Sunday between 25 February and 3 March
[not Sunday 3 March in a leap year]
(if before Ash Wednesday)
or Sunday between 24 and 28 May
(if after Trinity Sunday)
Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
First Reading - Isaiah 49.9-10,14-15
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
The Lord says to Jerusalem:
I led you
from captivity to freedom.
I gave you food along the way.
I led you
to pasture in the wilderness.
You knew neither hunger nor thirst,
as I led you, with compassion,
by springs of water
through the desert heat.
I led you from darkness to light.
And yet
you continue to say,
‘The Lord has abandoned us’,
and,
‘Our Lord has forgotten us’.
No mother
abandons her child,
or forgets
the infant
she holds
in her arms.
And neither will I
forget you,
says the Lord.
This is the word of the Lord.
Second Reading - 1 Corinthians 4.1-5
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
Apollos and I, alike,
have sought only
to be servants of Christ,
entrusted
with all
that God has revealed.
I believe
I have fulfilled that trust,
but it is not
for me,
or you,
or anyone else on earth,
to judge.
For when the Lord comes,
and shines a light
on all
that is hidden
in our hearts,
all motivations
will be known;
and the Lord will judge
what is worthy of praise.
This is the word of the Lord.
Gospel - Matthew 6.24-33
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
according to Matthew.
Jesus said,
‘You cannot serve two masters,
for you will love one,
and hate the other;
you will be devoted to one,
and despise the other.
You cannot serve
both God and wealth.
So I tell you:
do not worry
about what you will eat,
or drink, or wear;
for life
is more than food,
and the body
is more than clothing.
Look at the birds of the air:
they do not plant,
or harvest,
or gather into barns,
and yet
your heavenly Father
feeds them.
And you are more valuable
than the birds!
Look at the wild flowers,
how they grow:
they do not
weave or sew,
and yet
not even Solomon
in all his glory
was clothed
as finely
as these.
If this is how
God clothes
the grass of the field, which is
alive today,
and dried up tomorrow,
then how much more
will God clothe you!
So have faith!
Do not worry, as others do,
about what you will eat,
or drink, or wear.
Worrying
will not add
a single hour
to your span of life.
And your heavenly Father knows
that you need these things.
So work instead
for the kingdom of God,
and for righteousness;
and all these other things
will be given to you
as well.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord.