9th Week of Pentecost

Acts 19:11-22
So extraordinary were the mighty deeds God accomplished at the hands of Paul that when face cloths or aprons that touched his skin were applied to the sick, their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” When the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish high priest, tried to do this, the evil spirit said to them in reply, “Jesus I recognize, Paul I know, but who are you?” The person with the evil spirit then sprang at them and subdued them all. He so overpowered them that they fled naked and wounded from that house. When this became known to all the Jews and Greeks who lived in Ephesus, fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in great esteem. Many of those who had become believers came forward and openly acknowledged their former practices. Moreover, a large number of those who had practiced magic collected their books and burned them in public. They calculated their value and found it to be fifty thousand silver pieces. Thus did the word of the Lord continue to spread with influence and power. When this was concluded, Paul made up his mind to travel through Macedonia and Achaia, and then to go on to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must visit Rome also.” Then he sent to Macedonia two of his assistants, Timothy and Erastus, while he himself stayed for a while in the province of Asia.

Luke 11:42-46
Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb, but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God. These you should have done, without overlooking the others. Woe to you Pharisees! You love the seat of honor in synagogues and greetings in marketplaces. Woe to you! You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.” Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, “Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.” And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.

In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke tells us how powerful Paul was. Miracles worked through him and through relics he touched. Yet, Paul does not boast in his letters of this power, but rather of his weakness. God worked miracles through Paul because Paul was humble. Jesus, in the Gospel today, condemns the proud, and notes that despite their pride in themselves the leaders did not do much good. They had nothing about which to be proud. The way of humility is letting God act through us, so thatour whole life becomes divinized or transformed by God.

O God,
you are before all ages and exist from age to age;
you are resplendent and glorified in unsearchable light;
through your word, you bring forth light and give us a new day.
O radiant Day and source of light,
we glorify you, adore you and offer you praise night and day; accept our praise and answer our prayer.
Send us your abundant blessings, through the mercy of your
Christ.
To him, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be glory, honor and power,
now and forever.
Amen.