The Awesome Power of God

Have you ever done something that made other people wonder if you had gone crazy? If so, you can probably understand what is going on in the Gospel for the 10th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mark’s gospel is filled with the ups and downs and action of Jesus’ ministry. It’s also filled with divided houses, kingdoms and conflict. Not just political and religious conflict, but spiritual conflict.

Jesus' Ministry

Jesus healed the sick and cast out demons; he made the unclean clean again; he sought to unite divided communities and bring peace to those who were conflicted. As the true Messiah, he liberated God’s people from the burdens of Satan, sickness and sin. It was hard to understand his message – to accept his very significance. It was no wonder that in first century Judea, Jesus was often misunderstood.

But, dear friends, do we understand Jesus and his ministry? Do we understand what he was trying to teach us? In faith and in life? How often do we, me included, ask God what he is doing in our lives? How often do we wonder and ask him what his will is? Sometimes, we are torn between what we want to do and accepting that God has a plan for us. This has been a problem ever since Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit. They separated themselves from God and hid among the trees after Adam was influenced by Eve and she was tricked by the serpent.

Division and Conflict

Friends, division and inner conflict are very real in today’s world. It’s a part of our life every day. A marriage that is divided usually ends in divorce; a nation divided is a result of bitter politics and in extreme cases this division leads to civil war; conflict and struggle with faith leads to sin. We all have had some kind of interior conflict in our lives. Jesus must have experienced his share of conflict during his public ministry.

In the Gospel of Mark this evening, we heard what happened to Jesus when he went to visit his hometown. People thought he was possessed. Jesus was a rebel and could often be found surrounded by sinners. This naturally upset his family, who tried to seize him. The religious leaders of his time were unsettled, maybe even agitated because Jesus healed with divine power. They were afraid of losing their position of power. Maybe deep inside, they felt that there was someone who was more than just a good person - someone who had more empathy and even healing power. Perhaps they felt that Jesus, with his life and message, was an divine answer to their own religious and human search.

Maybe this was their own interior conflict. Only now, Jesus, just like God, lovingly asks: "Where are you?"

Who and Where Are You?

I believe that every person wants answers to these questions "Who are you? Where are you?" We want to give meaning and significance to our lives. We want to specifically respond to the love of God, and to the love of people. Loving God does not come out of obligation but rather from a great inner need. It is the fruit of a divine gift. It’s explanation can be found in the Sermon on the Mount. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." Doing the will of God means to recognize, to acknowledge God’s presence in this world, in our lives.

Asking for God's will means seeing and experiencing his existence in a much larger context.

Jesus points us to the innermost core of human existence. And this humaness transcends his blood and friendship ties:

"And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother." Jesus’/this new family are those who are committed to his message from God, the Father. Unconditionally and with all the consequences that this calling as children of God brings.

Saint Paul desires to strengthen the young Christian community of Corinth in this conviction, in this faith. We heard it in the Second Reading: Trust and believe in the divine and living spirit in Jesus Christ. It is the same spirit in which both you and I speak. This divine spirit is longing to recognize and believe in the good, and the beautiful. From this strong conviction, he can say: "Therefore, we are not discouraged, rather, although our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day." Paul further uses seemingly strong opposites such as: "what is seen is transitory, what is unseen is eternal."

Seeking and responding to God's will is not easily or rationally understood. For every rational argument for God's existence and presence, I find an equally strong counterargument. What one cannot accuse Jesus of is dividing, and turning people against each other. No, on the contrary, Jesus renews the bond of love between God and humanity in an unsurpassable way. In Jesus Christ, God shows us that he seeks the well-being, happiness, and freedom of humanity and gives everything for it. In Jesus Christ, God speaks in the languages of humanity. It may be that our outer self is wasted away. But the inner self can grow and become strong. Let us ask the divine spirit for the inner strength and power for our daily lives.

Praise be to Jesus Christ.