September 2
Many Are Healed by Jesus
Today's Gospel: Luke
4:38-44
Today’s
Gospel: Luke 4:38-44 (Many Are Healed By Jesus)
“And he arose and
left the synagogue and entered Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was ill
with a high fever, and they asked him about her. And he stood over her and
rebuked the fever, and it left her; and immediately she rose and served them.
Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various
diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every one of them
and healed them. And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the
Son of God!" But he rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak,
because they knew that he was the Christ. And when it was day he departed
and went into a lonely place. And the people sought him and came to him and
would have kept him from leaving them; but he said to them, "I must
preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities
also; for I was sent for this purpose." And he was preaching in the
synagogues of Judea.”
Reflection:
Pride keeps more
people from healing than sickness does. We'll carry a fever, a wound, a
years-long ache, anything, before we'll bow down and ask the Lord for a healing.
But Jesus doesn't wait for the worthy. He stood over Simon's mother-in-law and
rebuked the fever, and she rose immediately, not to rest, but to serve.
That's what real healing does; it makes it possible for us to serve the Lord.
And notice who
came at sundown: everyone. Every disease, every affliction, every person
crowding in until He'd laid hands on all of them. He didn't separate the worthy
from the unworthy; He healed them all. So, ask yourself why you're still
standing so far away.
Demons don't hide
in the shadows; they breed in selfishness, in the small daily choice to look
inward instead of outward. And here's the unsettling part: the demons knew
exactly who He was. They named Him, "You are the Son of God!",
while we stumble through half-hearted prayers, barely on speaking terms with
the One they trembled before. If evil can recognize Him instantly, what's our
excuse for not knowing Him even more? Spend time in His word and spend time before
Him in Adoration. And most importantly, spend time on your knees daily in
prayer, not only when it's convenient or when you want something; spend time on
your knees because you love Him.
And when the
crowd tried to keep Him for themselves, He walked toward the next town. Because
the mission was never comfort; it was to go where the pain and suffering were.
That's the pattern for us too: the suffering isn't a detour from blessing; it's
often the road to it. Fix your eyes on the negative, and it'll swallow you whole;
rather, fix your eyes on Jesus, and even the pain starts to look like grace.
Question:
Pride is a quiet
seduction. It doesn't announce itself as sin, it dresses up as
self-sufficiency, as looking fine, as not needing anyone, especially not God.
And that's exactly how it lures us toward danger: it trades the safety of
humility for the applause of the world, and we call it strength when it's
really isolation. It keeps us reaching for approval instead of grace, comfort
instead of healing. So, ask yourself honestly: What fever are you still
hiding out of pride, because kneeling for it feels weaker than the world's acceptance you're chasing instead?
Rosary Man Jim 🌹
Freely given. Freely shared.
