church

INI
The Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
January 29, 2012
Ascension Lutheran Church, Tacoma WA
Paul Naumann, Pastor

JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY
Mark 1:21-28

May the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole
spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ. Amen. The brief text upon which we will base our meditation today
comes from Mark chapter one, beginning with the 21st verse, as follows:

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. So far the holy Word.

In the Name of Jesus Christ, Who during this period of His Epiphany is
declared to be the Son of God with power, Dear Fellow Redeemed,

Who holds the ultimate authority in the United States of America? What would
you answer if I asked you that question? Your first thought might be of the
President of the United States. He probably has more political power and
authority than any other single man in the country. But the power of the
executive in our government is checked by the legislative and judicial branches.
And of course the President is answerable to the citizens, who can vote him out
if they don’t care for his policies. What about the Supreme Court? You might
think of them as the ultimate authority in America. But even they are subject to
the people via the U.S. Constitution. So perhaps it’s the American people,
themselves, who possess the ultimate authority.

But I don’t think that’s true, either. Not if we’re speaking in absolute terms,
anyway. Because in absolute terms there is one Authority that is far superior to
all these. An authority that is above the President and the congress and the
Supreme Court and, in fact, above every government on earth. That authority,
of course, is our Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, our Lord holds an authority that
extends even beyond the visible world we see around us. And that’s a very good
thing, the Apostle Paul says, because our worst enemies are not the ones we can
see. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual
hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. -- Ephesians 6:12. Perhaps you’ve
been feeling the influence of the devil’s dark power in your life lately, tempting
you, luring you from the path of righteousness. Maybe you’ve been sinfully
allowing other, less-important authorities to encroach upon and overrule the
authority of the Lord Jesus in your life. If so, then today’s text will snap you
back to reality. It’s an account from early in our Lord’s ministry. And it proves
once and for all that, in the words of our theme-

JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY

I. He demonstrates it in His WORD.
II. He demonstrates it in His WORKS.

Capernaum was a city in that region of northern Israel called Galilee. It was a
fisherman’s town, situated on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee. It
was near here that Jesus’ called His first disciples, who were themselves
fishermen. Capernaum, in fact, became a sort of adopted home town for Jesus.
It was in and around Capernaum that Jesus did much of His teaching, and
performed many of His mightiest miracles – few of them mightier than the one
that is the subject of today’s text.

How can we Christians say so confidently that JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE
AUTHORITY? First of all, because He demonstrates it in His WORD. He
certainly did that day in Capernaum! Our text says, They [Jesus and his
disciples] went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered
the synagogue and taught. By the way, before we pass it by, notice where Jesus
is on the Sabbath day – He’s in church. I hardly need to mention that that’s
where we need to be too. As one writer put it – “On the Lord's Day, in the
Lord's house, with the Lord's people, gathered around the Lord's Word.” That’s
where Jesus was always found, and that’s where He was this Sabbath day. As
was customary for visiting teachers, He was asked to speak. The people in the
synagogue probably expected that. But what happened next was very
unexpected: 22 And they were astonished at His teaching, (why?) for He taught
them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

“Astonished” is an understatement, by the way. The word in Greek means “too
be struck with amazement, as with a blow.” “Stunned” might be good word.
Have you ever seen someone who was so stunned that they looked like
someone hit them with a two by four? That was the reaction of the people in
that synagogue. They could hardly believe their ears. They were amazed, and
quite confused. But amid the confusion, one thing was clear – this teaching that
Jesus brought had great authority. It was totally unlike the teaching they were
used to, the teaching of the scribes. The scribes focused on the minutiae of
Jewish Law and tradition. How many steps you could take on the Sabbath day,
the exact minute the Sabbath day began on, what proportion of garden herbs
should be donated to the church. Jesus was different. His words were the words
not of man, but of God. There was no comparison at all. Jesus demonstrated
His ULTIMATE AUTHORITY by the authoritative Word of God that He
spoke.

It’s still true today. All other teaching in the world contrasts with Christ’s
teaching, because HIS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY. Our Lord's Word
to us in the Holy Scriptures is inspired and inerrant. There are no mistakes in it,
no errors or myths. Scripture is an absolutely reliable source of truth, upon
which we can safely base our teaching, our belief, and our life! It is our
ULTIMATE AUTHORITY! Sadly, even Christians often act as if it weren’t!
They take the word of scientists that the earth came into being over billions of
years, even though the Word says God created it in six natural days. They take
the word of shallow evangelists who preach the social Gospel or the prosperity
Gospel rather than the real Gospel. Or, perhaps worst of all, they give more
authority to their own feelings and opinions than they do to God’s Word!
Beloved, these things ought not so to be!

Nothing can stand in opposition to the ULTIMATE AUTHORITY OF
GOD’S WORD. A naval historian named Frank Koch tells how, as a young
midshipman he was on the bridge of a battleship during maneuvers off the coast
of New England. It was a very dark and foggy night. Suddenly the watchman
reported a light approaching quickly off the starboard bow, apparently headed
right for them. The captain immediately had his signaler send the message, “We
are on a collision course. Please alter your course 20 degrees.” The message was
flashed back, “Unable to comply. Please alter your course 20 degrees.”
Annoyed, the captain sent the same message again and received the same reply.
Finally, enraged, he sent the message, “Alter your course immediately! This is a
battleship of the United States Navy!” The message came back, “Unable to
comply. This is a lighthouse.” The battleship changed course. God’s Word is a
lot like that lighthouse. It is illuminating. Scripture says it is a lamp unto our
feet and a light unto our path. It is the unerring light that shows us the straight
and narrow path to heaven, and how to live as Christians while we’re walking it.
But it is also immovable. God’s Word will never move and it will never change.
Everything else in our life – everything else in the world! – has to make way for
the ultimate authority of the God’s Word. As Isaiah says, “The grass withers,
the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever." -- Isaiah 40:8. The
world around us can oppose that Word and ridicule it and belittle it (and us) as
much as they want. But eventually they’ll learn the truth – that when you set
yourself on a collision course with the eternal Word of God, it’s not the Word
that will be shipwrecked. It’s you. Jesus says the same in John chapter 12: He
who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him--
the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. -- 12:48.

JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY. Come back to the truths of God’s
Word. Come and sit at the feet of Jesus, as Mary did, or as the people in that
synagogue did. You will be astonished at what you hear! Listen to the good
news that, despite your sins and flaws and failures, the Lord has made a way for
you to escape. "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the LORD,
"Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they
are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. -- Isaiah 1:18. Bring your sins to
Lord, repent of them, and hear Him, in His authoritative Word, pronounce your
total and unconditional pardon: In [Christ] we have redemption through His
blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace -- Ephesians
1:7.

Yes, we know JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY from His holy,
unchangeable, authoritative Word. But we know if from something else, too.
Because Jesus shows His power not only in His words, but in His actions as
well. Part Two: JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY because He
demonstrates it in His WORKS. Jesus performed many mighty works and
miracles in Galilee, but few as astonishing as the one in our text for today.

One stunning event followed another on that day in the synagogue. No sooner
had the people replaced their jaws after hearing Jesus authoritative teaching,
than a demon-possessed man burst into their worship service.
Demon-possession was very common in Jesus’ day. It’s as if, when Christ was
on the earth, Satan was marshalling all his evil forces to combat him. 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!"

When you were young and your parents addressed you by your whole name –
first, middle and last – what did that usually mean? It usually meant they were
expressing their authority over you, didn’t it? (Often it came right before a
paddling.) Here the demon uses Christ’s entire name: “Jesus of Nazareth, the
Holy One of God,” as if by addressing him in full he can stake out some kind of
authority over Him. But it didn’t work. For JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE
AUTHORITY.

25 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. Jesus with a few simple words – BE SILENT! COME OUT! –
performed an astonishing miracle. A man who had been bound body and soul
by the devil for who knows how many long years, was suddenly released, and
was presented to his neighbors sane and sober and in his right mind. A mighty
work! An astonishing work! So much so that …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." The people had lots of questions, but one thing they had no question at
all about – Jesus’ authority. For Christ displays His ULTIMATE AUTHORITY
not only in His Word, but also in His works.

Have you ever been “exorcized” – had a devil cast out of you? It might surprise
you to learn that you have! In fact, every person who is born into this world is
by nature the possession of the devil (the carnal mind is enmity against God).
But every Christian, at his Baptism, “renounces the devil and all his works and
all his ways.” That portion of the Baptism liturgy, by the way, is officially called
the “exorcism,” and with good reason. For when the Lord brings you into His
kingdom of grace by giving you faith, the devil is cast down from the throne of
your heart, and Jesus reigns there instead.

Yes, Jesus demonstrates His ULTIMATE AUTHORITY in His powerful
works – also in your life! It was a powerful miracle that He performed in the
synagogue that day. But is it any less a miracle that He has cast Satan out of
your heart, and caused you to believe the Gospel? If you feel the way I do,
that’s a much bigger miracle by far! That a wretched sinner like me – with my
history, and my sins, and all my corrupt transgressions of God’s commandments
– that a wretched sinner like me might nevertheless be declared, for Jesus’ sake,
a child of God! Why, it’s a miracle! That the blood Jesus shed on Calvary’s cross
might cover even my sins! That my name, too, might be written in the Book of
Life! That even in my case, Satan might be robbed of his prey, and rather than
carrying me to hell, might in utter defeat see Jesus carrying me to heaven
instead! How much of a miracle is that? Is not that that most stunning and
astonishing miracle of all? Cannot you and I and every Christian say the same?
With wonder in his voice the Apostle John says, Behold what manner of love
the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! -- 1
John 3:1. That’s why we – with wonder, joy and astonishment! – gather here
each week round the authoritative Word of God. That’s the wonder, joy and
astonishment that you can carry with you when you leave church this morning,
and when you go back to work tomorrow morning. And it is with wonder, joy
and astonishment that we will greet our Savior in the mansions of heaven itself!

In his book, The Invincible Christ, Massey Mott Heltzel commented on the
incomparable authority of Jesus: "I am far within the mark when I say that all
the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that were ever built, and all the
parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have
not affected the life of mankind on this earth as powerfully as that One Solitary
Life – the life of Jesus Christ.” JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE AUTHORITY. He
demonstrates it in His WORD, and He demonstrates it in His WORKS. God
grant that we may constantly acknowledge and confess His ultimate authority
over our lives, until that day when our knees bow and our tongues joyfully
confess Him before His throne of Judgment, AMEN.