Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost - 10/18/26
Sunday, October 18th, is the twentieth Sunday after Pentecost. On this day we commemorate:
The Holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke (1st c.)
Martyr Marinus the Elder at Anazarbus (4th c.)
Ven. Julian the Hermit, of Mesopotamia (4th c.)
Venerable Joseph the Wonderworker, Igumen of Volokolamsk
Saint James the Deacon
Saint Peter of Cetinje
Saint David of Serpukhov
"Machairotissa" Icon of the Mother of God.
Readings for Sunday, October 18th:
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5
Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.
6
Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.
7
Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me.
8
I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts,
9
with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here.
14
Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.
18
This salutation by my own hand – Paul. Remember my chains. Grace be with you. Amen.
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16
He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.”
17
Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”
18
And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
19
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
20
Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”
21
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
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11
But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.
12
For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
13
For you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.
14
And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
15
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace,
16
to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,
17
nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
18
Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days.
19
But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.
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5
“A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.
6
Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.
7
And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.
8
But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
9
Then His disciples asked Him, saying, “What does this parable mean?”
10
And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.’
11
Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
12
Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
13
But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.
14
Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.
15
But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.
The Holy Scriptures are part of the Church’s Holy Tradition. Metropolitan Kallistos Ware of blessed memory wrote:
In the words of Father Alexander Schmemann, “A Christian is the one who, wherever he looks, finds everywhere Christ, and rejoices in Him.” This is true in particular of the biblical Christian. Wherever he looks, on every page, he finds everywhere Christ.
See Metropolitan Ware’s article How to Read the Bible for more on an Orthodox approach to scripture.