He summoned the Twelve and sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God

25 SEPTEMBER (Lk 9,1-6)

The Gospel is the bearer of a great novelty in relation to the Old Testament. With Jesus the real mission toward every man starts. There is not one man on earth who must not be called so that he becomes a disciple of Jesus. What before one was by birth from Abraham, now instead he is by birth from the word.

In the Old Testament only some were furnished with the authority to make some signs: Moses, Elijah, Elisha, Daniel, and a few others. All God’s messengers were sent with the one Word to be proclaimed. The Lord sent among his people, and from time to time gave the Word to report, announce, proclaim and preach. What is manifested for Ezekiel, applies to every other prophet.

Son of man, stand up! I wish to speak with you. As he spoke to me, spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard the one who was speaking say to me: Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their fathers have revolted against me to this very day. Hard of face and obstinate of heart are they to whom I am sending you. But you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God! And whether they heed or resist – for they are a rebellious house – they shall know that a prophet has been among them. But as for you, son of man, fear neither them nor their words when they contradict you and reject you, and when you sit on scorpions. Neither fear their words nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. (But speak my words to them, whether they heed or resist, for they are rebellious.) As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you: be not rebellious like this house of rebellion, but open your mouth and eat what I shall give you. It was then I saw a hand stretched out to me, in which was a written scroll which he unrolled before me. It was covered with writing front and back, and written on it was: Lamentation and wailing and woe! (Ez 2,1-10).

Jesus came to reveal us that man is not the enemy of man. The real enemy of man is the devil, Satan, the demon. It is he who seduces man and constitutes him a tool of evil, sin, death, destruction, ruin and endless physical and spiritual disasters. Just read the Apocalypse of St. John the Apostle to have a clear idea about the power of Satan. His seduction is so powerful as to succeed also over elected persons. However, these are under the powerful protection and defense of God and he will not be able to seduce them.

Pray that your flight not be in winter or on the Sabbath, for at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be. And if those days had not been shortened, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect they will be shortened. If anyone says to you then, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. False messiahs and false prophets will arise, and they will perform signs and wonders so great as to deceive, if that were possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told it to you beforehand (Mt 24,20-25).

It is against Satan that the disciple of Jesus must fight and combat. Jesus gives strength and power over demons and power to heal diseases. The disciple of Jesus must free man from Satan and from every consequence that evil, the result of his temptation, produced and produces in our nature: disease, illness, extreme poverty and misery.

He summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal (the sick). He said to them, “Take nothing for the journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let no one take a second tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there and leave from there. And as for those who do not welcome you, when you leave that town, shake the dust from your feet in testimony against them.” Then they set out and went from village to village proclaiming the good news and curing diseases everywhere.

All the misery in the world is the result of sin. Death, despair, spiritual and physical misery are the result of sin. Sin is the result of the fall in the temptation. Today this is the great folly of man and also of the Christian: he wants to abolish the consequences of sin, but letting sin govern his body, his spirit and his soul. The man of today is similar to the one who plunges into a cauldron of boiling oil and expects to remain unscathed in his flesh.

Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels and Saints free us from all folly.