Jesus is not an empty man nor internally scattered. He does not act through those villages of Galilee arbitrarily nor moved by any interest. The Gospels make it clear from the beginning that Jesus lives and acts moved by “the Spirit of God.”
They do not want him to be confused with any “teacher of the law,” concerned about introducing more order into the behavior of Israel. They do not want him to be identified with a false prophet, willing to seek a balance between the religion of the temple and the power of Rome.
The evangelists also want it so that no one equates him with John the Baptist. That no one sees him as a simple disciple and collaborator of that great prophet of the wilderness. Jesus is God’s “beloved Son.” On him “descends” the Spirit of God. Only he can “baptize” with the Holy Spirit.
According to all biblical tradition, the “Spirit of God” is the breath of God, which creates and sustains all life. The power that God possesses to renew and transform the living. His loving energy that always seeks the best for his sons and daughters.
That’s why Jesus feels sent not to condemn, destroy, or curse, but to heal, build, and bless. The Spirit of God leads him to empower and improve life. Filled with that “Spirit” good of God, he dedicates himself to freeing people from “evil spirits,” which do nothing but harm, enslave, and dehumanize.
The first Christian generations had a very clear idea of who Jesus was. They summarized the memory he left etched in his followers: “Anointed by God with the Holy Spirit… he went through life doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with him” (Acts of the Apostles 10:38).
What “spirit” animates us today, followers of Jesus? What is the “passion” that moves his Church? What is the “mystic” that makes our communities live and act? What are we putting into the world? If the Spirit of Jesus is in us, we will live “healing” the oppressed, depressed, or repressed by evil.
José Antonio Pagola
Published on www.gruposdejesus.com
English version translated with AI