First Reading - 1 Corinthians 2:10-16
Gospel - Luke 4:31-37
All may have watched movies of superheroes. Their power and authority seem to fascinate us and at times stir up our fantacy for such power and authority. They remain a fantasy without any ray of realisation. The readings of the day invite us to reflect upon our superhero, Jesus, who invites us to participate in his glory and power, thus this does not remain mere fantacy for us but real and actual part of our lives.
In the first reading, St. Paul exhorts the Christians in Corinth to possess spiritual wisdom which issues from God. He makes a contrast between secular wisdom and spiritual wisdom. He further clarifies that spiritual wisdom transcends secular wisdom inasmuch as spiritual wisdom issues from the wisdom of God. Therefore, he instructs the believers that to possess spiritual wisdom, they need to be spiritual or they need to follow spiritual way which is guided by the Spirit rather than worldly wisdom. He emphasizes that spiritual wisdom is attained by spiritual way under the guidance of the Spirit. However, it's important to mark here that the spiritual wisdom for Paul is Jesus. Hence, to approach Jesus, the way to spiritual life is proposed by Paul.
The gospel of the day takes us forward to the incident after the sad experience of Jesus with fellow-townsmen in Nazareth. Jesus thereafter made the city of Capernaum, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee the center of the fishing business, a base for a Messianic preaching and healing mission. The people were impressed by the authority with which Jesus taught. The Old Testament prophets had taught using God’s delegated authority, and the scribes and Pharisees taught quoting Moses, the prophets and the great rabbis. But Jesus taught using His own authority and knowledge as God. Perfect knowledge of God, His Father, perfect obedience to God His Father’s will, and absolute confidence in God, His Father, were the sources of Jesus’ authority. The second part of today’s Gospel describes a healing by exorcism, which Jesus performed in the synagogue. We are told how Jesus, using His authority, cast out the devil by just one command: “Be silent, and come out of him!” The demon obeyed at once, throwing the man it had possessed to the floor in the midst of the people in the synagogue on its departure. The people were impressed with Jesus’ power and authority with which he could command even evil spirits.
My dear friends, the authority of Jesus is his own and not delegated nor temporary. The authority of Jesus shows his divine life, that's why the man possessed with demon called out to him "The Holy One of God". This title testifies the divinity of Jesus. We also believe in the same Jesus who is "The Holy One of God" and he invites us to be the part of his glory in him. In the first reading, Paul emphatically says that to grow in spiritual wisdom spiritual way or life is required, so also to accept the invitation to be the part of Christ's glory, spiritual path is needed. We should also know that the spiritual path for us laid down by the teachings of Jesus in the Scripture, enunciated and guided by the Magisterium of the Church, and guarded by the believers through their lives. Let's remind ourselves that the authority of Christ is still vibrant and alive through the Scripture, Magisterium and each believer in Christ.
The gospel tells us that people were impressed or touched by the teachings of Jesus because he spoke with authority. We need to consider this fact time and again - are we impressed or touched by the words of Jesus when we hear him? Do we find something transforming in the teachings of Jesus? Once again the words of Paul can help us here - spiritual person can perceive what is from the Spirit. If not, perhaps, we are not moved by the Spirit to perceive the life of the Spirit in the words of Jesus.
Let's take the message of Paul seriously that spiritual wisdom is to be acquired by a strong and robust spiritual life. Therefore, it is primary duty of everyone to guard one's spiritual life. It's also equally important to strengthen our spiritual life by taking our spiritual life seriously through the Scriptures and the Sacraments. Therefore, let us read the authoritative word of God every day and assimilate it into our lives and avail ourselves of the Sacraments of the Church for our spiritual benefits.
May we be able to grow in our spiritual life.
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