Appointment Of The Twelve Apostles

Being with Him means sharing in His life.

Reflection on Today’s Readings, Friday of 2nd Week in Ordinary Time II, January 19th, 2024
Texts: 1 Samuel 24:2-20; Psalm 57:2-4,6,11; Mark 3:13-19 

Today’s gospel reading is about the appointment of the twelve apostles. Mark tells us why Jesus appointed them. He says, “And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach and have authority to cast out demons.” The first thing is to be with Jesus. Being with Him means sharing in His life, listening to Him and learning from Him. Being with Jesus is to equip them for the work of the ministry, to attain the unity of faith and knowledge of Christ, the Son of God. It is also to attain mature manhood in measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:11-13). 

We are also called to be with Jesus. It is by being with Him that we can listen to Him, learn from Him and be like Him. It is by being like that we own the name Christian. Jesus Christ called us to make us the children of God and to be holy. We are also to preach the gospel and cast out demons by permeating the world with the Spirit of Christ. Evil recedes as we permeate the world with the Spirit of Christ. 

Demons are not our friends and so we should not court them

The second reason is to be sent out to preach and have authority to cast out demons. They were to preach about the kingdom of God and call people to repentance. The apostles were to exercise their authority to cast out demons. This affirms the reality of demons and the truth that they are not for man.  It also tells us that we have no relationship with demons or evil. Demons are not our friends and so we should not court them. It is the will of God that we live life free of the demons.  

King Saul, in today’s first reading, said, “And now, behold, I know that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.” David proved God’s choice of him by his ways of life. This challenges us to review our ways of life and ensure that it aligns with our faith in God. David spared the life of King Saul for God’s sake. He says, "The  Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the  Lord's anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing he is the  Lord's anointed." We are to ensure that whatever we do give honour to God.  

Prayer 

God our Father, we thank You for calling us to be Your children; help us to live life that is worth the dignity You have bestowed on us. Amen 

Fr. Andrew Olowomuke