FRIDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Mk 3:13-19) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

“He appointed twelve whom he also named apostles that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.” (Mk 3:14-15)

FIRST READING - Heb 8:6-13

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews

Brothers and sisters:

Now our high priest has obtained so much more excellent a ministry

as he is mediator of a better covenant,

enacted on better promises.

For if that first covenant had been faultless,

no place would have been sought for a second one.

But he finds fault with them and says:

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord,

when I will conclude a new covenant with the house of

Israel and the house of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers

the day I took them by the hand to lead

them forth from the land of Egypt;

for they did not stand by my covenant

and I ignored them, says the Lord.

But this is the covenant I will establish with the house of Israel

after those days, says the Lord:

I will put my laws in their minds

and I will write them upon their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they shall be my people.

And they shall not teach, each one his fellow citizen and kin, saying,

“Know the Lord,”

for all shall know me, from least to greatest.

For I will forgive their evildoing

and remember their sins no more.

When he speaks of a “new” covenant,

he declares the first one obsolete.

And what has become obsolete

and has grown old is close to disappearing.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mk 3:13-19

From the Gospel according to Mark

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted

and they came to him.

He appointed Twelve, whom he also named Apostles,

that they might be with him

and he might send them forth to preach

and to have authority to drive out demons:

He appointed the Twelve:

Simon, whom he named Peter;

James, son of Zebedee,

and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges,

that is, sons of thunder;

Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew,

Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus;

Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean,

and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.

FRIDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - Gospel (Mk 3:13-19)

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

In today's Word of God, God lets all humanity know about Jesus' selection of the twelve apostles to accompany Him in His plan of salvation.

Everything is in God's plan. He knows in advance those whom He chooses, and when the time comes, God comes to meet and call those He wants.

All things are within His power.

God chooses whom He calls according to His will. God knows the hearts of mankind, He knows them from their thoughts, words, and deeds; no one knows mankind better than God.

Before Jesus chose to call the apostles, He prayed and united closely with God the Father,

to choose and call those He wanted, to be with Him, to be given strength and power to carry out the mission He wanted to give.

God also let all mankind know that He came to the world to become human and to accompany and be with humans in the fight against Satan.

Due to His love for mankind, He did not work alone in the plan of salvation, but He created opportunities for humankind to cooperate with Him to destroy Satan.

To continue His mission on this earth, God called the chosen apostles and those He wanted and gave them the authority to exorcise demons.

The mission continues to this day.

God continues to give the grace of exorcism to those whom He chooses to call and place in His work; humans are just instruments God uses.

God calls the apostles or those whom God has chosen to always live in a spirit of gratitude to God, to always listen to God's teaching and put it into practice; only then will God's power and authority to exorcise demons be manifested in that person; otherwise, Satan will refuse to submit when the command is given to exorcise demons.

God warns humanity in today's world to run to Him and ask for His power and authority to drive Satan from each person's body and soul. The power of God will be manifested in those who have a deep desire to run to God's power and strength.

God is the only One who can defeat Satan, and those who are being used by God in His work must obey His will completely and do exactly what He instructs so that God's power and strength will manifest in them. Thus, Satan will fear and retreat before those who dare to live and follow the teachings of God.

Thanks be to God. Amen.