Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany

They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

We’ve mentioned that Mark’s Gospel is a very to-the-point gospel

This verse 21 of Chapter 1 and Jesus has already been baptized, called disciples, and is now teaching and casting out demons

In Matthew’s Gospel we learn a lot about Jesus by what he says

In Mark’s we learn about him more by what he does

And we can see that the people AROUND him are also struck by what he does

I think the word that stands out in this account is “authority”

They are amazed by the “authority” embodied in this man

Let’s talk about why that authority is good news and what it means for following him

The story has Jesus going to the synagogue to teach on the sabbath

A synagogue in Galilee is different than the Temple in Jerusalem and much less formal

In the synagogues the law would be taught by the laity

It would be like us coming to church on Sunday and just opening the floor for anyone to come up and share from the text

That’s a fine thing

But you can imagine that it would have largely been repetition and quoting of tradition

I imagine not a ton of fresh insights and application

Enter Jesus

Elsewhere in the gospels we have Jesus teaching like “You have heard it said (referencing scripture) but I say to you...”

And that’s a pretty bold move if you aren’t God incarnate

In fact it is a heretical move if you aren’t God incarnate

But in those cases Jesus wasn’t denying scripture or tossing it aside

We might say he was filling it up or bringing it to its conclusion

“You have heard it said don’t murder, let’s take that deeper. The real heart of it is that you should even hate, because hate is the seed that leads to murder.”

And he would often take passages of scripture and show how they were in fact pointing to him and his kingdom.

Once again, bringing prophecy to it’s full conclusion

So we’re told “people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law”

That’s a pretty regular response to him and part of the reason he drew crowds

That and the fact that his teaching revealed God’s love for the poor and marginalized.

But you can imagine some people are like, “Hold up, who does this guy think he is? Thinking his word has the same authority as the religious scholars? Let alone thinking he can expand upon the scriptures?

Who does he thinking he is?

That’s answered in the next story.

A man enters the synagogue with an evil spirit

An evil spirit or unclean spirit or demon convey the idea of a spiritual power opposed to God

Here the spirit speaks in plural, which is intriguing but we don’t know why

What’s more interesting is that here in Mark’s gospel Jesus is announced by

John the Baptist

Demons

They know exactly who he is before people do

And Jesus knows exactly what’s going on with the disruptive man who enters

When I was a pastor of a congregation on 42nd street and thomas we used to have people wander in off the street from time to time.

People who were not in their right mind.

We’ve had that in Scottsdale too but we used to get it all the time at that location and there were times when you REALLY didn’t know what influence the person was under or what they were going to do.

When you’re on the stage talking you feel pretty acutely how not in control you are.

So I’m captivated by the account of Jesus speaking sternly

“BE QUIET”

"COME OUT OF HIM.”

And the spirit obeys him

Could there possibly be a greater display of authority?

How about if Jesus spoke sternly to a stormy sea and told it to be quiet?

Because we’ll see just that later.

All of this happens not from Jesus using military force or some magic spell like Gandalf.

It happens because he speaks.

How much authority does the word of Jesus have?

Creation obeys him.

Spiritual powers obey him.

When we say Jesus speaks with authority we’re not just saying, “Oh he’s a very confident public speaker and a very commanding presence.”

We’re saying that his words represent the power that created all things and sustains all things and is renewing all things

Which means that when we read his word we should not receive it as “interesting food for thought” or “something to consider”

Rather when Jesus says “this is what God is like” that is what God is like

when Jesus says “this is how life is meant to be” that is how life is meant to be

when Jesus says “this is the way” that is the way

when Jesus says “God will do it” God will do it

It is our job to adjust to HIS word because his word is truth

Which leads us to consider another aspect of his authority: his power over everything that opposes him

We’ve talked a lot about the use of the light/dark metaphor in scripture

But in much spirituality the light/dark relationship is used to emphasize a balance

As if there are two equal but opposite forces at work in the universe and they need each other

But scripture doesn’t present a yin-yang situation between the light and the dark

Satan isn’t the equal counterpart of God, the balance in the force

Satan is a created being

And the forces that are opposed to God are lesser than him

This is why the darkness has not and cannot overcome the light

This account in Mark is RIGHT OUT OF THE GATES making a point

It comes right after the baptism of Jesus where the Spirit of God descends on him and fills him

What we have here is a man with an unclean spirit coming up against THE MAN with God’s Spirit

Mark is saying, let it be known that this is how such a confrontation goes

Again, the spiritual forces opposed to God know exactly who Jesus is (before people do)

And they are terrified and they know their fate and they will rage while they can

But their end is destruction

This man has authority

Not just to teach God’s promises but to fulfill them

Which once again shapes how we hear his teaching

He’s not speculating, he’s promising

And he is faithful in keeping his promises

A final note. Consider how the demonic forces have terrorized this man but when Jesus deals with them he doesn’t destroy the man, he restores him

So it is with God.

The goal is healing people and creation of evil and its effects.

Now. I hope we see why his authority is good news.

What does it mean for following him.

Well we see that in his authority, Jesus is disrupting things.

The people used to a comfortable religious system, and especially the people who are in positions of power in that system, do not know what to do with him.

He is challenging their understanding of God, God’s promises, and what it means to follow him

As THE authority he is opening up a new age that we see being revealed to people in the gospels

He has new wine that doesn’t fit in old wineskins, as he’ll explain in the next chapter

So, as we’ve been discussing, we have to decide whether to trust him and go with him or not.

As New Testament scholar Brian Blount writes how

We’re invited into “Mark’s world of Jesus walking around possessed by the power of the Spirit of God. In such a world you either go with the man and help him create the holy chaos he’s creating or you find a way to do everything you can to stop him so you can get your people back in line.”

Or we might say you do everything you can to domesticate him so you can stay in line.

Or you might do everything you can to ignore him altogether.

But we have to decide whether we trust his authority or not

And if so, we go with him to help him create some holy chaos that disrupts the fallen world to bring the renewal and healing of all things.