Between Sundays for Week of January 29, 2024
In her sermon on Sunday, Pastor Amy revealed that she’s not always sure what to make of scripture passages that relate stories of unclean spirits (in some Bible translations called demons), such as the one we read in Mark 1:21-28. These stories suggest that there is an order – a boundary of some sort – that is disrupted when unclean spirits appear. And this spirit – whatever we call it – disturbs the order of the moment and threatens to overwhelm us.
But maybe “unclean spirits” are not that different from the forces that fill our world . . . spirits that distort the goodness of God’s creation and overwhelm us or the world around us. Often our desire is not for them to be overcome once and for all . . . but for them to be tamped down, suppressed, and contained. For the veneer of order to be restored so that we can go on with our lives undisturbed. For clear boundaries to be re-established so that our sense of security and comfort can return.
It’s tempting to read passages like this one in Mark and think that Jesus’ purpose on earth is to restore order to this world like some kind of cosmic law enforcement agent. Instead, what if Jesus has come to liberate us from the unseen, unclean spirits that threaten to keep us from knowing the abundant life that God intends for us . . . and for all people. That abundance will not come through suppression, but only through release.
Humans want, and even need, boundaries. But in Jesus, we see that there is NOTHING that lies beyond the boundary of God’s liberating Word made known in Jesus. God is not interested in restoring a false order. God’s interest in restoring all creation to the goodness in which it was made. God’s desire is not that we hide parts of ourselves to keep the peace, but for our full selves to be open participants in this world which God so loves.
Passages like this one in Mark remind us clearly that in Jesus, God is at work right here and now, removing all the bounds that separate us from the life God intends for us and the barriers that separate us from each other. This is good news!
P.S. Sunday worship can viewed online or visit blcfairport/share-in-worship/. From there find links to previous worship videos available on Facebook and YouTube.
From the Archives – An Interview with Bishop Lee Miller – Abby and Amy shared an interview with Bishop Lee Miller from May 2022. This interview took place early in our podcast journey and shortly after the mass shooting at the Tops Market in Buffalo, NY. We’re revisiting this conversation to hear his thoughts about leading in the midst of community tragedy and prepare for his upcoming visit on February 11.
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Ponderings
The theologian Matthew Myer Boulton reminds us that “the word ‘salvation’ comes from the Latin word salvus, which means ‘health’ – and for Mark, Jesus’ idea of salvation isn’t to give us a ticket to a heavenly land in the sweet by-and-by, but rather to bring a new health into our lives and communities today.”
We sing this faith in stanza 2 of the hymn, Rise, Shine You People (ELW 665), text by Ronald A. Klug.
See how he sends the pow’rs of evil realing;
he brings us freedom, life and light and healing.
All men and women, who by guilt are driven,
now are forgiven.
