What Do You Want With Us, Jesus?

There is urgency about today’s Gospel. The plot and action move swiftly, and Luke is anxious for us to catch the sense of urgency. The kingdom of God—God’s powerful presence—is breaking into our ordinary world. How will we respond? Will we be caught up in the radical difference divine intervention makes as we go about the ordinary routines of life like meals, work, rest, and play in a world suddenly filled with the extraordinary? Luke is in a hurry to disclose God’s presence among us.

The Revised Standard Version translates the actions, "...and immediately on the sabbath he [Jesus] entered the synagogue and taught" (). (Note the difference in the NRSV and other translations.) Mark uses the words for "...immediately,"" ...at once," ...just then," and the like more than ten times in the first chapter of his story alone. What's next? ...And immediately [that word again] there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 'What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God'" (). And the confrontation is on.

Immediate context.

What’s next? “And immediately [that word again] there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God’” (). And the confrontation is on.

Mark's ...first day in the life of Jesus" clearly makes at least one point: the will and purpose of God present in Jesus and the will and purpose of evil present in the demon engage in cosmic battle in the very midst of folk like you and me. The issues of life and death, good and evil are fought out in that synagogue just as they are among us where we worship and study our faith.

The issue for the people in Mark's time is the same as the issue for people today: can you see in this Jesus of Nazareth what the demon sees? Can you see in him nothing other than the will and purpose of God?

Luke clearly makes at least one point: the will and purpose of God present in Jesus and the will and purpose of evil present in the demon engage in cosmic battle in the very midst of folk like you and me. The issues of life and death, good and evil are fought out in that synagogue just as they are among us where we worship and study our faith.

The issue for the people in Luke’s time is the same as the issue for people today: can you see in this Jesus of Nazareth what the demon sees? Can you see in him nothing other than the will and purpose of God?

...What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? Indeed, the answer to that demonic question is a clarion-voiced, Yes! Yes! Christ has come to shatter the domineering designs that shackle people to lower standards for human life than those Jesus embodies. Yes! Christ has come and comes still to free us from the demons like those of prejudice and pride, greed and guile. Yes! Christ is among us, whenever we gather in church, to demonstrate to us that if we devote ourselves to anything less than a divinely directed destiny, we have deserted him - and deceived ourselves.

The scene is alive with the crackle of conflict. There is no polite conversation here between Jesus and the possessed man. The demon screams or cries out, and Jesus rebukes him. Rebuked? Jesus shouted, commanded, ordered! And the evil spirit convulsed out of the man.

“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? Indeed, the answer to that demonic question is resounding, “Yes!” Yes! Christ has come to shatter the domineering designs that shackle people to lower standards for human life than those Jesus embodies. Yes! Christ has come and comes still to free us from the demons like those of prejudice and pride, greed and guile. Yes! Christ is among us, whenever we gather in church, to demonstrate to us that if we devote ourselves to anything less than a divinely directed destiny, we have deserted him—and deceived ourselves.

The scene is alive with the crackle of conflict. There is no polite conversation here between Jesus and the possessed man. The demon screams or cries out, and Jesus rebukes him. Rebuked? Jesus shouted, commanded, ordered! And the evil spirit convulsed out of the man.

And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying 'What is this? A new teaching! With authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him" (). A new teaching. That is a strange way to describe a miracle, don't you think? But that is precisely what miracles are in the New Testament - actions that authenticate Jesus' preaching and teaching that the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. ...A new teaching," yes; ...with authority," yes - that too. And the authority that distinguishes Jesus' miracle from magic is not in the act but in who Jesus, the teacher, is. The demon sees it even when the disciples do not. What is that? It is simply this: that Jesus Christ is the very incarnation of God, through whom God's will and purpose for humanity are made manifest to those who see with the eyes of faith.

And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying ‘What is this? A new teaching! With authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him” (). A new teaching. That is a strange way to describe a miracle, don’t you think? But that is precisely what miracles are in the New Testament - actions that authenticate Jesus’ preaching and teaching that the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. “A new teaching,” yes; “with authority,” yes - that too. And the authority that distinguishes Jesus’ miracle from magic is not in the act but in who Jesus, the teacher, is. The demon sees it even when the disciples do not. What is that? It is simply this: that Jesus Christ is the very incarnation of God, through whom God’s will and purpose for humanity are made manifest to those who see with the eyes of faith.

In Mark's time all kinds of ...professional exorcists" offered their expertise in confronting demons. It was really no different then than now - the multitude of help gurus available to us for addressing problems that pervade our lives. Mark's point is simply that the word exorcises. With one compelling word Jesus exorcised the demons, which recognized and acknowledged, often angrily, his superior power and authority. Despite the radically different methods, however, the meaning of this miracle is in Jesus himself: that through Jesus Christ, God will ultimately triumph over all the forces of evil.

In Luke’s time all kinds of “professional exorcists” offered their expertise in confronting demons. It was really no different then than now - the multitude of help gurus available to us for addressing problems that pervade our lives. Luke’s point is simply that the word exorcises. With one compelling word Jesus exorcised the demons, which recognized and acknowledged, often angrily, his superior power and authority. Despite the radically different methods, however, the meaning of this miracle is in Jesus himself: that through Jesus Christ, God will ultimately triumph over all the forces of evil.

We all know the old adage, seeing is believing, but it is just the opposite with Mark. He wants us to understand that believing is seeing. As one theologian puts it:

Miracles are signs to those who can see. In order to understand them it was first necessary that one's eyes should be opened to the central mystery of the gospel, the mystery of the person of the Lord; then they could be understood as the revelation of the power of God himself. (Alan Richardson, The Miracle Stories of the Gospels [London: SCM Press, 1941], p. 48.)

We all know the old adage, seeing is believing, but it is just the opposite with Luke. He wants us to understand that believing is seeing. As one theologian puts it:

What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" We stand within the church, most of us do anyway, yet we can acknowledge among ourselves the desperation among the people gathered therein - the craziness of guilt and shame some live with; the despair of loneliness; the unrelenting competition and drivenness of people climbing up the business and social ladders; hopelessness in the face of illness and death; the heartbreaking pain of a friend's unfaithfulness; the confusion of young and old alike; the rage churning within an addict's battle for control. Is it any wonder that, in the midst of God's people in a synagogue, a man bedeviled with an unclean spirit cried out, ...What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Why does any one of us come to worship? Is it not because we are crying out the question, ...What have you to do with us, Jesus?" You may not choose to call them demons, but how can you know and watch the community around you on any single day and not recognize the evidence that there is still at work in this world a sinister force that opposes God's will and purpose for our lives?

Miracles are signs to those who can see. In order to understand them it was first necessary that one’s eyes should be opened to the central mystery of the gospel, the mystery of the person of the Lord; then they could be understood as the revelation of the power of God himself. (Alan Richardson, The Miracle Stories of the Gospels [London: SCM Press, 1941], p. 48.)

“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Jesus wants to confront the demons that possess us and cast them away. Do we need to look for miracles? You may choose to do so, but dare to imagine that there is something even better! There is one miracle that undergirds and gives meaning to all the others: the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And that miracle grants us grace - a means of grace - that mysteriously overshadows any other miracle.

Miracles are signs to those who can see. In order to understand them it was first necessary that one’s eyes should be opened to the central mystery of the gospel, the mystery of the person of the Lord; then they could be understood as the revelation of the power of God himself. (Alan Richardson, The Miracle Stories of the Gospels [London: SCM Press, 1941], p. 48.)

What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Jesus wants to confront the demons that possess us and cast them away. Do we need to look for miracles? You may choose to do so, but dare to imagine that there is something even better! There is one miracle that undergirds and gives meaning to all the others: the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And that miracle grants us grace - a means of grace - that mysteriously overshadows any other miracle.

What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” We stand within the church, most of us do anyway, yet we can acknowledge among ourselves the desperation among the people gathered therein - the craziness of guilt and shame some live with; the despair of loneliness; the unrelenting competition and drivenness of people climbing up the business and social ladders; hopelessness in the face of illness and death; the heartbreaking pain of a friend’s unfaithfulness; the confusion of young and old alike; the rage churning within an addict’s battle for control. Is it any wonder that, in the midst of God’s people in a synagogue, a man bedeviled with an unclean spirit cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” Why does any one of us come to worship? Is it not because we are crying out the question, “What have you to do with us, Jesus?” You may not choose to call them demons, but how can you know and watch the community around you on any single day and not recognize the evidence that there is still at work in this world a sinister force that opposes God’s will and purpose for our lives?

Frederick Buechner, in The Alphabet of Grace, describes a day when he thought life was ripe for a miracle. Nothing at all like what he expected happened. He writes that his faith could have been exposed as superstition and brought to an end. But something else happened. He was distracted by the branches of some apple trees on a clear, sunny day clack-clacking together. He writes:

The dry clack-clack of the world's tongue at the approach of the approach of splendor...And just this is the substance of what I want to talk about: the clack-clack of my life. The occasional, obscure glimmering through of grace. The muffled presence of the holy. The images, always broken, partial, ambiguous, of Christ. (Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace [New York: Seaburg Press, 1970], p. 13.)

“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” Jesus wants to confront the demons that possess us and cast them away. Do we need to look for miracles? You may choose to do so, but dare to imagine that there is something even better! There is one miracle that undergirds and gives meaning to all the others: the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And that miracle grants us grace - a means of grace - that mysteriously overshadows any other miracle.

The dry clack-clack of the world's tongue at the approach of the approach of splendor...And just this is the substance of what I want to talk about: the clack-clack of my life. The occasional, obscure glimmering through of grace. The muffled presence of the holy. The images, always broken, partial, ambiguous, of Christ. (Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace [New York: Seaburg Press, 1970], p. 13.)

Do you recognize this miracle - the grace offered by Jesus? The urgency in Mark's Gospel is to recognize Jesus Christ as the means of grace for each and every one of us. You do recognize it - occasionally in the world that surrounds you but most prevalently and powerfully in the community of faith. It is in worship that the faithful recognize in Jesus the means of grace and the will and purpose of God for your lives. That is the miracle of what Jesus wants with us. ...What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Everything, and it is urgent!

Frederick Buechner, in The Alphabet of Grace, describes a day when he thought life was ripe for a miracle. Nothing at all like what he expected happened. He writes that his faith could have been exposed as superstition and brought to an end. But something else happened. He was distracted by the branches of some apple trees on a clear, sunny day clack-clacking together. He writes:

Do you recognize this miracle - the grace offered by Jesus? The urgency in Mark's Gospel is to recognize Jesus Christ as the means of grace for each and every one of us. You do recognize it - occasionally in the world that surrounds you but most prevalently and powerfully in the community of faith. It is in worship that the faithful recognize in Jesus the means of grace and the will and purpose of God for your lives. That is the miracle of what Jesus wants with us. ...What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" Everything, and it is urgent!

The dry clack-clack of the world’s tongue at the approach of the approach of splendor”And just this is the substance of what I want to talk about: the clack-clack of my life. The occasional, obscure glimmering through of grace. The muffled presence of the holy. The images, always broken, partial, ambiguous, of Christ. (Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace [New York: Seaburg Press, 1970], p. 13.)

Do you recognize this miracle - the grace offered by Jesus? The urgency in Luke’s Gospel is to recognize Jesus Christ as the means of grace for each and every one of us. You do recognize it - occasionally in the world that surrounds you but most prevalently and powerfully in the community of faith. It is in worship that the faithful recognize in Jesus the means of grace and the will and purpose of God for your lives. That is the miracle of what Jesus wants with us. “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” Everything, and it is urgent!