Does Jesus bother you?

Mark 1:21-28

Does Jesus bother you?

Jesus and his companions now arrived at the town of Capernaum and on Saturday morning went into the Jewish place of worship—the synagogue—where he preached. The congregation was surprised at his sermon because he spoke as an authority and didn’t try to prove his points by quoting others—quite unlike what they were used to hearing! 

A man possessed by a demon was present and began shouting, “Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth—have you come to destroy us demons? I know who you are—the holy Son of God!” Jesus curtly commanded the demon to say no more and to come out of the man. At that the evil spirit screamed and convulsed the man violently and left him. Amazement gripped the audience and they began discussing what had happened. “What sort of new religion is this?” they asked excitedly. “Why, even evil spirits obey his orders!” The news of what he had done spread quickly through that entire area of Galilee.

Food for thought!

Everybody's words are powerful. But Jesus' words are not just powerful; they are power. When Jesus spoke in the synagogue, the gospel says, “The congregation was surprised at his sermon because he spoke as an authority and didn’t try to prove his points by quoting others." 

Jesus taught like nobody else. He was unique. No one to compare with. He was himself the authority. He was not quoting anybody else because he was God speaking. Whenever Jesus taught everybody, including the devil, was touched. The gospel says that as Jesus was talking suddenly a man shouted “Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth—have you come to destroy us demons? I know who you are—the holy Son of God!”

What was a devil doing in a holy place like a synagogue, and among worshippers? Why would a devil be there? Why were the worshippers ok with a devil among them? What does this teach us? That sometimes we go to church full of hidden problems; in our churches we sit besides people with serious problems of every kind, financial, social, professional, family, spiritual. Yes, many times we have problems unknown to others, just as this man was among those worshippers! Quite but suffering alone. That is the bad news.

The good news is that where Jesus shows up, everybody shows up in their true colours; we cannot hide before Jesus. The gospel says that as Jesus was teaching, the devilish man denounced himself: "Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth!"

Until Jesus comes into our lives, our homes, our offices, our churches, our families, we can never say we are ok. The Bible says, "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable." (Heb 4:13).

This fact is not meant to frighten us. Because the text following this one says very encouraging words: "So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."