Astonishing!

Mark 1: 21-28
February 2, 1997, Communion
4th Sunday after the Epiphany, Year B

© John Ewing Roberts, 2/2/97
INTRODUCTION

Let me begin with a quick mention of four small but important observations about this text.

(1) "Taking control" and "out of control" are two expressions we often hear and use. Control issues are at the heart of this passage. Many of us came into the house of the Lord today for help because there are forces in our world at large and in our immediate lives which are out of control. Our world and our lives are dangerous and unpredictable.

(2) In this account no one objects to the fact that Jesus heals on the sabbath. That will come later (Mark 3: 1-6).

(3) The demon made a correct confession of faith - but a demon speaking the truth is still a demon. One can get the "head stuff" (doctrine) right, but still be "out of one's head" and evil.

(4) The man who is healed simply disappears from the story. Our natural curiosity and compassion call for some follow-up, some next stage in following Jesus. But he vanishes, not because he is unimportant, but because Mark's focus is on Jesus, who He is, and what He does. (Charles Carlston, Proclamation 3, Epiphany, Series B, edited by Elizabeth Achtemeier [Philadelphia: Fortress Press] 1984, p. 36)

Now let us turn our attention to four major emphases in this passage, as we move from the text to the Table of the Lord and into our own time:
(1) The Teaching of Jesus
(2) The Authority of Jesus
(3) The Demonic
(4) Our Expectations

I. THE TEACHING OF JESUS

The crowd is not so much amazed at the exorcism as at Jesus' teaching. There were other exorcists at work. Jesus challenged his opponents with the question, "If (you say that) I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?" (Matthew 12: 27) By these words Jesus acknowledges that others are casting out demons. Study shows that in those days "exceptional rabbis and Hellenistic faith healers, like Apollonius of Tyana, could perform exorcisms, at least sometimes." (Krodel, "The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany," Proclamation 4, Epiphany, Series B, edited by Thomas E. Ridenhour [Minneapolis: Fortress Press] 1990, p. 34)


But it was Jesus' teaching rather than his ability to exorcise the demonic which initially astonished the people. Our text mentions teaching and makes it clear that it was the teaching which was astonishing (v. 22). Elsewhere the Bible records that "never a man spake like this man." (John 7: 46)

The link between Jesus' teaching and his power over the demons is the divine healing word - no elaborate incantation, spell or magic rite. His teaching is not merely novel and clever; it is fresh and transformational, a perfect union of word and deed to bring healing and freedom.

The teaching dimension of Jesus' ministry is highlighted in Mark:
(1) Mark 4: 38, "Teacher, do you not care that we perish?" when the teacher stills a storm;
(2) Mark 5: 35, "Why trouble the Teacher further?" when the dead girl is raised;
(3) Mark 6: 34, "he began to teach them many things," when the 5,000 are fed;
(4) Mark 9: 17 "Teacher, I brought my son to you," when there is an epileptic to be cured;
(5) Mark 11: 21, "Master (= Rabbi/Teacher), look! The fig tree which you cursed has
withered."
II. THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS

What makes the teaching of Jesus so powerful is not only the content, as inspired as it is, but also the authority, the substance, the immediate unity of word and deed.

The accent in today's lesson on Jesus' superiority over the scribes has nothing to do with any problem with their content. It has to do with Jesus' authority versus theirs. My friend Howard Roberts says the scribes were imprisoned within their own quotation marks!

What is the authority of Jesus?

We see his authority in:
- the substance of all he said;
- the reality, the authenticity, the trustworthiness of all he did;
- the nearness of God which blesses and heals;
- the energy and the peace he brings;
- the freedom he brings to replace evil with a higher affection.
The Greek word for authority is exousia. The preferred explanation of the word's origin is that it comes from the root -ousia, which has to do with coming and going, with power and possibility. It is sometimes translated "freedom" as in I Corinthians 8: 9.

But ousia in Greek also cues off associations with another root which means "being," "substance," or "essence." Taking both senses into our understanding of the authority of Jesus we can view it in these two ways:
(1) Jesus' authority comes with the power to make the demonic go;
(2) Jesus' authority arises out of his being, his essence, the substance of who He is.

His authority to deal with evil is clear in that he starts where he is. If there really is power to be exercised over the demonic, then it can be effective right here, right now, not way over there somewhere sometime.

His authority is clear in that the healing/liberating action takes place in a synagogue, not because Jews need healing more than anyone else, but because Jesus demonstrates that healing can take place in any assembly, in any congregation if God's power is present.

His authority is active on the sabbath and in the synagogue, on the day set aside by God (sacred time) and amid the structure hallowed by the study of the text of the Torah (sacred space). In other words Jesus' authority is active both in sacred time and sacred space. ("Fourth Sunday After Epiphany," Lectionary Homiletics, edited by David B. Howell, Vol. VIII, No. 3, p. 1)

His authority respects human freedom, a most appealing feature. A Lutheran professor named David Rhoads points out that in Mark "Jesus wields authority over demons, illnesses (when people have faith), and natural forces (seas, deserts, trees) - nonhuman forces that oppress people. Jesus wields no authority, however, over people. He cannot heal people without faith, make them keep quiet if they wish to speak, or force his disciples to understand his teachings." Jesus has dominion over all aspects of life but not authority to "lord it over" humans - plenty of other religious figures, ancient and contemporary, can do that. Jesus has divine authority to serve people. (David M. Rhoads, Proclamation 5, Epiphany, Series B [Minneapolis: Fortress Press] 1993, p. 31)

Jesus' authority over us is related to our free expression of faith which invites him to come into our lives. Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock, and if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come into you and eat with you, and you with me." (Revelation 3: 20)


III. WHAT IS A DEMON?

In a late 20th century congregation there surely are questions about just what it is that Jesus casts out. Our text speaks of an unclean spirit in verse 23. In the world of the New Testament we hear of demons, the demonic, the powers that be, the powers of this world, etc. Let me try to give some descriptive answers to the question, "What is a demon?"

A demon is a force preventing our lives from being what God wants us to be.

A demon is a force not of our own choosing, controlling us.

A demonic force violates our freedom.

A demon is not so much a matter of our sin as it is some tragic violation of God's good intention for creation. (Gerhard A. Krodel, op. cit.).

A demon is something from which we would be free in the world to come. Therefore, when Jesus sets one free, the liberation and healing point to God's final victory, the fullness of the Kingdom of God has drawn very near and surely is "at hand."

A demon is a hostile force at work in us, on us, around us, or above us. David Buttrick somewhere illustrates the structure of evil and its systematic impact by telling the story of John Steinbeck's sharecropper in The Grapes of Wrath.

The sharecropper wanted to find out who had foreclosed his farm, a act which caused his family great suffering, an evil act from his perspective, an act for which no one was responsible. It was "the system."
- it was not the local banker, because, he was, after all, responsible to the home office;
- it was not the home office, because the men there had a board of directors to whom they were responsible;
- it was not the board of directors, because they in turn were obliged to thousands of stockholders.
Buttrick's conclusion: "In our age of macroeconomics, political action committees, megatrends, and multinationals, guess what? We have suddenly begun to catch sight of the `powers that be,' systems that can be peopled with born-again Christians and yet be outright demonic."

A demon was one of a multitude of beings which filled the world in the view of the people of Jesus' time. In my lifetime I have seen a change from a time when no "modern" person believed in demons, to this "postmodern" time when we run into people who bear the name Christian but who are scared to death of the demonic.

We are right to take the demonic seriously and respect the impact the demonic can have on our lives, but we are wrong, dead wrong, to be immobilized with fear. These demon obsessed religious folk have forgotten verses they should have memorized in Sunday School:
- "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4: 7)
- "Greater is he that is in you than he who is in the world." (I John 4: 4)
- "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16: 33)
With Martin Luther and a host of strong Christians we should sing:
And though this world with devils filled,
    should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed
    His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
    His rage we can endure,
For, lo, his doom his sure,
    One little word shall fell him.
(Martin Luther, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," Baptist Hymnal, edited by Wesley Forbis [Nashville: Convention Press] 1991, No. 8)

IV. OUR EXPECTATIONS

Jesus cast out the demon with his teaching, with his word which was one with his deed, a word he still speaks through the Holy Spirit.

Luther again:
That word above all earthly powers,
    No thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours
    Through Him who with us sideth....
(Luther, op. cit.)
They people are astonished (v. 21) because Jesus far exceeds their expectations, a fact which prompts me to ask:
- What do you expect Jesus to do for you?
- What do you expect Jesus to do inside you?
- What do you expect Jesus to do through you?
- Would you be astonished if anything happened to you right now because of Jesus?
Let me ask the questions another way:
- From what has Jesus ever set you free?
- From what force not of your control would you like to be set free right now?
- Is your Christianity a liberating force or a captivating, second rate force?
There is a powerful new hymn text which speaks to our time, this text, and the possibilities of Jesus' authority over our demons:
"Silence! Frenzied, unclean spirit,"
    cried God's healing Holy One.
"Cease your ranting! Flesh can't bear it.
    Flee as night before the sun."
At Christ's voice the demon trembled,
    from its victim madly rushed,
while the crowd that was assembled
    stood in wonder, stunned and hushed.

Lord, the demons still are thriving
    in the gray cells of the mind:
tyrant voices, shrill and driving,
    twisted thoughts that grip and bind,
doubts that stir the heart to panic,
    fears distorting reason's sight,
guilt that makes our loving frantic,
    dreams that cloud the soul with fright.

Silence, Lord, the unclean spirit,
    in our mind and in our heart.
Speak your word that when we hear it,
    all our demons shall depart.
Clear our thought and calm our feeling,
    still the fractured warring soul.
By the power of your healing,
    make us faithful, true and whole.

(Thomas H. Troeger, "Silence! Frenzied, Unclean Spirit," A New Hymnal for Colleges and Schools, edited by Jeffrey Rowthorn and Russell Schultz-Widmar [New Haven: Yale University Press] No. 414, 1992)

CONCLUSION

Now it is time to move
from conversation to communion,
from sermon to sacrament,
from what someone has called "the audible word" to "the edible word."

As we gather around the Lord's Table, let us recognize...
the One who has the power to cast out our demons,
the One who has the authority to set us free,
the One who stands knocking at the door of our hearts,
the One who would have us hear his voice and open the door,
the One who would come into us, and sup with us.
the One whose "love has pierced our darkness," and "brought us home to peace and light."
(Tom Allen, "Jesus at Your Holy Table," Baptist Hymnal, op. cit., No. 377)
© John Ewing Roberts
Woodbrook Baptist Church
(Formerly Eutaw Place Baptist Church)
Baltimore, Maryland
[This sermon is for circulation within the Woodbrook congregation and may not be reproduced without permission.]