The Greatest Story Ever Told: From Covenant to Commission | Daily Readings | May 15, 2025
May 15, 2025 – Daily Catholic Lectionary Readings for Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter.
Experience Paul’s masterful retelling of salvation history as he traces God’s faithfulness from Egypt to Jesus. Discover how the ancient covenant with David connects to Jesus’ commission of his disciples. Find your own place in this unfolding divine narrative that continues into the present moment.
This cinematic reflection explores:
- How Paul weaves Israel’s story into a case for Jesus as the promised Savior
- The enduring covenant faithfulness celebrated in Psalm 89
- Jesus’ radical teaching about service, authority, and representation
- How we participate in this continuing story through receiving and being sent
Readings covered: Acts 13:13-25; Psalm 89:2-3, 21-22, 25 and 27; John 13:16-20
Perfect for anyone seeking to understand their personal story within God’s larger purposes, navigating leadership responsibilities, wondering how ancient promises connect to present reality, or discerning their own divine commission.
#CatholicDailyReadings #BibleStudy #SalvationHistory #ServantLeadership #DivineCommission #PaulsSermon #CovenantFaithfulness #ThursdayReflection #JesusFootwashing #GodsPurpose
The Greatest Story Ever Told: From Covenant to Commission
We all want to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Something meaningful. Something that matters.
In a synagogue in Pisidian Antioch, Paul stands to speak. What follows isn’t a theological lecture but a story – Israel’s story, retold with breathtaking simplicity and fresh purpose.
He starts with slavery in Egypt. Moves through the wilderness years. Touches on the judges and King Saul. Arrives at David – “a man after God’s own heart.” And then the punchline that changes everything: “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as promised.”
Paul isn’t just giving a history lesson. He’s saying: “This is your story too. You’re part of something ancient and ongoing. Something God has been weaving since before you were born.”
We need this perspective desperately today. We live in a culture of disconnection – from the past, from each other, from anything beyond our immediate experience. We’re encouraged to create our own stories, define our own truths, chart our own paths.
But what if the most meaningful life isn’t found by writing your own small story, but by finding your place in the greatest story ever told?
The psalm celebrates this ongoing story: “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.” The singer looks back at God’s covenant with David – “My kindness is established forever” – and finds reason to trust God’s faithfulness in the present.
In John’s Gospel, Jesus prepares his disciples for his departure with a stunning claim: “Whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me.” The disciples will carry not just Jesus’ message but his very presence. When people receive them, they’ll be receiving Jesus himself, and through Jesus, the Father.
This chain of representation continues to us. We’re not just messengers delivering information about Jesus. We carry his presence. When people welcome us, they welcome him. When they reject us, they reject him. This isn’t arrogance but astonishing privilege – we’re written into the greatest story ever told.
What does this mean for our everyday lives?
First, it means your story has deeper roots than you realize. Like those Jews listening to Paul, you’re part of a narrative that began long before you and will continue long after. The struggles and triumphs of Israel, the faithfulness of God through centuries, the covenant promises fulfilled in Jesus – this is your heritage, your backstory.
When you face uncertainty or doubt, you’re not facing it alone or for the first time. Generations before you have wrestled with the same questions, faced similar challenges, and discovered God’s faithfulness. Their testimony becomes your encouragement.
Second, it means your daily actions have greater significance than they appear. Jesus tells his disciples that in receiving the ones he sends, people are receiving him. The most ordinary encounters can become sacred moments of divine presence.
That conversation with a neighbor. The patience you show a difficult colleague. The forgiveness extended to a family member. The welcome offered to a stranger. In these moments, you’re not just being nice. You’re carrying the presence of Jesus, extending the ongoing story of God’s redemption.
Finally, it means you’re called to both receive and represent. Jesus first washed the disciples’ feet – serving them – before sending them to serve others. “No servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.”
We receive the love, grace, and servant-leadership of Jesus, then represent him to others with the same humble service. We’re both beneficiaries and bearers of the greatest story ever told.
This Easter season, let’s rediscover our place in this unfolding narrative. Let’s see ourselves not as isolated individuals creating meaning from scratch, but as characters woven into a cosmic story of covenant faithfulness and divine commission.
The God who led Israel through the sea still leads his people today. The Christ who washed disciples’ feet still serves us now. The Spirit who empowered the early church still moves among us.
Your life isn’t a solo performance but a harmony in the greatest symphony ever composed. Your story matters because it’s part of the greatest story ever told.
