God First! We Were Created in His Image! We are God's!

God first!  We need to live and put God first in our lives. The mass readings for this week emphasize this! The hypocritical pharisees who were afraid of Jesus and always wanted to test Him, tried to entrapped Him again with their questions and testing. Jesus knew. He again came through for us. We need to put God first bottom-line!  We hear a lot about America Frist today, which is good, I think all countries need to put their countries first. I like that countries like El Salvador and Colombia even have God in their slogan and sayings in their country mottos, both put God over all. That is what we need to do as humans too, put God first, then country/patria, some say law and order too, peace, too. Unfortunately, today we see a lot of countries forget about God altogether, or even think they are God like the Romans and Caesar did. Our governments, elected, and so called leaders have abandoned God and assumed powers thinking they are God over all. It is sad. Why do some think because they are millionaires or billionaires with so much money and power think it is their right to decide the fate of humanity? It is sad to see. They try to control all, elections, technology, vaccines/pharma, big business, etc. They want control over the world and all populations, manipulating and even causing wars, famines, and so much chaos. It is sad to see today so many without God or thinking they are God.  We need to, "Give the Lord glory and honor!" As the Psalm says this week. Only God deserves glory and honor, He is our Father after all and is looking out for us. His word is all we need and to follow, we need to be filled with His Holy Spirit, and live for Him. Like it says in the mass readings this week, "Shine like lights in the world as you hold on to the word of life." That is all we can do! Repaying what is of God's!  We were created in His image and need to repay and honor Him alone and live to honor Him! 

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1
Isaiah 45:1, 4-6
Thus says the LORD to his anointed, Cyrus,
whose right hand I grasp,
subduing nations before him,
and making kings run in his service,
opening doors before him
and leaving the gates unbarred:
For the sake of Jacob, my servant,
of Israel, my chosen one,
I have called you by your name,
giving you a title, though you knew me not.
I am the LORD and there is no other,
there is no God besides me.
It is I who arm you, though you know me not,
so that toward the rising and the setting of the sun
people may know that there is none besides me.
I am the LORD, there is no other.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 96:1, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10
R. (7b) Give the Lord glory and honor.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. Give the Lord glory and honor.
For great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
awesome is he, beyond all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are things of nought,
but the LORD made the heavens.
R. Give the Lord glory and honor.
Give to the LORD, you families of nations,
give to the LORD glory and praise;
give to the LORD the glory due his name!
Bring gifts, and enter his courts.
R. Give the Lord glory and honor.
Worship the LORD, in holy attire;
tremble before him, all the earth;
say among the nations: The LORD is king,
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. Give the Lord glory and honor.

Reading 2
1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians
in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
grace to you and peace.
We give thanks to God always for all of you,
remembering you in our prayers,
unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love
and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ,
before our God and Father,
knowing, brothers and sisters loved by God,
how you were chosen.
For our gospel did not come to you in word alone,
but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction.

Alleluia
Philippians 2:15d, 16a
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Shine like lights in the world
as you hold on to the word of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Matthew 22:15-21
The Pharisees went off
and plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech.
They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying,
"Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man
and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.
And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion,
for you do not regard a person's status.
Tell us, then, what is your opinion:
Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?"
Knowing their malice, Jesus said,
"Why are you testing me, you hypocrites?
Show me the coin that pays the census tax."
Then they handed him the Roman coin.
He said to them, "Whose image is this and whose inscription?"
They replied, "Caesar's."
At that he said to them,
"Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God."