SERM: St. Mark 1:21-28; Epiphany 4; LSB Series B
St. Mark 1:21-28 Dearly beloved, We Christians are well aware that we face blessings and challenges. At times, we find a spiritual peace and calm. At other times, we face trials and struggles. Much of what we contend with is due to external forces. Today we face variables in our lives that are a result of the languishing economy. A downward swinging economy will bring additional issues and concerns to bear as time elapses. This is nothing new to the world. The world has seen its shares of difficulties. People have struggled and suffered. In fact, countless generations have seen great troubles, which we have not seen. No matter what the external variables may be in our lives, good or bad, they always end up affecting something within us. Since we are creatures with souls, everything has a spiritual impact, whether good or bad. In fact, when we talk about people, Lutheran doctrine makes a very careful distinction about the status of souls. We believe and confess that each and every person has one of two spirits dwelling within him or her. Either a person has the Holy Spirit, received through Holy Baptism, or he has an evil spirit. In other words, we don't believe in neutrality. A person is not spiritually neutral. Either you belong to God or you belong to the devil. There is no in between. In the gospel for today, there is an encounter of great importance. Jesus and the four disciples enter Capernaum on the Sabbath. They go into the synagogue and Jesus teaches. Jesus puts people into amazement with His teaching. He doesn't teach like the scribes. As the people stand in amazement, a man cries out and alerts the entire audience. The unclean man cries out, "Let us alone! What have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Did you come to destroy us? I know who You are, the Holy One of God!" There are several things that we are to learn from this. First, when the truth of Jesus Christ is proclaimed, the evil spirits cannot remain quiet. Christ's teaching will pull evil out of crowds. That which is evil cannot bear the truth. Hebrews 4 emphasizes this: "for the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart"(Hebrews 4:12-13). In addition, it is what the demons within the man actually say that bears some comment. There they are with a crowd of people all around, paying close attention to the teaching of Jesus. This is Christ's time to bring to fulfillment centuries of Old Testament prophecy. The demon calls Jesus, "Jesus of Nazareth," emphasizing Nazareth and reminding us of Nathanael's words, "does anything good come from Nazareth?" More striking than this is the demon's question "Did you come to destroy us?" Remember, my dear Christians, that Satan is the author of lies. Satan takes every opportunity possible to twist around God's word. This demon is trying to portray Jesus as a destroyer. He does call Jesus the Holy One of God, but he uses the holy name in a blasphemous way. If this unclean spirit can convince the listeners that Jesus is hard and vengeful, then maybe he can turn the people against Jesus. But, we do not refer to Jesus as the destroyer. The Scriptures do not refer to the Messiah as the destroyer, but as the Savior. Jesus is the One who saves. Certainly, the devil and his minions will be cast into the lake of fire as the Scripture foretells, but Jesus comes to save people. The unclean spirit, in a very sly way, subverts the Old Testament scriptures, which speak so clearly of the coming of the anointed One to save mankind. This is why Jesus silences the unclean spirit. Jesus will not tolerate the holy Father's doctrine to be tarnished with lies. So, Jesus being God, He casts the unclean spirit out of the man. This gives the people in the synagogue more reason to marvel. Herein lies the very character of Christ's ministry. Jesus teaches and He heals. The heavenly Father's creation is in chaos, as we see with this man possessed with a demon. Yet, Jesus brings order and peace in the midst of chaos. It is then what the people say that is worth paying attention to for our learning. "What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." Doctrine is not just empty teaching, but it encompasses how one lives. Doctrine is in the truth of the scriptures, but also living in conformity to those scriptures. What happens with this man in the synagogue is to be a pattern and symbol of hope for all mankind. This world is filled with chaos and disorder. This man with an unclean spirit symbolizes this reality. St. Peter even points this out in 1 Peter 5:8-9, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he
SERM: Epiph. 4,B LSB Mark 1:21-28
Sermon from Epiphany 4,B. LSB propers. It's a narrative type. Some might think it to be trite (or worse). But, for me, I think that it serves as a good vehicle to proclaim law and gospel to God's people. Certainly a steady diet of this form of sermon would get old fast for anyone. I probably preach only 3-4 of this type in a 12 mo. time frame. Pr. Ron Rock "ASTONISHED AMAZED AT PEACE" Epiphany 4, B Sun. & Wed., February 1 & 4, 2009 Zion Lutheran Church, Beecher, IL Sermon Text - Mark 1:21-28 OT Reading - Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Epistle Reading - 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Gospel Reading - Mark 1:21-28 In the name of Jesus. [Amen] Our sermon is of the type called a narrative sermon. That means that as I preach the sermon I'll pretend to be someone other than myself, telling you the story from a personal, first-hand perspective. May God bless this effort to His glory and for the eternal well-being of us all. Dear friends in Christ Jesus, Good morning! My name is Andrew and I've come back from my place in eternity to be with you this morning and to elaborate a bit more on the Gospel reading from St. Mark that was just read. Bear with me, would you, as I describe -- first hand -- what it was like to have been in the synagogue on that incredible day some 2000 years ago. As I said, my name is Andrew and yes Simon Peter is my brother. Just before all this occurred in the synagogue Jesus had called Peter and myself, along with James and John, to follow Him. He'd come up to us while we were working our day-to-day job of being fishermen. He simply said: "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." (Mk 1:17, ESV) We immediately followed Him, and, as you heard in the Gospel reading, we went to the town of Capernaum. There all five of us entered the synagogue. But we ex-fishermen weren't ready for what happened next. Jesus began to teach, and along with everyone else present that day, we were "astonished!" You bet, prior to this we'd heard about Jesus of Nazareth we'd heard that He was a traveling rabbi of sorts. But the stories that we'd heard of Him well they didn't come close to describe the depth and breadth of His knowledge of the Scriptures. Everyone who heard Him sat almost as in a trance - spellbound. We hung on every word that came out of His mouth He was that good! We'd all heard fairly good teachers in our time but Jesus was the very best hands down for He thoroughly explained the Scriptures, inside and out, unlike how we'd ever heard before! We had the distinct impression that not even Moses nor any of the other writers of the Scriptures knew the Scriptures as well as did this Jesus who was now before us! In the crowd that day was a man possessed by a demon. Not the man but the demon within him cried out, for it couldn't take being in the presence of the truth of God's Word being taught to the joy of God's people. The demon said: "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!" (v. 24) The demon's second question to Jesus indicated two things First, it already knew Jesus' complete identity Sure, He was Jesus of Nazareth, but He was also the almighty, all-powerful "Holy One of God!" Jesus, born of Mary who grew up in Nazareth, was also God, Himself come to His fallen creation to redeem it to restore it to give it hope. Besides knowing Jesus' complete identify, the demon also knew what it's eternal fate would be. The punishment for its rebellion would be eternal destruction. Dear people, I truly hope that you've heard me out on this. I saw it in my time... and I'm confident that it continues to this day So many people have Jesus in their very presence and miss His true identity or worse yet know His identity but ignore Him! They don't have time for Him. Week in and week out, Jesus can be found right here in His modern-day temple explaining the wondrous Word of God through its proper preachment. Week in and week out, Jesus is here offering His very Body and Blood to you, His beloved ones, for forgiveness of sins and a renewal and rejuvenation of your faith. For you see week in and week out Jesus is here in this sacred place, reaching out to hurting souls calling them to repentance and faith and new life in His saving name. For He is "the Holy One of God," who alone, was able to take on the sins of the world. He did this some three years after this day that we're describing now. In His crucifixion, death and resurrection from the dead 3 days later He made "clean" what was "unclean" in fallen mankind in you! You see, the demon was only partly right Jesus had come into the world to destroy evil and those who embrace it but He'd also come to seek and save the lost. He'd come to give hope to those who felt that what they'd done was too bad or too awful for God to ever forgi
SERM: Mark 1:21-28, Epiphany 4, LSB B
Sermon for the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany Every Sunday Jesus Says Amazing Things and Makes the Demons Flee Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen. Today's Gospel is from St. Mark chapter one. Jesus and His new disciples came to the city of Capernaum. "Immediately on the Sabbath [Jesus] entered the synagogue and was teaching." Jesus' teaching created two reactions. The first reaction was that the people were totally blown away by what they heard: "They were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes." The second reaction was from "a man with an unclean spirit." He responded to God's Word by screeching at the preacher. Dear Christian friends, Listen to what St. Mark wrote later in chapter one, several verses after today's Gospel: "Jesus went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons" (Mark 1:39). With these Words, St. Mark wants us to know that the synagogue visit in today's Gospel was not an isolated event. It was not a strange thing for the people to be amazed at Jesus' authoritative preaching, and it was not out of the ordinary for the demons to react badly to Jesus' Words. "Jesus went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons" (Mark 1:39). St. Mark wants us to regard today's Gospel as a sample of the sort of thing Jesus was doing in synagogues everywhere. Just as the people in Capernaum were "astonished at His teaching," so people in synagogues all over the area were experiencing the same astonishment at His Words. Just as Jesus manhandled a demon here in Capernaum, so also were demons in other people at other synagogues being told, "Be silent, and come out of him." What Jesus was doing here in today's Gospel, He did repeatedly "throughout all Galilee" (Mark 1:39). Why is it so important for you to know that Jesus' Words create miraculous reactions everywhere they are preached? St. Mark wants you to understand rightly what happens also in your own congregation when the powerful Words of Jesus are likewise preached to you here. Capernaum was not an isolated event. It was a sample of what Jesus was doing in all the synagogues. Later, after Jesus ascended into heaven, His disciples continued the same work He began in today's Gospel. Just as Jesus did in today's Gospel, His chosen disciples also taught in the synagogues and cast out demons. Listen to how St. Mark's book ends: Then the Lord Jesus. was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they [the disciples] went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs [miracles] (Mark 16:19-20). You might think of today's Gospel as being like a pebble dropped into the water. The pebble drops at one point, but rings and ripples soon expand out ever wider from that one spot. In the same way, what happened in today's Gospel at Capernaum likewise spread to synagogues "throughout all Galilee" (Mark 1:29). Later, Jesus' teachings and miracles continued to spread wider and wider through His disciples as they also "went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs [miracles]" (Mark 16:20). On the basis of these verses, St. Mark would have you believe that even here in Versailles, even today, we are still living in the outer rings of those ripples that Jesus created in today's Gospel. That is to say, Jesus' powerful and miracle-producing Word is still preached for you in the Church today, just as it was in Capernaum. When Jesus' powerful Words continue to be heard-just as His Words were heard "throughout all Galilee" (Mark 1:29)-amazing and astonishing things continue to happen in your midst. Jesus' Words to you today are NO DIFFERENT from Jesus' Words to Capernaum, where the people were "astonished at His teaching" and where an evil spirit was told, "Be silent and go away." Immediately on the Sabbath [Jesus] entered the synagogue and was teaching. and they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority!" I will venture to guess that not a lot of people at Grace Lutheran Church in Versailles feel flabbergasted by their Sunday morning worship. They might describe their worship as comforting, or nourishing, or beneficial. Some of our grumpier Christians or our undiscerning guests might complain that things are a bit too routine or that our hymnody is sometimes a little dark. We will grant that there are probably as many opinions about our worship as there are people who darken our doors. Of all the things you could say about our worship, the words "amazing" or "astonishing" probably are not the first words that come to mind. The people at Capernaum were
SERM: FOURTH SUNDAY after the EPIPHANY: LSB B Series Gospel--Mark 1:21-28
"Authority Commands Obedience" Insofar as this sermon is a true proclamation of the Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ, it belongs to Him and His Church. Therefore its use is free to all who deem it worthy and beneficial. Have a blessed week in the obedience of faith as Christ's forgiven children. Rev. Kurt Hering Layton, UT For the audio file of this sermon, go to: http://www.lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=1188 Here is the preaching manuscript: FOURTH SUNDAY after the EPIPHANY: February 1, 2009 "Authority Commands Obedience" TEXT: 21 Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. 22 And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23 Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 24 saying, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are-- the Holy One of God!" 25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" 26 And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. 27 Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." 28 And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee. (Mark 1:21-28, NKJ) Wow! Demons in the synagogue? No wonder Jesus' fame spread far and wide. "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are-- the Holy One of God!" - Them's fightin' words, folks. And obviously, Jesus was up to the fight. 25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" 26 And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. Here we see, authority commands obedience. But what kind of obedience? Obedience of the demons. a.. Rather immediate b.. No choice in the matter We'll get back to that, but first this business of demons in the synagogue deserves a little attention. What's up with that? Isn't the synagogue the house of God where His Word was being taught? Well, yes and no. The Word was there, but it was being misused and abused-twisted into every sort of false teaching. And remember, Satan is the Father of lies, prowling around like a hungry lion seeking whom he may destroy. And here is something interesting about lions, and I suppose predators in general, experts tell us that by the time you see a lion for the first time he has seen you 100 times. Think about that, unless you happen to be at the zoo, if you happen to come across a lion, you have either surprised him or he is ready to pounce. Neither way is it going to be pleasant. So it's not like the demons were not in the synagogue before, it is just that they had no reason to show themselves. No one was bothering them and they were allowed to go about their business in the false teaching. The synagogue was full of scribes teaching God's Word as precepts, principles, and proverbs for better, more godly, successful, and productive living. It was full of Pharisees making and enforcing all sorts of rules and codes of conduct that would ensure the people of a place in heaven someday and prove their worthiness as children of Abraham and chosen of God. Sound familiar? It is no different today. The Word of God is used in places that bear His name and the title church, yet are full of false teachers misusing and abusing God's Word and His people for earthly gain and fame. Even well-meaning people turn God's authoritative Word that commands the obedience of faith into man's manipulative words that demand the obedience of works. To understand, listen again to the reaction of the people in the synagogue: "What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." They were not used to hearing God's Word spoken as anything but rules and regulations that left it up to men to actually accomplish anything. And here the Word is spoken and, by no action or work of any man, demons are driven out. Authority commands obedience. Obedience of demons-expelled from the holy places. Obedience of creation-"let there be," and there was Obedience of elements-the water of baptism, the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper Obedience of unbelief-disobedience, resistance and rebellion for now; expelled from the holy of holies forever on the Last Day. Obedience of belief-Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:38, NKJ) Authority commands obedience. Jesus spoke with authority in the synagogue. He spoke with authority on the cross--"It is finished!" He commanded His disc
SERM: "Astonishing, Amazing Authority" (Mark 1:21-28), 4 Epiphany B
Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany February 1, 2009 The Rev. Charles Henrickson “Astonishing, Amazing Authority” (Mark 1:21-28) Our text is the Holy Gospel for today, the story of Jesus teaching in the synagogue and rebuking the unclean spirit, and the reaction of the people to his “Astonishing, Amazing Authority.” “Jesus entered the synagogue and was teaching,” our text says. We sometimes lose sight of the fact that Jesus was a rabbi, a teacher. During his ministry, it was his custom to travel around to various places and teach. And where did he usually go first? To the synagogue. Now the temple in Jerusalem was the center of worship for the nation as a whole, and all the Jews would go there several times a year. But the synagogue was the local place of worship, right in their own town, and the Jews would go there every week on the Sabbath. They went to the synagogue to hear the word of God. They would sing psalms, hear readings from the Scriptures (what we today call the Old Testament), and they would listen as the rabbi expounded on some point from the Law or the Prophets. By the way, the form of our worship today, especially the first half of the service, what we call the Service of the Word--psalmody, singing, Scripture readings, exposition of the word, prayers--we are still following this basic synagogue pattern. And so it was that Jesus went to the synagogue in Capernaum, on the Sabbath, and he began to teach. But there was something different about this man and his teaching. It says the people were “astonished” at his teaching. They were astonished because “he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” The astonishing thing about the teaching of this rabbi, the thing that was so different from what they were used to--in a word, it was his “authority.” Jesus “taught them as one who had authority.” Now when we think of that word, “authority,” we tend to think in negative terms. In our society, authority has become a dirty word. Authority implies someone being over you, telling you what to do. We postmodern Americans are rather anti-authority. We want the freedom to do whatever we want, whenever we want. We don’t like anyone telling us what’s right and wrong. People nowadays rebel against the idea of authority. But Jesus teaches as one who has authority. What kind of authority is this? Where does his authority come from? Remember the words the Father spoke to Jesus at his baptism in the Jordan, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” With those words, the Father affirmed Jesus’ authority to speak and act for God himself. For Jesus is the eternal Son of God, come from the Father, come to do his Father’s will. He is the very image of God himself. When Jesus speaks, he speaks with authority, because his words are the Spirit-filled, life-giving, powerful, effective, creative words of God. His words do what they say. Jesus speaks and acts with divine authority. In the Old Testament reading for today, from Deuteronomy 18, God said that he would raise up a great prophet from among the people of Israel. The Lord said, “I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.” That one great prophet is Jesus, the Son of God come in the flesh. “It is to him you shall listen.” For Jesus knows the will of his Father perfectly, and he came down from heaven to proclaim it and to teach it--indeed, to live it, to carry it out, to enact it, to bring the will of God to fulfillment. And what was the content of Jesus’ preaching and teaching? Jesus summed it up like this: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Jesus spoke clearly, calling people to turn from their way of sin and death and to be made alive by the good news of forgiveness and salvation. That was, and still is, the teaching of Jesus. That’s what he is speaking to you today, calling you to repent from your self-chosen ways and to receive the life that he brings. That voice of authority--that authoritative teaching was what was so astonishing to the people in the synagogue in Capernaum. You know, those people back then lived in a time not too different from our own. They believed, and their scribes taught, that if you follow a certain code of behavior, that if you do certain things, then God will be pleased with you and you will earn his favor. So there came to be a constant focus on particular points of the law. And not really even God’s law. It was their own man-made additions to the law that they emphasized. All sorts of little regulations that they came up with, which ironically made the law into something they thought they could master. How many steps can I take on the Sabbath? How many tassels should I have on my prayer shawl? The scribes and the Pharisees defined the righteous life by this kind of external, manageable behavior-
