Mark: The Demon Witnessing

1. An additional Scriptural reading suggested: Mark 1:40-45

2. A short reading:

"Lord, so long as my will remains straight and firm in you, do with me whatsoever shall please you. For it cannot be other than good whatever you do about me. If you wish me to be in darkness, blessed be you, and if you wish me to be in the light, again blessed be you. If you design to console me, blessed be you, and if you wish me to suffer tribulation, be equally and ever blessed." (Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 115)

3. Text for meditation (in Italics):

⁹ In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ And just as he was coming up out of the water he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. ¹¹ And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved -- with you I am well pleased." ¹² And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. ¹³ He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. ¹⁴ Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, ¹⁵ and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." ¹⁶ As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea--for they were fishermen. ¹⁷ And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." ¹⁸ And immediately they left their nets and followed him. ¹⁹ As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. ²⁰ Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him. ²¹ They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. ²² They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. ²³ Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, ²⁴ 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." ²⁵ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" ²⁶ And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.

4. Reflections: Jesus and His first disciples go to a fishing village on the northwest side of the Sea of Galilee. There the Lord begins His teaching ministry. He attends the local synagogue, a place for instruction, led by educated laypersons called scribes. When Jesus teaches He amazes people because He has inherent authority and His knowledge of divine things. Our Lord is different from the scribes, whose authority comes from study. Like me, the scribes study books and "footnote" their opinions; Jesus speaks on His own. The tone of the passage is that the people are truly amazed at His authority and yet are fearful of it at the same time. Jesus is going to upset the status quo.

What is a possessed man doing in a synagogue, since he would be ritually unclean? At least this, the devil can come to church. However, when evil is recognized it is powerless in the face of Jesus. That is a comfort to know. It is important to note that Mark records this deliverance as Jesus' first miracle, although he does not say it actually was His first miracle. Possessed people were hopeless cases; only the power of God could break the hold of the devil. That is still true; it takes the power of Jesus to destroy the designs of people filled with an evil presence. Now the teacher becomes the exorcist. Jesus speaks (more literally, Jesus commands or rebukes) the evil presence to stop tormenting the man, and yet the evil power tries to gain mastery over Jesus by naming Him -- a typical ploy, as though knowing one's name makes you mightier than they are.

The authority of our Lord (mentioned twice specifically) is shown early and dramatically. The wilderness temptations of Jesus steeled His nerve against evil. It is typical of Mark to show Jesus at war with the powers of darkness, as we will see. I wonder if the members of the synagogue knew the possessed man? Was he a common figure on the streets of Capernaum? Was he regarded as a sad, hopeless case? Jesus' power dominates over this evil presence and saves a man, even without him asking for it. In fact, the text tells us it was the dark power that initiated the contest. Did you note that although the confession of the evil spirit was true, the Lord did not appreciate it? He will not tolerate this kind of thing coming from such a source.

5. Questions raised today for personal reflection.

Are we people who are moved, even disturbed, by the evil we see around us? Spiritual writers continually urge us not to become complacent. It is easy to dismiss evil or even make excuses for it. Our Lord, however, came to destroy the destroyer. God has allowed us to know ourselves and what motivates us. It is very possible for persons in the church to be motivated by selfishness and pride. Self-denial is rare, and yet it is a cherished attitude for followers of the Lord.

Are you ready for Jesus to shake you up? For us the status quo is the kingdom of God, that is our "new normal." It is easy for me to get in a routine and become dull. It is easy to assume that I know what in fact I do not know at all. Christ is a comforting presence and He is also the One who baptizes with fire. We do not fear the Lord's directives because we have come to know that He only works what is best for us.

6. Suggestions for prayer: We really need to pray for discernment to know the Lord's will, to recognize Him at work, and to give us courage to face evil when it shows its face. We need to be very careful of our surroundings, our culture, because it is easy to say, for example, "America: love it or leave it." We love America by spreading the uncompromising Word of the Lord, a Word that produces peace and goodwill. Pray for the government on all its levels. Let us pray for the fire of the Spirit in our lives.