20180904
TEACHING
AUTHORITATIVELY IN THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT
04 SEPTEMBER,
2018, Tuesday, 22nd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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1 Corinthians 2:10-16 ©
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The Spirit reaches even the depths of
God
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The Spirit reaches the depths of
everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man can only be
known by his own spirit, not by any other man, and in the same way the depths
of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Now instead of the spirit of the
world, we have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to
understand the gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way
in which philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we
teach spiritual things spiritually. An unspiritual person is one who does not
accept anything of the Spirit of God: he sees it all as nonsense; it is beyond
his understanding because it can only be understood by means of the Spirit. A
spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of everything, and
his own value is not to be judged by other men. As scripture says: Who
can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him? But we are those
who have the mind of Christ.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 144(145):8-14 ©
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The Lord is just in all
his ways.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion,
slow to anger, abounding in
love.
How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his
creatures.
The Lord is just in all
his ways.
All your creatures shall thank you, O
Lord,
and your friends shall repeat
their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your
reign
and declare your might, O God,
to make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of
your reign.
The Lord is just in all
his ways.
Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to
age.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and loving in all his deeds.
The Lord supports all who fall
and raises all who are bowed
down.
The Lord is just in all
his ways.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Heb4:12
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The word of God is something alive and
active:
it can judge secret emotions and thoughts.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Lk7:16
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Alleluia, alleluia!
A great prophet has appeared among us;
God has visited his people.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 4:31-37 ©
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'I know who you are: the Holy One of
God'
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Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town in
Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath. And his teaching made a deep
impression on them because he spoke with authority.
In
the synagogue there was a man who was possessed by the spirit of an unclean
devil, and it shouted at the top of its voice, ‘Ha! What do you want with us,
Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy
One of God.’ But Jesus said sharply, ‘Be quiet! Come out of him!’ And the
devil, throwing the man down in front of everyone, went out of him without
hurting him at all. Astonishment seized them and they were all saying to one
another, ‘What teaching! He gives orders to unclean spirits with authority and
power and they come out.’ And reports of him went all through the surrounding
countryside.
TEACHING AUTHORITATIVELY IN THE POWER OF
THE SPIRIT
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 CORINTHIANS 2:10-16; LUKE 4:31-37 ]
Why is it that many
people cannot accept the Catholic Faith in spite of our intelligible explanations of why
Christ is the Son of God and the Church as founded by Him? We can explain
all the doctrines and moral teachings of the Church, and many would reject our
claims. Even many of our Catholics cannot accept certain aspects of the
Church’s teaching on morals and doctrines. They would just bracket what they
disagree from their faith life. This is true even when sharing religious
experiences. They are skeptical about the testimonies of God-encounters,
healing miracles and radical spiritual experiences.
When people cannot
accept what we teach and share about our faith and religious experiences,
understandably, they are disinterested observers. Quite a number are “outstanding Catholics”
because they do not even enter the church to participate in the service.
A faith encounter requires docility, openness and receptivity. It entails
that we are willing to take the risk of believing and then later on to verify
what we believe after the experience. When we look at something from
outside, we cannot enter into the experience of those who are open to God in a
relationship. This is what St Paul is trying to explain in today’s first
reading. “An unspiritual person is one who does not accept anything of
the Spirit of God: he sees it all as nonsense; it is beyond his understanding
because it can only be understood by means of the Spirit.”
In any human
relationship, especially when a person falls in love with another person, such
experience and relationship cannot be understood logically. Why do I love this person is not a
question that can be explained in a logical manner. Reason cannot
explain why we love a person. It is a matter of the heart. It is
not just about reason but about experiencing the entire person and involving
the mind, heart, soul, emotions and will. Love demands a total giving and
receiving of the entire person, both for the recipient and the giver.
So too in a chosen
vocation or a passion over some hobby. There are many things in life that
cannot be explained logically or in financial terms. Matters of the heart, taste, aesthetics
and passion are not logical. Fulfilling one’s passion might not be
profitable monetarily. Service to people and nation might not pay
well. Being a priest or religious demands hard work, self-sacrifice and
generosity. Still, people choose to follow their heart instead of
following the cold reasoning of the world and society. Some have chosen
love over career, glory and position in life.
So too in our
relationship with God. St Paul writes, “The Spirit reaches the depths of
everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man, and in the
same way the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God.” Without
the heart of God and the mind of God, we cannot understand His nature, His
identity, and His divine plans for us. Unless we enter the mind and heart
of a person, we cannot see from his or her perspective. This is so true in
counselling when the patient seeks for empathy. A good counsellor is one
who can get under the skin of the counselee to feel with him or her.
Therefore, to understand
the things of God, we need to acquire His Spirit. “Now instead of the spirit of the world, we
have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to understand the
gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way in which
philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we teach
spiritual things spiritually.” When we have God’s Spirit, we have the
same mind and heart of Christ. We see life from His perspective and enter
into His Spirit, sharing His love for His Father and us.
This explains why St
Paul wrote, “A spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of
everything, and his own value is not to be judged by other men.” Experiences in life determine how
we look at life. We cannot argue with someone over an experience just as
we cannot reason out with a person why he is in love with a woman. What
more when it is an experience of God and the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.
“As scripture says: Who can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him?
But we are those who have the mind of Christ.” Of course, it does not
mean to say that we must accept anyone who claims that God is speaking to him
or her. We have guidelines for discernment of the spirits. Still,
in the final analysis, when something or an experience is morally right, we
just have to give the person the benefit of the doubt.
Jesus in the gospel
demonstrated the power of the Spirit.
He was just baptised in the Spirit and He was led by the Spirit into the desert
to score His first victory over the Devil’s temptations. (cf Mt 4:1-11) He was anointed by the Spirit
when He began His ministry, citing the Suffering Servant from Isaiah. (cf Lk 4:16-20) He spoke from the
heart of God, from His inner conviction and experience of His Father’s
love. “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is
in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who
dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the
Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works
themselves.” (Jn 14:10f)
He knew the nature of God and His divine plans because He was one
with Him. Jesus said to Nicoemus, “If I have told you about earthly
things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly
things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from
heaven, the Son of Man.” (Jn 3:12f) This was what St Paul meant when he
wrote, “the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God.”
Consequently, we can
appreciate why Jesus’ “teaching made a deep impression on them because he spoke
with authority.” He
did not speak from His head or give a theological discourse. He was not
propagating an ideology or even a philosophy. He spoke from His heart,
His personal experience of God whom He called, “Abba, Father.” In fact
Jesus, unlike the Rabbis, never attended any theological school. He
learnt everything from His heavenly Father. That explains why His style
of preaching and teaching differed from the Rabbinic school because He taught
from His own encounter with His Father’s love. His examples were
concrete, personal, down to earth, from everyday life.
That Jesus completed His
mission in the power of the Holy Spirit is also manifested in His sensitivity
to the presence of the Evil Spirit. We read that “in the synagogue there was a man
who was possessed by the spirit of an unclean devil, and it shouted at the top
of its voice, ‘Ha! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you
come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God.'” He could
read the evil and subtle intentions of the unclean spirit in revealing His
identity. So “Jesus said sharply, ‘Be quiet! Come out of
him!’ And the devil throwing the man down in front of everyone, went out
of him without hurting him at all.” Jesus knew His identity and His
authority that the Father gave to Him over unclean spirits. “Astonishment
seized them and they were all saying to one another, ‘What teaching! He
gives orders to unclean spirits with authority and power and they come out.’
And reports of him went all through the surrounding countryside.”
Today, we need to be
filled with the same Spirit of Jesus, sharing His mind and heart so that we too
can preach with personal authority and power to cast out evils from society. Often we pray for deliverance
and healing without faith and conviction of the Father’s love and
authority. We do not have the faith of the psalmist in today’s
responsorial psalm. Let us teach not just from books and study but also
from our personal relationship with the Lord and our intimacy with Him.
We only have to ask for the Holy Spirit and the Father will give to us.
(cf Lk 11:13) Only with the Holy Spirit, can
we act with and in Jesus.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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