A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people
from all Judea and Jerusalem
and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon
came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
Let us welcome Jesus as he descends from God's presence to teach and to heal us. He comes down from the mountain with the new law of the Spirit. No longer does religion simply say unclean and long for the one who can heal us.
and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Jesus himself is the one to whom the law and the prophets all bore witness. He is the one who can finally heal us and make us clean. His teaching is different from any other teaching because his teaching has the power to transform.
but now you have had yourselves washed, you were sanctified,
you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
and in the Spirit of our God.
We often fail to realize just how great is the transformation already at work in we baptized by the Spirit given to us.
Do you not know that the holy ones will judge the world?
If the world is to be judged by you,
are you unqualified for the lowest law courts?
Do you not know that we will judge angels?
The royal dignity of the Kingdom of God is clear. We are made priests, prophets, and kings, sharing in the anointing of the Christ. The world has no claim to be able to judge us. We are entirely beyond the realm of worldly understanding. Not only are we exempt from judgment but we are also exempt from the need to defend ourselves when to do so would cause further injustice.
Why not rather put up with injustice?
Why not rather let yourselves be cheated?
Read here our royal dignity. The courts of these foreign lands can take nothing from us that truly matters. Were we to fight on their terms, trying to get our piece of the pie, we would quickly end in the same sorts of behaviors in which the world engages. We need to follow the example of our master. He fearlessly exercised his Kingdom rights, but turned the other cheek in mere earthly matters.
Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.
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