COMMON OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Rejoice because your names are written in heaven. 

How would you feel if you told a demon to literally go to hell—and he went? Things like that don’t happen every day! Now imagine how the seventy-two disciples in today’s Gospel might have felt. They had seen Jesus cast out demons many times, and now they were doing the same thing. Not to mention, some of Jesus’ closest disciples had failed at casting out a demon just a short while before this, and now here they were succeeding where the others could not (Luke 9:37-43). They must have felt proud to bring the news back to their master!

Of course, Jesus was proud of them as well. He was happy to see them take risks in his name and proud that they were experiencing the power of the Spirit flowing through them. He had spent so much time teaching them, and they were showing signs of growth.

But at the same time, Jesus knew that these disciples needed a course correction. Where they were proud of their spiritual power, Jesus wanted them to be proud of their heavenly citizenship. Where they were excited that demons submitted to them, he wanted them to be excited about the joy that comes from submitting to their heavenly Father. Their rejoicing, while a good thing, focused more on themselves than on the God whose power they had just witnessed.

This is the heart of the spiritual life. Growing in holiness is a matter of shifting the focus from ourselves to Jesus and the heavenly calling he has given us. It doesn’t matter whatever “powers” we may have; what is most important is our willingness to accept God’s power and authority over our lives. That’s how citizenship works, after all. You acknowledge the authority of the one who rules your nation, and you work for the common good of your fellow citizens.

Your name is written in heaven. That means you belong to Christ. And belonging to Christ means living for him and following his commands. But it also means that Christ belongs to you. He has committed himself to you in an unbreakable covenant of love. And that’s something worth rejoicing in.

“All praise to you, Jesus, for writing my name in heaven!”

Job 42:1-3, 5-6, 12-17
Psalm 119:66, 71, 75, 91, 125, 130