Breaking the Word

After he left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon. Simon's mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever, and they interceded with him about her. He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up immediately and waited on them.  At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him. He laid his hands on each of them and cured them. And demons also came out from many, shouting, "You are the Son of God." But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Messiah.  At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them.  But he said to them, "To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent."  And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea. (Lk 4:38-44)

He rebuked the fever and the fever left. He laid his hands on them and they were healed of their diseases. He rebuked the demons and they left the people who were possessed. All these seem to be a summery statement of his activities. They all say that he made the people well and healed them and cleansed them of the evil spirits. His mission was to make the people whole.

Simon’s mother –in-law waited on them. When a person s made whole or complete that individual think of the other and began to serve the other. A person who is made whole or any person who is complete should think of the other and go out to help the other. Health is to give health to the other. Healing is to heal the other. We are always thrown to the other person. (Jesus had to move on to the other places)

The demons were not allowed to speak. They were silenced. They only wanted to reveal the identity of Jesus. Jesus feared this. Because, if the people came to know  the identity of him they would begin to cling on to him and they would prevent him from moving around. They would make him a God and worship him and make a cult out of the situation.  Jesus did not want a cult rather he wanted the service /mission.

Jesus then went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, "Ha! 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!"  Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be quiet! Come out of him!" Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm.  They were all amazed and said to one another, "What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out." And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.  (Lk 4:31-37)

Jesus was like anyone of the Jews. On a Sabbath he went into the synagogue and he was teaching the people. So far so good. He behaved like anyone of them and he was one of them and one among them. He was a Jew. The early days of his life were just like anyone of the Jews. Probably that was the reason why none of the evangelists said anything about his earlier days.

The situation began to change when he started to teach them. People realized that he was teaching them with authority. People have seen many teachers. There were many teachers among them. But Jesus was different. Right from the beginning of his public ministry, especially that of the teaching ministry, they saw him to be a different teacher.  

Not only the people saw him to be different, but also the demon saw him to be different. They saw him to be a man of power. He had power over them (evil spirits) and exercised his power for the good of the people. He cast the demons out of the people without disturbing the people. There was power in his words. His words were spoken with authority and they had power in them.