First Reading - Deuteronomy 6:4-13
Gospel - Matthew 17:14-20
In the first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses proclaims the great Shema: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” This is not just a commandment—it is a declaration of identity. God is one, and we belong entirely to Him. The love we owe God is not half-hearted or occasional. It is complete and constant, shaping our thoughts, words, and actions from morning to night, in public and in private, in prosperity and in trial.
Moses urges the people to remember this love, to teach it to their children, to write it on their hands and hearts, and to never forget that everything they have comes from God. Forgetfulness, after all, is one of the greatest dangers to faith—not because we reject God deliberately, but because we gradually let go of Him in the busyness and distractions of life.
This deep call to trust and faith is echoed powerfully in the Gospel. A man brings his son to Jesus, desperate for healing. The disciples have tried, but failed. Jesus’ response is sharp: “O faithless and perverse generation, how long must I be with you?” He sees that their failure is not just about technique, but about a lack of faith—a heart not fully anchored in God’s power and presence.
After Jesus heals the boy, the disciples ask Him why they could not drive out the demon. Jesus answers plainly: “Because of your little faith.” Then He gives them a remarkable promise: if they had faith the size of a mustard seed, they could move mountains.
Faith, Jesus reminds us, is not about quantity but quality. It’s not about how much we believe, but how deeply we trust. A tiny seed of faith, rooted in the reality of God, is enough to unleash the impossible. The problem is not that God is distant, but that we are often hesitant to trust Him completely—to risk believing that He is truly able and willing to act in our lives.
Dear friends, so today, we are invited to rekindle two things: wholehearted love for God, and genuine faith in His power. These are not separate, but deeply connected. The more we love God with all that we are, the more we learn to trust Him. And the more we trust Him, the more we will see His hand at work in our lives and in the world.
Let us pray, then, for hearts that love God above all, and faith that dares to believe—even when the mountain seems immovable. For with God, nothing is impossible.
0 Comments