Hebrews 4:12-16; Psalm 18; Mark 2:13-17
The word of God is something powerful and something from which we cannot hide. No matter what we do or say – in public or in the privacy of our hearts – all is known to God. Therefore we must always be on our guard and remain faithful. If however we do fall, the author of the first reading reminds us that Christ will be there to help us because he knows our weaknesses having been human like us. He will always be there to help and to pick us up when we fall. We see Jesus calling the tax collector, Matthew, in our text today. We also see him admonished by the Pharisees for eating with those they considered sinners. It is worth noting that those who considered themselves virtuous were the very ones who rejected Christ, while those who acknowledged their sinfulness were the ones who embraced him. We are called to follow Christ as readily as St Matthew did and to remain faithful to him always. We are also told not to be like the Pharisees who coldly judged people without mercy, but to live a life of mercy and love.
The word of God is something powerful and something from which we cannot hide. No matter what we do or say – in public or in the privacy of our hearts – all is known to God. Therefore we must always be on our guard and remain faithful. If however we do fall, the author of the first reading reminds us that Christ will be there to help us because he knows our weaknesses having been human like us. He will always be there to help and to pick us up when we fall. We see Jesus calling the tax collector, Matthew, in our text today. We also see him admonished by the Pharisees for eating with those they considered sinners. It is worth noting that those who considered themselves virtuous were the very ones who rejected Christ, while those who acknowledged their sinfulness were the ones who embraced him. We are called to follow Christ as readily as St Matthew did and to remain faithful to him always. We are also told not to be like the Pharisees who coldly judged people without mercy, but to live a life of mercy and love.