“AUTHORITY”

Text: Mark 1: 21-28

21 And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. 
22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. 
23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out,
24 "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." 
25 But Jesus rebuked [commands] him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"
26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.

27And 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."

28 And at once [immediately] his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. †

wrong way to tell a joke

Ever known someone who really knows how to butcher a good joke? I’m pretty sure I’m in that category, but years of doing youth ministry taught me more ways to ruin a joke than I ever wanted to know. So here’s a joke:

A man walks into a bar with a cheese sandwich under his arm. "A pint of Guinness for me and the cheese sandwich," he says to the barman. "I'm sorry, sir," replies the barman, "we don't serve food here.”

Now there are many ways you could have ruined that joke for us.

1. 1.Announcing: Oh yeah, I’ve heard this one before.
   
2. 2.Blurting out questions about the details as soon as you hear them. What kind of cheese was the sandwich? You didn’t say whether or not is was grilled!
   
3. 3.Laughing hysterically a few words before the punchline.
   
4. 4.Laughing way too hard—sarcastically—as soon as the punchline’s been said.
   
5. 5.Asking after the joke, Then what happened?
   

These are ways the listener ruins a good joke, but the teller can be just as bad, as I think I probably demonstrated. I want to share with you how Mark would tell this joke:

A man walks into a bar with a cheese sandwich under his arm. "A pint of Guinness for me and the cheese sandwich," he says to the barman. "I'm sorry, sir," replies the barman, "we don't serve food here.”

“Well I guess we’ll have to do without the Guinness then!” Immediately the man and his sandwich walk out of the bar.

It strikes us as strange, but the middle eastern story always puts the punchline—the most important phrase—right in the middle of the passage. You climb up to it and then walk down from it using the same steps.

Our text today is such a story. Let’s walk through it briefly and hear God’s Word to us.

WALK THROUGH THE TEXT

21 And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching.

Although Jesus was born in Bethlehem and raised in Nazareth, we can call Capernaum the hometown of his ministry. With his four new disciples—Simon, Andrew, James and John—he immediately on the sabbath enters and teaches.

22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. 

Mark explicitly reports the effect of Jesus’ teaching. People were amazed and astounded by his teaching. Apparently, when Jesus taught, people’s jaws dropped open. More than that, they perceived in his teaching that central quality lacking in their education previously: authority.

The funny thing is that for all the reporting of the impact of what Jesus said, Mark doesn’t quote a word! Wouldn’t we love to know what it was that Jesus said that knocked the listeners back on the heels? Isn’t this where Mark should have told us at least one or two of the teachings that had such authority and amazed the synagogue goers?

a whole new school

The people said, “he teaches as one with authority, unlike all the others.” What was this authority the people saw in Jesus that was lacking in the other teachers and scribes? We live in a culture that is pretty well obsessed with authority issues—especially questioning all authority—but I think the answer may be simple.

All of us, when reading and studying scripture, have to acknowledge our limits of what we know and what  can be known from the written word. We read the Bible and then we are left to fend for ourselves in a world of differing interpretations and commentaries.

Put in brief, a denomination is really nothing other than a community which agrees to particular interpretations of scripture. If we hold to this set of interpretations, we’re Baptists; this set of interpretations, we’re Catholic; this set, Presbyterians; this set, Nondenominational (that’s right, there’s no neutral on this—non-denominations are just as denominational, for they too are gathered around their interpretations).

Jesus’ world was the same, only it was differing rabbinical schools in ancient Judaism.  Rabbis had their followings, and their popularity and social mobility depended upon their body of interpretations. Jesus did not lead as they led, nor teach as they taught. Jesus is a whole new school.

It comes down to this: Jesus, unlike all the others, didn’t rely on commentaries. He didn’t have to quote the experts to give weight to his proclamations. His special authority is this: he spoke as one who truly knows God, not merely one who knows things about God.

Like Moses, Jesus spoke directly with God and knew God’s heart, so why would he need anything else? Jesus not only teaches the Word, Jesus is the Word. There is no higher authority. After Jesus speaks, no former commentary has any weight or authority left, except that it be in or out of alignment with what Jesus says.

That’s still the code today. We hold scripture to be authoritative because in it we hear Jesus speak. His authority directs, exhorts and encourages our lives today just the same as he did that sabbath morning in Capernaum.

IDENTITY BEFORE TEACHING

So back to our question: if what Jesus taught was so astounding and amazing, why didn’t Mark give us one or two quotes? The answer is that Mark—by his silence—is telling us something very profound that we must not miss; namely, that what Jesus taught—as important as that is—is less important than knowing Who he is.

The center of Mark’s proclamation is that Jesus is Messiah and the Son of God. Remember Chapter 1 verse 1:

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

That’s Mark’s title and every page will support that theme. It is far less important that we know things about Jesus than we know Jesus himself.  Mark establishes in these verses the prescription for all church health. A person can know tons about Jesus—seminary degrees and doctorates—but if he doesn’t know Jesus personally, he is lost.

Mark doesn’t tell us the whats that Jesus taught with authority—we don’t hear what was so amazing—because Mark is trying to show us that what was amazing was Jesus himself. Mark wants us to love him and worship him, not just his ideas or teachings.

And here’s the good news: just as Jesus knew—really knew—the Father, we can really know him.

OUR KNOWLEDGE IMPERFECT

What Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13 rings true in every age: 

Our knowledge is imperfect and I know in part

We are limited in the English language by having only one word for knowledge, to know. If I were to ask you, “Hey, you know Harrison Ford?” You’d probably say, “Yeah, but I don’t know him personally I just know about him.”  Well come on, do you know him or not? We seem to be short of a verb here, because we have to make this clarification: I know of him, but I can’t say I know him personally.  It can be confusing, can’t it?

The Old Testament had a word for knowing God personally, and it translates badly into English. The word we have for it is fear.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom.

I think that is not good translation. In my opinion, a better translation would be:

The personal knowledge of God—knowing God personally—is the beginning of all wisdom.

Which sounds awful and shows us why we need a new English verb. The point here is that Jesus teaches with a new teaching—one that offers not just a lot of ideas about God, but a teaching with authority—that is, a personal knowledge of God.

Bono of U2 has a great quote. He said:

Religion is what is left

once the Holy Spirit has left the building.

Faith is not about an adherence to a set of ideas or walking in a cultural tradition (no matter how otherwise valuable); it is either a first-hand knowing of God in Christ or it is “religion”—what is left once the Holy Spirit is gone.

Religion is what the scribes and other teachers had. Religion was the substance of their teaching. They were interested in carrying on a tradition—a culture—and preserving a body of ideas. Jesus has no interest in religion. Hear me again: Jesus has no interest in religion. Rather, Jesus wants us plugged in directly to the source. He wants us to know God the Father which we can do through knowing him.

UNCLEAN SPIRIT BLURTS OUT

23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out,

Question: Where is the unclean spirit found? In the Gentile landscape? Out in the streets? From a cave, a river, or the lake? No, the unclean spirit comes right out of the midst of the synagogue gathering.

Note: Mark does not call this a demon, but an unclean spirit. There is a difference—there are demons that possess people elsewhere in Mark—but here he never uses the word; he is specific about it being an unclean spirit.

People of that day who were called demon-possessed tended to be known quantities. Perhaps they were what we would call mentally ill—schizophrenic, hallucinatory, Tourette’s syndrome, etc.—but most of them had visible signs of their ancient diagnosis and—more to the point—they were not allowed into the synagogue.

This one was an unclean spirit. This doesn’t mean dirty or unhygienic, but Old Testament unclean—ceremonially impure. The word means something like spiritually radioactive or invisibly toxic. The word unclean suggests that which repels holiness and the presence of God. We might say “unholy” to keep it simple.

This was a man with full rights and ingress to  the synagogue gathering. He was a member. He walked in on his own two feet, greeted people at the door, put on his nametag and sang the songs like everyone else. Yes, he was possessed, but not by a demon, but by an unholy spirit—Mark means for us to see a difference.

In every other way, this possession looks like demonic possession. He  blurts out:

24 "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?

Are these the words of a host of spirits within him or is he the spokesperson for the whole species of unholy spirits like him?

Notice that this same question is at the heart of what the High Priests, the scribes, the Pharisees and the other Rabbis might have said. “Have you come to destroy us and unmake our power structure?”

The spirit recognizes who Jesus is:

I know who you are--the Holy One of God."

Here is one of Mark’s great ironies. Who is it that recognizes Jesus as Messiah and Son of God? This is the first—an unclean Spirit. It doesn’t come from a disciple or a religious leader; it comes from a possessed man. This man is the first time in Mark that God’s truth is spoken specifically about him.

Is this odd? Isn’t the whole point that the word should get out and it be known that Jesus is the Holy One of God? Why does Jesus tell him to shut up (literally: “be muzzled!”)?

Unholy spirits can be welcomed at the door, greeted and ushered into their pews with their families. They sing along with the songs, pray the prayers and go through the motions, but when Jesus appears—when the Word of God is met—they show themselves, threatened and fearful.

There are congregations—perhaps even denominations—that do just fine by themselves. They are happy families, contented as cows. Then comes Jesus with a teaching that they find threatening and they go unclean, unholy.

As if to say: “You know, Jesus, we were just getting comfortable with our religion when you came in and messed things up!”

The man with the unclean spirit says (in today’s terms):

“We know who you are, Jesus—yes, you’re the Messiah and even the Son of God—buuut, we get the feeling you’re going to do things differently, and some of your words are, well, a bit harsh—we’re really not used to teachings that demand something from us, soooo, you see what I mean? Every time you open your mouth it’s like you expect us to change. Come on, this is a nice place  with nice people, and it’s taken us a long time to establish our current equilibrium, so please, don’t mess things up for us!”

25 But Jesus rebuked [commands] him[the spirit], saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" 26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.

There is only one solution: the unholy spirit must come out.

Notice: the unclean spirit does not lie, nor does it speak blasphemies. Every word it utters is true (Isn’t that interesting?). Sometimes speaking what is true can nonetheless be unclean and unholy.

This is how gossip grows—because something might be true gives people the idea that it is okay to spread. The problem is: distortions always spread faster and wider than truth.

Winston Churchill said it well:

A lie gets halfway round the world before truth
   has a chance to get its pants on

The only thing to do once we are called out for an unholy attitude is to let it come out an let it go.

Jesus is amazing. He doesn’t cast out the man, but the unholy spirit within the man.

QUESTION OF FOLLOW-UP

The good news—perhaps the biggest surprise—is in the part of the story we don’t see. Mark doesn’t tell us, but I wonder how that congregation received that man after the spirit was cast out? Did they welcome him or were they wary of him in a new way? Remember, they had welcomed him into the synagogue—the unholy spirit was smuggled in—were they ashamed that he had been part of the congregation in the first place? Now exposed, would the people accept his healed, redeemed state or would they begrudge him  because he had been possessed? Did they steer their children away from him? Did they become so focused on him and his episode that he was now the center of attention?

Let’s hope that the reverse was true—and that with the healing of one man the whole synagogue was truly made clean. This is clearly the story of Jesus, and how his personal relationship with God empowers his ministry. His word can be like a sharp sword, dividing us from our wants and comforts, but all for our healing—our own true good.

DIFFERENT DAY; SAME GOSPEL

The invitation comes to us from Christ and his example. Our first interest is not in Jesus’ teachings or his earthly example. Those are fine, but they are secondary to the main message, which is that Jesus is Lord, Messiah, Son of God. That knowledge is more than all the religions of the world in value.

The good news is that God wants to be known by you and me more than known about. In Jesus we are invited to that truly-knowing, personal relationship that is life-giving.

I know a few things about Jesus, and scripture and theology—but I consider it all rubbish compared to the reality that I—like all his disciples— can say I KNOW HIM PERSONALLY. I know him; I really know him.

May our central joy become introducing people to him. †

“ANOINTED"

Text: Mark 1: 9-15

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."
12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.
13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.
14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God,
15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."†

Mark: on his own terms

We’re walking through the gospel of Mark, who gives us a rightside-up Jesus in an upside-down world.  As we do this, let’s remember that we need to let the gospels each speak for themselves, in their own voices and on their own terms. We may be familiar with all the gospels and know the parallel accounts in Matthew, Luke and John, but Mark tells his story differently; and we our best way to understand the whole Gospel is to be sure we hear each gospel writer in his own voice.

In today’s text, we cover three episodes in short descriptions: Jesus’ baptism, temptation in the wilderness, and beginning of his preaching. Let’s seek to hear Mark speak for himself and then consider some connection points to our lives. We’ll look at this in three parts: the calling, the training, and getting into the game.

1. THE CALLING AND THE REVERSE OF THE CURSE

The first part shows us the calling of Jesus—his baptism and ordination by God. Verse 9:

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

On the surface, this is very ordinary. Lots of people came from Galilee in the north country to hear John and be baptized. Nazareth was a little nowhere town. From the humblest of beginnings we’ll see the most enormous effect.

10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

Two movements: Jesus coming up out of the water and the Spirit/dove coming down from Heaven. We need to see this like a painting, for it is Mark’s first picture of reconciliation between humankind and God. Jesus, representing all of humanity comes out of the water, and at the same time, a dove comes down with the Holy Spirit of God. Two movements of God toward humanity in the Holy Spirit and redeemed humanity toward God. These two movements coming together is reconciliation, as in the story of the Prodigal Son where father and son move toward each other—one in repentance and the other in grace. We can also see Noah in Genesis 8: 8-11:

Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground. 9 But the dove found no place to set her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her and brought her into the ark with him. 10 He waited another seven days, and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark. 11 And the dove came back to him in the evening, and behold, in her mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.

Just as Noah’s dove brings a message of the end of divine wrath for human sin, so in Jesus we see a new message: the reverse of the curse, the end of divine wrath for human sin.

The curse that has so long separated humanity from fellowship with God will be overcome in Jesus. The curse of sin and separation is coming to its end. This is made explicit in verse 11:

11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."

Jesus is the new Adam coming up out of the water, not in banishment for sin but in holiness and right relationship with the Father.

Theologian Karl Barth sums up the gospel by saying that Jesus Christ is God’s “yes” to humanity. Where is the shame of sin? Where the curse? It is nowhere. In Jesus, God blesses humankind and pronounces nothing but approval: “You are my beloved and I am pleased with you!”

Like verse 1 of Mark, this is the beginning of the good news—telling us that the narrative of shame that has plagued humanity is at its end. Israel’s whole history is a story of their best efforts yielding spiritual failure again and again. As hard as they tried, they couldn’t overcome sin in their own power. It’s no different for us—for shame is our whole story until the love of God rescues us from sin. God loves us as only God can love. He loves us in spite of our shame.

Today is Mothers’ Day and I was thinking of that odd, old phrase: “a face only a mother could love.” Now I don’t think there is a kind way to say that, but think of what is behind the saying. What kind of love is this, that loves tremendously when others do not? The mother who loves her son who is unfortunate-looking cares not for the thoughts of the rest of the world. Even if he is not virtuous, the mother’s love is constant. Think of all those old movies where a criminal’s mother pleads with the judge  to show mercy because she knows in her heart what a good boy he really is—a mother’s love is constant and undiminished by shortcomings, afflictions. A mother’s love is quick to forgive, and this is a most marvelous kind of love. I’ll say that it’s godly, for it is truly God-like. It is love that is more powerful than all the shame and dislike this world can pour out. It’s this kind of love that becomes a care for all children.

You might say that humanity, in its fallen state, had a face only God could love. In Jesus, the curse is reversed. Sin’s power over us is at its end, and God says, “You are my beloved sons and daughters and I am delighted in you.”

In Jesus’ baptism, God’s own voice proclaims Jesus his Son. As Jesus is favored, so shall all be who are in Christ. You and I, who have been united with Christ in baptism, need to hear this. God is not at odds with us; he is delighted with us and his love is more powerful than sin. As if to prove this, Jesus is next driven into the wilderness.

II. THE TRAINING: JESUS MASTERS THE MASTERS

12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

Jesus isn’t led out in Mark, he is forcibly driven out into the wilderness. As the first verses showed us Jesus’ calling, here we see his training and preparation for ministry.

Notice how Mark doesn’t tell us anything about the temptations, nor does it say he fasted, but he was 40 days out, just like Moses and Elijah before him. We see Moses trial in Exodus 24: 16-18:

16 The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18 Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

And we see Elijah in 1 Kings 19: 5-8

5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, "Arise and eat." 6 And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, "Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you." 8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.

Mark presents to us Jesus as the fulfillment or the perfecter of Moses and Elijah. He is not merely like Moses and Elijah, he is the better version of both. He is not only the law-giver that Moses was, but he will speak as the very author of the Law. He is not a prophet—a bearer of God’s Word—like Elijah, but he is himself God’s Word in the flesh.

Another part of Mark’s portrait is found in this curious phrase, “and he was with the wild animals,” which appears nowhere else. What are we to make of this? Remember that Mark wants us to see something. What do we see? We see Adam in Eden, in perfect harmony with the wild animals. We see Daniel in the lion’s den. And we hear Psalm 91: 9-13:

9 Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place-- the Most High, who is my refuge-- 10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

In this place of wilderness, Jesus is protected and attended. There is no fear because God who loves him is working out his purposes.

We may not have wilderness and wild animals threatening us, but our lives have trials and temptations that are hard-enough. We live in a human wilderness where people seek to shame us and work against that blessing of God’s favor toward us.

We can feel sorry for ourselves (I often have), and feel hurt and injured—even play the victim—for their are no wilder animals that human beings. They can bite, betray, backstab and belittle, adding to our feelings of shame and unworthiness. It can feel very much like being attacked by wild animals. What’s more, we can give an awful lot of headspace to those who would injure us. You might be like a person out in the wild, constantly worried over what the next attack might be.

Two things we do well to take from this:

1. 1.Don’t give anyone free rent in your head.
   
2. 2.Angels and the Spirit attend us in the wild.
   

When we feel like we’re out in the wilderness, we need to remember that we are driven out there not for our destruction but for our good. The Spirit drives us out to where we can learn Christlikeness.

The most dangerous prayer we can pray is to become more like Christ. Have you ever asked God to become a more loving person? A more trusting Christian? A more forgiving person? How do you think he answers those prayers? Do you think he just pours into us new courage and a feeling of forgivingness that we can automatically act out? I don’t think so. If you pray to become a more forgiving Christian, you can expect the Spirit to drive you into the  wilderness—you will find something very big that you will have to forgive! Something you very much do not want to forgive—that is how we become more forgiving, more Christlike.

The wilderness is no longer a threat to us because Christ is always there, showing us the way to survive and grow in our faithfulness and trust of God. We should seek a place in our hearts where we can, like Jesus in the wild—like Daniel in the lion’s den—trust God and be at peace, even when we hear nothing but growls in the dark.

When we become truly mature Christians, we might even come to thank God for these things as opportunities to grow.

After the testing comes part three: getting into the game.

III. INTO THE GAME: REPENTING FOR GOOD NEWS

With this text, we see Jesus fully launched into his ministry. He has fully taken the baton of John’s ministry, completing and perfecting it. Verses 14 and 15:

14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

While John’s message was repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins, the proclamation of Jesus is it’s time to believe God’s good news. What was that good news? In short, that God’s favor has arrived. This is the consistent theme in Mark so far. God is for us, not against us. God wants to save us, not to judge or condemn us. God wants us to grow and flourish, not to live in shame and guilt. The gospel is an invitation to a new way of living. Jesus says repent and believe the good news.

The word repent is the same word as convert. It comes from the Greek word metanoia, which literally means think in a new way. Twenty years ago, Apple Computer hit the nail on the head, with their slogan Think Different. That is an excellent translation of the word metanoia.

Consider the whole picture: you have an apple with a bit out of it, signifying the narrative of shame and sin—the Fall of humanity in Eden. The image is filled by a rainbow, which, Biblically, indicates the promise of God. Just as God promised to Noah a relief from divine judgment for sin (of which the rainbow was the sign), so in Christ we have the promise of the redemption of sin, with the proclamation of the prophets and Jesus below: Think Different.

Think Different and believe the good news.

Believing the good news might require some repentance for us. We may have become perfectly content with living under the thumb of shame. We may feel perfectly justified in looking down our noses at certain people, or perfectly righteous while holding grudges. In all cases, we’re living the story of shame, not of God.

One final fact to consider: the name Satan means the Accuser, which we can translate to the Grand Shamer. If the good news is that God means us to know we are loved and favored, yet we live as though we are still under the curse of shame—and we seek to trade shame with one another instead of living beyond shame’s power—then whose Lordship is in greater evidence?

We need to pray those hard prayers and trust God’s good news of favor toward us:

•Lord, make me a great forgiver

•Lord, lead me to love like a good Mother

•God help me to trust You and not myself

•Lord, be with those who falsely accuse me

•Dear Jesus, teach me Your path of strength

•Holy Spirit, remind my heart of Your favor. †