Luke 4:31-37 — Author-ity

READ THIS: Luke 4:31-37

31 Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath he taught the people. 32 They were amazed at his teaching, because his words had authority. 33 In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an impure spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice, 34 “Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” 

35 “Be quiet!” Jesus said sternly. “Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down before them all and came out without injuring him. 36 All the people were amazed and said to each other, “What words these are! With authority and power he gives orders to impure spirits and they come out!” 

37 And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

Jesus is still in Galilee, like we read yesterday, but instead of being in His hometown of Nazareth, He is in Capernaum. In this passage, everyone is impressed specifically by Jesus' authority. First, He has authority when teaching, and then, second, He has authority over a demon inside of a man.  

The people watching are amazed, and they comment on His power and authority, but it's only the demon who understands who Jesus is...the Holy One of God. Most of the people at this point know that He is Jesus of Nazareth, but they don't understand where He truly comes from...He comes from God in Heaven. But, what people do understand is that there is something different about Jesus, which is why the news about Him spreads. 

The word authority means "the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience." Jesus in this passage decides to evict the demon, orders the demon to leave, and then makes the demon leave. He does all three things that the definition requires. But does He do those three things through His power or through His right to do so? The people say that Jesus has power and authority. If Jesus only has power and not the right to command others, then there is not point in using the word authority to just repeat that Jesus has power. What we learn in this passage is that people and demons see Jesus, and they can recognize that He has not only the power, but the right to teach and command. 

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. What does it mean to you when you think that someone has authority? What gives Jesus authority? In other words, how come Jesus has both the right and the power to command others?

2. Have you ever felt the authority of Jesus, or seen someone else respond to His authority?

TRY THIS:

Think of your favorite book. What do you call the person who wrote that book? Try to come up with an explanation for why authority relates to the word author and how that might relate to Jesus!

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