Daily Gospel Reflection: Saturday of the First Week of Advent
December 7, 2023
Saturday of the First Week of Advent
Gospel: Mt 9:35–10:1, 5a, 6-8
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest."
Then he summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
"Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give."
*United States Conference of Catholic
Bishop Robert Barron
Friends, today Jesus instructs us to pray for laborers for the harvest, for disciples to do the work of evangelization. We need to organize our lives around evangelization. Everything we do ought to be related somehow to it. This doesn’t mean that we all have to become professional evangelizers. Remember, you can evangelize by the moral quality of your life. But it does mean that nothing in our lives ought to be more important than announcing the victory of Jesus.
We should think of others not as objects to be used, or annoying people in the way of realizing our projects, but rather as those whom we are called to serve. Instead of saying, “Why is this annoying person in my way?” we should ask, “What opportunity for evangelization has presented itself?” Has God put this person in your life precisely for this purpose?
COMMENTS