During much of his public ministry, Our Lord seems to have sought to play down His true identity. Sometimes he urges silence and other times when confronted by the other with the question about his identity, He remains enigmatic or turns the table around by puzzling them up in wonder.
The event, we encounter in today’s gospel passage was no doubt, a manifestation of God’s saving work and it seems to have annoyed the Pharisees to the point that rather than give glory to God who has wrought such wonders in casting out a devil, they accused Jesus of using the power of Satan Beezebul -the prince of devils to cast out the devil. It means therefore that if the world can question the power of Jesus then they can question the power of the Church and every believer.
There is a famous proverb that goes thus,” As the wound inflames the finger, so thought inflames the mind.” We too know the difference between clean and sticky fingers, and our hearts can be sticky too. We can spoil things for others, and leave our smudge on them. We too can make things difficult for others and humiliate them, We can strip them of their pathetic shreds of self-protection by our ridicule or rebuff. Our Christian faith is based on a love-relationship with God.
From this love, our actions towards others flow. From this love flows our non-judgemental attitude towards others. Into this love, happiness enters from God and flows from us to others. Jesus mentions that his power rests in the finger of God that is, the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Pope Benedict XVI addressing the audience at the ANGELUS on St Peter’s Square on Sunday, 27 January 2008 mentions that,
“ God reigns in the world through his Son made man and with the power of the Holy Spirit who is called “the finger of God” (Lk 11: 20). Wherever Jesus goes the Creator Spirit brings life, and men and women are healed of diseases of body and spirit.
God’s lordship is thus manifest in the human being’s integral healing. By this, Jesus wanted to reveal the Face of the true God, the God who is close, full of mercy for every human being; the God who makes us a gift of life in abundance, his own life.”
We need to believe if the Spirit that was on Moses can rest on those who were not at the assembly that is, Eldad and Medad and they prophesied. Number 11:24-30. Holy Spirit can make use of anyone who has faith in Jesus.
According to St Augustine : ‘Faith is to believe in the Word of God, what we do not see, and its reward is to see and enjoy what we believe’.
The Holy Spirit is the author of sacred Scripture and he tells us more about Christ. God’s power triumphs over sickness, evil and Christ died to save. Amen.
The day of the Lord is much closer now than the time of Joel. Wake up and start afresh.
