HOMILY FOR TUESDAY OF THE 22ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME CYCLE II
THEME: THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS
BY: Fr. Justin Nzekwe
HOMILY FOR TUESDAY AUGUST 30 2022
Jesus was teaching with authority unlike the Pharisees and Sadducees of his time. And unlike those who use their authority to marginalize others, Jesus uses his authority to set those under the bondage of Satan free, and even the evil spirits could recognize him. He healed many sicknesses and performed other miracles simply by the power of the words that comes out from his mouth.
We need the authority from God in our world today, where the power of good is in conflict with the power of evil. We need such authority in order to overcome the devil whose mission in the world is to kill, steal and, destroy the souls and well-being of people. We need such authority to be able to say no to the temptations of sin, and to always choose to live a righteous life. We need the authority from God in order to be courageous enough to stand by the truth without fear. God’s authority lies in the power of his Words, and today we are privileged to have his words recorded in the Bible. We are also privileged that the Words of Jesus are being preached to us every day at holy mass. However, the problem is that many of us have separated ourselves so much from God. We have failed to spend more time with Jesus by meditating daily on His words whether at home, or in the Church. How many of us still read a few verse of the bible and meditate with them at home? How many mediate on the daily readings of the mass which the Church have provided for us? It is not always enough to come to mass each day, and after the mass, we make no other effort to continue meditating privately on the reading of the day. Each time we read the Word of God, we are talking with Jesus, and we are also drawing strength from his authority. And when we open our hearts to God, he will give us his authority by filling our hearts with His Holy Spirit. The first reading reminds us that, “the Spirit knows everything well, even the depths of God. Who in fact knows the secrets of man if not the spirit of man that is in him? Thus also the secrets of God no one has ever known them except the Spirit of God.” If we have the Spirit of God in us, then that Spirit will fill us with wisdom to understand God better and to do the will of God. The Holy Spirit will assist us in overcoming all our weaknesses. And above us, the Holy Spirit will give us the power to be children of God.
We pray in this holy mass that God will give us the authority to conquer the power of evil in our lives, and that He may grant us his grace to remain faithful to him all the days of our lives.