Without Doing Any Harm!

Tuesday, September 1, 2026

1 Cor 2: 10b-16; Lk 4: 31-37

Today’s Gospel highlights the power and authority of Jesus’ words. 

People’s exclamation of Jesus’ power and authority can be interpreted in two ways. 

At first, Jesus’ word carries immense power that drives out the unclean spirit. Though the demon resists Jesus’ approach and even reveals his divine identity, Jesus does not let the demon speak. Here, Jesus not only commands the demon not to talk but also orders it out of the man who it was tormenting. This is why the crowd exclaims, ‘What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.’

Secondly, Jesus’ power and authority over demons reveal a different side. The text reads that the demon ‘came out of him without doing any harm.’ Jesus’ word so inspires the demon that even the emissary of evil desists from doing harm to others. Jesus shows that God’s word is so powerful that it can become a force for good even in the midst of forces of evil. Hence, the uniqueness of Jesus’ authority lies in the fact that it does not merely inspire those who are already good to become better. Rather, his authority transforms even the forces opposed to goodness. Thus, the power and authority of Jesus help us realize that true greatness is not simply about the ability to inspire the good to do good but to transform situations of evil into situations where good alone prevails and people witness the miracle as a testimony of God’s power. That is what stands out as Jesus’ power and authority. 

Through this miracle, Jesus teaches us that no power of darkness is beyond the reach of God’s authority. Jesus’ word is a force for good, and that is the Gospel we are called to proclaim.

Let us pray that we may become agents of God’s word, testifying to its power and might. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar