Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent
Reading 1 Dt 4:1, 5-9
“Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees
which I am teaching you to observe,
that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land
which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
Therefore, I teach you the statutes and decrees
as the LORD, my God, has commanded me,
that you may observe them in the land you are entering to occupy.
Observe them carefully,
for thus will you give evidence
of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations,
who will hear of all these statutes and say,
‘This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.’
For what great nation is there
that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us
whenever we call upon him?
Or what great nation has statutes and decrees
that are as just as this whole law
which I am setting before you today?
“However, take care and be earnestly on your guard
not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen,
nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live,
but teach them to your children and to your children’s children.”
Responsorial Psalm PS 147:12-13, 15-16, 19-20
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
He spreads snow like wool;
frost he strews like ashes.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Verse Before the Gospel
See Jn 6:63c, 68c
you have the words of everlasting life.
Gospel Mt 5:17-19
Jesus said to his disciples:“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
LOVING THE SWORD
"Whoever fulfills and teaches these commands shall be great in the kingdom of God." –Matthew 5:19
During Lent, we especially try to imitate Jesus when He was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert. There Jesus overcame the temptations of the evil one by using God's Word. We also should use God's Word to have victory over temptations.
However, to do this, we must deeply believe that the Bible is much more than "the word of men, but...truly is, the word of God at work within [we] who believe" (1 Thes 2:13). We won't use God's Word in our temptations if we don't hear, read, pray, live, and share it at other times. Even if we do quote the Scriptures, why should the devil tremble if we don't tremble at God's Word (Is 66:2), but only give it lip service? Victory through God's Word is based on living in God's Word. When we know, cherish, and obey every letter and part of a letter of God's law and Word (see Mt 5:18), the Lord will bring down the strongholds, "sophistries and every proud pretension that raises itself against the knowledge of God" (2 Cor 10:4-5). When our obedience to the Lord's Word is complete, we will have the power to "bring every thought into captivity to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor 10:5). Before we use God's Word as a sword (see Heb 4:12), we must first cherish it as the "joy and the happiness" of our hearts (Jer 15:16).
Love, live, obey, and share God's Word. Then you can use it to fight the evil one.
| PRAYER: | Father, first teach me to love Your Word and then to use it as a weapon. |
| PROMISE: | "Take care and be earnestly on your guard not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and to your children's children." –Dt 4:9 |
| PRAISE: | Greg writes a weekly reflection on the Sunday readings and e-mails it to his children and grandchildren, who faithfully read it and reflect on the message. |
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