1ST READING
It
does not matter whether Jacob was right or wrong to favor Joseph over
his brothers. This will never justify what his brothers did to Joseph —
selling him as a slave. It is never right to fix one wrong with another.
We must always seek to act righteously and never give in to the
temptation to sin no matter how justified the sin may be at the time.
Sin is never the right response to anything.
Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28
3 Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons, for he was the child of his old age; and he had made him a long tunic. 4 When
his brothers saw that their father loved him best of all his sons, they
hated him so much that they would not even greet him. 12 One day, when his brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flocks at Shechem, 13 Israel said to Joseph, “Your
brothers, you know, are tending our flocks at Shechem. Get ready; I will send you to them.” 17 So Joseph went after his brothers and caught up with them in Dothan. 18 They noticed him from a distance, and before he came up to them, they plotted to kill him. 19 They said to one another: “Here comes that master dreamer! 20 Come on, let us kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns here; we could
say that a wild beast devoured him. We shall then see what comes of his dreams.” 21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to save him from their hands, saying: “We must not take his life. 22 Instead
of shedding blood,” he continued, “just throw him into that cistern
there in the desert; but don’t kill him outright.” His purpose was to
rescue him from their hands and return him to his father. 23 So when Joseph came up to them, they stripped him of the long tunic he had on; 24 then they took him and threw him into the cistern, which was empty and dry. 25 They
then sat down to their meal. Looking up, they saw a caravan of
Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, their camels laden with gum, balm and
resin to be taken down to Egypt. 26 Judah said to his brothers: “What is to be gained by killing our brother and concealing his blood? 27 Rather, let us sell him to these Ishmaelites, instead of doing away with him ourselves. After all, he is our brother, our own flesh.” His
brothers agreed. 28 They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver.
P S A L M
Psalm 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21
R: Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
16 When the Lord called down a famine on the land and ruined the crop that sustained them, 17 he sent a man before them, Joseph, sold as a slave. (R) 18 They had weighed him down with fetters, and he was bound with chains, 19 till his prediction came to pass and the word of the Lord proved him true. (R) 20 The king sent and released him, the ruler of the peoples set him free. 21 He made him lord of his house and ruler of all his possessions. (R)
GOSPEL
How
often have we solved our problems by rejecting Christ? Has the wrong
path proved to be the right one? How long will it take for us to learn
that the only way forward in any situation, good or bad, is according to
the Gospel? This seems to be a difficult truth to live as we constantly
respond according to sin and not the Gospel.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son; so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.
Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46
33 Jesus
said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: “Hear another
parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a hedge
around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower. Then he leased it
to tenants and went on a journey. 34 When vintage time drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce. 35 But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat, another they killed, and a third they stoned. 36
Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones, but they treated them in the same way. 37 Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But
when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the
heir. Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’ 39 They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 What will the
owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?” 41 They
answered him, “He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and
lease his vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the
proper times.” 42 Jesus
said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the
builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been
done, and it is wonderful in our eyes? 43 Therefore, I say to you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them. 46 And although they were attempting to arrest him, they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet.
think: Sin is never the right response to anything.
T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST
Thank You Lord for: __________________
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God’s special verse/thought for me today_
_____________________________________
READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Revelation 15-18
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