20190128
SPIRITUAL
WARFARE
28 JANUARY,
2019, Monday, 3rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
White.
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First reading
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Hebrews 9:15,24-28 ©
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Christ offers himself only once to take
on the faults of many
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Christ brings a new covenant, as the
mediator, only so that the people who were called to an eternal inheritance may
actually receive what was promised: his death took place to cancel the sins
that infringed the earlier covenant. It is not as though Christ had entered a
man-made sanctuary which was only modelled on the real one; but it was heaven
itself, so that he could appear in the actual presence of God on our behalf.
And he does not have to offer himself again and again, like the high priest
going into the sanctuary year after year with the blood that is not his own, or
else he would have had to suffer over and over again since the world began.
Instead of that, he has made his appearance once and for all, now at the end of
the last age, to do away with sin by sacrificing himself. Since men only die
once, and after that comes judgement, so Christ, too, offers himself only once
to take the faults of many on himself, and when he appears a
second time, it will not be to deal with sin but to reward with salvation those
who are waiting for him.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 97(98):1-6 ©
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Sing a new song to the
Lord for he has worked wonders.
Sing a new song to the Lord
for he has worked wonders.
His right hand and his holy arm
have brought salvation.
Sing a new song to the
Lord for he has worked wonders.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
has shown his justice to the
nations.
He has remembered his truth and love
for the house of Israel.
Sing a new song to the
Lord for he has worked wonders.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
Shout to the Lord, all the earth,
ring out your joy.
Sing a new song to the
Lord for he has worked wonders.
Sing psalms to the Lord with the harp
with the sound of music.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
acclaim the King, the Lord.
Sing a new song to the
Lord for he has worked wonders.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps24:4,5
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Teach me your paths, my God,
make me walk in your truth.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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cf.2Tim1:10
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Our Saviour Jesus Christ abolished death
and he has proclaimed life through the
Good News.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 3:22-30 ©
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A kingdom divided against itself cannot
stand
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The scribes who had come down from
Jerusalem were saying, ‘Beelzebul is in him’ and, ‘It is through the prince of
devils that he casts devils out.’ So he called them to him and spoke to them in
parables, ‘How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against
itself, that kingdom cannot last. And if a household is divided against itself,
that household can never stand. Now if Satan has rebelled against himself and
is divided, he cannot stand either – it is the end of him. But no one can
make his way into a strong man’s house and burgle his property unless he has
tied up the strong man first. Only then can he burgle his house.
‘I
tell you solemnly, all men’s sins will be forgiven, and all their blasphemies;
but let anyone blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and he will never have
forgiveness: he is guilty of an eternal sin.’ This was because they were
saying, ‘An unclean spirit is in him.’
SPIRITUAL
WARFARE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ HEB 9:15.24-28; PS 98:1-6; MK 3:22-30 ]
St Paul in writing to the Ephesians said,
“our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against
the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present
darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
(Eph 6:12) Indeed, many of us do not
recognize this fact and we think that the evils in the world are caused solely
by man alone. All the wickedness, crimes, injustices and immorality in
this world are often attributed to the selfishness and greed of man. This
is only the partial truth. However, the real battle, as St Paul says, is
against the power of darkness.
Truly, the ministry of
Jesus and the proclamation of the Kingdom of God cannot be understood except in
the background of the Kingdom of Satan. Exorcism and spiritual warfare against the Evil
One is one of the most important tasks in the mission of our Lord. In the
gospel we always find Jesus battling against Satan. What makes this
spiritual warfare against the Devil more difficult is the fact that the Evil
One works in, through and with man to wreak evil in the world. We are
unwittingly minions at the service of the kingdom of darkness. That was
the case of the scribes in today’s gospel when they accused Jesus that
“Beelzebul is in him” and, “It is through the prince of devils that he casts
devils out.”
If we are not alert, we
too will be made use of by the Devil to do his work of destroying peace and
love. The devil will tempt us
to pride and egoism, just as he tempted the religious leaders, sowing the seeds
of jealousy and doubt in their minds and hearts. Instead of recognizing
the power of Jesus to cast out devils, they colluded with the devil in casting
doubts about the authenticity and source of Jesus’ power to
exorcise. This is what the devil is doing today, sowing seeds of
doubt in the truth of the Bible and in the authoritative teaching of the
Church. Today, people listen to all the false propaganda in the world
about life, success and happiness.
What is most frightening
is that this will lead us into the sin against the Holy Spirit, as Jesus warned
us in the gospel. Jesus
said, “I tell you solemnly, all men’s sins will be forgiven, and all their
blasphemies: but let anyone blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and he will never
have forgiveness: he is guilty of an eternal sin.’ This was because they
were saying, ‘An unclean spirit is in him.'” This is often the case for
those who subscribe to the thinking of the world and Satan. Over time, we
harden our views as well, so much so we become hostile towards God and His
Church. One begins with complacency in living the gospel life. Then
we are attracted by the wiles of Satan. We become enslaved to the passion
and pleasures of the world. Eventually, our heart will be totally closed
to God and we become His enemies. This is what the sin against the Holy
Spirit is all about, when there is total closeness of the mind and heart
towards truth, goodness, love and God Himself. This sin cannot be
forgiven because we will not seek forgiveness or recognize our wrongdoings.
We are at war with God. Isn’t this true when we support the selfish and
self-centered views of the world with respect to sexuality, marriage, family
and the dignity of life?
To win this battle, we
must, as Jesus advised us, bring a strong man to fight with us against the Evil
One. The devil as
spirit is more powerful than us. We cannot do it alone using our own
strength because we cannot match his power. Jesus cautioned us, “what
king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and
consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes
against him with twenty thousand?” (Lk 14:31) That is why we need to bring
in the strong man, Jesus Himself. Only He alone can win victory for us
over the Evil One and his angels.
Jesus said, “But no one can make
his way into a strong man’s house and burgle his property unless he has tied up
the strong man first. Only then can he burgle his house.” St Paul
himself exhorted us, “Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his
power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. Therefore take up the whole armor of God,
so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done
everything, to stand firm.” (Eph 6:13)
This armour entails the
Word of God, the Sacraments, unceasing prayer, a life of faith, righteousness
and witnessing.
“Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on
the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever
will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of
these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all
the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all
times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always
persevere in supplication for all the saints.” (Eph 6:14-18) Only with this armour can
we protect ourselves from the temptations of the Evil One.
Indeed, the battle
against the evil spirits is won only with Jesus’ victory over sin and death. This is what the letter of Hebrews
assures us. We read that “Christ brings a new covenant, as the mediator,
only so that the people who were called to an eternal inheritance may actually
receive what was promised: his death took place to cancel the sins that
infringed the earlier covenant.” The death of Jesus takes away all sins
because all sins are committed due to the fear of death. St Paul wrote,
“For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The
last enemy to be destroyed is death.” (1 Cor 15:25f) With the conquest of
death, sin is overcome. “Death has been swallowed up in victory.
‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ The
sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to
God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor 15:55f)
Secondly, victory is won
by the one sacrifice of Christ on the cross. “He does not have to offer himself again and
again, like the high priest going into the sanctuary year after year with the
blood that is not his own, or else he would have had to suffer over and over
again since the world began. Instead of that, he has made his appearance
once and for all, now at the end of the last age, to do away with sin by
sacrificing himself.” By His suffering and death on the cross, Jesus has
offered His entire self for the salvation of the world. He has shown us
the way to salvation by offering Himself to God and to us, once and for
all. If we share in Christ’s sacrifice by surrendering ourselves entirely
to the will of God and for the love of His people, we too will overcome all
sins.
Thirdly, we read that
Jesus as our High Priest is always interceding for us in the presence of God,
unlike the priests of the old covenant. “It is not as though Christ had entered a man-made
sanctuary which was only modelled on the real one; but it was heaven itself, so
that he could appear in the actual presence of God on our behalf.” We
read earlier on that Jesus “is able for all time to save those who approach God
through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (Heb 7:25) We can be confident therefore,
that with Jesus interceding for us in the presence of His Father, our prayers
would be heard. He has promised us this when He said, “I will do whatever
you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in
my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.” (Jn 14:13f)
Finally, if we are to
win this spiritual warfare, we must support each other in prayer and in
fellowship. Jesus warns us in
the gospel, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot
last. And if a household is divided against itself, that household can
never stand. Now if Satan has rebelled against himself and is divided, he
cannot stand either – it is the end of him.” If we are divided among
ourselves, we will destroy ourselves. This is what the devil desires for
us because his strategy and that of the world is divide and conquer.
Many church
organizations want to work in silo rather than synergizing together. Many Catholics who walk alone in
their faith are certainly putting their faith at risk because they are alone in
their faith. Without someone to encourage them, to edify and inspire
them, they will lose faith in God during times of stress and challenges.
Let us, therefore, support each other in faith and in our apostolic
activities because we have a common vision to build God’s kingdom.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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