Jesus Spoke With Authority
Polk City UMC
February 2, 2003
Mark Haverland
THE GOSPEL: Mark 1:21-28 They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They
were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and
not as the scribes. Just then 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."
But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" And
the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of
him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is
this? A new teaching -- with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits,
and they obey him." At once his fame began to spread throughout the
surrounding region of Galilee.
Do we exorcize demons anymore? You bet we do. In fact, the President is trying to exorcize a
demon as we speak. This is what he said
this past week as he tried to convince us that a dangerous demon possesses the
soul of Saddam Hussein and the nation he controls.
The dictator who is assembling the world's most
dangerous weapons has already used them on whole villages -- leaving thousands
of his own citizens dead, blind, or disfigured. Iraqi refugees tell us how
forced confessions are obtained -- by torturing children while their parents
are made to watch. International human rights groups have catalogued other
methods used in the torture chambers of Iraq: electric shock, burning with hot
irons, dripping acid on the skin, mutilation with electric drills, cutting out
tongues, and rape. If this is not evil, then evil has no meaning.
President Bush identified a very evil demon indeed in
the person of Saddam Hussein. And he and
much of the world are preparing to exorcizing it. The question we have to answer is whether he
speaks with authority. That is: does
he not only speak the truth, but does he also have the competence to get the
job done? Will the demon leave when the
president acts?
When Jesus spoke to the demon in the man possessed, the
demons knew right away that Jesus had the power to expel him. He spoke with authority. The congregation in the synagogue may have had
some doubts initially but when they saw the demon flee the convulsing lunatic,
they, too, knew that Jesus spoke with authority.
Those with authority like Jesus have two basic characteristics. First of all, they share our values; values which
include us and our interests. Notice the
president began his speech with a long discourse on how much he was going to do
for us: clean up the environment, decrease our reliance on foreign oil, help
poor victims of aids, improve access to prescription drugs for seniors and so
forth. He wants us to believe that he
shares our values and that we are benefited by those values. Secondly, a leader must convince us that he
is competent to accomplish the challenges that face us. Jesus had little difficulty convincing the
crowds of his ability to command the demons to flee the field. He spoke and they convulsed their way out of
their victim. The President has not yet
performed this miracle with Iraq. He has
convinced many of his ability to lead a victorious rousting of the demon from
Iraq, but not quite everyone. But at
least at this point, the country and world seem poised to let the President exocize the demon in Iraq.
He had better act quickly, however. The polls reveal declining support for the
president. I think this is is part because his programs for the economy, for the
environment, for health care, for energy don't convince everyone that he holds
values which include you and me. And
support for the war is eroding also, although not as dramatically. I suspect the president will act soon before
he loses his authority.
What do we make of all
this talk about demons, and demonic forces?
I dare say that most of us here today don't believe in demons as
personalities that rule our lives. However,
who among us can deny the reality of demonic forces. Isnt Saddam Hussein truly evil and therefore
a demon? Dont we experience evil in our
lives, both societal evils and personal shortcomings? Can't we call those demons?
Any time people are held captive
by forces beyond their control, they are possessed by demons. In our society, for instance, the problems
faced by people in poverty grow ever larger.
Homelessness, hunger, lack of health care, access to equal education,
unemployment and underemployment capture people. Such people must feel something over which
they have no control has taken over their lives. I think discrimination and harassment against
gay and lesbian students and faculty in the schools is a demon. Those who abuse our environment are demonic. The list goes on and on. Such modern evils can easily be called the demons
of today.
Personal demons are
real, too. I can't speak for everyone,
but I know that some of us are possessed by the demon of fear - fear of
futility, fear of making others angry, fear of rejection, fear of
ridicule. Others are possessed by anger
and hatred, which forces them to behave in irratioanal
and evil ways. Cant anger and hatred be
demons? Even indifference can be a
demon, causing us to lack interest in other people and their problems. Selfishness can be a demon which isolates us
from the Jesus we find in those who need our help.
Demons can persecute us,
can make us feel desperate: the
craziness of guilt and shame, the despair of loneliness, the unrelenting
competition and drivenness of people's lives all
these can feel like demons. Hopelessness
in the face of tragic death such as struck the astronauts so unexpectedly
yesterday morning do not their families feel like a demon has settled into
their lives; the heartbreaking pain of a friend's unfaithfulness; the confusion
of young and old alike about how to make sense of the random violence which
crushes them; the rage churning within a friend or family member out of control
and fearful of the future. We know the
paralysis of powerlessness to stop bad things that are going on around us. Yes.
We know those demons are real. We
know people under siege by demons for we have been such people ourselves.
To all who have demons
that plague them, the gospel-writer Mark tells us the end has begun in
Jesus. And the end is certain. God whose kingdom, even
now, has broken into our midst with power. With authority and with urgency this power will
drive our demons away.
If in the Christmas season
we are prone to sentimentalize the Jesus who comes into our midst wrapped in
swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, the Epiphany season shakes us into the
startling awareness that in this self-same Jesus we are also confronted with
the very power and authority of God made flesh. While some healing stories may
point us toward the Jesus of compassion and tender care, this story brings us
face-to-face with a boundary-defying, demon-exorcising Jesus, whose authority -
while certainly grounded in God's love and justice - is also coupled with God's
power to conquer every other force that threatens to undo us. If we let him, Jesus will silence our demons
with the might of his authority nothing stands up to his commanding voice.
Of course, its not always easy to tell which voice is
the voice of Jesus. In considering all
the voices which attempt to speak with authority, how are we to know which to
follow? For instance, as we listen to
the president speak to the demons, how do we know if
his voice has real authority? Some
among us say yes, others say no. Who is
right?
Methodists have a suggestion. The confirmation class learned about it this
past Wednesday. Its called the Wesley
Quadrilateral. When Methodists begin to
ask which voice has authority, we have four factors to consider. We dont turn just to the Bible although
the Bible may well be a good place to start and we give it a bit of extra
weight. But the Bible does not provide
an instant answer to every problem. No
one in the Bible doubted that insanity was possession by a very real demon, for
instance, whose voice tormented its victim.
We now know more about mental illness.
But to tease some meaning out of the story of a poor schizophrenic
encountering Jesus, well, that takes some doing. The Bible is a good place to start, to be
sure, but Wesley encouraged us to consult three other sources of
authority. Consider what the church has
taught over the ages. The tradition of
faithful Christians can sometimes bring light to bear on a dark subject. Think also about your own personal
experience. Does it often work to cure
mental illness by shouting at the evil spirits?
Does a program of retaliation really work to bring about peace? Our experience can teach us a lot. To the Bible, the tradition, and experience Wesley
adds the notion that all this must finally make sense. God gave us brains so use them, Wesley
suggested. Asking whether or not
handling snakes makes sense can keep us safe, even though the Bible suggests
that its a way to prove your faithfulness.
Our tradition and our experience dont think much of snake handling eeither. Only those
who only use the Bible could reach the silly conclusion that snake handling is
a Christian practice. Snake handling is
not the only silly practice Christians engage in because they use only the
Bible when they approach a problem.
To this I would add only one more thing. Follow Christ! Jesus had one more leadership quality besides
a set of values which ring true and a powerful efficacy at driving out
demons. He also possessed the power to
draw us into a relationship with him. So
many voices! Which should I follow? Human beings are social animals. We have evolved to know that when we stick
together, we are more likely to survive.
No leader who is not also a friend will protect you from your demons. Jesus is our friend and so we know that we
can trust his authority.
In considering the idea that Jesus taught as one who had authority, and not like the scribes, I came across a story about a gathering in which a noted actor was called upon to give an oration. He stood, cleared his throat, and recited the 23rd Psalm, with perfect dramatization, inflection, and so on. When he finished, the room was filed with applause.
Then, an elderly priest stepped forward, and proceeded to recite the same words. When he finished, there was not a sound in the room. But nearly every eye was filled with tears.
Someone asked the actor what the difference had been. "Well, you see," he said, "There's no doubt that I know the 23rd Psalm backwards and forwards. But the Padre here, well, he knows the Shepherd."
Jesus redefines authority as someone we can trust, someone we can believe, someone who cares about us. Instead of being used to reinforce and uphold oppressive societal structures, or to mask and cover over truth, Jesus uses his authority to boldly proclaim the whole truth of God, to break down false boundaries that separate clean from unclean, to cast out demons from those possessed, and to proclaim God's victory over all demonic forces. Teaching in the synagogue "as one with authority," Jesus, through his very being, also sends a warning to all other false prophets and despotic leaders: "Beware, for the time of your control is coming to a swift and certain end. The reign of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel."
In a world such as ours, in which many despotic powers still hold people captive, such news is good indeed. The day of dictatorships of whatever stripe is coming to an end. The day of leaders whose authority is grounded in lies, cruelty, or deception, is coming to an end. The day in which people are possessed by forces that control, manipulate, and enslave them is coming to an end. The day of exclusion and ostracism on the basis of mental illness or other debilitating disease is coming to an end. The day of evil gaining an upper hand over good is coming to an end. God, whose kingdom has broken into our midst with the power and authority of Jesus to cast out our demons, will win the victory over all the evil which now seems to weigh us down. Now thats real authority!