The Authority of Love: Building on the Unshakable Rock

Voice over by Bro Paschal

Jude 17.20-25, Psalm: 62, Mk 11:27-33

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

In the Gospel today, the chief priests, scribes, and elders confront Jesus with a question meant to trap Him: “By what authority are you doing these things?” They want a tidy answer, a clear chain of command they can control. But Jesus responds with a question of His own: “Was John’s baptism of heavenly or of human origin?” They are caught. If they say “heavenly,” they must accept John’s witness to Jesus. If they say “human,” they fear the crowd. So they answer, “We do not know.” And Jesus says, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

The religious leaders sought authority as a weapon to preserve their power. Jesus revealed that true authority flows not from human approval, but from obedience to the Father. He had already answered their question by His life, His teaching, His healing, and His love. They refused to see because they refused to believe.

The short Letter of Jude offers us the antidote to such hardness of heart. Jude urges us to “build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God; and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.” This is the architecture of authentic Christian authority. We are not called to lord it over others, but to be built up as living stones in the temple of God. Our authority—such as it is—comes not from titles or human accolades, but from our rootedness in faith, our communion with the Holy Spirit, and our abiding in God’s love.

The religious leaders in the Gospel were experts in the law, but they had forgotten the first commandment: to love God with all their heart, soul, and mind. They sought to protect their status, and in doing so, they missed the very presence of God standing before them. Jude warns us against this. He says, “Have mercy on those who are wavering; save others by snatching them out of the fire.” The authority of the disciple is not the authority of power, but the authority of mercy. It is the authority of one who has been snatched from the fire and now reaches out to snatch others.

Pope Francis often reminds us that the Church does not grow by proselytism, but by attraction. The only authority that truly convinces is the authority of love—love that serves, love that forgives, love that builds up. Saint John Paul II, in his encyclical on the Holy Spirit, wrote that the Spirit is the one who “builds up the Church in unity and love.”

What does this mean for us? When we face questions about our faith—from a skeptical friend, a hostile culture, or our own doubting hearts—we do not need to have a slick answer for every challenge. We need to be people who are built up in faith, who pray in the Spirit, and who remain in God’s love. Our authority as witnesses flows from our lived relationship with Christ, not from our ability to win arguments.

This week, let us stop seeking the approval of those who, like the religious leaders, refuse to see. Instead, let us build ourselves up in holy faith. Let us pray in the Holy Spirit. Let us keep ourselves in the love of God. And let us extend mercy to those who waver. For in doing so, we will find that the only authority that truly matters is the authority of the One who loved us first—and who calls us to love one another as He has loved us. Amen.

May God bless you all!