4th Sunday on Ordinary Time B: The Power and Authority that liberates us (Deut 18, 15 – 20; Ps 95, 1 – 2, 6 – 7; 1Cor 7, 32 – 35; Mk 1, 21 – 28)

In a world where a lot of people and nations want their power and authority (physical, intellectual, scientific/technical, military, political and economic) to be felt, God presents Jesus, the Christ as the epitome of insurmountable power and authority. The evangelist Mark began his Gospel by giving account of Jesus’ baptism and empowerment (Mk 1, 9 – 11). By this, the evangelist tries to point at Jesus’ power and authority, and the source, which is God himself. When God says that He will put his Word on someone’s mouth, it means that he will empower this person to be an instrument of his glory. When one speaks with the power and authority of God, his/her word is never empty but goes with creative, transforming, liberating and restoring effects.

The Gospel of today recalls that, ‘Just then a man in the synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are - the Holy One of God!” “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching - and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee’ –(Mark 1:23-28). What this means in our context are the following (a) to teach from the heart and not just from the head; (b) the teaching is spirit-filled, powerful, and transformative (c) It is not focused on empty letters of the law but radiates profound love; and (d) the teaching inspires positive changes in the hearers. The power of Jesus Christ is Love. It is the greatest power that has ever been, that is and that will never cease to be. The lack of it could turn an angel of light into the greatest demon and evil that exists. Now we can understand what demon that challenged the power of Jesus; it is the opposite of love that sits in the midst of ignorant folks even in the church and among government official; it is found even in religious communities, in families and everywhere human beings gather. Which brings me to a fine warning by C.S. Lewis: ‘There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors…’

Power has been misconstrued as overwhelming energy to conquer the other. This makes power to seek to force people into conformity to what they would not voluntarily accept; and this has left the entire world in chaos and terror. The legitimacy or authority underlining such powers are equally evil. This amounts to rape and abuse of power; and the abuse of power is equal to the abuse of love. This is the level where the Pharisees and Scribes are. Such understanding of power and authority can still be found in our cultures, in Church leadership, in families, in social institutions and even world bodies. But people rightly oppose the power that exploits them, the power that manipulates others and the power that bullies people into conformity. But there are people who are good examples of what power should be: the Gandhi of India, the United States Martin Luther King Junior, Archbishop Oscar Romero, Nelson Mandela and Mother Theresa of Calcutta; there are many others too. They never used violence yet they achieved what Hitler, Saddam Hussein, Emperor Nero, Idi Amin of Uganda and others like them could not achieve. With the power of love rooted in God, we can achieve what biological, chemical and atomic weapon cannot achieve; and we can change what military power, economic sanctions, diplomacy and classism could not achieve.

The power in the Word of God (Jesus Christ) is that which creates, it makes dry bones to live again (Ezk. 37); makes a deaf to hear, the dumb {mute} to speak, the lame to walk, the sinners are transformed by their words and actions, and sins are forgiven. The power in the Word of God makes a dead person to rise again. Jesus has power over demons and natural elements like wind and storm. The power in Jesus (The Word of Life) could heal us of any kind of sickness; it pulls down the walls of Jericho in our lives; it could deliver us from the spirit of alcohol, drugs, nightmares, spiritual obsessions and manipulation. It gives us courage, makes right, our wrongs, turns our disappointments into appointments, our curses into blessings and changes our mistakes into milestones of success. The hungry felt this power when he fed them with five loaves of bread and two fish; the woman with hemorrhage had her cure by the same power; dead people were called back to life; the power sends demons trembling and death was defeated by this power. What is the source of this power? It is God, and God is love (1Jn 4: 8, 16); so the source of this power is love. Love is the greatest power that ever was, and that is, and that will ever be. The abuse of power is equal to the abuse of love.

A pastor needs this power of love in order to reach even the most neglected people under his care. Women need this power to transform the lives of their unfaithful and irresponsible men in their lives and vice versa. Leaders of nations need this understanding of power and authority in order to deliver good leadership. People in privileged position in the society need to understand power like Jesus Christ in order to order to see the human society as one single system made up of many of different parts, and each part is as important as the other. If the Word of God has such power we should ask ourselves “what kind of effect does this power have on us?”

Paul in the second reading talks about some of the impediments that do not enable us to open up to the transforming and liberating power of God’s Word. Such impediments, he named as attachment that lead us far away from God’s Word; stubbornness to sin, anxiety and fear, and double standard.

We are empowered to transform the world with the strongest weapon of transformation – LOVE. Since there is power in the Word of God, we should allow this power to change us. It is only when we are transformed and liberated can we become agents of transformation, liberation and positive change to our families and our world.