In our passage today we find a man in the synagogue who has an unclean spirit. We tend to think of wickedness as something that lurks only in the shadows, but often it's hiding in plain sight. Earlier in the week we discussed the fact that Satan knows the Scriptures better than we do; today we see that he even sends his followers to church.
"They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at His teaching, because He taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law." (Mark 1:21-22) Jesus and the disciples have just departed from Nazareth, according to Matthew and Luke, and are now in another town of Galilee where His teaching will be better received than it was in His hometown. The people at Capernaum are amazed at His teaching because Jesus preaches the word of God as if He is the author of it.....which He is! Imagine what this must have been like, the very Word of God teaching the word of God. Imagine going to church one morning only to have the Lord Jesus Christ stand up to preach the sermon. We would all have to say, "What words these are!" (Luke 4:36)
The people in the synagogue stare at each other with wide eyes of wonder when they hear the authority (Greek exousia) with which the Lord teaches His very own laws and commandments. Strong's Bible Dictionary defines exousia as: "The ability or strength with which one is endued, which he either possesses or exercises; the power of authority and of right; the power of rule or government; the power of him whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed; authority over mankind". A scribe could not teach in this manner. A scribe could only read the Scriptures and expound on their meaning, but he would be speaking of the authority of God and not of his own authority as Jesus did.
"Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure 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!'" (Mark 1:23-24) Earlier in the book of Mark we found both John the Baptist and God the Father testifying to the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth. Here we see that even the demons recognize Him. The Lord's brother James will later point out that even the demons believe in God and tremble before Him. (James 2:19)
At this point in Jesus' ministry He has few followers (if any) who feel absolutely certain He is the Messiah, but the spirit possessing the man in the synagogue has no doubts. Several times in the gospels we find demons testifying to the deity of Jesus of Nazareth, and we also find Jesus forbidding them to continue speaking to Him in this manner. Bible scholar James Coffman offers an explanation for this. He believes the demons were trying to cast suspicion on Jesus by connecting His ministry with the powers of darkness. They want to create the impression that Jesus is in collusion with Satan and that Jesus has persuaded the demons to pretend that He is the Son of God. This tactic works on some of the people, for the Pharisees will eventually accuse Jesus of casting out demons through the power of Satan. (Matthew 12:24) Coffman says, "The use which Satan attempted to make of the alleged rapport of the demons with Christ reveals the diabolical purpose which instigated the kind of confessions which might have aided the devil. That such is the truth appears from the fact of Jesus' unequivocal rejection of them." I believe Mr. Coffman is onto something. Jesus didn't refute the testimony of John the Baptist. He certainly didn't refute the testimony of God the Father. He won't rebuke Peter when he declares, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:16) He won't tell Martha, the sister of Lazarus, to be quiet when she proclaims, "I believe that You are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world." (John 11:27) It is only to the unclean spirits that we find Jesus commanding, "Be quiet!" The demon who came to church in today's passage is there to cause confusion and disagreement among the people. He is not there to declare the deity of Jesus Christ, but to cast doubts on His identity. The demons in the Bible who call Jesus who He is are insinuating to the people that His powers are bestowed upon Him by Satan and not by God.
"'Be quiet!' said Jesus sternly. 'Come out of him!' The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek." (Mark 1:25-26) I enjoy a scary movie as much as anyone, but exorcisms in movies take place over a period of days or even weeks. It's a long, drawn out battle. The exorcists usually engage in conversations and arguments with the demons as the unclean spirits resist their removal from human bodies. Not so with the Son of God! He speaks and they obey Him immediately.
I can't help picturing all the people in the synagogue standing to their feet and gazing around at each other in absolute astonishment. "The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, 'What is this? A new teaching---and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey Him.' News about Him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee." (Mark 1:27-28) Those assembled in the synagogue exclaim, "We've never seen anything like this before! This is something new! Who is Jesus that He is empowered with such authority?" Mark tells us that news about Jesus spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee. I bet it did! It spread faster than gossip on an old-fashioned telephone party line. By nightfall the whole town will be gathered at the door of Simon Peter's house where Jesus is staying. They will bring the demon-possessed and the sick to Him for healing because they believe Jesus is able to meet their needs.
I grew up in the 1980s when the popular TV show "The A-Team" was on the air. A voice at the beginning of each episode would say, "If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the A-Team." The people coming to Jesus in the Bible have problems that no one else can help. But the difference between Jesus and the fictitious A-Team is that He is never difficult to find. In fact, He is actively seeking us and making this beautiful offer, "Let Me help you. You have needs that only I can meet. You have problems that only I can solve."
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