Reading 1 Is 7:1-9
Rezin, king of Aram,
and Pekah, king of Israel, son of Remaliah,
went up to attack Jerusalem,
but they were not able to conquer it.
When word came to the house of David that Aram
was encamped in Ephraim,
the heart of the king and the heart of the people trembled,
as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.
Then the LORD said to Isaiah: Go out to meet Ahaz,
you and your son Shear-jashub,
at the end of the conduit of the upper pool,
on the highway of the fuller’s field, and say to him:
Take care you remain tranquil and do not fear;
let not your courage fail
before these two stumps of smoldering brands
the blazing anger of Rezin and the Arameans,
and of the son Remaliah,
because of the mischief that
Aram, Ephraim and the son of Remaliah,
plots against you, saying,
“Let us go up and tear Judah asunder, make it our own by force,
and appoint the son of Tabeel king there.”
Thus says the LORD:
This shall not stand, it shall not be!
Damascus is the capital of Aram,
and Rezin is the head of Damascus;
Samaria is the capital of Ephraim,
and Remaliah’s son the head of Samaria.
But within sixty years and five,
Ephraim shall be crushed, no longer a nation.
Unless your faith is firm
you shall not be firm!
Responsorial Psalm Ps 48:2-3a, 3b-4, 5-6, 7-8
Great is the LORD and wholly to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain, fairest of heights,
is the joy of all the earth.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
Mount Zion, “the recesses of the North,”
is the city of the great King.
God is with her castles;
renowned is he as a stronghold.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
For lo! the kings assemble,
they come on together;
They also see, and at once are stunned,
terrified, routed.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
Quaking seizes them there;
anguish, like a woman’s in labor,
As though a wind from the east
were shattering ships of Tarshish.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
Alleluia Ps 95:8
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mt 11:20-24
Jesus began to reproach the townswhere most of his mighty deeds had been done,
since they had not repented.
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!
For if the mighty deeds done in your midst
had been done in Tyre and Sidon,
they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes.
But I tell you, it will be more tolerable
for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
And as for you, Capernaum:
Will you be exalted to heaven?
You will go down to the nether world.
For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Sodom,
it would have remained until this day.
But I tell you, it will be more tolerable
for the land of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
CONVERTING THE PERVERTING
"If the miracles worked in you had taken place in Sodom, it would be standing today." –Matthew 11:23
The cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum did not convert despite the many miracles Jesus worked within their borders (Mt 11:20ff). However, Jesus said that Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom, some of the most wicked cities in history, would have converted in response to the same miracles (Mt 11:21, 23). Jesus also said that those who believe in Him will do greater works than He had done (Jn 14:12). Therefore, if we believe in Jesus, we have more than enough firepower to convert not only individuals but also cities. Moreover, we can convert not only some cities but even the most perverted and notorious cities.
There is One much greater in us "than there is in the world" (1 Jn 4:4). "We are more than conquerors because of Him Who has loved us" (Rm 8:37). By faith, we can conquer kingdoms (Heb 11:33). We "possess God's power for the destruction of strongholds. We demolish sophistries and every proud pretension that raises itself against the knowledge of God; we likewise bring every thought into captivity to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor 10:4-5). We can attack the gates of hell, which cannot prevail against us (Mt 16:18).
Most people recognize the formidable perversion-power of the world, the flesh, and the devil. We must also realize the much more formidable conversion-power of believing Christians working miracles. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can renew the world.
| PRAYER: | Father, do in me what You must in order to do through me what You will. |
| PROMISE: | "Unless your faith is firm you shall not be firm!" –Is 7:9 |
| PRAISE: | Susan prays daily for her country to return to the Faith. |
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