Reading 1 Jer 7:23-28
Thus says the LORD:
This is what I commanded my people:
Listen to my voice;
then I will be your God and you shall be my people.
Walk in all the ways that I command you,
so that you may prosper.
But they obeyed not, nor did they pay heed.
They walked in the hardness of their evil hearts
and turned their backs, not their faces, to me.
From the day that your fathers left the land of Egypt even to this day,
I have sent you untiringly all my servants the prophets.
Yet they have not obeyed me nor paid heed;
they have stiffened their necks and done worse than their fathers.
When you speak all these words to them,
they will not listen to you either;
when you call to them, they will not answer you.
Say to them:
This is the nation that does not listen
to the voice of the LORD, its God,
or take correction.
Faithfulness has disappeared;
the word itself is banished from their speech.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works."
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Gospel Lk 11:14-23
Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute,
and when the demon had gone out,
the mute man spoke and the crowds were amazed.
Some of them said, "By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons,
he drives out demons."
Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven.
But he knew their thoughts and said to them,
"Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste
and house will fall against house.
And if Satan is divided against himself,
how will his kingdom stand?
For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your own people drive them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons,
then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man fully armed guards his palace,
his possessions are safe.
But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him,
he takes away the armor on which he relied
and distributes the spoils.
Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters."
Reflections:
What is the best protection which brings lasting
security to our lives? Scripture tells us that true peace and security
come to those who trust in God and obey his word. "Obey my voice and walk
in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you" (Jeremiah
7:23). The struggle between choosing to do good or evil, yielding to my
will or God's will, God's way or my way, cannot be won by human strength
or will-power alone. Our enemy, the devil, conspires with the world and
our flesh, to lead us into hurful and sinful desires. Peter the Apostles
tells us, Our adversary, the devil prowls the earth seeking the ruin
of souls (1 Peter 5:8-9). God offers us grace and protection if we
are willing to obey his word and resist the devil. Because you have
made the Lord your refuge, the Most High your habitation, no evil shall
befall you, no scourge come near your tent. For he will give his angels
charge of you to guard you in all your ways
(Psalm 91:9-11)
Jesus' numerous exorcisms brought freedom to many who were troubled
and oppressed by the work of evil spirits. Jesus himself encountered personal
opposition and battled with Satan when he was put to the test in the wilderness
just before his public ministry. He overcame the evil one through his obedience
to the will of his Father. Some of the Jewish leaders reacted vehemently
to Jesus' healings and exorcisms and they opposed him with malicious slander.
How could he get the power and authority to release individuals from Satan's
power? They assumed that he had to be in league with Satan. They attributed
his power to Satan rather than to God.
Jesus answers their charge with two arguments. There were many exorcists
in Palestine in Jesus' time. So Jesus retorted by saying that they also
incriminate their own kin who cast out demons. If they condemn Jesus they
also condemn themselves. In his second argument he asserts that no kingdom
divided against itself can survive for long? We have witnessed enough civil
wars in our own time to prove the destructive force at work here for the
annihilation of whole peoples and their land. If Satan lends his power
against his own forces then he is finished. How can a strong person be
defeated except by someone who is stronger? Jesus asserted his power and
authority to cast out demons as a clear demonstration of the reign of God.
Jesus' reference to the finger of God points back to Moses' confrontation
with Pharoah and his magicians who represented Satan and the kingdom of
darkness (see Exodus 8:19). Jesus claims to be carrying on the tradition
of Moses whose miracles freed the Israelites from bondage by the finger
of God. God's power is clearly at work in the exorcisms which Jesus
performed and they give evidence that God's kingdom has come.
Jesus makes it clear that there are no neutral parties. We are either
for Jesus or against him, for the kingdom of God or against it. There are
two kingdoms in opposition to one another – the kingdom of God and the
kingdom of darkness under the rule of Satan. If we disobey God’s word,
we open to door to the power of sin and Satan in our lives. If you want
to live in freedom from sin and Satan, then your house – your life and
all you possess – must be occupied by Jesus where he is enthroned
as Lord and Savior. Is the Lord Jesus the Master of your home, heart, mind,
and will?
"O Lord, our God, grant us, we beseech you, patience in troubles, humility
in comforts, constancy in temptations, and victory over all our spiritual
foes. Grant us sorrow for our sins, thankfulness for your benefits, fear
of your judgment, love of your mercies, and mindfulness of your presence;
now and for ever."
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