3RD MONDAY HOMILY OF THE ORDINARY TIME — YEAR A
HOMILY THEME: DON’T MIND OPPOSITIONS
BY: Fr Paul Karabari
“The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said of Jesus, ‘He is possessed by Beelzebul, and by the prince of demons, he casts out the demons.”‘
The third chapter of Mark’s Gospel shows the hostility that Jesus faces in His ministry. Jewish authorities turn against Him. Members of his family and friends think He is mad. Today, (Mark 3:22-30), some scribes have come from Jerusalem to accuse Him of being possessed by Beelzebul.
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‘Scribe’ is taken from the Greek root word grammateus. Originally, scribes were tasked with writing and keeping the records of kings, generals, and prophets (Jeremiah 36:4). When the Jewish refugees returned from Babylon, scribes took up the task of interpreting the Mosaic Law. This fit in with the Pharisees’ desire to add to the Law to make sure the people would never again sin so badly that God would send them into exile. In this way, the scribes became the lawyers of the Pharisees.
Because of the scribes’ high degree of education and expertise in the Torah, they feel they have the qualifications to judge Jesus. Their expert opinion is that if Jesus doesn’t follow the same rules they do, His supernatural power must come from a different spiritual force than God.
Beelzebul is Aramaic and means ‘lord of the house.’ The similar ‘Beelzebub’ is a parody which means ‘lord of the flies.’ Beelzebul is a variation of Baal, the primary God of the Canaanites and Phoenicians, and one of the greatest temptations for the Israelites in the Old Testament (Judges 2:13). By the time of Christ, however, ‘Beelzebul’ represents Satan. If Jesus’ authority to cast out demons does not come from God, the scribes reason, it must come from the leader of the demons. Jesus proceeds to tell them why that is a ridiculous idea.
Enemies do not count cost and are not shy of wasting resources and energy when they are meant to bring you down. It is no surprise that they have come all the way from Jerusalem just to accuse Jesus. If you are in the habit of taking those who consistently try to bring you down too seriously, you will definitely lose your passion for goodness.
Unlike what we do sometimes, Jesus never let discouragement defeat Him. He saw every obstacle and every bit of opposition as an opportunity to demonstrate grace. His heart was broken by those He loved, but He never allowed bitterness to enter it. He didn’t concentrate on the people who called Him names.
Opposition is a necessary part of life. We must encounter them. If we dwell on them, we can never move forward. Living on the opinions of people is one of the most dangerous ways to live. Be convinced of your mission, have peace with your Creator, and bracket every other thing that seems judgment to bring you down.
Those who do what they do just to please people can easily be discouraged by what they do and say. But if the focus of good work is God, then we can look beyond negativity generated by those around us. And those who seek man’s approval can hardly please God. GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE. May God have mercy on our world, bless and protect us all through Christ, our Lord Amen.
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