Epistle Reading: Romans 7:1-13
Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know
the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives?
For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her
husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from
the law of her husband.
So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man,
she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from
that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man.
Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law
through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another, even to Him
who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.
For when we were in the flesh, the passions of sins which were
aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.
But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to
what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit
and not in the oldness of the letter.
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the
contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would
not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "You shall not covet."
But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me
all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead.
I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment
came, sin revived and I died.
And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to
bring death.
For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and
by it killed me.
Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just
and good.
Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But
sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is
good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.
Gospel Reading: Matthew 9:36-10:8
But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion
for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no
shepherd.
Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest truly is
plentiful, but the laborers are few.
"Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out
laborers into His harvest."
And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave
them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of
sickness and all kinds of disease.
Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon,
who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and
John his brother;
Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed
Him.
These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: "Do
not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the
Samaritans.
"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
"And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is
at hand.'
"Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast
out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
Saints and Feasts
Hilarion the New of Dalmation Monastery; Bessarion the Wonderworker of Egypt; 5 Virgins of Caesarea: Martha, Mary, Cyris, Valeria & Marcia
