Saturday, November 11, 2017

Disrupting church

Mark 1:23

Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit.

Mark begins his Gospel account at breakneck speed, compressing extended events into single sentences and by the twenty-first verse of the first chapter of his account there is a major dramatic event very early in Jesus ministry.

This event very quickly sets up the people then, as it should for us now, the fundamentals of the ministry that Jesus was beginning and that we are continuing. Each of these two aspects, teaching the word of God with authority and exercising authority over the kingdom of darkness, left the people at that time, full of awe and wonder. In verse 22 they were astonished and in verse 27 there were amazed.

The first thing Jesus did in the synagogue was to teach. Just His teaching had an impact on the people. They were quickly able to listen to Him teach and determine that something was different. Clearly, from the text, Mark 1:21-28, the teaching of Jesus was different from that of the scribes who usually took on that role every sabbath. The fundamental difference was authority. The scribes, it would appear, were tentative about their doctrine while Jesus taught in a very authoritative way.

As is customary with any appearance of Jesus, dramatic scenes attend. Jesus is teaching, the synagogue congregation was paying rapt attention, when suddenly, the silence in the synagogue was punctured by a man with an unclean spirit. The unclean spirit was knowledgeable and combative. The unclean spirit spit out the facts of His identity and demanded to be left alone. I guess, left alone to affect and afflict the man’s life.

Jesus cast the demon out of the man and they, who were described as being astonished at the authority in His teaching, were now described with a synonym, they were amazed by the exercise of that authority.

This nameless man and the demon that tormented him disrupted the flow of things in the congregation that day. The demon confronted the teacher and then, when commanded to leave, made a dramatic exit, “And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him.” Mark 1:26.

A scene like this would really disrupt many church services today. With many churches now streaming (broadcasting) live on television, or on Facebook, or using Livestream on their website, or any of the other ways we do it, a scene like this would really be a problem.

Pedestal preachers would balk at being interrupted by anyone, and holy bouncers would be expected to take the disrupter out. It would also make for ugly TV if someone, dressed in their Sunday best, was seen rolling all over the floor in convulsions and crying out in a loud voice while we are working on the best angles for the service stream.

What we would really appreciate is if demons would understand that we do not want them in church. We have our liturgy (order of service), we have rehearsed the music for today, the text of the sermon are on the PowerPoint slides and in your programme notes everyone is ready, this is no place for demons.

Today many behave as though all demons went away with Jesus and none is left to torment anyone today. If demons showed up so often in Jesus’ ministry where are they now? Theologians tell us that 20 percent of the 35 miracles performed by Jesus involved helping people affected and afflicted by demons.

Another point to note is that this man with the demon didn’t come from outside of the church but was from among the congregation. Demons are at work to affect and afflict those who are in the congregation and we should never be surprised by a manifestation in our midst.

If we are assembling, teaching, and conducting the activities of ministry and there are no manifestations of demons ever, we must wonder why they don’t disrupt us. We must wonder if we are like the scribes that were on the ministry and teaching staff at the synagogue in Capernaum before Jesus showed up. We may be conducting ministry like those without authority.

Think on these things:

1. Have you ever witnessed a manifestation of a demon in or through someone?
2. What would happen if there were such a manifestation during the service at your church tomorrow?
3. Do you think that current thought and life make you believe that demonic manifestations are unlikely things of the past?

Prayer focus:

Let us pray today that we would speak the word with boldness and authority and be ready to confront demonic manifestation in the power of Jesus name.

In His Grace

Pastor Alex