Sermon Tone Analysis

21 And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching.

22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit.

And he cried out, 24 “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

Have you come to destroy us?

I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” 25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” 26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.

27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this?

A new teaching with authority!

He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”

28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

His primary emphasis is on the authority of Jesus’ teaching and the response of the people, whose astonishment conveys the impression of real alarm.

Jesus’ word, presented with a sovereign authority which permitted neither debate nor theoretical reflection, confronted the congregation with the absolute claim of God upon their whole person.

Jesus’ teaching recalled the categorical demand of the prophets rather than scribal tradition.

The King’s Authority

Mark 1:21-

What is a Synagogue

a meeting house and prayer hall for the Jews

Teachings, worship, debate

different Rabbi’s or scribes would read portions of the law or the prophets and they would discuss as a group.

They were astonished at his teaching

They were astonished

This word does not mean to be impressed, or even to think highly of on its own

To be astonished was to be shocked, taken back, overwhelmed.

In the presence of Jesus men are disturbed, and this disturbance is the precise act of fishing to which Jesus had called the four fishermen.

If this was the book of Matthew we would know what Jesus taught.

Matthew is a blessing to the church because he gives us five long sermons of Jesus.

He informs us about the sort of things Jesus would say in when he taught.

Mark on the other hand gives us nothing of the content.

He only records the action of Jesus teaching.

But when we hear that the people were astonished at his teaching we really want to know what he said.

This is one of those passages where I wish I could go back in time and with a voice recorder and a laptop and take copious notes on what he said, and how he said it.

How was he teaching?

Mark does tell us that Jesus taught with authority, not like a scribe.

His primary emphasis is on the authority of Jesus’ teaching and the response of the people, whose astonishment conveys the impression of real alarm.

Jesus’ word, presented with a sovereign authority which permitted neither debate nor theoretical reflection, confronted the congregation with the absolute claim of God upon their whole person.

Jesus’ teaching recalled the categorical demand of the prophets rather than scribal tradition.

His primary emphasis is on the authority of Jesus’ teaching and the response of the people, whose astonishment conveys the impression of real alarm.

Jesus’ word, presented with a sovereign authority which permitted neither debate nor theoretical reflection, confronted the congregation with the absolute claim of God upon their whole person.

Jesus’ teaching recalled the categorical demand of the prophets rather than scribal tradition.

He taught as one who had authority

Jesus taught as a king.

Mark just reported Jesus announcing that the kingdom of God was at hand (v.15).

It was in their presence.

It was in their face.

Jesus is the king.

When we think about Jesus being king we need to make sure we think about it in light of the whole bible.

There is beautiful reality that Jesus is king over all creation

Jesus calms the storms

Jesus walks on water

Jesus is king over sickness

He heals the blind, deaf and mute

He heals the man with the crippled legs

He heals the woman with the issue of blood

Jesus is king over life and death

He raised Jairus’s daughter from the dead

Jesus is the king of glory

We see this in the transfiguration.

All of this is true.

But Jesus is also the king of the covenant, he is the king of Israel, he is the king of God’s people.

He is the true Son of David.

God made a covenant with David saying that his kingdom would be an everlasting kingdom.

And that David’s throne is an everlasting throne.

David is the king par excellence in the OT

David is the one who God calls a man after his own heart

David is the model king who fights for his people

David is the king who slays Goliath - a satan like figure in the OT

David is the king who wrote the psalms, the song book for Jesus during his life

David is the one who was loved by the people and ruled with justice

David is the greatest king in the OT, the humble warrior who feared God

And the promise to David was that his offspring would rule forever.

This is the king Jewish people were waiting for.

They were waiting for another David like figure to come and deliver them from the Romans in the same way David delivered them from the Philistines.

So when Jesus spoke with the authority of the king, after announcing his kingdom in verse 15, people were taken back, people were overwhelmed, people astonished.

Prophets spoke with the authority of God

Jesus is God thus spoke with this same authority.

What was he teaching?

If this was the book of Matthew we would know what Jesus taught.

Matthew is a blessing to the church because he gives us five long sermons of Jesus.

He informs us about the sort of things Jesus would say in when he taught.

Mark on the other hand gives us nothing of the content.

He only records the action of Jesus teaching.

But when we hear that the people were astonished at his teaching we really want to know what he said.

This is one of those passages where I wish I could go back in time and with a voice recorder and a laptop and take copious notes on what he said, and how he said it.

However Mark purposefully leaves out the content of Jesus’ message.

Its not that Mark forgot, or was uninterested, rather what mark is doing is showing us something rather than telling us something.

So what is Mark trying to show us that he is not wanting to tell us?

Mark wants to show us how this king Jesus is truly king.

So instead of telling us what he said, he shows us the kings power

The King’s Power

The King’s Power

So here Mark shows us what it looks like for Jesus to have the kings authority.

Jesus teaching in the synagogue a man with an unclean spirit calls out to him.

The demon speaks through the voice of the man he is possessing and says to Jesus, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

Have you come to destroy us?

I know who you are - the Holy One of God.”

Mark says that Jesus taught with authority - now when the demon says, “what have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” the demon is speaking to Jesus realizing that Jesus is the true king and that Jesus has authority over the demonic realm.

The demons next question really brings his knowledge of Jesus’ authority

Have you come to destroy us?

Here the demon is speaking in the plural though there is only a singular unclean spirit.

He is asking on behalf of the entire demonic realm, “have you come to destroy us?”