Casting out Demons 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
February 15, 2009 Mark 1:40-45
Metairie, Louisiana
Today’s reading from Corinthians is a clarion call to our Church: “Keep your eyes on the prize.” In eight simple declarative sentences, like the rat-a-tat-tat of a drum Paul lays it on the line, makes a slam dunk, hits one out of the ballpark, scores a hat trick – you could probably go on and on with sports analogies to score the big one.
I, on the other hand, hardly ever use sports analogies unless forced into it by the lectionary. During my first week here a kind parishioner called to invite me to go see the hornets. “Sure,” I said, happy to be a tag along. What are the Hornets?
All this is just to alert you – if you like sports analogies, get your fill today. Back to Paul’s letter. In eight terse sentences the message is delivered. Get on the playing field! Do your utmost! Keep your training rigorous! Strive for the prize, don’t be a bench sitter.
Where Paul talks about the pursuit of the prize, Jesus illustrates by his actions. People see and hear and are transformed by contact with the prize itself.
The prize is amidst and among and within us, if only we have eyes to see, ears to hear, courage to reach out.
We are still in Chapter 1 of Mark, this author who rushes us through events with amazing speed, agility, and power. The campaign to overcome any obstacle to the Kingdom of God has begun.
Jesus, the Commander of Forces of the Heavenly Realm is anointed for mission and proclaims the mission: “The time is fulfilled, the Kingdom of God is at hand (one author names it “heaven” another “the holy commonwealth”, another the kin-ship of God.) “The kingdom is near!” Jesus announces, “repent and believe!” Turnaround, get on the right track . . . get on with living the good life. Now.”
Right now . . . not “someday in the sweet by and by” . . . not some never never land . . . right now! Right here! Get on board or be left behind.
And you better get on the right track, right quick. Just in case you missed it – the commonwealth of God is illustrated by healings, by the chasing out of demons, by restoration in relationships.
Within the first chapter of this gospel, the captain is chosen, the mission laid out, the servant disciples recruited and the race is on. Immediately, Jesus combats unclean spirits, who inhabit a man – Jesus calls them out. Then a woman with a fever recovers. Then a multitude of demons are cast out of a community; then a multitude of healings of dis-eases. Restoration to health is the sign of the kin-dom of God.
As Mark tells it, casting out of demons takes enormous effort and direct confrontation. Jesus takes time out for prayer, for solitude, for silence to gather strength for his contest with demons.
Action – rest – action – prayer – action – solitude – action – rest. One step – two step, Jesus marches. In the places of worship, at the city market, in homes, out in the country, in neighborhoods. Right here, right now.
If we think that was then, but the healing time has by passed us, we will not gain the prize, the prize of dwelling in the peaceable kin-dom, the prize of entry to the Holy City, the commonwealth gathered by the river as Paul reminds the Corinthians and us today – don’t get disqualified, for the prize that is yours to claim.
There’s Jesus’ gospel, then there’s the alternative – the one promoted by demons which is described as a place of disease and disharmony of every sort. And you will recognize the cadre of demons by their chatter. Their chatter debilitates. Their chatter creates disharmony, conflict, confusion, chaos.
This is the chatter that insidiously undermines the well being of healthy individuals and the well-being of a healthy community. Jesus silences their destructive chatter. “Shut up commands, shut up.”
The presence of Jesus casts out demonic chatter. Any speech that convulses us, lays us low, cripples us, disfigures us, maims our spirits. Any chatter that destroys community – Jesus casts it out. Out of places of worship, out of cities, marketplaces, out of neighborhoods, countryside. He casts the demons and their harmful chatter out.
When we hear stories of the afflicted – the woman with the fever, the man with leprosy – the dis-eased, the injured we tend to feel compassion for “them” – as Jesus did. But in our compassionate rush, we may forget that “them” is “us” we comprise the community of the lunatics, the diseased, the excluded, the enfeebled – “them” is “us.” We need the presence of Jesus Christ to chase away those demons who inflict and afflict with their demonic chatter.
Apparently the Mark’s community does not recognize the demons – they are insidious as mosquitoes. Tiny to be sure, but collectively they infect the people.
A father was trying to illustrate for his children that unkind remarks and negative gossip hurt the community. He gathered his children and brought them to the backyard where there was a large bucket of nails next to the fence post. He gave each of his children a small hammer to pound nails, as many as each one could, into the fence post. After about 15 minutes the fence post was loaded with nails.
Later that day, having removed all the nails, the father took the children back to the fencepost, which of course was almost useless because the nail holes had made it so weak.
The children then had an illustration of how community can be destroyed by ugly gossip.
The power of chatter – not only in Jesus’ time and place. I’ve never lived anywhere – not in New Jersey or Rhode Island, not in Colorado or Iowa or even in the sweet sunny south . . . I’ve never lived anywhere at all that is totally without chattering demons.
The demons at the newsstand telling us how to get a flat belly so you will get the love you deserve, the ads on TV that promise lots of good friends if you drink the right beer, the nasty chatter on shock radio of every persuasion which contorts reality. “Shut up!” “Cast them out,” demons of rumors, speculations, down-dirty gossip.
Well, we are not in charge of radio stations, or TV broadcasts, or magazine advice . . . but we are in charge of any demonic chatter in our own household, the household of God.
One reason to come to church is to hear the gospel, the anti-chatter we might call it, words of beauty and truth which do cast out words of ugliness and deception. When we sing hymns we make a chorus that encourages, uplifts, renews spirits. We sign up for kin-dom of God.
And in church we engage with silence, solitude, prayer so to prepare ourselves to combat the devilish chatter that impedes the good life – right here, right now.
So dearly beloved – run hard for the prize. Give it all you’ve got. Keep the training rules. Remember we’re not after the false glittery goal; we’re after the beautiful kin-dom of God. Right here, right now.
Let the people say “Amen.”
