Holy Martyr Julian of Tarsus (284-305).
Apostles’ Fast. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat.
Romans 11:2-12; Matthew 11:20-26.
Read Matthew 11:20-26
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
Jesus rebukes unrepentant cities in which He worked miracles. When rebuking the first two cities (Chorazin and Bethsaida), He says that, “if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you” (Mt. 11:21-22). By saying this, Jesus reveals how experiencing His miracles and teachings and then choosing to reject Him anyway is such a great sin. In the Gospel of John, He says, “If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father” (Jn. 15:24).
Tyre and Sidon are port cities which are located in what is now Lebanon. They were mentioned multiple times throughout the Old and New Testaments. Although they were Gentile cities, Jesus ministered to their inhabitants who came to Him in faith. Mark 3:8 mentions that “those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.” Matthew 15 mentions that when Jesus departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon, a Canaanite woman from there cried out for mercy for her demon-possessed daughter, “but He answered her not a word” (Mt. 15:23). He finally answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Mt. 15:24), but after she persisted and showed her great faith in Jesus, He praised her: “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be as you desire” (Mt. 15:28).
In the last verse of today’s reading, Jesus prays: “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes” (Mt. 11:25). If we trust in our own wisdom and judgment and lack faith in God, our hearts may grow cold and we may shun repentance. We should be like “babes” and turn to God with faith, trust, and innocence. When Jesus performed His ministry in cities throughout Israel, the cities He mentions in today’s reading would not repent. Even though they witnessed His miracles and teachings, they did not know what to make of them, trusting in their own wisdom and judgment. God in the flesh walked among them, but they were too spiritually blind with their hearts of stone. They preferred to serve their own idea of God than to recognize Him in their midst. What sort of sign do we need to acknowledge God, change our ways, and soften our hearts? Are we willing to stop being stubborn, let go of any of our distorted notions of God, and open our hearts to hear what He is actively telling us?