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Thursday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 : 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

I am reminding you, brothers and sisters,
of the Gospel I preached to you,
which you indeed received and in which you also stand.
Through it you are also being saved,
if you hold fast to the word I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain.
For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received:
that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he was buried;
that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.
After that, he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once,
most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.
After that he appeared to James,
then to all the Apostles.
Last of all, as to one born abnormally,
he appeared to me.
For I am the least of the Apostles,
not fit to be called an Apostle,
because I persecuted the Church of God.
But by the grace of God I am what I am,
and his grace to me has not been ineffective.
Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them;
not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me.
Therefore, whether it be I or they,
so we preach and so you believed.

Responsorial Psalm : Psalm 118:1b-2, 16ab-17, 28

R. (1) Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let the house of Israel say,
“His mercy endures forever.”
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
“The right hand of the LORD is exalted;
the right hand of the Lord has struck with power.”
I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
You are my God, and I give thanks to you;
O my God, I extol you.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Alleluia : Matthew 11:28

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel : Luke 7:36-50

A certain Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him,
and he entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table.
Now there was a sinful woman in the city
who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee.
Bringing an alabaster flask of ointment,
she stood behind him at his feet weeping
and began to bathe his feet with her tears.
Then she wiped them with her hair,
kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself,
“If this man were a prophet,
he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him,
that she is a sinner.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Simon, I have something to say to you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two people were in debt to a certain creditor;
one owed five hundred days’ wages and the other owed fifty.
Since they were unable to repay the debt, he forgave it for both.
Which of them will love him more?”
Simon said in reply,
“The one, I suppose, whose larger debt was forgiven.”
He said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon,
“Do you see this woman?
When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet,
but she has bathed them with her tears
and wiped them with her hair.
You did not give me a kiss,
but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered.
You did not anoint my head with oil,
but she anointed my feet with ointment.
So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven;
hence, she has shown great love.
But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”
He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The others at table said to themselves,
“Who is this who even forgives sins?”
But he said to the woman,
“Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

 Message from the Readings

Today’s readings proclaim a powerful truth:
The Resurrection is not an idea — it is the foundation of Christian hope.
• Without the Resurrection, faith collapses.
• With the Resurrection, everything changes: sin is defeated, death is conquered, and hope becomes certain.
• The psalm reminds us that God protects those who seek Him and will reveal His glory to the faithful.
The message is clear: Because Christ lives, we will live. Because Christ rose, hope rises in us.

Reflection for the Day

Paul speaks with urgency and clarity.
Some in Corinth were beginning to doubt the resurrection of the dead. Paul responds with one of the strongest statements in Scripture:
“If Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain.”
In other words:
• preaching is pointless,
• faith is empty,
• sin remains unforgiven,
• and death has the final word.
But Paul does not leave us in despair. He proclaims the heart of the Gospel:
“But now Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
Christ’s Resurrection is not symbolic — it is historical, real, and transformative. It is the guarantee that death does not define us, and the promise that eternal life awaits us.
Psalm 17 deepens this hope with a prayer of trust:
• God hears the cry of the faithful.
• He protects them like the apple of His eye.
• He shelters them under His wings.
• He reveals His face to those who seek Him.
The psalmist ends with a beautiful longing:
“I shall behold Your face…
and be satisfied when I awake in Your presence.”
This is resurrection hope — the confidence that one day we will awaken to God’s glory.
Today’s readings invite us to three movements:

1. Anchor your faith in the Resurrection.
   Let Christ’s victory be your foundation.
2. Live with hope, not fear.
   Death does not have the final word.
3. Seek God’s presence daily.
   Those who long for Him will behold His face.
   Let today be a day of renewed confidence in Christ’s triumph over death.

Prayer for Today

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your Resurrection, the foundation of my hope and the victory that gives life to my soul.
Strengthen my faith, calm my fears, and help me live with confidence in Your saving power.
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings, and lead me toward the day when I will behold Your face and awaken in Your presence.
Amen.