Gospel for Monday, January 22nd

Gospel
Mk 3:22-30

The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus,
“He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and
“By the prince of demons he drives out demons.”

Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables,
“How can Satan drive out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself,
that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided,
he cannot stand;
that is the end of him.
But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
Then he can plunder his house.
Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies
that people utter will be forgiven them.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin.”
For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Comments:
The scribes and pharisees are in a head on clash with the Lord Jesus Christ. The spiritual realm is also in a head on clash with Jesus. He has arrived on the scene and is showing His authority over everything. The scribes and pharisees are following him around trying to trip him up or catch him doing some unlawful thing.

Jesus was angered and grieved at their hardness of heart. He knows the hearts of all men. It seems that the scribes and pharisees were afraid of losing their authority with the people. They could see that their authority was coming to an end. The demons also recognized their time was coming to an end. Jesus this newcomer from Nazareth, this uneducated carpenter from just a poor small town was showing everyone that he was and is the final authority. The King of the world has arrived. This is God in the flesh. It took many years for this great truth to sink in and many in the world still do not recognize this truth. Jesus Christ is God and also Man. The second Adam. He has come to restore everything and save us from our sins.

Jesus says to me the same thing he said to these scribes. "whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.”
How can I blaspheme the Holy Spirit? By not acknowledging His presence. By attributing the miracles that he performs to just chance. By knowing what I should do and continuing to make excuses to avoid doing it. By persisting in my sin when I know this grieves the heart of God.

Lord Jesus Christ; Son of God; Have mercy on me a sinner.