Friday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, February 10, 2017.
1st Reading: Book of Genesis 3:1-8.
Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the animals that the LORD God had made. The serpent asked the woman, “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” The woman answered the serpent: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.'” But the serpent said to the woman: “You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is bad.” The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves. When they heard the sound of the LORD God moving about in the garden at the breezy time of the day, the man and his wife hid themselves from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. The word of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm: 32(31):1-2.5.6.7.
R/. Blessed are those whose sins are forgiven.
Holy Gospel: Mark 7:31-37.
Jesus left the district of Tyre and went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, into the district of the Decapolis. And people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment and begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him off by himself away from the crowd. He put his finger into the man’s ears and, spitting, touched his tongue; then he looked up to heaven and groaned, and said to him, “Ephphatha!” (that is, “Be opened!”) And (immediately) the man’s ears were opened, his speech impediment was removed, and he spoke plainly. He ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more he ordered them not to, the more they proclaimed it. They were exceedingly astonished and they said, “He has done all things well. He makes the deaf hear and (the) mute speak.” The gospel of the Lord.
FRIDAY REFLECTIONS:
Did Jesus say this only because this man was physically deaf and He wanted to physically cure him? Or is there a deeper significance? By healing this man unable to hear physical sounds, Jesus was revealing something to us about what He wants to do for us. Jesus is giving us a clear and deeper message in this healing. Certainly there are many messages we can take from this passage. Let’s look at one. The message is in Jesus’ command: “Be opened!” These are powerful words commanding action. They are not optional words. They are clear and definitive. “Be opened” is not a question, not an invitation, it is a command. This is significant! These two little words reveal the fact that Jesus has made up His mind to act. They reveal that He is not hesitant in the least in this choice.
He has made up His mind and has spoken His will. And this action, on His part, is what makes a difference. These two little words reveal that God is not indecisive when He speaks. He is not shy or uncertain. He is absolute and clear.
This understanding should give us great comfort. Comfort in the sense that Jesus is ready and willing to exercise His all-powerful authority. He does have all-power and He is not afraid to exercise this authority when He wants to. Most importantly, He wants to exercise His authority when it will bring about the greatest good in our lives. It should give us great comfort in the sense that we can trust that this all-powerful God is all-powerful and is in control. If He is even in control of the natural world (physical hearing), then He is most certainly in control of the spiritual world, too. He is able to do all things good. When we find that we are in the presence of one who is not only all-powerful, but also all-loving and all-merciful, we should be able to breathe a huge sigh of relief and turn our absolute trust over to Him. He is able and fully willing to be in control.
Pray with me: Lord, I do trust You and I know that You can do all things. I know that You desire to have perfect authority in my life. Help me to turn my life fully over to You and to trust You enough to direct and to command every action of my life.
Jesus, I trust in You that You alone will heal our sick brethren and set them free. May the souls of our faithful departed brethren rest in perfect peace, amen. Have a blessed and fulfilled weekend.
Sourced by: Wiezman Eleanya