, children, and you have conquered them,
for the one who is in you
is greater than the one who is in the world.
They belong to the world;
accordingly, their teaching belongs to the world,
and the world listens to them.
We belong to God, and anyone who knows God listens to us,
while anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us.
This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit.
Responsorial Psalm
PS 2:7bc-8, 10-12a
R. (8ab) I will give you all the nations for an inheritance.
The LORD said to me, “you are my Son;
this day I have begotten you.
Ask of me and I will give you
the nations for an inheritance
and the ends of the earth for your possession.”
R. I will give you all the nations for an inheritance.
And now, O kings, give heed;
take warning, you rulers of the earth.
Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice before him;
with trembling rejoice.
R. I will give you all the nations for an inheritance.
Alleluia
See Mt 4:23
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus proclaimed the Gospel of the Kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mt 4:12-17, 23-25
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested,
he withdrew to Galilee.
He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea,
in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,
that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet
might be fulfilled:
Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles,
the people who sit in darkness
have seen a great light,
on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death
light has arisen.
From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say,
“Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
He went around all of Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness among the people.
His fame spread to all of Syria,
and they brought to him all who were sick with various diseases
and racked with pain,
those who were possessed, lunatics, and paralytics,
and he cured them.
And great crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, and Judea,
and from beyond the Jordan followed him.
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
TITLE: OPEN ALL YOUR PRESENTS
"Ask of Me and I will give you the nations for an inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession." –Psalm 2:8
"Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it so much as dawned on man what God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Cor 2:9). "This is the day the Lord has made; let us be glad and rejoice in it" (Ps 118:24). The Lord will express His love for us in amazing ways today:
Today, "a people living in darkness" will see "a great light" (Mt 4:16).Today, "on those who inhabit a land overshadowed by death, light" will arise (Mt 4:16).Today, Jesus will cure "the people of every disease and illness" (Mt 4:23).Today, "those afflicted with various diseases and racked with pain: the possessed, the lunatics, the paralyzed" will be cured by Jesus (Mt 4:24).
Although we join the wise men this Christmas season in giving everything to Jesus, we will never outgive God. Today, Jesus gives us Christmas presents that only He can give. Do you believe this? Will you open your presents, all of them, including the ones so great you don't understand them? "Reform your lives" (Mt 4:17) and accept God's love today.
PRAYER: Father, give me expectant, repentant, and crucified faith.
PROMISE: "For there is One greater in you than there is in the world." –1 Jn 4:4
PRAISE: In his eight years as Bishop of Philadelphia, St. John Neumann increased the attendance at diocesan Catholic Schools twenty-fold.
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