THE HEALING POWER OF THE NAME OF JESUS

THE HEALING POWER OF THE NAME OFJESUS

(A biblical reflection on the 30^th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME [YEAR B] – 24 October 2021)

Gospel Reading: Mark 10:46-52

First Reading: Jeremiah 31:7-9; Psalms: Psalm 126:1-6; Second Reading: Hebrews 5:1-6

The Scripture Text

And they came to Jericho; and as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; rise, He is calling you.” And throwing off his mantle he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to Him, “Master, let me receive my sight.” And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received hi sight and followed Him on the way. (Mark 10:46-52 RSV)

The blind man calls on the name of Jesus and receives his sight. What power in the Name of Jesus! He obediently accepted death on a cross, and because of this God “has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:6-11 RSV).

This is the name of which St. Peter wrote, “There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12 RSV).

The name of Jesus is most dear to every true Christian. The name of Jesus is, in the words of St. Bernard, “honey to the mouth, music to the ear, a shout of gladness in the heart. Behold with the dawning of that name every cloud scatters and clear day returns. Has anyone fallen into sin, and does he run despairingly towards the toils of death? If he but invokes the name of Life, will not life be renewed within him?” (Sermon 15 on the Canticles)

When the blind beggar hard that Jesus was in the crowd, he began to call out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” See the loving response of Jesus: He stops and says to the crowd, “Call him over.” And the people tell the blind man, “Take heart; rise, He is calling you.” What an invitation to each of us to call upon the name of Jesus in every need!

Few have written so beautifully on the healing power of the Name of Jesus, as St. Bernard. Meditating on the Canticle’s praise of the beloved’s name, Bernard says, “Not without reason does the Holy Spirit compare the name of the Bridegroom to oil, when He inspires the bride to say to the Bridegroom: Your Name is as oil poured out. For oil gives light, it nourishes, it anoints. It kindles fire; it renews the flesh; it assuages pain. It is light, food, medicine. See how like to this is the name of the true Bridegroom. It is light when it is preached; it is food in meditation; it is balm and healing when it is invoked for aid.”

Prayer: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!

Jakarta, 23 October 2021

A Christian Pilgrim

 

LUKE 13:6-9 (Today’s Gospel Reading: Luke 13:1-9)

Jakarta, 23 October 2021

A Christian Pilgrim