Sunday, June 12, 2005
LUKE 4:31-37
Jesus, rejected by the people of Nazareth, goes back to Capernaum. He makes Capernaum pretty much his home base.
On the Sabbath, as was his custom, Jesus attends the weekly religious service in the synagogue. As in Nazareth, he reads the scripture and explains it to the congregation. The result is wonderment among the people. His words radiate authority, greater authority than they had ever recognized in anyone else. Their preachers were always citing people other than themselves as authorities to support their teaching. Jesus spoke only on his own authority.
Jesus also stirred the wonderment of the people with the miracle he performed in the synagogue, driving an unclean spirit out of a possessed man. What amazed the people was not the fact that he succeeded in expelling the demon from the man. Other exorcists had done as much. It was the way he did it. Jesus used no set formulas, no magic incantations, no talismans, to expel the demon. Just the power of his word. He said very simply, "be quiet, come out of him," and the evil spirit left the man.
Luke says, "They were spellbound by his teaching, for his words had authority." He also says, "They were struck with astonishment and said, `what is there about his speech? He commands the unclean spirits with authority and power, and they leave."
The people were astonished, spellbound by his words whether he spoke them as teacher or as exorcist/miracle-worker. His word was powerful, authoritative.
Only much later would anyone come to realize that Jesus not only spoke the authoritative word of God, he was the authoritative Word spoken once by the Father. Jesus' authority and power was in his day and continues today to be rooted in his divine nature.
On the Sabbath, as was his custom, Jesus attends the weekly religious service in the synagogue. As in Nazareth, he reads the scripture and explains it to the congregation. The result is wonderment among the people. His words radiate authority, greater authority than they had ever recognized in anyone else. Their preachers were always citing people other than themselves as authorities to support their teaching. Jesus spoke only on his own authority.
Jesus also stirred the wonderment of the people with the miracle he performed in the synagogue, driving an unclean spirit out of a possessed man. What amazed the people was not the fact that he succeeded in expelling the demon from the man. Other exorcists had done as much. It was the way he did it. Jesus used no set formulas, no magic incantations, no talismans, to expel the demon. Just the power of his word. He said very simply, "be quiet, come out of him," and the evil spirit left the man.
Luke says, "They were spellbound by his teaching, for his words had authority." He also says, "They were struck with astonishment and said, `what is there about his speech? He commands the unclean spirits with authority and power, and they leave."
The people were astonished, spellbound by his words whether he spoke them as teacher or as exorcist/miracle-worker. His word was powerful, authoritative.
Only much later would anyone come to realize that Jesus not only spoke the authoritative word of God, he was the authoritative Word spoken once by the Father. Jesus' authority and power was in his day and continues today to be rooted in his divine nature.
# posted by F O O D F O R T H O U G H T @ 5:36 PM 
