(In
some parts of the world, today is Corpus Christi feast. If so, use last
Thursday's food for thought)
Mark
3:20-35
When Jesus returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Jesus summoned these men and asked them (using proverbs they all understood), “How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided against itself will collapse. A home filled with strife and division destroys itself. And if Satan is fighting against himself, how can he accomplish anything? He would never survive. Satan must be bound before his demons are cast out, just as a strong man must be tied up before his house can be ransacked and his property robbed. “I solemnly declare that any sin of man can be forgiven, even blasphemy against me; but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin.” He told them this because they were saying he did his miracles by Satan’s power instead of acknowledging it was by the Holy Spirit’s power. Now his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them. “Your mother and brothers are outside and want to see you,” he was told. He replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Looking at those around him he said, “These are my mother and brothers! Anyone who does God’s will is my brother, and my sister, and my mother.”
Food for thought!
There is a day in the life of Jesus that you and me need to know about. Aside from the Crucifixion, it is probably the most difficult day of his life. It was a day of roaring sequence of bad events. It all started as soon as he came home for a long deserved rest. But instead of rest, the crowds pressed. The people demanded. The enemies accused. The relatives doubted. All in one day.
Life can go from calm to chaos in a matter of moments. No warnings. No announcements. No preparation. The gospel says, "When he returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Then his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them.
The demands of the crowds, the friends consider him out of his mind, the Jewish teachers of religion take him to be possessed by Satan, and his own mother and brothers want him to stop whatever he is doing and go home. Whatever you call it, call it real. Call it a day in which Jesus experiences more stress than he will any other day of his life — aside from his crucifixion.
If you’ve ever had a day in which you’ve been suffocating from your workplace's demands, a day you have been misunderstood by the people you try your best to help, a day you have been misunderstood even by your family, relatives and friends, a day you wonder if God in heaven can relate to you on earth, then read and reread today's gospel about this pressure-packed day in the life of Christ. And take heart. Jesus knows how you feel. He was labeled to be out mind, to be an agent of Satan, to be crazy. And probably you too have been labeled many things. Take courage.
Today's food for thought is that Jesus knows how you feel, when you're accused, when you're misunderstood, when your world goes from calm to chaos. So whenever your life seem to fall apart, go to him and let him comfort you. (Hebrews 4:16) "So let us come boldly to the very throne of God and stay there to receive his mercy and to find grace to help us in our times of need."
When Jesus returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Jesus summoned these men and asked them (using proverbs they all understood), “How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided against itself will collapse. A home filled with strife and division destroys itself. And if Satan is fighting against himself, how can he accomplish anything? He would never survive. Satan must be bound before his demons are cast out, just as a strong man must be tied up before his house can be ransacked and his property robbed. “I solemnly declare that any sin of man can be forgiven, even blasphemy against me; but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin.” He told them this because they were saying he did his miracles by Satan’s power instead of acknowledging it was by the Holy Spirit’s power. Now his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them. “Your mother and brothers are outside and want to see you,” he was told. He replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Looking at those around him he said, “These are my mother and brothers! Anyone who does God’s will is my brother, and my sister, and my mother.”
Food for thought!
There is a day in the life of Jesus that you and me need to know about. Aside from the Crucifixion, it is probably the most difficult day of his life. It was a day of roaring sequence of bad events. It all started as soon as he came home for a long deserved rest. But instead of rest, the crowds pressed. The people demanded. The enemies accused. The relatives doubted. All in one day.
Life can go from calm to chaos in a matter of moments. No warnings. No announcements. No preparation. The gospel says, "When he returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Then his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them.
The demands of the crowds, the friends consider him out of his mind, the Jewish teachers of religion take him to be possessed by Satan, and his own mother and brothers want him to stop whatever he is doing and go home. Whatever you call it, call it real. Call it a day in which Jesus experiences more stress than he will any other day of his life — aside from his crucifixion.
If you’ve ever had a day in which you’ve been suffocating from your workplace's demands, a day you have been misunderstood by the people you try your best to help, a day you have been misunderstood even by your family, relatives and friends, a day you wonder if God in heaven can relate to you on earth, then read and reread today's gospel about this pressure-packed day in the life of Christ. And take heart. Jesus knows how you feel. He was labeled to be out mind, to be an agent of Satan, to be crazy. And probably you too have been labeled many things. Take courage.
Today's food for thought is that Jesus knows how you feel, when you're accused, when you're misunderstood, when your world goes from calm to chaos. So whenever your life seem to fall apart, go to him and let him comfort you. (Hebrews 4:16) "So let us come boldly to the very throne of God and stay there to receive his mercy and to find grace to help us in our times of need."
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