Luke 4:31 - 37
31 And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath, 32 and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word possessed authority. 33 And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “Ha![b] 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.” 35 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. 36 And they were all amazed and said to one another, “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!” 37 And reports about him went out into every place in the surrounding region.
https://hartmangroupdevotionsmark.blogspot.com/2017/05/mark-313-35-13-jesus-went-up-on.html says:
ReplyDeleteThese scriptures warn us that just because someone (including ourselves) believe in Jesus or uses Jesus' name does not mean they (or we) have the faith and authority from God to cast out evil spirits. Those who wrongly ASSUME they have the power and authority to cast out demons can suffer some very real painful consequences, as seven sons mentioned in the New Testament found out.
Those who saw or heard of what happened quickly learned not to take the name and authority of Jesus Christ lightly --- and especially not to ASSUME they had God's authority to do whatever they pleased. If God has not ordained you to use His name for casting out demons, do not think you can simply conjure up some faith and do it anyway.
Factors about authority:
I. To receive authority, one must be submitted to authority.
II. A certain amount of faith is required.
III. To exercise authority one must act (usually by speaking).
IV. The authority is limited by the one giving the authority.
V. We are to use the authority.
VI. Authority must be acknowledged.
VII. Power must also accompany authority.
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The way I think it works is that God gives us a mission (which may be long or short term), and with that mission He will give us the authority to do what He wants done. Our faith comes in play and it looks like: We hear what God is telling us, we believe what God is telling us, and we do what God is telling us.
God gave the disciples a mission and they went out to do it. I think that this was an example of Jesus giving the disciples a mission, and we shouldn't interpret it as Jesus was giving us all that mission. Jesus has missions for us. But we have so little faith (we don't hear Him, we don't believe Him when we do hear Him, or we don't do what He says when we hear and believe Him).
So, if we all had perfect faith, would there be a lot of healing and casting out demons? It's not possible to answer. I believe that God has specific missions for us at specific times - which may or may not involve miracles. So, if we all had perfect faith, would a lot of people feel Christ's love? Absolutely!
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. v33 - Why the words, "spirit of an unclean demon"? Are there clean demons?
2. v33 - What are demons?
3. v34 - Why is the demon saying that Jesus is the Messiah in front of everyone?
4. v35 - Jesus had authority to cast out demons. Do we also?
https://hartmangroupdevotionsmark.blogspot.com/2017/03/mark-121-34-21-they-went-to-capernaum.html says:
ReplyDeletethe scribes taught by citing the opinions of various rabbis on different matters, appealing not to their own authority but to the authority of others.
Christ, on the other hand, did not appeal to the authority of various rabbis when He instructed the people.
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Jesus did not need or want the testimony of demons. I wouldn't either. He would have enough of the Pharisees accusing him of being in league with the devil in a short while. The reason given is that the demons "knew him". This is not a testimony of faith or love, but of fear and doom before the Lord who would soon cast them into hell. Their words might be true and correct, even so they were spoken to do the Lord harm.
In commanding silence of these demons, I believe Jesus was making a statement as to the requirements of the source of proclamation, especially since, when the source is questionable, the words proclaimed come into question
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You can see two similar tactics used by the enemy of God: 1. Make the word of God silly and/or bigoted to others. 2. Infiltrate a group of believers and make them look bad.
It may be the reason this demon spoke up and even went so far as to say the exact truth about Jesus was to attempt to make Jesus validate the man as a source of truth. People would then link this possessed man to Jesus.
You see this today: Really evil people linking themselves with Jesus, Christianity and bodies of believers. Then everyone can make the association between the evil the evil person does and people who follow Jesus (and Jesus Himself).
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-4-commentary says:
ReplyDeleteHe had now made Capernaum (Tell Hum) his headquarters after the rejection in Nazareth.
Capernaum today is marked only by ruins.
Ray Ortlund - Power Encounters: It has long struck me as odd that a demon-possessed man was right there in the synagogue. It was a place of devotion to God. It was where Jesus wanted to go. What on earth was a demon-possessed man doing there, of all places? Moreover, the people weren’t alarmed by his presence. But the presence and teaching of Jesus aroused the intensity of this man’s true condition. He flew into a rage. It became a dramatic power encounter. The visit of Jesus to that synagogue made the crisis inevitable, and the power of Jesus made the outcome beautifully redemptive: “. . . having done him no harm.”
Three take-aways for church leaders:
One, let’s guard the spiritual integrity of our membership. Unregenerate church members will import not just their problems but actual opposition to Jesus. There is a difference.
Two, let’s call sin sin. We need wisdom here, so that we don’t inadvertently create an environment of ungracious accusation. But it is spiritually costly to build allowances around blatant sin among our members. Unresisted sin will resist the presence of Jesus. It will even presume to define the character of the church. The demoniac did not say to Jesus, “What have you to do with me?” He shouted, “What have you to do with us?”
Three, the remedy for spiritual mixture is the undiluted authority of the teaching of Jesus. He did not lean on previous rabbis for validation but declared his own authority as “the Holy One of God.” For us, that translates into reverent preaching and hearing of the biblical gospel with complete openness to whatever challenges it brings and changes it demands. We do not need Calvin, Edwards and Spurgeon for validation. Illustration, yes. Validation, no. They bring no power. The Bible, with the Holy Spirit, brings all the power we need. Let it speak. And let nothing get in the way.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-4-commentary continued:
ReplyDelete“having an unclean, demonic spirit,” that is, an evil spirit. This is the only place Luke uses this lengthy phrase. Normally he simply says an “unclean spirit.”
Demon most often describes demons or evil spirits who have supernatural powers and are neither human nor divine.
THOUGHT - Don't miss the irony! Who knows how long this demon possessed man had been sitting in the synagogue, listening to the droning on of the rabbis, all the while remaining calm and completely undisturbed by what he heard. Why was he not disturbed? Because the rabbis were not preaching the Word of God! But when Jesus preached the Word, the demon reacted immediately, screaming out through the man’s vocal cords! Here's the point - it is very difficult for unbelievers (not possessed by evil spirits, but their own selfish, self-centered evil flesh) to sit week after week under a Spirit anointed preacher, powerfully proclaiming the Word of Truth!
What business do we have with each other? - which NET Bible translates as "Ha! Leave us alone"
Bock makes an interesting comment on I know. "The demon's naming of Jesus as Holy One is an attempt to gain control of the situation. In ancient texts of exorcism, it was common to name the demon as a way of showing authority in the encounter.
Jesus sometimes commanded the demons not to confess Who He is (e.g., Mk 1:24, 25). Bock reasons that "It appears that this kind of an endorsement could produce confusion about Who Jesus was, as later the Jews suggest it is through the devil's power that Jesus works (Luke 11:14-20).
Epitimao conveys the sense of warning which includes an implied threat (Lk 8:24; Mt 16:20). Jesus "rebuked the fever" of Peter's mother in Lk 4:39. In Lk 4:41 He rebuked demons calling Him "the Son of God." (cf Lk 9:42 In Lk 8:24 He rebuked the wind. In Lk 9:21 He warned His disciples not to tell anyone He was "The Christ of God.”
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-4-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteThere were several reasons for Jesus’ miracles. First, they authenticate His person and teaching, proving Him to be the Messiah sent by the Father (see Luke 7:20-22). Second, the miracles show us who Jesus is. He feeds the 5,000 and claims to be the bread of life. He claims to be the light of the world and opens the eyes of a man born blind. Third, the miracles give symbolic lessons of spiritual truth. The sick and the dead represent the human race, broken under sin. Without Christ, they are helpless. But when He speaks the word, they are instantly cured. Thus the miracles show us God’s great gift of salvation. Finally, the miracles show us either implicitly or explicitly how we should respond to Jesus Christ. We must come to Him in our utter helplessness and cast ourselves totally on His mercy and power. The miracles also warn us how not to come to Jesus, since many sought after Him not so that they could follow Him as Lord, but just to use Him for their own selfish purposes. An evil and adulterous generation seeks after miracles.
Let me give some brief guidelines about seeking God’s miraculous healing today. First, check your motive. God’s glory, not your comfort, should be foremost (Phil. 1:20). Second, submit to the Lord, who knows better than you do what is best in any situation. Paul thought it would be best to get rid of the thorn in his flesh. God knew otherwise (2 Cor. 12:7-10). Third, don’t limit God by unbelief (Mark 6:5, 6). God is able to do the impossible, if it’s His will. So, pray for miraculous healing, believing that God is able, but recognize that it may not be His will. Fourth, look for the spiritual lessons God is trying to teach you in the trial. There may be a sin you need to confess (James 5:13-16). You may need to learn to trust God in a greater way (2 Cor. 1:8, 9). You may need to learn to focus more on the things above and the hope of heaven (Col. 3:1-4). You may need to rearrange your priorities (Matt. 6:33). God uses affliction to conform us to the image of His Son, and so instant, miraculous healing is often not His will.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/demon-possession/ says:
ReplyDelete“Demon possession” is a term frequently used to translate the Greek term daimonizomai in the New Testament. This term describes a variety of conditions, both physical and emotional-mental-psychological, for which the cause is identified as direct demonic influence. The remedy that was used by Jesus and the Early Church for such conditions was exorcism.
It is argued on the basis of evidence in the Gospels that “demon possession” can cause a wide range of symptoms, many of which are virtually indistinguishable from the symptoms associated with “normal illnesses,” i.e. illnesses that are the result of living in a fallen world.
These terms seem to indicate the presence of demons or unclean spirits, who are exerting a degree of regular or intermittent and pernicious influence in a person’s life.
the symptoms of “demon possession” can be quite diverse. For this reason it is noteworthy that Jesus was able to distinguish conditions resulting from the fall of humankind (which were addressed by miracles of healing) from conditions that were caused by direct demonic influence (which required exorcism).
Regarding the question of how Jesus was able to distinguish between these two types of conditions, the evidence in the Synoptic Gospels (especially Luke) suggests, first, that Jesus is led by the Spirit in making this important determination.
In such a context certain passages suggest that the spirits spontaneously reacted when confronted with Jesus’ presence and authority. Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him. In these types of cases, the presence of “demon possession” is clearly signaled by the reaction of the impure spirits to Jesus, and all that remained was for Jesus to issue an authoritative command for them to leave.
The most common remedy for “demon possession” is the simple application of the spiritual authority that the Lord has delegated to followers of Christ. This is accomplished by issuing a command to the spirit in the name of Jesus to leave the person, which is usually quite effective. Jesus pointed to the effectiveness of his ministry of exorcism as demonstrating that the kingdom of God is present, albeit in its inaugurated form (Matt. 12:28), in his ministry, so the effectiveness of exorcism in his name should not surprise his followers.
In the Acts of the Apostles, we see a continuation of this type of ministry by the early Christians.
In light of the evidence to this point, it should be evident that two critical assumptions that are often made in Western Christianity, namely 1) that “demon possession” is typically dramatic and extreme in nature, and 2) that “demon possession” is quite rare, are unfounded. The diverse nature of “demon possession” in the gospels stands as evidence against the first assumption, while the frequency of exorcism in the ministries of Jesus, his disciples and the early Christians tells against the second assumption.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/demon-possession/ continued:
ReplyDeleteCertain issues related to the phenomenon of “demon possession” have occasioned differences of opinion even among Christians who believe in the authority and inerrancy of the Bible. One of these issues is how we should translate the word daimonizomai. Most English translations, as well as many biblical scholars and theologians, use the term “is demon possessed” to render the meaning of this term. However, a significant number of writers, including many who perform exorcism as a part of their overall ministry, argue that the term is too narrow in meaning, thus giving the reader the impression that all cases of “demon possession” are extreme in nature. And to make matters even more complicated, some have introduced a distinction between “demon oppression,” which usually denotes demonic influence from outside the person, and “demon possession,” which refers to demonic influence that is typically more severe in nature due to the fact that the spirit is dwelling within the person who is “possessed.” This type of argument is fundamentally spatial in nature, and proponents of the oppression/possession distinction focus their attention on the question, “Where is the spirit?”
It is clear that these various approaches have led to an impasse within the Christian community. However, one suggestion as we seek a way forward would be to consider the relatively diverse nature of the symptoms associated with the New Testament terms, namely daimonizomai (“demon possessed”), en pneumati akathartō (“with an unclean spirit”), and echōn daimonian (“having a demon”), and to ask ourselves whether most English speaking readers would tend to associate such a broad range of symptoms with “demon possession.” Given the manner in which “demon possession” has been presented in the West, both in print and in the sub-genre of horror film that was kicked off by The Exorcist in 1973 and was featured in the thirty or so films that followed, it is not surprising that our conception of “demon possession” tends toward the extreme. Interestingly enough, this is not unlike the conception of “demon possession” that is held by many people, including many Christians, in the Majority World. The primary difference is that for many people in the Majority World, “demon possession” is very real indeed, whereas for many people in the West, including many Christians, “demon possession” is only a theoretical possibility.
So where does this lead us? Perhaps more accurate than “demon possession” in terms of communicating the overall portrayal of this phenomenon in the Synoptic Gospels is something like “subject to demonic influence” or “subject to demonic oppression.” Another approach would be to use a literal translation of the other terms that are associated with and roughly synonymous with daimonizomai in the Synoptic Gospels, namely “with an unclean spirit” or “having a demon.” This approach would seem to be an improvement over the continued use of “demon possession” and the alternative approach of using the term “demonized,” which could be quite confusing to readers.
http://www.jesuswalk.com/lessons/4_31-37.htm says:
ReplyDeleteAt first glance you wonder why Jesus stops the demons from speaking. After all, they ARE speaking the truth. Jesus IS indeed the Son of God, the Holy One of God. The demons are declaring openly what the residents of Capernaum may only be suspecting vaguely. Why does Jesus stop the demons? At least five reasons are involved:
1. Distraction. The demons are creating a scene, interrupting, and drawing attention away from Jesus' teaching. They are subverting his purpose and ministry. If they can turn people's minds from truth to the spectacular, they can prevent truth from working change and freedom.
2. Defrauding. The demons are stealing something that does not belong to them -- the voices of human victims they have gained control over. To let them continue to speak through their victims is to give tacit approval to their rape of the victim's faculties.
3. Deception. Before long, truth will be mingled with half-truths. When demons speak you don't get pure truth. It may sound like truth, like it did to Eve in the Garden of Eden, but soon there is the subtle twist, the doubt, the hook. Jesus doesn't trust the speakers and so he commands them to be silent.
4. Derailment. It is not time to declare Jesus' Divinity and Messiahship. Specifically, Jesus prohibits demons from speaking "because they knew that he was the Christ" (4:41b, i.e. the Messiah. See Mark 3:11-12). The term "Messiah" has strong political connotations in First Century Palestine. To proclaim Jesus as Messiah prematurely would keep people from hearing Jesus' essential teaching. You'll notice, especially in Mark's Gospel, that Jesus prohibits some of the people he heals from disclosing it, because to do so would cause Jesus to be mobbed in every village he comes to (Mark 1:45). Notice, also, that Jesus seldom speaks of himself as "Son of God," but as "Son of Man." Using the term "Son of God" would cause him to be accused of blasphemy and sidetrack his ministry (John 10:33; 19:7). The demons at Capernaum are wittingly or unwittingly involved in subverting Jesus' own timetable for his ministry and self-disclosure.
5. Discrediting. The endorsement by obviously troubled and demonically-controlled people can hardly enhance Jesus' reputation. It is kind of like a conservative Republican presidential candidate being officially endorsed by the Communist Worker's Party. Demonic endorsement is the last kind of endorsement Jesus needs!
Questions and findings:
ReplyDelete1. v33 - Why the words, "spirit of an unclean demon"? Are there clean demons?
It looks like this is just an extended description that Luke uses. I can't find any article that expounds on this. It looks like it just means the same as "demonized".
2. v33 - What are demons?
They are angels who rebelled against God, led by Satan, and cast out of heaven by God.
3. v34 - Why is the demon saying that Jesus is the Messiah in front of everyone?
To discredit Jesus and distract from Him.
4. v35 - Jesus had authority to cast out demons. Do we also?
At least some of us do some of the time. I don't know if Jesus has empowered all of us who have the Holy Spirit all of the time. It may be that we need a special anointing and command to cast out demons at a particular time.