Friday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time ‘a’

Mk 12:35-37

In this very short passage from the Gospel for today, we hear about Jesus teaching the people in the temple area. He was preaching to them, trying to explain that His nature is divine -- that He is human, standing in front of them, looking just like them, but at the same time He is God. Christ is the son of David, which gave Him a human nature, but He is also the Son of God, which makes Him God. However, what caught my attention today is the last sentence from this short Gospel reading: “The great crowd heard this with delight.” This tells me that there were many people there listening to Jesus preach, and they not only listened but listened in delight. And when you look for the synonyms for that word ‘delight’, you will find words that express feelings like charm, pleasure, joy, happiness, amusement, satisfaction, gladness, and appreciation. It amazes me that those were the feelings that accompanied those who listened to the Lord speaking. One of the reasons we come to church is to listen to the word of God. Ask yourself today: what are the feelings that accompany you while listening to Him? Do you receive God’s word with delight, or are you distracted, bored, and occupied with other thoughts? Let us ask the Holy Spirit to open our minds and hearts for receiving the word of God in delight.