Daily Gospel Reflection for February 1, 2021

Join us as we reflect, ponder, and pray together inspired by today's Gospel.

Today's Gospel: Mark 5:1-20

Jesus’ exorcism of the demoniac is one of the clearest proofs of Christ’s divinity to be found in Scripture. When Christ encounters the man possessed by a legion of demons, the demons immediately recognize Him for who He is. Even though Christ has hidden His divine identity from nearly everyone, the demons cannot be deterred from proclaiming Christ as the Son of the Most High God. After the demons are exorcised, the man begs to remain with Christ, but he is refused. Instead, Christ sends him forth to evangelize to his family. Jesus heals the man and then commissions him to spread the Good News that the Lord has come.

We have all found healing in the arms of Christ. Most of us have probably never been possessed by a demon, but all of us know what it means to be trapped by sin. We know what it means to be slaves needing to be rescued. We know what it feels like to be healed and forgiven. And like the demoniac, we know how it feels to desire to remain at the feet of Christ, safe within His arms and protected from the world around us. And also like the demoniac, we know how it feels to be sent forth into the world to evangelize.

We have been touched by the divine, freed from our interior demons. When we were baptized, we were freed from original sin, healed of any actual sin, and commissioned to spread the Good News, sharing God’s love with the world. Remaining with Christ means going out into the world. Like the healed demoniac, we are filled with God’s grace so that we can bring Him into the world. The commission of the healed demoniac is our vocation too. We are all called to bring the love of God to all those we meet.

Ponder:

How does our time at the feet of Jesus in prayer prepare us to evangelize in the world?

Pray:

Dear Lord, thank You for rescuing us from the slavery of sin, allowing us the peace to rest at Your feet, and giving us the strength and courage to go out into the world to evangelize. Amen.