First reading 1 Corinthians 4:1-5
The Lord alone is our judge
People must think of us as Christ’s servants, stewards entrusted with the mysteries of God. What is expected of stewards is that each one should be found worthy of his trust. Not that it makes the slightest difference to me whether you, or indeed any human tribunal, find me worthy or not. I will not even pass judgement on myself. True, my conscience does not reproach me at all, but that does not prove that I am acquitted: the Lord alone is my judge. There must be no passing of premature judgement. Leave that until the Lord comes; he will light up all that is hidden in the dark and reveal the secret intentions of men’s hearts. Then will be the time for each one to have whatever praise he deserves, from God.
Responsorial Psalm 36(37):3-6,27-28,39-40
The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
If you trust in the Lord and do good,
then you will live in the land and be secure.
If you find your delight in the Lord,
he will grant your heart’s desire.
Commit your life to the Lord,
trust in him and he will act,
so that your justice breaks forth like the light,
your cause like the noon-day sun.
Then turn away from evil and do good
and you shall have a home for ever;
for the Lord loves justice
and will never forsake his friends.
The salvation of the just comes from the Lord,
their stronghold in time of distress.
The Lord helps them and delivers them
and saves them: for their refuge is in him.
Gospel Luke 5:33-39
When the bridegroom is taken from them, then they will fast
The Pharisees and the scribes said to Jesus, ‘John’s disciples are always fasting and saying prayers, and the disciples of the Pharisees too, but yours go on eating and drinking.’ Jesus replied, ‘Surely you cannot make the bridegroom’s attendants fast while the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will come, the time for the bridegroom to be taken away from them; that will be the time when they will fast.’
He also told them this parable, ‘No one tears a piece from a new cloak to put it on an old cloak; if he does, not only will he have torn the new one, but the piece taken from the new will not match the old.
‘And nobody puts new wine into old skins; if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and then run out, and the skins will be lost. No; new wine must be put into fresh skins. And nobody who has been drinking old wine wants new. “The old is good” he says.’
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Joy and freedom of living in God’s presence
The Pharisees and the scribes were scandalous because Jesus and His disciples were not following the traditional fasting requirements. In the gospel, Jesus presented Himself as the bridegroom and His disciples as attendants in the wedding feast. This was because Jesus wanted the people to understand that faith in God should bring joy and freedom. Today, Jesus again opens us to look at our faith in God as a joyful matter and to live it, no longer as heavy burdens of completing observances but with the freedom to love God and serve our brothers and sisters. We can rejoice because we know that God is with us, and He is a God whose love for us is unconditional and faithful.
We are the new wineskins that contain the new wine of God’s loving presence. Therefore, our lives must reflect the joy and freedom of having God’s presence in our lives.
Reflective question:
How can I open my heart to the new wine of God’s presence today?
How can I open my heart to the new wine of God’s presence today?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
