The Authority of Jesus (Luke 4.31-44)

Introduction

Some of you, I expect, have always lived where you live now. You may have left the actual house you grew up in, but you’ve never actually moved away from town. You’re Stockton born and bred. I must say, as someone who has lived half my adult life in a foreign country, I was amazed when I moved here to meet people who have never once travelled abroad or who rarely even leave the area.

I’ve actually lived in eight different towns or cities and had twelve different addresses, not including temporary accommodation of a month or less. I expect many of you have moved around a bit as well. What are the reasons why you move? What factors determine the choices you make about where you end up living? Work, certainly for many. The cost of housing maybe. Relationships, probably for some. An attraction to the area perhaps…

Well, Jesus moved around a bit as well. He was born in - let’s call it makeshift accommodation - in Bethlehem. He fled to temporary lodgings in Egypt. But he grew up in Nazareth and he worked there as a tradesman for about 18 years before moving once more, when he was about 30, to a place called Capernaum on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee.

In the passage we had this morning, v31 says “he went down to Capernaum”, and you can read that like it was just a quick visit, but Matthew 4.13 specifically says that he actually moved house to there from Nazareth.

Why? Why did Jesus relocate? Why didn’t he stay on in his home town? Because, first of all, as we saw last week, he was no longer accepted there. He was persona non grata. They took offence at him for what he said and they forced him out. It wasn’t safe for him to stay and he was no longer welcome. Just out of interest, how many of you moved to Stockton on Tees because an angry mob with pitchforks and torches threw you out of the last place you lived?

But that wasn’t the only reason Jesus moved to Capernaum. It was the perfect location for Jesus to base his ministry for three reasons.

Number one, it was a flourishing town with growing wealth from a booming fishing industry, so it was full of mobile people of all ages, as thriving towns are. Number two, it was on a main trade route, so word about Jesus could spread to other places quickly and naturally. And number three, it was also the command centre in that region for Roman troops; there was a garrison there, so Jesus could reach large numbers of Gentiles as well as Jews. Capernaum was the ideal base for his ministry.

You know what it’s like when someone moves into the area, don’t you? The removal van turns up in your street and all the neighbours’ curtains start to twitch… What did the good people of Capernaum make of this craftsman turned preacher when he came to settle in their town? They probably thought it would be great to have a handyman living down the road to fix stuff for you when it goes wrong.

Little did they know who had just turned up in their town. If they thought he was just going to be a nice Jewish boy who’d help fix their cupboard doors when they came off their hinges, they got a lot more than they bargained for.

Luke 4.31-44, describes his first weekend in his new place. To say he hits the ground running feels like a bit of an understatement. It is a spectacular arrival on the scene.

It was the custom in synagogues to allow new people or visiting rabbis to say a few words. That’s how we know that this is almost certainly Jesus’ first visit to this place of worship. So Jesus turns up and they accord him the usual courtesy. No doubt they expect the usual stuff but what they get is quite different from anything they have seen or heard before.

This series of events that day is one of the earliest records we have of what Jesus came to say and do. What did he come to do? Quite simply, he came to address peoples’ needs; needs of the whole person; body, mind and spirit. He saw to their physical needs by healing, he met the needs of the mind through teaching, and he attended to their spiritual needs through preaching.

There are several key words in this passage; first of all the word “news.” In v37 it says the news spread about him. In v43 Jesus says “I must preach the good news of the kingdom.” News is the plural of “new”. Something new was taking place and people noticed. How often do you think people would associate the word “church” with the word “new”?

Another key word is “amazed.” They were amazed at his teaching in v32 and they were amazed when Jesus cast out the evil spirit in v36. When Jesus was around nobody switched off. How many people will come out of church today in our country and say “you know what, that was amazing”?

Another key word is “authority.” He spoke with and acted with authority. I’ll come onto that in a minute.

Jesus’ ministry is our ministry. He has commissioned us to do his works in his name and under his authority. In fact, he actually said we would do greater things still. So this is more than a little Bible study this morning; this is our mandate. So with that in mind, let’s take these three aspects of Jesus’ ministry in turn.

Teaching

First of all, teaching. Jesus came teaching. He had things to say.

In every community in Jesus’ day there were these official kinds of people called Scribes. And they worked in the place of learning which, in the world Jesus grew up in, was the synagogue. And the Scribes were teachers. For most people it would be the only education they got.

Scribes were respected people. They were learned scholars who read a lot of books and set out for the people what was true and what was false, what was right and what was wrong, based on all their studies and learning.

And they had a very distinct teaching style; they never spoke on their own behalf; they never said “here’s what I think.” Instead, they always referred to some famous rabbi or quoted some distinguished sage. They deferred to the experts.

But Jesus stood out because he didn’t teach that way at all. When they politely asked him to say a few words he didn’t drone on quoting famous dead people. He spoke truth off his own bat. He said what he thought.

People noticed the difference; v32 says the people were amazed at his teaching because his words had authority.

Think about that word “authority” for a minute. What does it mean to you? David Attenborough is an authority on the natural world. Mary Portas is an authority on retail strategy. Mark Kermode is an authority on films. When you listen to them speak, you see how well-informed they are on their area of expertise and you’d be on a hiding to nothing to argue with them.

When Jesus spoke he had this kind of authority – but he spoke about the most important things of all; why we’re here, who we are and what God is like. He didn’t need to look up the answers in books, or find out what the experts said and quote them. He knew exactly what he was talking about and everybody could see it.

Unlike the vicar who was greeting people on the way out of church one day. Someone shook his hand and said, “Thank you for that sermon vicar; I’ve never understood that subject and I still don’t understand it – but on a higher level.”

Jesus had authority. He was direct. His words had weight. He spoke in plain, straightforward language; not with the pompous jargon of an ivory tower academic. Nor with the waffle and hot air of a politician evading a simple question. With Jesus, there was no hesitation, repetition, deviation… or repetition.

What Jesus said was always ground-breaking. It was fresh. It didn’t go with the flow. It was about things that matter to you. It was exciting. Jesus’ teaching was, and remains today, absolutely radical. This is one reason why people said about Jesus that he carried authority. Verse 32 says “his message has authority.”

There is an almost comical bit in John’s Gospel (chapter 7) where the chief priests dispatch a few cronies to find out where Jesus is and bring him back for an interrogation. So off they go. But when they find him they just sit there mesmerised by his teaching. They get so engrossed listening to him talk that they seem to forget why it is they are there and return to the temple empty handed. So the exasperated chief priests say “Where is he then?” They tell them off and ask what on earth’s going on. The guys just shrug. “But no one ever spoke the way this man does!” is all they can say.

Even today, the meaning of Jesus’ teaching is matchless, its power is peerless, and its truth is timeless. Jesus is easily the most quoted person in history and you don’t get that accolade for trotting out platitudes.

Teaching is vitally important. Bad teaching leads to weak churches. False teaching leads to dead churches. Sound, healthy teaching leads to strong churches.

Healing

Secondly, healing. Jesus healed the sick.

He wasn’t just an expert who knew his stuff. Jesus had authority because he delivered. In the world of business and sport you don’t argue with someone who gets results. When Jesus was around, things changed.

Here, in v31-27, in the middle of the service, in the middle of the sermon, there is a disturbance. There is a commotion. Somebody in the congregation bursts in and interrupts Jesus in full flow and starts challenging him. Everybody is mortified with embarrassment. There’s confusion; is the man drunk, is he mad, what is he upset about?

It says he cried out at the top of his voice. It’s a man possessed by a demon. “Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” Imagine that kind of intrusive distraction in the middle of a service.

I’ve only known anything like this three times in church services I’ve attended, but it seems to have been quite common in Jesus’ ministry, such was the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s anointing on him, and the provocation that was to evil spirits and those under the devil’s power.

Some people say that evil spirits are a first Century way of describing mental illness. That’s not true, the two are quite distinct. People with evil spirits react to spiritual stimuli like Holy Communion or the proclamation of the cross or invoking the Holy Spirit. Mentally ill people don’t. People with evil spirits are clairvoyant, having insight into the spiritual realm and the future. Mentally ill people don’t have that kind of ability.

Jesus demonstrates his authority by the way he handles things. “Be quiet!” he says sternly. Jesus is very strict with evil spirits. Truth has to be revealed by the Holy Spirit, not evil spirits. So there’s no messing around. “Come out of him!” Jesus says firmly. And the man is thrown down to the floor. And when he comes round he is in his right mind, at peace again, and the Bible says he had suffered no injury. Now that’s authority isn’t it?

Jesus encountered many types of sickness; sometimes it seems relatively minor (like in v38 where Peter’s mother-in-law has a fever). Sometimes it is more severe; either untreatable at the time like leprosy, or incurable even with modern medicine like blindness and paralysis. Verse 40 talks about various kinds of illness and it says that Jesus laid his hands on each one and healed them all.

I want you to notice how Jesus models the healing ministry. Jesus doesn’t close his eyes and pray, “Father, I just pray for so and so; Lord, heal her leprosy or open his blind eyes…” He never prayed for the sick. He healed the sick by his authority. He didn’t speak to his Father, he spoke to the illness. To a leper he said “be cleansed. Go and present yourself to the priest.” To a deaf person, he said “Ears, be opened.” To a paralytic, he said “Get up, pick up your mat and go.” To a man with a withered arm, he said “Stretch out your hand.” To Lazarus he said, “Come forth.”

Here in v38 he doesn’t go in and start a long-winded, elaborate, rambling prayer to his Father about the fever. It says how he bends over her and rebukes the fever. It says in v40 how he lays his hands on each person and healed them. He took authority, rebuked sickness and healed the sick and then taught his disciples to do the same thing in his name.

People say “As long as you’re healthy, health is everything” – well, it’s not. The Bible never says that health is everything. None of these people Jesus healed were cured forever. All of them died in the end. Healing is a demonstration of the power of God and an expression of the love of God.

When John and Ann Coles were here in October they talked about different expressions of faith in healing. There was the blind man who shouted at the top of his voice, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” He was loud, and demonstrative and emotional. Maybe that’s the perfect model of faith for the Holy Ghost Fire Pentecostal Church of God. That’s maybe what faith looks like there.

Then there was the woman with the issue of blood who knew that if she silently touched the hem of Jesus’ garment she would be healed. She was modest and discreet and restrained. Maybe that’s the perfect model of faith for your local Anglican evensong congregation. That’s what faith looks like there.

It doesn’t matter how we show it, the outward form is unimportant. But we’ve got to have faith and with the faith comes authority.

Preaching

Thirdly, preaching. Jesus preached good news.

Sometimes Jesus warned those he healed not to tell anyone about it. That’s because he didn’t want people to acclaim him king before he went to the cross but also because he didn’t want people’s physical needs to eclipse their spiritual needs. He didn’t come just to make people better; he came to turn their attention to their greatest need of all – to be forgiven and get right with God.

People sometimes ask “what’s the difference between teaching and preaching?” I’d say that teaching informs the mind but preaching touches the heart. You take notes with teaching. You take action with preaching.

Preaching challenges people. It urges people. It confronts people. It calls for a decision. It appeals to people to receive from God through prayer ministry. Preaching is a passionate plea to respond in worship and obedience.

When Jesus said “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” he meant “Stop in your tracks, do a U-turn, and walk in the opposite direction where you will find true life.” That’s preaching good news.

When Jesus said “Come to me all you who are burdened and heavy laden” he meant “Don’t stand at the back with your arms folded but come forward, right here, with your hands open, come and get rest and replenishment from me.” That’s preaching good news.

When Jesus said “Sell all you have, give to the poor and follow me” he meant “I am asking you now to take radical steps of obedience and faith that will release you from the love of money to discover true riches.” That’s preaching good news.

Ending

So to end, Jesus came teaching, healing and preaching. He came with a ministry that touches the mind, the body and the spirit. He entrusts to us exactly the same ministry.

In response – who here wants to commit afresh to growing in their understanding of God’s ways? It’s important because Jesus said “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” It’s having your mind shaped by truth that you get free of fear, free from error, free from self-loathing, free from self-pity, free from unbelief. That’s the authority of Jesus’ teaching.

Who here needs to come to Christ to receive gifts of healing? Who wants to grow in faith and authority to heal the sick in Jesus’ name? Who knows that the Lord is speaking to them about obediently asking for prayer ministry so that they can receive healing?

And those of you who preach (and I don’t just mean on Sundays); who wants to grow in authority to be more direct, to lead people to faith, to challenge and call for a response?

Let’s stand to pray…

Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 10 January 2016