Daily Gospel (2714)
September 29, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: John 1:47-51
When Jesus saw Nathanael coming, he said of him, “Here comes an Israelite, a true
one; there is nothing false in him.” Nathanael asked him, “How do you know me?”
And Jesus said to him, “Before Philip called you, you were under the fig tree, and
September 28, 2022
Written by Joseph ZepedaGospel: Luke 9:57-62
As they went on their way, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests; but the
September 27, 2022
Written by Joseph ZepedaGospel: Luke 9:51-56
As the time drew near when Jesus would be taken up to heaven, he made up his
mind to go to Jerusalem. He sent ahead of him some messengers, who entered a
September 26, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 9:46-50
One day, the disciples were arguing about which of them was the most important.
But Jesus knew their thoughts, so he took a little child and stood him by his side.
Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my name,
welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me, welcomes the one who sent me. And listen: the one
who is found to be the least among you all, is the one who is the greatest.”
Then John spoke up, “Master, we saw someone who drives out demons by calling upon your
name, and we tried to forbid him, because he doesn’t follow you with us.” But Jesus said,
“Don’t forbid him. He who is not against you is for you.”
Reflect:
We can never understand a mystery on this side of life at least; we can only stand under
the mystery and live with it, with an attitude of awe and dynamic surrender. This is essentially
the lesson the book of Job offers us on the vexing problem of human suffering. One of the
classics in world literature and acclaimed by Alfred Lord Tennyson as “the greatest poem of
ancient and modern times,” the book of Job takes us through the deepening of faith of Job. In
today’s reading we find him with a certain equanimity and readymade catechetical answer at
the face of tragedies, an answer which is indicative more of rationalization than faith. (Don’t
we too live with such platitudes in life?) As we will see in the coming days, Job’s defenses
must and will crumble down and leave him utterly naked in soul before God, and he will,
at the end, arrive at the core of faith: wonder, awe, marvel, and
surrender to the Mystery.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022
September 25, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 16:19-31
Once there was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted every
day. At his gate lay Lazarus, a poor man covered with sores, who longed to eat just
the scraps falling from the rich man’s table. Even dogs used to come and lick his
September 24, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 9:43b-45
But while all were amazed at everything Jesus did, he said to his disciples, “Listen,
and remember what I tell you now: The Son of Man will be betrayed into the hands of
men.” But the disciples didn’t understand this saying; something prevented them from
September 23, 2022
Written by Joseph ZepedaGospel: Luke 9:18-22One day, when Jesus was praying alone, not far from
his disciples, he asked them, “What do people say about me?” And they
answered, “Some say, that you are John the Baptist; others say, that you
September 22, 2022
Written by Joseph ZepedaGospel: Luke 9:7-9
King Herod heard of all this, and did not know what to think, for people said, “This
is John, raised from the dead.” Others believed that Elijah, or one of the ancient
September 21, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Matthew 9:9-13
As Jesus moved on from there, he saw a man named Matthew, at his seat in the
custom-house; and he said to him, “Follow me!” And Matthew got up and followed
him. Now it happened, while Jesus was at table in Matthew’s house, many tax
September 20,2022
Written by Joseph ZepedaGospel: Luke 8:19-21
Then his mother and his relatives came to him; but they could not get to him because
of the crowd. Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside
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September 19, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 8:16-18
No one, after lighting a lamp, covers it with a bowl or puts it under the bed; rather,
he puts it on a lamp stand, so that people coming in may see the light. In the same
way, there is nothing hidden that shall not be uncovered; nothing kept secret, that
September 18 , 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 16:1-13
At another time Jesus told his disciples, “There was a rich man, whose steward was
reported to him because of fraudulent service. He summoned the steward and asked
him,‘What is this I hear about you? I want you to render an account of your service,
September 17,2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 8:4-15
As a great crowd gathered, and people came to him from every town, Jesus began
teaching them with a story:
“The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the seed fell along the way, was
trodden on, and the birds of the sky ate it up. Some seed fell on rocky ground; and no sooner had
it come up than it withered, because it had no water. Some seed fell among thorns; the thorns grew
up with the seed and choked it. But some seed fell on good soil and grew, producing fruit, a hundred
times as much!” And Jesus cried out, “Listen then, if you have ears to hear!”
The disciples asked him, “What does this story mean?” And Jesus answered, “To you it has been
given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to others it is given in the form of stories, or
parables, so that, seeing, they may not perceive; and hearing, they may not understand.
Now, this is the point of the parable: The seed is the word of God. Those along the wayside are
people who hear it; but immediately, the devil comes and takes the word from their minds, for he
doesn’t want them to believe and be saved. Those on the rocky ground are people who receive
the word with joy; but they have no root; they believe for a while, and give way in time of trial.
Among the thorns are people who hear the word, but, as they go their way, they are choked by
worries, riches, and the pleasures of life; they bring no fruit to maturity. The good soil, instead,
are people who receive the word, and keep it, in a gentle and generous mind, and, persevering
patiently, they bear fruit.
Reflect:
The parable of the sower presents us with four kinds of hearts: a shallow heart, a hardened heart,
an overcrowded one, and a fertile, open, a welcoming heart. The word of God that falls on the
shallow wayside is soon lost. In a hardened, rocky heart, the word simply cannot grow root.
The word of God is suffocated within a crowded, thorny heart. In a fertile, open, and welcoming
heart, the word thrives and produces much fruit. The consoling news is that the gospel does not
foreclose the possibility of conversion of one kind of heart to another: The first three kinds of hearts
can anytime choose to cooperate with the grace of God to become fertile and receptive to the word
of God, as did the heart of the “good thief” crucified along with Christ. At his last moment, his heart
opened up, received the word, and woke up in the Paradise with Christ
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022
September 16, 2022
Written by Joseph Zepeda
Gospel: Luke 8:1-3
Jesus walked through towns and countryside, preaching and giving the good news
of the kingdom of God. The Twelve followed him, and also some women, who had
been healed of evil spirits and diseases: Mary called Magdalene, who had been
