As an undergraduate I once heard someone speak with great authority about lasers.  Professor Arthur Schawlow (a committed Christian and Nobel Prize-winner) gave a guest lecture. As co-inventor of the laser he could speak with unrivalled authority on the subject.

What was it about Jesus that made his listeners in the synagogue say that he spoke with authority (v 27)? Unlike others who taught in the synagogue, he did not have to quote what other people had written about God – he knew his Father intimately (v 22). His knowledge showed through. But there was much more to Jesus’ authority than his style of speaking. When Jesus spoke, things happened (vs 25,26). He had called people to follow and they followed. Now his speech in the synagogue prompted a reaction from a man possessed by an evil spirit and the spirit recognised Jesus’ authority (v 24). At Jesus’ command the sick were healed. Mark wants us to know that Jesus was not just a good man or a clever teacher. He was a man with authority.

Mark is introducing us to the promised Messiah, to whose call we should respond. Like the first disciples, as we get to know him better we also respond to his call on our lives.

‘I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene.’¹ Worship the King who has brought God’s rule to earth.

Jesus’ move to Capernaum was a strategic decision. Unlike Nazareth, tucked away behind the hills, Capernaum was a bustling town on the trade route between Phoenicia and Syria. When Jesus chose it for his ministry he was selecting a place where his message would have maximum impact on both Jews and Gentiles. As a part of Galilee, it was ruled (under the Romans) by Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. It was Herod Antipas who beheaded John the Baptist and who reappears in the story at Jesus’ trial.² Jesus was well aware of the threat that Herod posed,³ but did not allow it to deter him from ministry.

The story presents us with two interconnected events. On entering the synagogue, Jesus began teaching. To his Jewish hearers, his message was new. As we read on in Mark we will often discover where his message was different from that of the Pharisees. Instead of detailed exposition of the Mosaic Law, hedged around with prescriptive details to prevent accidental transgression, Jesus’ fresh teaching, with its vivid illustrations and bold metaphors, would have caught people’s attention and made his words memorable. They are all familiar to us and we need to put ourselves in the situation of people hearing them for the first time.

It wasn’t just his preaching that was memorable, however. When you hear someone who is mentally ill disturbing the proceedings in a public place, you remember that occasion for its bizarre oddity – but you have probably never witnessed anything like what happened here. This was no ordinary exorcism: the evil spirit just obeyed Jesus’ word. The people who watched it were more than just surprised. The Greek word for ‘amazed’ used here (v 27) suggests an element of fear and apprehension. People sat up and took notice. Jesus had authority.

How have you known Jesus’ power and authority? Maybe he is calling you to some new venture; pray that you may be willing to follow him.

¹ Charles H Gabriel, 1856 – 1932  ² Luke 23:7–12  ³ See Mark 8:15