Sermon – Therefore, pray to the Owner of the Harvest to send out laborers for his harvest (Matthew 9:36-10) – June 14, 2026

I begin this sermon with this question: What did Jesus love most? What did Jesus desire most?

After his Father, the thing Jesus loved most was people.

As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; remain in my love. (John 15:9)

We know that true love desires the well-being of the beloved. And the greatest good for a person is salvation.

So what did Jesus desire most? The salvation of humanity!

This is what Jesus most desired. That is why when he saw the people, he had compassion on them; for they had no one to teach them the way to heaven. They were like sheep without a shepherd.

Jesus Christ saved us. He gave humanity his own mission and authority to carry out this universal task of salvation:

Go and proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. You received freely, so give freely.

So God uses people to continue the work He started.

Consider this: Without a priest, there is no forgiveness of sins, and without the Eucharist, there is no salvation.

Jesus said:

If you do not eat the body of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. But whoever eats my body and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:53-54)

Now we understand better why Jesus wanted us to pray for blessed lives—priests and nuns. They continue the work of salvation that Christ began.

Without a priest, the Messiah will not come into the world.

Saint Padre Pio used to say:

"It is easier for the world to live without the sun than without the Sacred Rite."

Let us listen to Jesus and pray for blessed professions.

Let us ask the Virgin Mary to intercede for us and send us holy priests.