But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you

 

 Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. 

 

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.   Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age or in the age to come." 

- Matthew 12:22-32 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus knew that the Pharisees began to plot how they could destroy Him, He withdrew from there.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.  Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "Behold!  My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!  I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.  He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.  A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust." 

 

  Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  My study Bible explains that Beelzebub, which was another name for a form of Baal, was the prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies."  This was a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kings 1:2-16).  Here, he is called the ruler of the demons.  The impossibility of demons fighting against themselves, my study Bible says, illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus.  

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.   Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age or in the age to come."   To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit means blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit.  That is, blasphemy against pure goodness.  A sin against the Son of Man is more easily forgiven, my study Bible says, because the Jews did not know much about Christ.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity these men know from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven, as it comes from a willful hardness of heart and a refusal to accept God's mercy.  My study Bible says that the Church Fathers are clear that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not an "unforgivable sin"; nor does Jesus ever call it "unforgivable."  St. John Chrysostom teaches that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  My study Bible claims that Jesus makes this declaration knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure, divine good "evil," and are beyond repentance by their own choice. 

We see the Pharisees use a rather typical reaction to someone they feel is a threat to their power and authority.  They accuse Jesus of "playing for the other team," so to speak.  They cannot accept that He acts by the "hand" or "finger of God (the Spirit of God, as it says in the text), so they must accuse Him of working with demons.  In particular they name "Beelzebub," another name for a localized god Baal of the Old Testament.  Baal was an extremely commonly worshiped god in ancient times, and had names that varied throughout the Near and Middle East.  Here, as my study Bible says, he is seen as a demon, even the ruler of the demons (the name Baal means "lord").  But Jesus counteracts with a quite simple -- and important -- argument of His own.  How can He be working with demons by throwing out demons (exorcising them)?  Why would the demons act against their own?  As Jesus puts it, "If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?"  Jesus frames exorcism as part of a spiritual warfare, framing it as one kingdom fighting against another.  "Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house."  He goes on to make it very clear that, in fact, He is the "stronger man" who works with the Spirit of God.  Moreover, it is His power that is truly authoritative.  So much so, that He will displace all others:  "He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  This notion of kingdom-against-kingdom is important, for in some sense this is how we understand the action of the Kingdom of God, that it is meant to displace the one called "the prince" (Ephesians 2:2) or "god" (2 Corinthians 4:4) or "ruler of this world" (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11).  So it would seem that what is important is that we understand Christ's kingdom to be under a different ruler, with different aims, goals, and identity of those who would be its citizens.  In that framework, what we are to understand is that citizenship in Christ's kingdom involves a participation in His work, His "code," so to speak, His goals, and approved actions.  What that means is that when we participate in doing good, on Christ's terms, then we participate in His kingdom. When we pray, when we do charitable deeds, or fast in His name, we are acting in faith in Christ.  When we pray an hours service in our home, attend a liturgy, participate in the sacraments of the Church, we do much more than we're aware of in this "kingdom" battle, for the Spirit of God and God's own angels also facilitate what humans participate in.  We should remember that this is also called an "unseen warfare."  We do not need to conquer all the evil we see in a physical sense to be doing our part.  As St. Paul says, we each have our own role to play in the Body of Christ.  That sense of acting "in His name" is the same sense in which kingdoms, powers, countries act in the "name" of their own allegiance to a government or a ruler, as the case may be.  Doing evil things, on the other hand, means participating in this other "kingdom" that does not act for the good of human beings, and is against the God of love (1 John 4:8).  At this time, these are the things we really must consider.  Whose kingdom do we wish to support in this world?  In whose rule and judgment do we wish to participate?  How can we ourselves be part of the kingdom of God, and by this participation, strengthen it in the world?  As we look around ourselves and our world, let us simply think how important this choice, this participation in the work of the Holy Spirit is at this time.  For we are given these teaching by Christ for a reason, and maybe for just such a time.  Let us also remember what it is to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, against pure goodness, and what it is on the contrary, to see to live and participate in God's mercy and goodness in this world, even if we also see what is evil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother

 

 And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, ""By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house.

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

 

- Mark 3:19b-35 

 

Yesterday we read that, after a confrontation with the Pharisees, Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea.  And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him.  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him.  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God."  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known.  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.  And they went into a house. 

 

  And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, ""By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."  My study Bible explains that Beelzebub, or Baal, was a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kings 1:2-16).  There were many names for Baal as particular places and individual sites of worship were dedicated to the god.  In this case, Beelzebub is a name used to ridicule the god, meaning prince of the "dung heap" or lord of "the flies."  Here the scribes call this god the ruler of the demons.  Jesus evokes a scenario in which the demons fight the demons, asking, "How can Satan cast out Satan?" to show the impossibility of their accusation.  My study Bible says that this illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus.  

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  My study Bible tells us that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit means a blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit, blasphemy against pure goodness.  A sin against the Son of Man is more easily forgiven because the Jews did not know much about Christ, a note reads.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity was known from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven because it comes from a willful hardness of heart and a refusal to accept the mercy of God.  Additionally, in patristic literature it's clear that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not an "unforgivable sin"; nor does Jesus ever call it "unforgivable."  According to St. John Chrysostom, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  This declaration is made by Christ knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure, divine goodness "evil," and are beyond repentance by their own choice.  

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."  My study Bible says that Christ's relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission.  He points us to a spiritual family based on obedience to the will of God.

Jesus says that His family (My brother and My sister and mother) is whoever does the will of God.  When we stop to consider God's will, we must think about the Scripture that tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8).  If we know that God is love, then we understand that God's will is love.  We read in the Scriptures all about God's will, God's commands, and the stories of those who have been obedient to God throughout the spiritual history we know from the Bible.  We read the Scriptures and seek as best we can to follow that will.  But nonetheless, we must understand overall that God's will is love, and can be nothing but love, for this is how we know God. When we think of a family, we have to ask ourselves, what do we want between family members, for a true relationship, but love?  Many consider that family relations are defined by bloodlines, or DNA matches.  We can formally define family relationship also through marriage, and ties to different clans through marriage.  Many families have their own codes of behavior or patterns passed down from generation to generation, either in traditions or other types of behaviors.  This is also dependent upon historical circumstances that have shaped a family's life, and cultural traditions from different places around the world.  But we should stop to consider if by flesh alone -- or even tradition or inheritance alone -- we have love.  Flesh, it seems to me, can go one way or the other.  But to follow the will of God, what does that take?  We can learn from loving examples, but ultimately Christ asks us to look to God.  For mother, brother, sister, and earthly father all may fail in some aspect or another.  But if we want a true family relationship, what else do we want but love?  All of us should understand this command of Christ.  In the context of today's reading, it may seem rather shocking that Jesus says what He says to His family, especially to His mother who cherished all the things prophesied about her Son right from the beginning, and pondered them in her heart (Luke 2:19).  But love is always a command, for love is what truly makes a family, and love is what we want in all of our relationships.  This love that we understand from God is true righteousness.  Let us not forget that Jesus has left us with a new command, to "love one another as I have loved you" (John 13:34-35).  For if we endeavor to love, and set ourselves to love by the example He has shown, we will be modeling the relationships we want, both in blood family, and in our churches, and with our "brothers" and "sisters" and "mothers" everywhere.  One might want to ask, what is a family without this love?

Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation

 

 And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house. 

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

 

- Mark 3:19b–35 

 

In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea, after the Pharisees and Herodians began to plot how they might destroy Him.  And a  great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him.  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him.  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God."  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known.  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed the twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.  And they went into a house.   

And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."  My study bible comments that Beelzebub, or Baal, was the prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies" in what is probably a Jewish corruption of the Philistine name for their god, which was meant to ridicule  (2 Kings 1:2-16).  Here, this god of the Philistines is called the ruler of the demons.  Jesus alludes to a spiritual war going on behind the scenes, a battle for the plunder which is human beings, for which exorcism means routing the "occupying" demons.   Only a stronger man could take away the "plunder" from Beezebub the "strong man."  My study bible comments that the impossibility of demons fighting against themselves illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus.

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit is to blaspheme against the Spirit's divine activity.  My study bible describes this as a blasphemy against pure goodness.  A sin against the Son of Man, my study bible explains, is more easily forgiven because the Jews did not know much about Christ.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity was known from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven as it comes from a willful hardness of heart and a refusal to accept God's mercy.  However, the patristic tradition is clear:  such blasphemy is not an "unforgivable sin," nor does Jesus call this sin "unforgivable."  St. John Chrysostom comments that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  Jesus makes this declaration, my study bible remarks, knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure, divine goodness "evil," and that they are beyond repentance by their own choice.

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."  My study bible comments that Christ's relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission.  Christ points to a spiritual family, which is based on the obedience to the will of My Father.  My study bible also explains that in typical Jewish usage of the time, brother can indicate any number of relations.  Abram called his nephew Lot "brother" (Genesis 14:14); Boaz spoke of his cousin Elimelech as his "brother" (Ruth 4:3); and Joab called his cousin Amasa "brother" (2 Samuel 20:9).  Jesus Himself had no blood brothers; Mary had one Son, Jesus.  The brothers which are mentioned here were either stepbrothers (that is, sons of Joseph by a previous marriage) or cousins.  When Jesus commits His mother to the care of John at the Cross (John 19:25-27), it is an act that would have been unthinkable if Mary had other children to care for her.

As Jesus' fame grows, so do -- in some sense, at least -- the impacts of His ministry upon His family.  In the first instance remarked on here, we're told that there are so many people crowding into the house where Jesus is, that no one could so much as eat bread.  At this time, His family comes for Him:  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."   In some sense, the text seems to say to us, all of this public attention is not good for them.  Possibly they are even responding to the fact that by now the religious authorities (the Pharisees) are plotting with the state authorities (the Herodians who support the Roman rule of the house of Herod) to destroy Him.  This might be a way to try to save Jesus from what is happening, and what they fear will come to Him.  At any rate, by now we're told that they are getting involved, and the effort is to stop what is happening if possible.  In the next instance, we're told that His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  They clearly want to speak with Him.  Everybody tells Jesus, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But here is Jesus' response:  "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."   We should be careful to note that Jesus isn't really criticizing His family.  Rather, He's emphasizing what is of most importance, and that is communion between those who truly love God.  And that nothing must get in the way of that practice of doing the will of God -- even if the family is terrified or worried.  In Jesus' case, He is called by God on a mission and He's fulfilling that mission, and no matter how much He might love, respect, or revere His family, He is called first to that mission, and so is everyone else -- including other members of His family.  This goes hand in hand with the power of the Holy Spirit to which Jesus refers earlier.  To condemn the will of God -- and the work of God in the world -- as somehow not good, or as evil, is to blaspheme the Holy Spirit.  This is a far more serious sin than anything one might say about Jesus as a Man.  It is, in fact, just that work of the Spirit that we are to understand is evident in His ministry -- just as it was the Spirit who "threw" Him into the wilderness for temptation and trial before He began that ministry, and just as it was that Spirit which rested upon Him at Baptism.  See Mark 1:6-14; Mark makes it clear from the beginning of his Gospel that the Holy Spirit is central to everything that unfolds.  In the Creed, we say that Christ became man, incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary.  And by what power is it that the demons are cast out of human beings?  Surely Christ has power of His own, but we must also not leave out what cannot be separated from Christ the Son:  the Father and the Holy Spirit.  In Luke's Gospel, in the passage which tells the same story of accusation by the religious leaders, Jesus responds by saying, "But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Luke 11:20).   The finger of God is a reference to the Holy Spirit.  So we are to understand that to label the work of the Holy Spirit "evil" is a serious sin.  To sin against another, as all human beings seem to routinely do all the time, is something Christ sets apart from the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, for the Holy Spirit is a power indeed in this world.  The Creed tells us also that the Holy Spirit is the One "who spoke through the prophets."  And in that statement we must remember that Jesus also tells the religious leaders, "Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation" (Luke 11:49-51).  All of these things combine to emphasize not the power of human beings, nor the conventional understanding of sin and consequences, but the power of the Holy Spirit in the world, and why it is so important that we seek to know the will of God and do it, as Christ says.  For it is the Spirit working through human beings that becomes the true force to be reckoned with, the One who works against the demons in ways we can't see, the One who can work through us, to give true life and true prophetic voice.  We should note that the power of the Spirit is something that works in and with and "in between" (if you will) all things in this world -- and also in spite of them.  The power of human might and empire does not delay it and may seek to work against it, but ultimately it is our own work against the Spirit that has effects we can't stop, and serious spiritual consequences that have a way of working themselves out even in this world when we go down a wrong path too long.  Let us consider the power of Christ and His ministry, a power that supersedes the loyalty of even our deepest ties in this world.

 

 

 

He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother"

 And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?   If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

- Mark 3:19b-35

Yesterday we read that after a confrontation with the Pharisees, who now plot to destroy Him,  Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea.  And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him.  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him.  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God."  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known.  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.  

  And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?   If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."  Jesus' own people are extended relations from Nazareth.   Here they have heard of His ministry and decided that He has drawn so much attention and is causing such a stir -- including what is now a dangerous and deliberate open conflict with the ruling authorities -- that He is out of His mind.  Perhaps both for what they see as His good, and also for unwanted attention which may now be focused on them, they wish to bring Him back out of the spotlight of widespread public attention.  Beelzebub was another name for the Philistine god Baal (2 Kings 1:2-16).  It was used sardonically by the Jews as a title, meaning prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies."  Here the scribes call him the ruler of the demons.  Jesus responds with the perfect parable of a kingdom divided against itself, illustrating the irrational nature of the charges made against Him.  Importantly, He casts Himself as the "stronger man" who is able to bind Satan, and plunder his house.

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  My study bible calls blasphemy against the Holy Spirit blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit.  That is, blasphemy against pure goodness.   As these men (the scribes who said that By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons) are experts in Scripture and know the divine activity of the Holy Spirit from the Old Testament, their statement comes from a deliberate hardness of heart, a willful refusal to accept God's mercy.  But by tradition we understand that blasphemy is not an "unforgivable sin" and neither does Jesus call it such.  St. John Chrysostom comments that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  Christ makes this declaration knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are saying that pure, divine goodness is "evil" -- and that by their own choice they are unrepentant and will remain so.

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."  Now His mother and brothers (that is, close male relatives such as step-brothers by an earlier marriage of Joseph, or cousins) come to Him to seek Him out, no doubt reflect the concerns noted earlier in the reading by Mark.  My study bible says that His relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission.  Jesus does not directly reject His relatives, but instead points to an expanded spiritual family, based on the will of My Father.  In this way, He also offers an understanding of His ministry and calling, distressing as it may be to His extended family from Nazareth.

Today's reading gives us a picture of the level of disturbance that Christ's ministry is creating.  Not only have the scribes come down from Jerusalem specifically to claim that By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons, but that He also works through a god of their enemies the Philistines.  It's no small matter -- as of course, we understand from the final trial which will lead to His crucifixion -- to claim such a sort of blasphemy.  We already know that the Pharisees, with whom the scribes work closely, are plotting with the Herodians (followers of Herod, who is tetrarch of Galilee) to destroy Jesus, from yesterday's reading, above.  So the danger is very real.  There's also enough of a threat that His family and extended relations from Nazareth have come to find Him and seek most likely to call Him back home, so that He will cease His travels and the spread of His fame throughout the Jewish communities of Israel and the surrounding Gentile territories.  But none of this is going to happen.  From the beginning, Christ's ministry has been anything but reserved or held back.  Instead, Mark repeatedly uses the word "immediately" to describe the events which happen like little explosions bursting in upon the communities of Israel and into the world.   In this understanding of Christ's manifestation into the world through His public ministry, we see, as He says, the work of the Holy Spirit in the world.  It is rattling all kinds of assumptions and understanding, shaking up the authorities simply through revelation of authority through Christ.  Everybody seems to be going after Jesus, clamoring to see Him, to touch Him, to be healed by Him, to hear what He says.  The religious authorities have been now directly challenged by His healing on the Sabbath of the man with a withered hand, and His declaration to them that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Here in today's reading He declares His authority even over Satan, whom He has the power to bind.  All of these things are challenges to the established structure of the society and the faith, even directly and openly.  Christ is direct and straightforward about them.  He doesn't beat about the bush, He doesn't use language that couches the truth behind softly mumbled deprecation.  No, His ministry is a straightforward declaration regarding the will of God the Father and also the work of the Holy Spirit.  He has referred to Himself with the somewhat mysterious title Son of Man (used in the Old Testament, but in this case inspired by its use in Daniel 7:13), and also as Lord of the Sabbath.  Everything Jesus is doing is shaking up everyday life.  But ultimately, He refers not to Himself but to God the Father and to the Holy Spirit as inspiration and author of what is happening through His ministry.  He directly informs the scribes they are blaspheming the Holy Spirit, and insists on the deeply serious nature of the offense to God they commit.  Moreover, He expresses to His mother and brothers the spiritual family found in the will of God, a bond with Him that is created through such faith.  These are all bold statements which work to shake up relations on every level, the personal and the public -- even the community of Jews as well as the Roman state, since now even the Herodians are involved.  There is nothing held back in service to God.  And so, Jesus the humble carpenter's son from the small and rather unremarkable town of Nazareth has become the Teacher whom all of Israel is going to see, a challenge to the authorities who plot to destroy Him.  It has all happened in the "immediacy" of the events unfolding in Mark's Gospel, even as our own understanding of God's intervention and will in our own lives can happen seemingly "immediately."  We may follow a long road in ignorance and blindness, to simply suddenly and immediately have our eyes opened to something we couldn't previously see.  God's truth bursts in on us when we, like the Prodigal Son, "come to ourselves."  Do not be surprised when the truth of Christ's calling and the work of God in our own lives shakes up some social structures, pre-established habits and relations, even -- and perhaps especially -- our old ways of thinking and being in the world and negotiated relationships from the past.  The truth breaks in upon us, God's word isn't halfway.  It declares to us the decisions we need to make, the about-face turn of repentance we need to do.  It shakes us up so that we, too, might face relatives and friends who think we must be beside ourselves.  Let us follow our Lord in faith, and be assured by our place in His spiritual family, and His ministry which upsets the world.

He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad

 Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.  Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."

- Matthew 12:22-32

Yesterday we read that when Jesus knew that the Pharisees had begun plotting how they might destroy Him,  He withdrew from there (see Wednesday's reading).  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.  Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "Behold!  My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!  I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.  He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.  A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust."

Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Once again we observe Jesus performing the signs expected in the time of the Messiah, and so the people ask, "Could this be the Son of David?"

Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  Beelzebub was the name used by the Jews to ridicule a god (Baal) worshiped by the Philistines.  It means the prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies" (see 2 Kings 1:2-16).  Here, he is called the ruler of the demons.  My study bible says that the impossibility of demons fighting against themselves illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus.  Jesus puts it very succinctly and in a clear picture:  He is the stronger man.  Satan may be strong, but Jesus is the stronger.  So much so, that His statement about Himself is absolute:  "He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  This is a statement not only about power, but also about the centrality of His Lordship.  He is the One around whom all others will either gather or scatter.

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."  Here Jesus invokes the Trinity.  His earlier words speak of Himself as the One around whom all either gather with Him or scatter in separation.  But surprisingly, in this next sentence, He speaks of the Holy Spirit.  He has already taught (in the previous chapter of Matthew), "All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  Where one of the Trinity is, so are the others.  My study bible says that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit; that is, blasphemy against pure goodness.  It says that a sin against the Son of Man is more easily forgiven because the Jews did not know much about Christ.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity they know already (especially the Pharisees) from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven because it comes from a willful hardness of heart.  It is, in fact, a refusal to accept God's mercy.  The Fathers of the Church, my study bible adds, are clear that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not an "unforgivable" sin; nor does Jesus call it "unforgivable."  St. John Chrysostom tells us that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be forgivable if a person were to repent of it.  Jesus makes such a declaration, my study bible adds, knowing that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure, divine goodness "evil," and are beyond repentance by their own choice.

Just prior to today's passage, we read the words from Isaiah (in yesterday's reading, above) which are applied to Christ.  He is the Servant who will suffer for us in His service.  In yesterday's post we noted that my study bible says the Servant of Isaiah applies not only to Christ, but also to all who follow Him.  What we read in today's reading gives us an idea of the graciousness of God, of Christ Himself.  First He makes succinct and clear statements declaring His greater power than Satan.  So much so, that His power is not merely greater than a "strong man" (Satan), but His power is central to all that is:  "He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  But in the very next sentence, Jesus speaks not of Himself personally and His personal power, but rather of the work of the Spirit.  He makes this doubly clear when He says that "anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."   As the human Jesus, a figure all are coming to know, He may be criticized.  But that which comes from what they know to be divine, the work of the Holy Spirit (Who proceeds from the Father -- see John 14:16, 26; 15:26), is another matter.  Jesus introduces into the text the ties between Father, Son, and Spirit.   What is truly blasphemous is that which will profane the work of God the Trinity in the world.  Ironically, it is the Pharisees who will bring charges of blasphemy upon Jesus, for which the Sanhedrin will declare He should be put to death.  Throughout Matthew's Gospel, we have been reminded of the work of the Holy Spirit in Jesus' life and ministry:  He is born of Mary by the power of the Spirit, John the Baptist declares that He will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, and then later sees the Spirit resting upon Jesus at His baptism (1:18, 1:20, 3:11, 3:16).  It is the Holy Spirit who sends Jesus to the wilderness to be tested and tempted (4:1).  In the prophecy of Isaiah, from yesterday's reading above, it is declared of Christ, "I will put My Spirit upon Him."   The Holy Spirit has been present and at work all along in the Gospel, as the Spirit has been at work within the salvation history given to us in the Old Testament Scriptures.  Jesus reminds the Pharisees what they are dealing with, warning them about blasphemy themselves.  In the realm of the powers in use here, there is the truly strong, and it has been so throughout the tradition by which their "sons" also practice exorcism.  Jesus gives us a stark image to remind us of the powers that lie beyond the world and are also at work in the world.  He invites us in the strongest terms to make a choice, reminding us once again that we will serve one thing or another -- wittingly or unwittingly.  We should consider the choice regarding who or what we serve to be the most important one we make.  We remember that later He will teach that the Holy Spirit will be our Helper, sent to us in our own journey of discipleship and service.

Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation

 And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house.

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And he looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

- Mark 3:19b-35

Yesterday we read that after healing a man on a Sabbath in direct confrontation with the religious leadership, Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea.  And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him.  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him.  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him.  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God."  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known.  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. 

And they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.   Again, in Mark's usually brief Gospel, we're given a significant detail.  No one could even take a meal in this house, so great is the demand for Jesus, and the numbers of those who crowd around Him.

But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."   Here is another significant detail.  Members of His own extended family are alarmed at what is happening in this ministry.  He's drawing a huge attention to Himself, and they can't understand it.  It gives us a special message about the power of the gospel:  not everybody is going to understand it.  Not everyone of "His own" accepts Him as Messiah, nor even that God is present in Him and in His message.

And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house."   "Beelzebub" or Baal was the prince of "the dung heap" or lord of "the flies" -- a satirical title for a god worshiped by the Philistines (see 2 Kings 1:2-16).  Here the leadership call him the ruler of the demons.  My study bible says, "The impossibility of demons fighting against themselves illustrates the irrational pride and envy of the Pharisees in their opposition to Jesus."

"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  My study bible says that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit; in other words it's a blasphemy against pure goodness.  It says, "A sin against the Son of Man is more easily forgiven because the Jews did not know much about Christ.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity they knew from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven because it comes from a willful hardness of heart and a refusal to accept God's mercy."   My study bible adds that Church Fathers are clear that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not an "unforgivable sin" nor does Jesus call the sin "unforgivable."  St. John Chrysostom tells us that blasphemy against the Spirit is forgivable if a person repents of it.  Jesus makes this statement because He knows that those who blaspheme the Spirit are calling pure and divine goodness "evil," and that they are beyond repentance by their own choice.

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And he looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."   We remember that in the tradition of the Near and Middle East, the word "brothers" is used for extended family and kin.  Perhaps, as we're told above, they don't understand His mission and identity, and they've come calling for Him again.  But Jesus' statement here isn't to deny His family, so much as it is to express the true and broad nature of real family.  His mission is to do the will of God, His Father.  This is something that surpasses all else -- and by extension, whoever does the same is His brother and sister and mother.  Jesus makes His mission and loyalty clear.

We're given a strange sense of division here in today's reading, a kind of delineation along particular and strong lines.  We don't usually think of Jesus as One who causes division; He is the uniter.  He's the One in whom we are united.  But rejection of His mission creates delineation, separation.  This is a very important distinction, one that is significant to the whole of the gospel, and even to our understanding of faith.  It's also necessary to our understanding of divine justice.  At its center is precisely Jesus' statement about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.  God's work in the world stands of itself as a kind of arbiter, a lodestone, the true pole of essential goodness.  It's how we respond to that holy work in the world that separates and makes potent the reality of faith.  And it's along this same sort of division that notions about family and kinship are expressed in today's reading.  His mother and brother and sister is whoever does the will of His Father.  Those who accuse Him of working by demons may do nothing by insulting Jesus as human being, but the reality of the subject here is the work that's being done by the Holy Spirit, God's work in the world that happens through this ministry of Jesus.  And that's what's being blasphemed as coming from Beelzebub or Baal, from the ruler of the demons.   To blaspheme the Spirit, the work of God in the world, is to violate true justice.  They are condemning essential goodness, holiness by this blasphemy.  And Jesus knows they will not repent of that statement but carry it to its final end.  It's the same pole that separates Him from the extended family or clan members that think He's out of His mind; they simply don't "get" what is happening.  The gospel message hasn't reached them.  We'll get many instances in the Gospels where familiarity somehow fails to create real faith, even may add a barrier to faith and the perception of the work of the Spirit, the truth of the Gospel.  In all four Gospels, Jesus states that a prophet has no honor in his own country (see Matthew 13:57, Mark 6:4, Luke 4:24, and John 4:44).   The delineation is clear:  the lines aren't drawn among conventional understanding of who is in "our group," who is related to us, who is our family or kin and even countrymen.  There is one pole, and that is God, and everything else, in spiritual sight, really depends upon how we relate to God and to God's work in the world (the Holy Spirit, as Jesus says above).  This is what really takes priority in true judgment, and it's a dividing line that passes through everything we think we know and see.  The Gospels make this clear in many statements by Jesus, particularly when He warns the disciples later on about what is to come as Jesus gets closer to open confrontation with the authorities (see Matthew 10:35, Luke 12:53).  St. Paul writes, "The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart"  (Hebrews 4:12 NKJV).  He gives us the sharpest, strongest picture of delineation by the word of God, the gospel message that calls us to faith, the work of the Spirit in the world.  If we are to understand the power of faith and Jesus' message, then we are called to this place that separates everything else from us but the truth in the heart.  It's how we respond to true goodness, regardless of circumstances or situations or ties or loyalties, that really brings justification or not, and true "right-relatedness" or righteousness -- or that separates us from the good.  It's the power of the Spirit, a living holiness, that constitutes true goodness or righteousness.   And it's this living reality that brings us true ties.  Blasphemy of that living reality separates us from true goodness.  What's in your heart?

If Satan casts out Satan

Then one was brought to him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute, and he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.' But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad. Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."

- Matthew 12:22-32

The lectionary now skips forward. In the future, I may consider blogging the gospels on a chapter-by-chapter basis, rather than following a lectionary. I find the gospels build upon the stories in chronology; it's important to have a sense of what has been learned and what you carry with you through the sequences of the narrative. I'd like to hear from my readers if they have thoughts on this.

In between Saturday's reading and today's, Jesus has made several more healings, chosen his Twelve Apostles and sent them out on their first mission (to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," not Gentiles) - giving them instructions on their conduct, on persecution and martyrdom, and encouragement in their witnessing. In other passages, John the Baptist and Jesus have been rejected, and Jesus rebukes the Galilean cities in which he performed great works but his gospel of repentance was rejected. He has preached, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." And finally, he begins to receive open hostility from the Pharisees. Today's encounter continues this theme.

Then one was brought to him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute, and he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.' But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad." My study bible notes here: "Filled with pride and envy, the Pharisees found in this miracle a pretext to attack Jesus, accusing him of having Beelzebub (v. 24) as the source of his power. Beelzebub/Baal was the prince perhaps of "the dung heap" or "the flies" -- a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kin. 1:2-16); here he is called ruler of the demons (v. 24). Demons do not fight against themselves, but are cast out by God's power through the Holy Spirit (v. 28), whose action signals the present reality of the Kingdom." It's important to understand that the healing of the "blind and mute" is considered a messianic sign (see Isaiah 35:5-6). So, it is natural that the population should ask, "Could this be the Son of David?" as the Messiah was understood. The Pharisees, of course, accuse him with a different theory, of working by the power of demons, and not the Holy Spirit. Messiah or Christ means "Anointed One" - and it is this spirit of anointing that is being questioned. Jesus replies with an answer about the strength of his power. "Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house." If his power is more potent than that of the demons, than that of Satan, then what is this power that casts them out? "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad." This is a clear warning that they must make a choice, also that Jesus sees his power and its origin as self-evident: he's working by the power of the Spirit of God, and they must make a choice to follow him or to scatter in the effect of such power.

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." Finally, we are given the strongest possible statement about the nature of this power, and its potency - and therefore the impact of our choices when confronted with the holy. My study bible notes, "Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit -- the accusation that Jesus healed the demoniac by demonic power (v. 24) rather than by the power of the Holy Spirit (v. 28; see Mark 3:29, 30). Every sin against the Son of Man can be forgiven, because the Jews do not yet know much about him. But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity they know from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven. This blasphemy is willful hardness of heart. It attributes the saving action of the Spirit to Satan and refuses to accept God's forgiveness and mercy." I also think it's important to understand this in the sense of the true action of the Spirit, as my study bible points out. Jesus is speaking of effects happening in the here and now, to which they are witnesses. The action of the Spirit is the defining moment of the holy - to reject holiness in one's presence, an act of the Spirit one witnesses, is quite different from rejecting a person one does not know, or their reputation. To be a personal witness to the action of the holy confers a greater responsibility upon one's choices. One passage that we have skipped - in which Jesus is giving instructions to the apostles as they are sent out on their first mission - teaches us that even "the very hairs of your head are all numbered." We can infer, then, that as witnesses to the action of the holy in our presence, we are known, our encounter purposeful, for some reason. From this we conclude that it is a moment made for choice, for an opening to understanding, a gift, an offering of something we can accept or refuse.

So, what we can conclude from this passage is its emphasis on the power of choice - that we are offered a choice. And that we must take care that our hearts are not hardened: that we cultivate spiritual eyes and ears so that we may properly perceive what is in front of us, and make good discernment. How are we to know the truly spiritual, the holy? How are we to make this choice? It all happens in the cultivation of a heart that is open to the spiritual, that is capable of discerning. We "pray to our Father who is in the secret place", we seek to know this reality and to encounter it for ourselves so that we may understand and be open to it. How will you know what you encounter today? How will you make your choice? Sunday (yesterday) we celebrated Pentecost - the coming of the Holy Spirit, and its anointing throughout the world, this gift to us. How will you come to know that and understand it for yourself?