Sermons

“The Fear of the Lord”

Psalm 111; Mark 1:21-28 – Rev. Rebecca Littlejohn

Vista La Mesa Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), La Mesa, California – February 1, 2015

Holy God, bless the speaking and the hearing of these words that we might humble our hearts and seek to know your Christ. We pray it in the name of Jesus, Amen.

We’re just going to have a Bible lesson today. Sometimes there are scriptures so fascinating that you don’t even need to draw them out into multiple other directions to find meaning. They are enough, in and of themselves. This passage we just heard from Mark is one of those scriptures for me, especially when we read it in the light of Psalm 111, as we will this morning. So, today we will have a Bible lesson.

There are two things going on in these eight verses from the first chapter of Mark. We have a plot and a sub-plot. And the sub-plot is there to make the point of the main plot. And when we add in Psalm 111, the sub-plot and the plot both thicken!

I want to start with the sub-plot, because that is where the action is, as well as the fascinating mysterious parts. Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, and suddenly, he’s confronted by a man with an unclean spirit. Which is to say, he’s confronted by an unclean spirit, using the man’s body and voice. “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.” Wow, okay, that’s a different kind of greeting than we’ve seen so far in Mark’s gospel. But as it turns out, if we read through the rest of the gospel and others, we will discover this is a common occurrence. It’s fascinating to me, this narrative conviction that there is something about unclean spirits that gives them the capacity to recognize Jesus for who he is, long before anyone else in the crowd has done so. What is going on here?

First of all, we need to give a little thought to how we even interpret what is meant by “unclean spirit.” Taken at face value, the gospel writer is telling us the man was possessed. If we merely dismiss this story because of its pre-modern supernatural elements, we miss the opportunity to learn from it. On the other hand, if we can take it on its own terms, we may discover wisdom intertwined with the mythology. Whether we want to think of the “unclean spirit” as a manifestation of mental illness, or some other sort of suffering, it is clear that it is not a benevolent presence for the man taken over. Given that people in biblical times did not have our modern understanding of brain chemistry, I believe we can also say that these stories that speak of evil or unclean spirits are attempting to address the problem of evil. Something terrible has happened to this man; something malevolent has overcome him. And so the way this imposing presence is depicted reflects the writer’s understanding of evil.

So what does it mean that these unclean spirits not only know who Jesus is, but repeatedly start shouting about it as soon as they see him? And how might verse 10 of Psalm 111 affect our interpretation of this recognition? “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” the psalmist writes. This spirit certainly seems afraid, and certainly more so than anyone else in the synagogue. Could it be that Mark is hinting to us something about human weakness? Could there be a suggestion here that evil spirits are smarter than us? That they not only know more about us than we know about ourselves and certainly more about the ways of evil, but that they also know more about God? What are the implications of that?

It seems to me that it might be important for us to realize that we are not strong enough or clever enough to withstand the forces of evil all on our own. Again, the drama here prods us back to that last verse of the psalm. What does “the fear of the Lord” mean? Is it talking about fear fear? I don’t believe so, at least not in all circumstances. The whole rest of the psalm is talking about the many wonderful things God has done, including – not arbitrarily – giving the people trustworthy precepts that lead to faithfulness and uprightness. This psalm is not about a God who is terrifying. It is about a God who is to be revered, respected, who commands awe and draws forth our grateful obedience. That is what is meant by “fear”. The word in Hebrew – “yara” – is used in other places as a synonym for “love” and “cling to” and “serve.” We are not being told that we should bow and scrape our way to wisdom, but rather that humbling ourselves before God’s power and grace is a smarter way to begin trying to understand ourselves.

It certainly appears to be a better way to escape from the clutches of evil. The writer of Mark is showing us both that the forces of evil are smarter than we are, and that they are, in turn, no match whatsoever for Jesus. “Be silent, and come out of him!” Jesus hollers at the unclean spirit. And it does. Not without a final tantrum, mind you, screaming and giving the man convulsions, but come out it does. The man is set free, leaving the gathered crowd amazed.

And thus, the conclusion of the sub-plot brings us to the main point of the story. This passage is not primarily a treatise on the nature of evil. The author’s goal is to demonstrate the authority of Jesus. These verses are a classic example of what creative writing teachers would call “show, don’t tell.” First, you have the folks in the synagogue listening to Jesus teach and noticing how he teaches with authority, not like the scribes. Then suddenly, they are interrupted by a dramatic demonstration of Jesus’ authority, right there in front of their very eyes. As Jesus continued teaching, his authority was not just in manner and tone, but had been exercised and proven authentic. “He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him!”

The tone of this final observation from the crowd seems to be approaching the response the psalmist recommends. They are moving in the direction of wisdom, having recognized the awesome deed of power performed in their presence. They were astounded and amazed, in awe, one might say. Again, not afraid exactly, but deeply impressed. And yet, there may be a twinge of wariness there still.

I think it is safe to say that the unclean spirit’s fear was actual fear. And perhaps that can tell us something. “Have you come to destroy us?” it cried out. And the answer was pretty much Yes. Again, if we are taking the story on its own terms here, and assuming that a parasitic evil spirit needs a host body to survive, then by forcing it out, Jesus was destroying it. If you are the forces of evil, it is reasonable to be afraid of that. But what about us? We’re not the forces of evil. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have dark shadowy places within us where sinful spirits reside. And those parts of us may shudder a little when we get too close to the revealing light of Christ. Jesus may have the power to set us free, but sometimes, we discover that we’ve gotten really comfortable in our chains and freedom becomes an unwelcome blessing. This is where it becomes especially important to remember that “fear of the Lord” is not simple terror. “Fear of the Lord” is about living in awe of the goodness and wonder of God’s works. The psalmist is right to point out that it is something we have to “practice.” A constant awareness that God is God and we are not helps us to remember to turn to God, rather than ourselves, when we are confronted by evil spirits attempting to entrap us. A continual remembrance of God’s goodness, even when it makes our own souls look tarnished in comparison, can help us to trust that the scrubbing we may be experiencing is going to lead to blessing rather than pain.

Coming so early in the gospel as this story does, it almost seems like Mark has played out his whole hand right off the bat. And yet, we know that even the disciples will repeatedly be confused about who Jesus is and what his authority represents for 14 or so more chapters. Why is this so hard for us to grasp? Are we so much duller-witted than those unclean spirits? Why would we think otherwise?

We are mere mortals, experts at forgetting and confusing, prone to exaggerating our own capacity and denying our need for help. This is why we gather for worship every week. Less often and we are likely to wander off on our own and forget the awesomeness of God. Instead, we come here and confess our weakness. We gather here and praise the Creator of the Universe. We come together and proclaim our need for Jesus to set us free. Let us rejoice that we have not been left to our own devices, abandoned to ward off whatever malevolent spirits might seek to enslave us. Let us rejoice that Jesus is here, wielding the authority of God Most High, on our behalf. Let us not be afraid, but rejoice in the power of Christ our Lord! Alleluia and Amen!