11 July 2027 · Syro-Malankara Rite
Open in the Daily Word appAlso: മലയാളം
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword… able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” God's word is not a dead letter; it cuts, heals, judges and gives life. When the Gospel is proclaimed in the Qurbono, Christ himself speaks. The question is not whether the word is powerful, but whether we listen.
In Mark's Gospel Jesus begins his teaching by the sea with one word: “Listen!” Then the sower goes out to sow. The seed is the word; the soil is the human heart. “And these are the ones sown on the good soil: they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” And he ends: “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” Listening is the first act of faith.
At the burning bush God speaks to Moses and reveals his name: “I AM WHO I AM… This is my name forever.” God is not an idea; he is the living One who speaks and sends: “I will be with you.” Jeremiah repeats God's one demand: “Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people.” To obey (in Latin ob-audire) is to listen deeply.
The Letter to the Hebrews joins the Word with mercy: “We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy.” St Peter tells us who we have become by listening and believing: “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people.”
Theme: “Let anyone with ears to hear listen.”
Jesus tells the parable of the sower. The Letter to the Hebrews calls God's word living and active. The God who revealed his name to Moses speaks to us, and calls us his own priestly people.
“So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:11
“And these are the ones sown on the good soil: they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” Mark 4:20
Apply: Ask yourself honestly which soil your heart is this week, and remove one “thorn”.
“But this command I gave them, “Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people; and walk only in the way that I command you, so that it may be well with you.”” Jeremiah 7:23
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12
Apply: Read the Sunday Gospel again at home and keep one verse in your heart.
“God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”” Exodus 3:14
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9
Apply: Offer your daily work to God each morning as your spiritual sacrifice.
The Sower is generous; the word is powerful; the harvest depends on our listening.
Let us be good soil and a priestly people.
Take-home resolution: Give ten minutes each day this week to reading the Gospel of Mark.
Dear brothers and sisters, the Letter to the Hebrews says: “The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.” When the Gospel is read in the Holy Qurbono, it is not a story from long ago. Christ himself speaks to us now. That is why we stand, why the candles and the incense honour the Book.
In Mark's Gospel Jesus begins his parable with one word: “Listen!” and ends with another: “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” In between is the sower. The same seed falls on the path, on rock, among thorns, and on good soil. Good soil is the heart that hears the word, accepts it, and lets it bear fruit, thirty, sixty, a hundredfold.
At the burning bush God told Moses his name: “I AM WHO I AM.” The living God speaks. Jeremiah says that God asked only one thing of Israel: “Obey my voice.” To obey means to listen deeply. Much of our trouble comes from not listening: to God, to one another.
And if we are afraid that the Word will judge us, Hebrews adds: we have a high priest who understands our weakness, who was tested in every way as we are, yet without sin. “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy.” This week give ten minutes each day to the Gospel. Listen. And let the word bear fruit. Amen.
Children, Jesus once began a story with one word: “Listen!” Can you say it? Listen!
A farmer threw seeds. Some fell on the path, some on rocks, some in thorns, and some in good soil. The good soil gave lots and lots of fruit!
God's word is the seed, and your heart is the soil. Let's listen to Jesus every day and be good soil!
Lord God, I AM WHO I AM, your word is living and active. Open our ears to listen, our hearts to accept, and our lives to bear fruit thirty, sixty and a hundredfold. Through Jesus, our merciful high priest, let us approach your throne of grace with boldness. Amen.