I believe that our God has given us the words from Luke 4:31-41, and I will read them. And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbath; 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. 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.
Last week, we examined the scene where Jesus read from Isaiah 61 in the synagogue of Nazareth. Do you remember? Through that passage, Jesus proclaimed that He is the Anointed One, the Messiah. Who is this Messiah? He is the one who brings good news to the poor, proclaims freedom to the captives, gives sight to the blind, and sets the oppressed free. Jesus declared that this promise was fulfilled in Him. So, how was the prophecy of Isaiah actually realized? Today's passage answers that question. Jesus now moves to Capernaum in Galilee. He goes from Nazareth to Capernaum, where He proclaims the message of the Kingdom of God, casts out demons, and heals the sick, all through His authoritative word. This morning, I earnestly hope that through this message, we all have the opportunity to stand once again before the authoritative word of God. May this message draw us closer to the word and help us understand what the word desires from us, in the name of the Lord, I bless you.
The Authority of Jesus' Words
First, Jesus' words have authority. Jesus' words possess power and ability. In today's passage, the scenes of demons leaving and the sick being healed catch our attention first. However, Luke emphasizes Jesus' teaching before these miraculous events. This is because the ability of Jesus to cast out demons and heal the sick is inseparable from His authoritative and powerful word. Therefore, Jesus first teaches with His word, and then, following that authoritative word, He casts out demons and heals the sick with the power of that word. Let's look at verse 32. And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority. What has authority? It is Jesus' word, His teaching that has authority. Luke does not say that Jesus' words appeared authoritative because He cast out demons. He does not say that His teaching gained authority because He healed the sick. Before addressing those miraculous events, Luke clearly proclaims that the words Jesus spoke themselves have authority, power, and dominion. The same content is recorded in Mark 1:22. And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Now, who is Jesus' teaching being compared to? It is compared to the scribes. The teaching of the scribes lacks authority, but Jesus' teaching has authority. So, what did the scribes teach, and how did they teach it? The scribes were scholars who knew and studied the Scriptures very well. They interpreted the Scriptures according to tradition and developed rabbinical interpretations of the Old Testament, applying those regulations meticulously to various areas of life. Therefore, in Matthew 23, Jesus says to observe what the scribes and Pharisees say, but not to do according to their works. So, not everything the scribes taught was wrong. They studied the Scriptures deeply and tried to interpret and apply the word according to tradition. However, the important fact is that their teaching lacked the authority and power that Jesus' teaching had. So, what is the authority of the word? What is the authority of the word we see? Every day, we read God's word and bow before it, but what is the authority that this word possesses? The authority of God's word is the power to stand us before God, to lead us to repentance by reflecting on ourselves before God's word, and to enable us to love God and our neighbors. Only God's word has this power. However, the teaching of the scribes did not exhibit this power because they were more entangled in detailed regulations and forms than in the essence of the word.