Authority
Text: Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Mark 1:21-28; Matthew 10:1-4
By: Rev. Terry Carty
Date: 01-29-12
Place: Kingston Springs United Methodist Church
Season: Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany
Main Point: Discipleship – Jesus did not perform miraculous healing just for the fame of it – he prepared the disciples for the great work that they would do. Disciples still receive the authority when they are ready to use it properly.
Read Mark 1:21-28 and Matthew 10:1-4
I have trouble with talking about demons and demon possession. I have trouble with talking about talking demons.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I believe that there is evil in the world. And I believe that evil exists both outside of us and inside of us. People have been grasping images to describe evil since the beginning of time. The New Testament is heavily influenced on this issue by the elaborate ideas of the Pharisees about the world of angels and demons in the last couple of hundred years before Christ.
But today I do not focus on the healing of the possessed man. I want to spend some time thinking about the prophetic authority of Jesus. The Jewish people had become accustomed to looking to prophets to receive God’s Word. Since that early time that we read about in Deuteronomy the people were too afraid to hear directly from God. They had begged for God to send messages by way of selected human prophets. And, according to the Old Testament, God complied with their wishes.
That sets the stage for this story from Mark. This passage immediately follows the one that we heard last week about the calling of Simon, Andrew, James and John. Jesus walks into the temple with his new disciples and proceeded to teach with authority.
Here is another historical footnote: the teachers of the law and the scribes were not considered to be authorities on the law – they preserved the letter of the law and insured that it was faithfully transferred from one generation to the next. But distinction of interpretation was left to rabbi’s who drew out the implications for living. It had been a long time since God had raised up prophets as of olden days, so the rabbi’s were the interpreters of God’s laws.
When Jesus walked into the temple that day, he amazed both his disciples and the people who were in the temple with his authority. That was the real miracle that day – not the healing of the man who had evil spirits. The real miracle was that Jesus came
with a new teaching and he did so with the authority of a prophet – one who spoke directly from God.
Well, it makes sense to us because we know that Jesus was one with God. But it was miraculous at the time. The driving out of the evil spirit was an exclamation point on the powerful new, prophetic teaching. This was indeed the Word of God.
I want to suggest that what Jesus did in that synagogue that day was the first day of training for those disciples who accompanied him. He showed them the use of prophetic authority. Jesus began his teaching about the kingdom of God, but he also began the preparation of those who would spread that teaching across the world and to the next generation.
Remember that Jesus spent several years with his disciples, training them in the Way of the kingdom of God. They were not ready on the first day to do what Jesus had done that day.
We are all familiar with the stories in Matthew and Luke about the sending of the disciples out on their field trip. They were given the authority to drive out evil and to heal disease. They were being prepared to speak with authority. They were learning to accept the awesome task of carrying the Word of God into the world.
When we are called to be disciples of Jesus Christ, we are being called to carry God’s Word of love and salvation to those who have not embraced it. Yet we find ourselves often hesitant to step up and say something because we may be unsure of our authority to do so.
As disciples today, how do we reach the place where we can speak with authority about the kingdom of God?
Some of you have heard me talk proudly about my daughter who is a pre-school teacher in Metro. She earned her bachelor of science and master of science degrees in Early Childhood Development. With her student teaching, she became a practitioner of the teaching sciences.
But for her, her preparation was not over. She felt called to participate in a reading education program sponsored by Vanderbilt University and she began to see with new eyes the possibilities for teaching. Her expertise and experience has grown and others have recognized her wisdom in this area. She is beginning to teach with authority.
That day in the temple, the disciples knew that they had chosen wisely to leave their nets and follow Jesus, one who taught with authority. Later in their lives, the people who were following those disciples and learning the live the Way Jesus had taught – kingdom living – knew that they had chosen wisely to follow these disciples – ones who taught with authority.
Today, we marvel at someone who can explain the scriptures and open their relevance to daily living in love. We marvel at their confidence and grace. We marvel at their sense of authority. We recognize that God has authorized them to speak on God’s behalf.
Even in witnessing that authority in someone else, we are being discipled, prepared to accept the authority that God gives believers to spread the good news to the world through out lives.
As disciples, apply yourselves to observing carefully those who teach with authority.
Study scripture so you can establish yourself in God’s Word, but do not fail to seek out others who encourage you, help you persevere, and who model for you the prophetic authority of a disciple.