Title: We have it on good authority!
Text: Mark 1:21-28
Thesis: We must come to grips with the authority of Christ and live accordingly.
Introduction
Babe Ruth was the great home run hitter for the New York Yankees baseball team. During one particular at-bat, the umpire, called Ruth out on strikes. There was a stunned silence in the stands. Ruth turned to the ump and said, "There are 40,000 people here who know that last one was a ball." The umpire replied, "Maybe so, but mine is the only opinion that counts."
We live in a world of thousands of opinions. Whose opinion counts? Who has the authority that matters? There are experts in every field imaginable, some of whom say conflicting things.
Do we listen to the voices that say we should wear masks? Or do we listen to the voices that tell us wearing a mask is ineffective in spreading COVID – 19? Do we listen to the voices telling us that climate change is real and we need to act no if we hope to save our planet? Or do we listen to the voices that debunk the idea of climate change as a hoax? Who do we listen to when so many smart people espouse differences of opinion?
Who do we look to as our authority? Wikipedia of course!
Wikipedia is an internet-based encyclopedia. Wikipedia can be edited by anyone at any time. This means that any information it contains at any particular moment could be just plain wrong. Wikipedia says of itself: “Wikipedia is not a reliable source.”
However, there are Wikipedia sites in 300 different languages with 46 million articles accessed by 1.4 billion unique devices every month. An army of 200,000 editors and contributors patrol Wikipedia’s online knowledge every day. Basically anyone anywhere can put whatever they think or know online, just in case you ever want to know what they think or know.
As Yakov Smirnoff would say, “What a country!”
I use Wikipedia a lot… in fact the information I just reeled off came directly from the Wikipedia site.
So when a person (like any of us in the room) has a difficult decision to make during a stressful time in life… like their marriage, personal finances, personal or professional conflicts or whatever, who do they listen to? Oprah? Dr. Phil? "Dear Abby"? Parents? Friends? Pastor? Whose opinion counts?
When I'm deciding which movies I'll see or preferred TV programs I'll watch who do I turn to? Celebrities? Promos? Word-of-mouth among my friends? Whose opinion counts? When I am trying to decide what books I would like to read, who do I ask for a good review? The New York Times Bestseller List? Good Reads? Amazon Book Reviews?
If I were making decisions about how to start a business or advance my career or handle a sticky situation at work—where do I get direction? Mentors? Fast Company or Forbes magazines? Pod Casts? TED Talks?
Who's my authority? Who do I listen to?
In our text today, Mark 1:21-28, we read of some people, who though living in a different time, shared all of our concerns and were pleasantly surprised to discover a person who had authority and could answer their questions.
There were people who were attending a service in their local synagogue and Jesus Christ just happened to be the teacher that morning. From the Biblical account this is my first observation:
I. Jesus displayed a remarkable level of authority.
Jesus and his companions went to the town of Capernaum. When the Sabbath day came he went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching for he taught with real authority – quite unlike the teachers of religious law. Mark 1:21-22
At the time there was no resident teacher at any synagogue. The teaching was done by lay-people. A coordinator or facilitator supervised the services and scheduled the speakers. Word had spread about Jesus, because he had been doing a lot of preaching throughout area. When he came to Capernaum, they immediately invited him to be the speaker for as many times as he wished.
Verse 22 tells us that the people were blown away by his teaching. Amazed. They didn't know what to make of it. His words had authority. The scribes or teachers of the law knew the Jewish teachings of the elders. They knew the different biblical interpretations that had come down through the centuries. They could tell you, "Rabbi so-and-so said this. But Rabbi such-and-such thought it meant this instead." They could teach you the options, but they couldn't decide among them. All they could do was repeat the traditions of the fathers long ago. But when Jesus taught, he spoke with a certainty that came from God. His words had authority. They had the ring of truth. And the people said: This is different than what we're used to. He's not like the scribes or teachers of the law. His words have an authority.
The fact that while most everyone hung on every word that Jesus spoke… not everyone was impressed by him or pleased by his popularity which leads me to a second observation.
II. Jesus experienced resistance to his authority.
Suddenly, a man in the synagogue who was possessed with an evil spirit began shouting, “Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” Mark 1:23-24
Jesus cut him short. “Be quiet! Come out of the man,” he ordered. At that, the evil spirit screamed, threw the man into a convulsion, and came out of him. Mark 1:25-26
So one Sabbath, something happened during one of their services that was definitely out of the ordinary. 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.
The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this? A new teacher—one who speaks with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him." News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.
In verse 22 when Jesus taught the people were amazed. It means they were blown away… astonished. But in verse 27 where Mark wrote, “Amazement gripped the audience”
The word for "amazed" in verse 27 is very different than the word used in verse 22. Here in verse 27 the word amazement carries with it the idea of fear… that what they had seen and heard was scary and they did not understand what had happened. It was a bit more than they could handle
.
With us, it's the other way around. The thought of a demon actually being in someone, making them do something, sounds strange, even scary, to us. We seldom explain anyone's behavior as being caused by a demon. But at the same time, we have these unusual phrases that we use: "What's gotten into you?" or "What's come over you?" We use these phrases when the behavior is something we can't explain. It's an indication that we know something else is going on.
There are times when we come across some, what I think of as big time evil that is beyond our ability to comprehend or explain —an evil that's out of the ordinary, beyond normal human sinfulness. Hitler. Charlie Manson. Ted Bundy. Jeffrey Dahmer. Brian and Wanda Mitchell… Elizabeth Smart kidnappers. Pedophiles. Rapists. White collar cheats that devastate your retirement funds. People like Ken Lay of the Enron Scandal and Bernie Madoff who bilked people of all that they had conscientiously squirreled away for their retirement… what kind of person does that to anyone?
On a lesser scale, we sometimes encounter self-destructive behavior that just doesn't make sense. We observe people acting out in anger. We do not appreciate a mean-spirited person who seems driven by the desire to humiliate or hurt others. Narcissists and liars are not people we care to hang out with. And sometimes we just shake our heads and wonder, what makes them be like that?"
There is evil that doesn't make sense. In our passage today, Jesus shows for the first time his power to do something about evil. He has absolute authority over the demon. He simply speaks, and the demon has to leave. There is no drawn-out ritual to cast the demon out—no incantation, mumbo-jumbo, incense, props, lengthy prayer, no prolonged struggle. Jesus simply makes the decision that demon will no longer have control, and the matter is settled. He just gave the order—"Come out of him"—and the demon obeyed. Jesus had authority!
I would like to make a third observation. That was then and this is now and the question for you and me is a simple one…
III. Are we willing to live according to Jesus' remarkable level of authority?
Amazement gripped the audience and they began to discuss what had happened. “What sort of new teaching is this? It has such authority! Even evil spirits obey his orders!” And the news spread quickly throughout the entire region of Galilee. Mark 1:27-28
Their amazement has a bit of fear in it. They're not sure how to handle this level of authority. As we grapple with the implications of this for us, are we prepared for this kind of authority in our lives? Are we ready for an authority where his word makes it true and his decision makes it happen? An authority where when he says something, we respond with obedience?
What does Jesus say about how I treat my spouse and family and co-workers and neighbors? What does Jesus say about what I think about and read and watch and talk about?
What does Jesus say about my professional and business relationships? What does Jesus say about my personal pursuits? My goals in life? What does Jesus say about my personal habits? Internet use? Do I just use my own judgement?
We might ask ourselves, am I really the captain of my soul? According to Wikipedia, William Ernest Henley wrote Invictus in 1875 and published it in his first book of poems in 1888. The last two lines of Invictus go like this: “I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.”
We understand it to be a masterfully written poem about perseverance and fearlessness in the face of adversity. It is so powerful that Nelson Mandela often recited Invictus to his fellow prison-mates in South Africa. And it can be argued that we each do indeed have the power to choose our own eternal destination.
But there is a point at which we all must decide if we are going to go with our own best effort or choose who will be the ultimate authority in our lives… who is the captain of my life and my soul?
If we are at all wise we will recognize our ultimate need for the grace and mercy and guidance of God. We desperately need to hear the voice of authority and listen to Jesus and allow the Spirit of God to guide us as we read the Word of God.
Conclusion
Mark Galli tells the following story in his book Jesus Mean and Wild: A group of Laotian refugees who had been attending the church he pastored approached him after the service one Sunday and asked to become members. His church had sponsored them, and they had been attending the church a few months. They had only a rudimentary understanding of the Christian faith, so he suggested they study the Gospel of Mark together for a few weeks to make sure they knew what a commitment to Christ and his church entailed. They happily agreed.
So they began studying the Book of Mark. After reading the passage in which Jesus calmed the storm, he asked them about the storms in their lives. There was a puzzled look on their faces so he elaborated. We all have storms in our lives like problems worries, troubles and crises – this story teaches us that Jesus can give us peace in the midst of those storms. He then asked, “So what are your storms?”
Again, more puzzled looks and silence. Finally one of Lao men asked, “Do you mean that Jesus actually calmed the wind and the sea in the middle of a storm?”
Pastor Galli then thought the Lao people were finding the story incredulous, and not wanting them to be distracted with the problem of miracles. He replied: "Yes, but we should not get hung up on the details of the miracle. We should remember that Jesus can calm the storms in our lives."
Another stretch of awkward silence ensued until another replied, "Well, if Jesus calmed the wind and the waves, he must be a powerful man!" At this, they all nodded vigorously and chattered excitedly to one another in Lao. Pastor Galli said, “Except for me, the room was full of wonder.” He suddenly realized that they grasped the story better than he did.
“They were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with real authority, quite unlike the teachers of religious law.”
And so it is that we must grasp the wonder of the story and come to grips with the authority of Christ and live accordingly.
