First Things First
Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
Anyone who has managed a classroom knows that you want to have your “A”-game going on the first day of class. You set the tone on day one. You give students a glimpse of what they can expect going forward. The gospels take great care to record what happened in those first days of Jesus’ ministry. Matthew says Jesus went up on a mountain, gathered people around him and sat down to talk about what the law was really about. Luke places Jesus in his hometown synagogue, announcing the good news of release and healing for folks on the bottom. John remembers Jesus making wine at a wedding feast, blessing folks with abundant grace. Mark also recalls that Jesus started out on Day 1 in a synagogue, where he powerfully opposed a dark power that intended to control a child of God.
We can talk all day long about the nature of that “unclean spirit.” Was this a classic case of demon possession? Is Mark describing a man in the middle of a psychiatric breakdown? Hard to know, but one thing is clear. Jesus was taking names and showing who was in charge on day one. We can’t help but wonder where the unclean spirits of our age hang out, and how they manifest in the lives of people in our neighborhood…and our churches. But it’s really not that hard. We don’t have to know the typology of every dark spirit to be able to recognize one when we see it.
Friends, here we are at the beginning of a new year, and we don’t have to sniff around much to pick up the scent of unclean spirits in our midst. Churches are in freefall. It’s an election year and Christians can’t get much more divided than they already are. Wars drag on and many of our people already seem exhausted.
The gospels of Jesus were written down as hopes for the Messiah’s quick return began to dim. These stories were collected to prepare believers for long-term faithfulness. And this story from Mark was placed right on the top of the stack. From the start of his ministry, Jesus opposed all forces of evil, which we might define as anything that set out to rob God’s children of life and goodness. The Lord did this with intentionality, with confidence, with compassion.
Here we are, at the beginning of a new year. There is a lot of darkness out in the world, and more than we might expect inside the confines of the church. Jesus isn’t surprised by any of this; he didn’t look for the exit and neither should we. So let’s take a deep breath and go forth in the name of the One who commanded obedience from unclean spirits. It’s early in the year. Classes are in session. Bring your “A”-game.
Timothy W. Ross is the Director of Pastoral Care for Christian Missionary Fellowship International.