Let's see, cast your
mind back over the gospel incident we have just read and ask yourself ‘What
were the words, what was the teaching, that prompted people to marvel at the authority of the Lord?'
There were only six words reported: Quiet!
Come out of him! [1]
It was not so
much what Jesus said but the power
with which he said it; his words were full of power; he could do anything with
a single and plain word.
To a demon, he
could say: be quiet, and the demon would be quiet; come out of him, and he
would come out.
To the leper: be
cured; to the cripple: get up and walk; to the deaf and dumb man: be opened; to
the dead Lazarus: come out.
Jesus could also
say to a sinner: Your sins are forgiven;
to a fig tree: May no fruit ever come
from you again; to bread and wine: This
is my Body, this is my Blood…
The people were astonished at the words of Jesus.
Jesus’ words have power because they are God’s words which cannot be opposed or
sidestepped. This is what left a deep impression on the people.
"Ok Father, we
know this very well, tells us something new". Yes: we know all this now but in
the synagogue on that Sabbath which the Gospel speaks of, the people were just
beginning to discover the true identity of this man.
And what about
the demon-possessed man. The Lord says: Come
out of him. There are no long incantations with song and dance, just a
simple order: Come out! And the demon
leaves the man and the man is free. And this is our lesson for today: Jesus’ word is always liberating; it
actually gives us the freedom to which it calls us. This is the reason Jesus is
greater than the Law: Jesus always provides the power to reach the goals he
sets us. As the saying goes: His Will will not take you where his grace cannot
keep you.
Let us reflect
on it: His Will will not take you where his grace cannot keep you. In other
words: Jesus had spoken to the demon and the demon was constrained to obey. But
Jesus’ words were also heard by the people standing round. The word of God is
all things for all men and when it is spoken there are no ‘bystanders’.
My brother, my
sister, the Word of God cannot be ignored. It can be listened to or it can be
disobeyed but it can never be ignored. That is why Jesus’ word is judgment. May
be you remember the passage very well: he
who rejects me and refuses my words has his judge already: the word itself that
I have spoken will be his judge on the last day[2].
Jesus came to
draw all men to himself.
The word of God
is, indeed, alive and active. It is still powerful, liberating, empowering and
judging, even today. It comes to each one of us in this Mass, seeking us out,
lighting up the hidden, dark places of our soul, determining whether we belong
to his flock or not, calling us to become his.
May our
astonishment become a simple and total yes
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