We hope this week's devotional will encourage you in your spiritual walk.
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Luke 10.1-12, 17-20 (CEB)
After these things, the Lord commissioned seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every city and place he was about to go. 2 He said to them, “The harvest is bigger than you can imagine, but there are few workers. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers for his harvest. 3 Go! Be warned, though, that I’m sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Carry no wallet, no bag, and no sandals. Don’t even greet anyone along the way. 5 Whenever you enter a house, first say, ‘May peace be on this house.’ 6 If anyone there shares God’s peace, then your peace will rest on that person. If not, your blessing will return to you. 7 Remain in this house, eating and drinking whatever they set before you, for workers deserve their pay. Don’t move from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a city and its people welcome you, eat what they set before you. 9 Heal the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘God’s kingdom has come upon you.’ 10 Whenever you enter a city and the people don’t welcome you, go out into the streets and say, 11 ‘As a complaint against you, we brush off the dust of your city that has collected on our feet. But know this: God’s kingdom has come to you.’ 12 I assure you that Sodom will be better off on Judgment Day than that city.
17 The seventy-two returned joyously, saying, “Lord, even the demons submit themselves to us in your name.”
18 Jesus replied, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 Look, I have given you authority to crush snakes and scorpions underfoot. I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you. 20 Nevertheless, don’t rejoice because the spirits submit to you. Rejoice instead that your names are written in heaven.”
Devotional Thought:
As I read through this passage from Luke, I was reminded of a scene in the film, Bruce Almighty. In this scene, Bruce, a normal guy who complained to God, was given the opportunity to be God for a few days. When he realised what this meant, he began walking through the city making self-satisfying miracles happen, while the song ‘I GOT THE POWER!’ played in the background. Bruce was using his newly acquired authority for his own benefit.
When Jesus chose this group of disciples and sent them to the surrounding towns and villages, he gave them a specific task – share the good news of the coming Kingdom of God. In order to fulfil the task, Jesus gave them authority. The disciples followed his command and when they returned, they were ecstatic, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons submit themselves to us in your name!’ What the disciples experienced was power exercised by authority.
The disciples had already observed Jesus’ authority in action, healing the sick, casting out demons, and feeding the five thousand, but this was different. This time it wasn’t Jesus telling the demons to flee, it was the disciples. He had given them his authority, which meant they had power, and it was impressive.
When they reported to Jesus all that had happened, he tempered their excitement with a gentle warning: don’t rejoice because you have authority and power. He reminded them that the authority they have is not their own, it comes from Jesus. In fact, the Greek word used here for authority is exousia, which can be translated as: out of true being. The authority they exercised came not from themselves, but from someone else. It came from God. Jesus, recognising the potential misuse of authority, redirected the disciples' focus from the exercise of power to the One from whom true authority derives.
As disciples of Jesus, we too have been given authority to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom. The risk of misusing authority is as real for us as it was for them. May we hear the words of Jesus, as we continue the mission of God: ‘don’t rejoice because the spirits submit to you. Rejoice instead that your names are written in heaven.”
Prayer:
Almighty God, all authority in heaven and earth is yours. We thank you for the call to join in your mission of redemption. We thank you for endowing us with the authority of Jesus and empowering us by the presence of the Holy Spirit. May we be a humble people, receiving your grace and following your command, for your glory, not our own. In the name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.
Rev. Joseph Wood, PhD
Dean of Students and Lecturer in Theology and Church History