What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out

 

 Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  

Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

 

- Luke 4:31–37 

 

Yesterday we read that after being tempted by the devil, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:  "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."   Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"   Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine thorughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

 

 Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  My study bible quotes St. Ambrose of Milan, who explains that Christ begins preaching and healing on the Sabbaths in order to show that "the new creation began where the old creation ceased."  Regarding teaching . . . His word . . . with authority, my study bible comments that Christ doesn't teach like the prophets of old and the teachers of His own time, who taught in the third person ("The Lord says").  Christ instead teaches in the first person ("I say to you").  See also Matthew 5, the Sermon on the Mount.

Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.  Jesus commands the unclean demon to Be quiet, as He does not want His messianic identity revealed at this early stage of His ministry -- and certainly not this way, but rather in the way His ministry will unfold with His disciples.  My study bible explains that Christ's refusal to fully disclose His identity as Messiah is foreseen by Isaiah (Isaiah 42:1-4).  The reasons for this secrecy would include the growing hostility of the Jewish leaders, the people's misunderstanding and expectation of the Messiah as an earthly and political leader, and Christ's desire to evoke genuine faith which is not based solely on marvelous signs.  The people marvel at Christ's authority and power, shown in His command to the unclean spirits.

So what is authority and where does it come from?  Where does power come from?  These are the things that distinguish Christ from all the others the people hear preaching.  Christ speaks from His own authority and acts from His own power.  But how would we recognize this authority and power?  My study bible makes note of the ways in which Christ preaches, that He speaks direct from His own authority, in using phrases like, "I say to you," such as when He preaches regarding the Law in the Sermon on the Mount.  In Matthew 5:21-48, Jesus uses the formula, "You have heard that it was said to those of old . . .  But I say to you . . . ," adding, refining, building upon the Law, in just the same way in which the New Testament illumines, expands, and further reveals and enlightens what was given in the Old.  So Jesus conveys power and authority in His speech, but speech alone would not be enough to convey what truly exists with Christ.  In our story of the synagogue in Capernaum in today's reading,  Jesus commands the unclean demon and the demon must obey.  This is another display of authority and of power.  But still, exorcists did exist within the Jewish tradition -- to cast out an unclean demon was not an exceptional sign, but the sign of the authority and power of Christ Himself was something exceptional.  He needs no other name in which to act, no other authority other than what He possesses within Himself.  These are the things to which the people respond and for which they marvel about Christ.  His authority is in His identity, in Himself.  Once again, when pondering this question of authority and power, we return to Christ's relationship to the Father and the Holy Spirit.  His authority and power is in His identity as Son.  As such, this authority and power is something new in the world, something the people have not seen before.   As my study bible reminds us, Christ's preaching is bringing something new into the world, a new creation.  But as "sons" by adoption, how does this authority and power work in us, or through us?  St. Paul writes, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).  If Christ's power and authority have come into the world in order to reconcile all the world to Himself, and therefore to save, then what is our place in this "ministry of reconciliation" which Paul writes about?  How is Christ's power and authority extended through us?  Ultimately, the power of the Cross is the way of Christ, and that power and authority work in this world, through the good and the bad, for God's purposes.  Let us keep in mind, as we read that the people marvel at Christ, that this power and authority was brought into the world for us, and continues in the ministry He's given to us, and through us.  We each have our place within and among this power and authority which is shared with us, and distributed through the Spirit.  What grace does God share with you?  How does power and authority translate to grace, in order to be at work in your life, and through your part as one among the faithful?  Christ's power and authority startle the people of His time, but in our own lives at this time, we perhaps need that more than ever -- to rely on it, to participate in it, and especially to make it real in this world by living through it.  Let us consider the new creation as one that is ever-renewed, continually made new in us, and our part to play in what is meant for the life of the world.  

I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent

 Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon's house.  But Simon's wife's mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her.  So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her.  And immediately she arose and served them.

When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.  And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of God!"  And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.

Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place.  And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them; but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent."  And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.

- Luke 4:38-44

Yesterday we read that, after being rejected in His hometown of Nazareth, He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

 Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon's house.  But Simon's wife's mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her.  So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her.  And immediately she arose and served them.  We see an integrated community of believers in Capernaum, where Peter has his home.  This passage tells us that Peter is married, with an extended family, which becomes home and headquarters to Christ's ministry.  My study bible quotes St. Cyril of Alexandria, who writes about Jesus' rebuke of the fever of Peter's mother-in-law:  "That which was rebuked was some living thing unable to withstand the influence of Him who rebuked it, for it is not reasonable to rebuke a thing without life and unconscious of the rebuke.  Nor is it astonishing for there to exist certain powers that inflict harm on the human body."

When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.  And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of God!"  And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.  Jesus' capacity to heal becomes a strong and early focus of His Galilean ministry.  All know about Him, to the extent that their sick are brought to Him.  Once again, as in yesterday's reading (above), the demons know who He is, but He rebukes them and doesn't allow them to speak; He does not want His identity revealed in this way and at this time.  We note the connection of illness and demonic activity; not all illnesses are linked to this, but their co-incidence is evident here.  All things seem to stir around Christ, both illness and demons fail to remain in place in His presence and action.

Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place.  And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them; but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent."  And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.  My study bible tells us that Christ's primary mission was to preach the kingdom.  Miracles and healings testify both to the truth of the message and also the identity of Christ as Teacher.  This same pattern holds true in the Church under the apostles (Acts 4:29-30).   Let us note that before each new expansion of His ministry, Jesus retreats in solitude and peace for prayer.

Jesus' influence begins to have hallmark effects on the communities of His ministry.  He begins to tour around Galilee, so to speak.  He's established a pattern in Capernaum.  He preaches in the synagogue on the Sabbaths.  Today's reading gives us a picture of one Sabbath in His ministry.  He goes to the synagogue and preaches, and then returns "home" where Peter's mother-in-law is ill.  They request that He come to her; He rebukes her fever and heals her.  It is time for the meal, and she is well and rises to serve them, restored to her place in the home.  Later when the sun is setting, the community brings the sick to Him.  Many who are sick have demonic influence, and as in the synagogue the demons make themselves known -- and recognize Him -- as they are forced to depart and remove their influence from the community.  Jesus has power and authority over them, commanding them to silence.  It's as if the world is a lawless place as far as demonic activity is concerned, but Christ comes with law, power, and authority over them.  The next day, Jesus departs to a "deserted place" -- but the community comes seeking Him.  They try to persuade Him to remain, but He tells them that He must take His ministry to other cities in Galilee.  When Jesus retreats to a deserted place, it is always for prayer, a necessary time of rest, reflection, and consultation with the Father.  He tells them that He's sent to other cities also, and takes up His ministry in the synagogues of Galilee.  It's like Jesus is "all business."  He knows why He is sent and what He is sent to do.  He's on a mission, and He must complete it accordingly.  Jesus' ministry so far in its beginning has clearly been directed both by the will of the Father and the action of the Holy Spirit.  He has something He is supposed to do, and He's not alone, but has been sent to accomplish something, and He is faithful to that mission.  We can see His influence, His energy and power at work.  It is stirring up the world everywhere He goes.  People respond to the healing, but first He preaches and teaches.  What we can take from today's reading is how His power, authority, and influence work.  Is this what you want in your life?  We also note Jesus' repeated retreat for prayer and renewal, which occurs in the Gospels quite remarkably as a sort of punctuation between each new phase and expansion of ministry.  It is something we can all learn from.   Our lives unfold as Jesus' ministry unfolds.  We have something to do, but we live in a world where all kinds of influences and interactions are possible and will make up the story of our lives.   Like Christ, we should find that pattern of retreat and prayer as frequent "punctuation" in the midst of all else we do, particularly when we are working through a difficult time of transition and decision.  We call upon His words and His influence and power and authority to find our way and to help us in all circumstances.  Like Christ, we note also the Father and the Holy Spirit, the energies of mercy and grace we need, and the prayer to Our Father which Christ has given us.   Part of Christ's mission is also the training of His disciples who will become His apostles, saints upon whose work the Church will be established and expanded.  Let us call upon all these resources for ourselves, for influence and guidance in our lives.  We will follow our own "business" as we are directed, and call upon the community which He has established for us.  Let us keep to what we are to be about, as He does, and stay focused on the mission, through all things.

I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!

 Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

- Luke 4:31-37

Yesterday we read that after His time of temptation,  Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"  Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.  But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elish the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  My study bible cites the commentary of St. Ambrose of Milan here, who writes that Jesus begins preaching and healing on the Sabbaths to show that "the new creation began where the old creation ceased."

And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  The prophets of the past and also the teachers contemporaneous with Christ spoke and taught in the third person ("The Lord says"), or cited the opinions of famous rabbis in their teaching.  But Christ teaches in the first person, with authority ("I say to you").

Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.  Jesus tells the demon to Be quiet!  Traditional commentators see this as evidence of His reluctance to fully disclose His identity as Messiah, which was foreseen by Isaiah (Isaiah 42:1-4).  My study bible cites the reasons for secrecy as including the growing hostility of the Jewish leadership; the people's misunderstanding of the Messiah as an earthly, political leader; and finally our Lord's desire to evoke genuine faith which is not based solely on marvelous signs. 

 Witness statements are something we may wish to reflect a lot about, given today's news headlines.  What is the truth?  How do we know the truth?  This will always be a relevant and important subject for discussion.  In today's reading, the demons give voice to the truth of Jesus' identity.  "I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"   You might think that perhaps Jesus would like others to know His identity, but this is not how things go.  This is not appropriate.  In fact, it is against His purpose and the outpouring of the Spirit that enables this ministry.  Jesus comes into the world to call us to faith through the truth of His work, teaching, and actions, through the relatedness we can find in our hearts to the truth of who He is.  What is the point of the demonic intervention or interaction in today's reading?  These voices come from a mysterious counterpart to our waking world, our consciousness of what life is all about.  Their origins are hidden from us.  And yet, something has happened to show us that Jesus comes from this realm and commands in this realm.  They know and fear His power over them.  It is a revelation that gives us a taste of something more beyond what we know.  But it is not through the medium of spirits and demons that Christ wishes to be revealed.  There is a truth more powerful at work here, and it is the truth of God the Father at work in this ministry, the truth of the Holy Spirit who made the Incarnation possible.  It is the truth of the Son who is sent to us out of love for us.  This is not about psychic revelation, but about the love of God in the heart that reveals something to us.  It is about a depth of response of which we as human beings are capable.  It is about a kind of response to truth that does not come with any form of conventional observation or proof.  It is, rather, a truth that is behind the surface of all things -- and is often hidden and shadowed by what people consider to be obvious.  Jesus does not want our awe at spectacle, nor our fear at the demons.  He calls us to faith, which is something quite different altogether.  Think about what faith challenges in us, what it asks us to confront and to go through in our lives.  Faith asks us to make choices, to be not simply alert and aware but discerning, not to take things at face value but to test everything.  Faith asks us for a kind of awareness that is about our very consciousness and sensitivity to the things that count, the character forged through walking this difficult and not easy path, and a confidence and dependence upon God's love as the bedrock of all.  Don't let the voices of the mob rule your mind; seek the place of private time with God, as Christ teaches (Matthew 6:6).  Call upon the saints for help with prayer, and find the peace you need for faith, in the heart.

What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out

 Then He went down to  Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

- Luke 4:31-37

 Yesterday we read that after Jesus was tempted in the wilderness,  He returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:  "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is filled in your hearing."  So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"  Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.  But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Then He went down to  Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  My study bible tells quotes St. Ambrose of Milan, who comments that Christ begins preaching and healing on the Sabbaths to show that "the new creation began where the old creation ceased."  (See Genesis 2:2-3.)

And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  The people are astonished because Jesus teaches with authority.    The prophets of the Old Testament and also the teachers of Jesus' time would teach in the third person; i.e. "The Lord says").  But Jesus teaches in the first person ("I say to you").   Those of old were very few who heard God's voice directly, but Jesus speaks directly to all.

Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.   The demons know who Jesus is.  But Jesus' identity will not be revealed through declarations and proclamations; His ministry must unfold as it unfolds, through the works He is given to do and the word He is given to teach.  He doesn't openly declare Himself Messiah.  There will be all kinds of complications in this ministry:   the hostility of the leadership, the people misunderstand what the Messiah is to be and expect an earthly political leader, Jesus wants genuine faith in His relationship to His followers -- not to convince by signs alone.  He manifests His identity, but not simply through open declarative proclamations.

Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.  The expression of Jesus' ministry is authority and power through the works He is given to do.   It is in this way He manifests His identity as Incarnate Christ.

We note in this beginning of Jesus' ministry that it is begun in the power of the Holy Spirit:  He was filled with the Holy Spirit when He returned from the Jordan (His Baptism) and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan regarding His ministry.  Then  He returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee (yesterday's reading, above).   Everything works through the holy power of God manifest through the work of Father, Son, and Spirit.  In reading through the Gospels, we should not separate the work of Father, Son, and Spirit together.  Christ says over and over again that those who have seen Him have seen the Father.  In John's Gospel, at the Last Supper, we understand His promise that if we abide in Him and follow His commands, He, the Father, and the Spirit (whom He calls the Helper) will dwell with us and make their home with us.  The Holy Spirit is always at work in the story of Jesus' ministry, preparing the way and helping to lead Him to the events that will make up this ministry.  In today's reading, Jesus' power and authority astonish the people.  The ministry unfolds to tell a story of what this Messiah is all about, to reveal God, and to reveal God in God's fullness as Trinity.  It is this story that we watch, and this unfolding in a particular way, that the Spirit helps to lead and to make manifest for us.  Even as Jesus' ministry is fulfilled through Father, Son, and Spirit, we should never minimize the importance of all three at work in our own lives.  We call on and pray to Christ, but where One is, so is the Trinity, as He has promised and taught to us. But the example of the specific unfolding of Jesus' ministry should let us understand the power that we have to call upon through prayer.  There are specific prayers to the Holy Spirit (for example, this prayer that begins all Eastern services), as we have the prayer given to us by Jesus to pray to Our Father (Matthew 6:9-13), and there are also short, simple prayers to Christ called the Jesus Prayer or Prayer of the Heart, to pray at any time, in concentration or while doing other tasks.  We see the specific way Jesus is called upon to develop His ministry and to reveal Himself as God to the world.  So should we follow His example, and always ask through prayer for how the journey of our own life is to be led and to unfold.

What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out

 Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.  Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

- Luke 4:31-37

In yesterday's reading, we were told that after His temptation and forty days in the wilderness, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:  "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"  Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.  But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.   And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  My study bible quotes St. Ambrose of Milan on this verse, who writes that Jesus begins preaching and healing on the Sabbaths to show that "the new creation began where the old creation ceased."

And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority.   There are many things Jesus does that cause people to be astonished.  But the subject of His authority is an essential to note.  He is unlike the prophets of old and the teachers of His day.   My study bible explains that they would teach in the third person ("The Lord says").  But Jesus speaks from Himself; He teaches in the first person ("I say to you").  See also Matthew 5, the first part of the Sermon on the Mount.

 Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon.  And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.   Jesus commands the demon to be quiet, and come out of him.  Although He speaks with authority and His power is evident, Jesus isn't ready to reveal Himself as Christ, the Messiah.  It's not yet His time.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus read from Isaiah to the people of His hometown, Nazareth.  This lack of open proclamation of His identity was also foreseen by Isaiah (see Isaiah 42:1-4).   My study bible cites reasons for secrecy which include the growing hostility of the religious leadership, the people's misunderstanding and false expectations of the Messiah as an earthly and political leader, and Christ's desire for genuine faith not based wholly on persuasive or marvelous signs.  The demons know Him, and they know His power of judgment, but they do not willingly serve that power.  They, however, cannot resist His command.

Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, "What a word this is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out."  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.  Jesus expresses His authority and power in what He does, how He ministers.  His is not a ministry of open proclamation and worldly types of persuasion.  Faith must come from those who accept to understand what He does and what He teaches.

Jesus' temptations in the wilderness were all about temptations for worldly use of both His authority and His power.  Satan questioned Christ's relationship to the Father, and His identity as Son; the temptation was to prove it on worldly terms.  In these beginning passages of Jesus' ministry in Galilee, we see the temptations' roots in how His ministry is to be conducted.  He will not give earthly proofs of who He is, although His ministry will express many signs of the divine at work.  He will not declare Himself as a sort of worldly power, commanding armies and legions and using force or manipulation as persuasion.  His ministry is one that calls people to faith, and more.  He calls human beings to use their own capacities for spiritual sight and hearing.  In the unclean demon, we see an example of the spiritual without the true discipline of faith.  It is simply destructive -- and destructive to human beings.  Its work is parasitical, its energy and effect is haywire.  It teaches us that even the "spiritual" does not guarantee good effect, good direction, true healing for human beings, nor good intention and order.  The demon does not love God, nor understand God's love, but only fears destruction -- and therefore does not love human beings.   Ultimately, the real key to faith is love, what we love within ourselves, and the depth of loyalty that builds in terms of faith in the word and teachings of Christ.  In such we come to more deeply know God's love.  Jesus' power and authority come down to the appeal to those who love God, and therefore can know God, recognizing what is before them.  He will repeat this teaching over and over again to the authorities:  that had they known His Father, they would know Him.  So what is this word that is brought into the world by the Word Himself?  How do we really know love, and what is truly good for us?  What is contained in His love that the demon doesn't know?  How is it that we as human beings are capable of discerning this?  There are many reasons why His ministry will unfold as it does, for His way of calling out faith.  But above all, we can see the tie between faith and love.  Do we have ears to hear and eyes to see it?