Jesus returned to his Nazareth, as we saw in yesterday’s reading, and that did not end so well, with his fellow Nazoreans running him out of town (Lk 4:29). In today’s reading, Jesus was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum. The initial reaction to Jesus’ teaching was similar in both accounts; the people were “amazed” and “astonished” with his teaching. But no one in either group makes the bold statement that arises today: “I know who you are – the Holy One of God” (Lk 4:34)! This phrase was professed by a demon. He who taunted Jesus.

From the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry the opposition was present. In Nazareth, the fallen nature of our humanity reared its head. His own people were unwilling to see beyond the ordinary Jesus they always knew. Wasn’t he just the son of Joseph, just the carpenter? Jesus was safe when he merely worked a quiet life, participated in the life of the synagogue, even when he returned from surrounding territories amidst words of praise, and even stepping up to read in the synagogue from the words of Elijah: he was the hometown boy making good. But once Jesus began to equate himself in the line of the prophets and share how God was working beyond the people of Israel, with his accounts of Elijah going to the Gentile widow, and Naaman, another Gentile going to Elisha, highlighting that God worked beyond the people of Israel, even his own had enough. Jesus had to go (Lk 4:29).

In today’s account, another source of opposition, is the taunting demon. Jesus rebuked him immediately and called him out of the man. Jesus would face time and again the fallen nature of humanity, disbelief, lack of faith, and the opposition of demons and soon the failure of religious and civic leadership. Sound familiar?

Where do we find our self in the scenes of Jesus’ ministry and teaching? There is a clear choice that Jesus proposes and that is we are either for him or we are against him. Saying yes to follow Jesus is a day to day commitment and we must be willing to face the same challenges that his disciples did. We need to be willing to face our weakness and own shortcomings, conform our lives to his will to see the darkness and sin within ourselves, be willing to ask for help and be willing to be healed, to acknowledge that demons do exist and play a role in the principalities and powers that influence our world. The harsh truth is that the closer we draw to Jesus, the more we experience his light, the clearer we see the dark influences that plague our world that we were blinded to before.

We need to believe in Jesus, trust in Jesus, spend time in prayer, in his word, and serving him in one another and stand strong against the temptations and darkness of this world. When we fall short, fail, as did the apostles, we need to follow, not Judas, but Peter: repent, confess our love for Jesus, and begin again. We need to hold one another accountable, support and lift one another up in love. Together, with our Loving God and Father, for he is at our right hand, we will stand firm (cf. Psalm 16)!

Readings for today:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090517.cfm

Photo Credit: Reuters Daniel Chan