Mark 1:21-28
What Is Our Authority For?
Rev. Kenneth M. Locke
The Downtown Presbyterian Church
January 29, 2012
It's ten minutes before worship and someone comes running up and oh my gosh it's a scandal! The pastor and the organist and the checkbook is missing and only you have the authority to decide what to do. You!
You're just going to bed and the phone rings. It's Bill Haslam, governor of Tennessee. There's a crisis over healthcare and illegal immigrants and fracking and Newt Gingrich and the governor is giving you the authority to decide what to do. Only you have the power, the right, to make the decision. You!
It's 1:00 on a Thursday when the editor-in-chief of the Tennessean comes to your office. The paper is taking a stand on a major issue and they need a decision and the editor is giving you the sole power to decide. You alone will determine what position the paper will take. You!
How does it feel to be someone with authority? Do you like it? Does it feel natural? Does it give you a rush?
Does it intimidate you? Maybe put a knot in your stomach?
Why would anyone want authority? Authorities are authoritative and most of them are arrogant to boot. Many are bullies, plain and simple. Besides, having authority is a lot of work and there's the potential, if you screw it up, of doing real harm.
Too late. Like it or not you have authority. You have a lot of authority.
"No I don't. Jesus has authority. Not me."
Jesus is in Capernaum, a town on the NW shore of the Sea of Galilee. We don't know what he's saying but my guess is it's what we talked about last week. The time is now. God's alternate culture is fully accessible. Step up and believe in God's good news.
Whatever he's saying the people are clearly struck by how he's saying it. This man speaks with authority!
The Greek word is "exousia." It means authority, power, right. I have the authority, the power, the right to dispose of my estate as I see fit. But exousia is slippery. It can also mean freedom, liberty. I have the freedom, the liberty, to dispose of my estate as I see fit. My stuff, I can do what I want with it.
In 1st Corinthians chapter 8, Paul writes about eating meat that's been offered to idols. It's complicated but briefly most people very seldom ate meat. Meat was for special holydays and celebrations and all those holydays and celebrations would have involved idol worship. You would offer the meat to the idol, cook a little for the god, and eat the rest.
Lots of Christians had no problem with this. There is only one God and meat is meant for the stomach, pass the ribs. But other Christians, Paul called them "weak" because he thought they were weak in their understanding, thought eating meat that had been offered to idols was the same as idol worship. They thought it was sinful and so they refused.
Paul's advice was you have the freedom, you are at liberty, you have the exousia, to do whatever you want but if you think it's OK to eat this kind of meat and you're in the presence of someone who thinks it's wrong don't cause the other person to stumble. Don't make them lose their faith.
I have nothing against drinking wine. Sometimes I have a glass of wine with supper. But if my alcoholic friends were coming over, or my friends who thought alcohol was sinful were coming over, I wouldn't even offer it. The wine would stay in the kitchen. My house. My rules. My freedom. But why be a stumbling block?
Paul is saying Christian liberty, Christian freedom, Christian power and authority, is all about building up the other person. It's about building up the body of Christ. Christian exousia is all about being inclusive.
We don't know why the people said Jesus taught as one with authority. Certainly he was the Son of God and full of the Holy Spirit. I imagine he was also very tall with a luxurious beard, a deep voice and was stunningly handsome. You think?
What we can be sure of is Jesus does not use his authority to command people or order them around. He does not use his authority to break people down or drive them away. In fact, though he teaches with authority the only time he uses it is when the demon is making a ruckus. And even then what does he do? Does he drive out the man? No. He drives out the demon. The brother in Christ is healed. The body of Christ is built up.
Like Paul, Jesus uses his authority to build up the person. Authority is first and foremost for including, not for excluding.
As children of God, as brothers and sisters of Jesus, we have authority. That's a given. We can't escape it. The question is what is it for? How are we going to use it? OK, maybe Bill Haslam isn't going to call you at home. Maybe the editor-in-chief of The Tennessean isn't going to stop by your office. And I hope no one is going to run up to you 10 minutes before worship with a scandal about the pastor and the organist and a missing checkbook. We're trying to keep that quiet.
But a friend tells you her marriage is going stale and she's thinking of divorcing or at least playing around. You go to church. What would God want her to do?
A teenager you know trusts you so he comes and confesses his first experience with drugs and says he wants to do it again. It felt so good. You pray. What should he do?
Your friends at work are talking about that unwed mother, that illegal alien, that dare to say gay guy. Whoops! Better stop. It's Bill. He's a Jesus freak. What do you say?
It's an open stretch of road and no traffic and besides you're in a hurry and 15 miles over the limit isn't going to hurt anyone. But your buddy beside you just got saved and is very concerned about rules. What do you do?
Two years ago a friend of mine came to me one day and told me he wanted to go to church on Sundays and worship God but his wife wouldn't go with him. Not only that, when he did go she resented it and it stressed their marriage. This poor guy wants to come to church and worship God but when he does it puts a strain on his marriage! What do you do? What do you say?
You're the expert. You have the authority. What should we do?
God has given us tremendous power, authority, freedom. Do we know what it's really for? Are we being good stewards of it?
My friends, use your exousia well. Don't be a stumbling block to someone's relationship with God. Drive out the evil. Build up the person. Build up the body of Christ. That's what our exousia is for. Amen.