Let us read the below gospel passage: 

Mark 16:15-18 And he said to them, Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. The one who believes and is baptized will be saved, but the one who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;  they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.

This is Jesus’ promise where He is handing each one of us His power of attorney, legal heritage to use His name. Jesus has also given us His name to exercise power over the devil.

Will emphasis today, on the power of the name of Jesus. A name not only represents a person but also bring the presence of that person in our minds, if not physically. E.g. Hitler; it immediately comes to our mind his character, what he did to humanity and the incidents of the past in Europe and Germany.

For each person e.g. the pope’s presence, political leader or a terrorist.

I remember in my younger days, my mother as being delicate, compassionate, merciful, however when we needed security and protection, we would depend on our father. Once my father had gone on a long journey and I was down with fever, at that moment I was missing my father. Though my mother was taking care of me, I would ask every half hour or so for my father, when he would be back? The next day my fever increased and my mother would go outside the house every once in a while to see if my father was back and on the third day when the fever had increased even further, she told me, my father was back. The moment she told me, ‘my father is back’ I suddenly got up and the fever left me. I felt strength come back in me. This is only towards a human being, imagine if we take the name of Jesus!

We read:

Philippians 2:10 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. So that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.

Corona, Covid, Lucifer, Fear is a name but the name of Jesus is the “name that is above every name.” We need to remember, though, that it is not merely the word “Jesus” that possesses the powerful authority; rather, it is the One behind that name.  There is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. Jesus has got the name above all names. When we are shaken from the problems of this world, we should remember there is power in the name of Jesus. Everyone should bow down to Him. God chose to assign His Son a name that represented who He is and what He was coming on earth to do. The name Jesus means “Jesus Saves” or “The Lord of Salvation.”

Acts 4:12 There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.

No other name, no yoga, new age movement, meditation can save us. There were many books, religions that existed before, during and after Jesus but according to the bible, salvation comes through Jesus only.

We all know the details of the holy mass, rituals in the church, how the blessing of the Sacrament should take place? We get so many instructions from many people telling us what we should do? But do you know Jesus?  The Lord wants to know if we know Jesus?

John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.  

Knowing Jesus and the Heavenly Father is eternal life, we could be well versed in liturgical rules or canon, church or many other laws but if we don’t know Jesus; everything will collapse. Many of us may know Christianity well, but we don’t know Christ? Most people don’t know what the Bible means when it talks about eternal life. Eternal life is knowing God, it’s about having an intimate, close, personal relationship with God.

2 Timothy 3:3-5 Inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding the outward form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid them! 

We don’t know the power of Jesus. The moment we say Jesus is here, it brings about a lot of changes in our surroundings, set up and reactions will change when we feel Jesus’ presence around us. 

Matthew 1:21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.  

The name of Jesus is given from heaven, it’s not a human name. The name of Jesus carries inherent power to cause every adverse thing to bow. It is an amazing gift, the authority in His name to pray and to exercise His power in this world. 

Colossians 2:9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. 

Divinity of God in fullness dwells bodily. Many people are doubtful if Jesus is prophet or God? The Bible says clearly, the ‘fullness of deity and divinity’ dwells in the body of Jesus Christ.

John 14:18 I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.

Those who are lonely, isolated, rejected; the Lord says I’m coming to you. Jesus didn’t say I  came to you nor did he say I will come to you but says I’m coming to you – present continuous tense. It is only in the name of Jesus that we are cleansed, renewed, transformed, and redeemed. 

The story of St. Patrick goes like this – He was sent to Ireland to evangelize the people, he had a bishop’s staff in his hand and said I come in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, the moment he announced the name of Jesus, thousands of slithering snakes came out and drowned into the shores. 

When we take the name of Jesus, it’s equal to Jesus’ presence and there’s a reaction taking place. Nature is reacting to the command and we can observe something happening around us. 

I’ll share an incident – when I was assistant to Fr. Augustine Valloorun at the Divine Center in Kerala, when I would tell some people to complete certain jobs, they would ignore me, not taking my word seriously. I used another technique, by telling them Fr. Valloorun said to complete this task, immediately they obeyed me, because they knew that the command came directly from Fr. Valloorun.

If we want to use the name of Jesus, we should have a connection, as His name is the source of all the authority and power of the universe. Without connection, there will be no meaning and nothing will happen.

Acts 19:11-16 God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that when the handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this.  But the evil spirit said to them in reply, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. 

The handkerchiefs or aprons touched by the apostles are known as relics, these had the power to heal. These relics of saints are kept in churches even today, as they have the healing power coming through Jesus. It’s biblically accepted to use the relics of saints in a holy manner.  It is the power of Jesus that has been handed over to them and given to us through them. 

The jewish exorcists had no connections, didn’t hear, did not respect nor believed in Jesus, but only saw the name of Jesus manifested before them, in the person possessed by evil. The devil asked the jewish exorcists, who are you? Only using the name of Jesus.

If we don’t have the power are not connected to Jesus and use Jesus’ name, the reaction would be nakedness, woundedness, humiliation and pain. If we have intentions to chase out demons, we should ensure that we are connected to God and Jesus.

There are two types of connections: dating and marriage

Dating: when a boy and girl are in love with each other, they date.  Dating does not include marriage, a covenant, or commitment. Numerous individuals have a dating relationship with God; occasionally, we will pray to Him. With this sort of connection, we are throwing God aside and using him. This type of connection is not what God is fond of. Jesus declared that a marriage consists of the Church and me, the bride and groom, and Jesus and a human person. 

Marriage: Being linked for all eternity. A covenant is an unbreakable bond. God detests divorce. When we tie the knot, we declare in front of the altar that “we belong to each other” from this day on until the day of our deaths. We are allowed to use Jesus’ name in a covenant. As soon as we invoke the name of Jesus, deliverance, healings, and reactions in our surroundings will occur. 

John 15:7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

To “abide in me” is to rest, to stay, and to spend all of eternity in me. Why don’t our prayers seem to be heard? Even when we invoke the name of Jesus, no miracles or anything happen? We don’t allow Jesus to abide in us, and as a result, our relationship is weak. We occasionally communicate with Him, but otherwise we carry out our own covert plans. We entertain the world and entertain Jesus only on Sundays. After mass, we engage in other activities such as gossip, profanity, hatred, anger towards family members, yet we obediently watch the live streaming in the evening. 

That is why when we use the name of Jesus, nothing happens. 

We had a land issue at the Tabor Ashram in Mumbai a few years ago, and I had to meet with the District Collector. The security guard advised me to wait, and as I did, I noticed that other political figures were going straight to the collector while I was the only one who was waiting. The security officer informed me that I couldn’t see the collector that day and that I required some sort of influence. I asked everyone to pray for me the following day, a Friday, after the adoration service since I had to meet the collector. Following the service, a gentleman approached me and asked, “Fr., when would you like to meet the collector? It will be arranged.” Everything came together and I met the collector. When I came in the name of the minister, the power came to me. As soon as we use the name, we will gain authority and power, and others will take notice.

Don’t use Jesus’ name in vain, that’s another problem. People tell me, that we use the name of Jesus multiple times during the adoration, is that not called using the name in vain? What does it mean not to use Jesus’ name in vain? 

I’ll give you a few meanings, let’s read

Malachi 1:6-7 A son honours his father, and  servants their master. If then I am a father, where is the honor due me? And if I am a master,where is the respect due me? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests. By offering polluted food on my altar. And you say, “How have we polluted it?” By thinking that the Lord’s table may be despised.

Taking the name of God lightly. Casually we say, O my Jesus! We are not addressing or praying to Jesus, we are using the name of Jesus as an exclamation mark. Many times, we don’t address Jesus directly but use His name as a part of a sentence. 

Ezekiel 22:26 Its priests have done violence to my teaching and have profaned my holy things; they have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught the difference between the unclean and the clean, and they have disregarded my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them.

God’s name is unclean among us, because we do not understand between good and evil, right and wrong, clean and unclean. If we use God’s name with the wrong intention, we use God’s name in vain. Any prayer intention that has anger, hatred, revenge, cursing others, is also using God’s name in vain. Profiling His name is against God’s commandments.

When I say in the name of Christ I command you it is equivalent to Jesus commanding you. For example, in the Holy Mass when I say it is my body, it is actually Jesus announcing it. When the priest absolves our sins in the confessional it is equal to Jesus forgiving us. Our prayers are imperfect, but we can make them perfect by saying, I make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Because Jesus is perfect, his death, his blood, and his prayers are perfect. All the prayers in the missal are addressed to the heavenly Father. All the prayers at the Holy Mass are done through Christ. Using the name of Jesus will make any prayer perfect.

The most important points to remember when we think about the power of the name of Jesus – be connected always and be in covenant like father and son, husband and wife relationship; once and for all.

Mark 16:17 And these signs will accompany those who believe; by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues.

When Jesus was completely sure that the apostles would not leave Him, he said “they will cast out demons in my name.” 

Transcribed by Durriya Alphonso