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May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
Brothers and sisters, our text for this morning comes from the Gospel lesson, especially these words: “And they were all amazed and said to one another, What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” You may be seated.
Perhaps you’ve heard the little ditty, or perhaps your children or grandchildren have said this: “sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Or perhaps this one: “actions speak louder than words.” Or an expanded version of that saying that I found on the internet, “a thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.” Perhaps there’s some truth in some of those. But I think sometimes words get a bad rap. Or at least, we don’t always appreciate the power that there is in words. Now, those of us who have lived more than a few years know that, in fact, words can hurt. A harsh word spoken or a kind word that we failed to speak can damage a relationship.
Words can change the course of history. They can change the course of a life. Today, as we celebrate the national holiday of Super Bowl Sunday, you may recall that two weeks ago some unspoken words, namely pass interference, likely changed today’s lineup. We also know that words can bring comfort and joy. Words can build up those we love. Words can be extremely powerful, both for good and for ill.
What about Jesus’ words? Throughout the New Testament, Jesus’ words really seem to get people fired up in different ways. Sometimes they impress people positively. Sometimes his words get him in a bit of trouble. Consider last week’s gospel lesson when Jesus was preaching in the synagogue at his hometown of Nazareth. We witnessed both of these reactions to Jesus’ words. First, Jesus told the people he was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. They became intrigued. They marveled at him. But the next instance, he informs them through some illustrations that he was not going to perform a miracle in their midst that day. So they wanted to throw him off a cliff, quite literally, just because of words.
And so now, here is Jesus in a different town, in Capernaum, teaching on the Sabbath and astonishing the people because they had not heard words of such authority. Then Jesus goes on to do all the miracles that the inhabitants of Nazareth didn’t get to see, fulfilling the words that he had read from Isaiah the prophet: “the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives, the recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
With a word, Jesus frees those held captive by demons, and with a word, Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law. With a word, Jesus commands the demons to be silent. And those words had an effect. They had an effect on the ones to whom they were directed, to the demon-possessed and to the sick, but they also had an effect on those who just heard them. What is this word, they wanted to know? Strikingly, the demons knew exactly what this word was. This word spells their doom. This word comes from the Holy One of God. This word strikes fear into the core of their existence. They proclaim that we know you are the son of God, but the people are not so easily convinced.
What is this word? It’s a word of authority, yes. It’s a word that commands the forces of evil to be silent. It’s a word of healing, but it’s also a word of life. The people’s question, “What is this word?” is really somewhat ironic. They thought they were talking about the sounds, the words coming out of Jesus’ mouth, but really the answer to their question is standing right there in front of them: Jesus himself. The answer to their question is Jesus is the Word. He is the Word, the Word of God, the Word made flesh, the eternal Word of God that called all things into existence; the Word that told Adam and Eve not to eat from the trees in the midst of the garden and the word that promised them a savior when they disobeyed.
This is the word that told Abraham that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through him. This is the word that gave his name to Moses in the burning bush and led his people out of Israel. This is the word that came to Elijah in the still small voice and the word that touched the mouth of Jeremiah, and said, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.” Jesus is the very Word of God. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
What is this Word? It’s the voice of God, and as the Father tells us, we should listen to Him. But after the healings, after the demons being driven out at the end of our reading, did you notice the words of Jesus? The people of Capernaum, they wanted to keep him around. They wanted to continue to see this powerful word in action. But Jesus tells them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well, for I was sent for this purpose.”
You see, the ultimate word of God that Jesus brings is the word of the gospel. This is the greatest word that you and I could receive, for in it Jesus reveals first that He opens our eyes to see our sinfulness, but finally to see Him as Savior. In His word, He releases us from the bondage of our sin and proclaims the Lord’s favor to us. This is why Jesus was sent from the Father, to us, to those whose words are lies, to we who use words to cut others down, to we who use our words to make ourselves look more important than we are, to us whose words hurt.
God’s final word to you is not a harsh word. It is not a destroying word, but it is a word of love. It is a word of forgiveness. It is a life-giving word, the gospel, the good news that Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection from the dead utterly defeated sin and death. That is the word we receive from God.
God’s words to you: “I forgive you all of your sin.” God’s Word to you: “I have called you by name. You are mine.” God’s Word to you: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you.” God’s Word to you: “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, for I have overcome the world.” These are the words that we need. These are the words that we need to take to heart, to meditate upon, the words that Moses tells us to write on our doorposts and on our gates and to wear around our necks. This is the word that will say to our dead bodies on the last day, “arise, come, and receive the kingdom that has been prepared before you before the world was created.”
Christ is God’s word. He’s the final word. Christ is the word that told disciples to go into all nations teaching and baptizing, and that word was fulfilled at your baptism, when the word baptized you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is the word of God from my lips at the beginning of the service. “I forgive you all of your sins.” It is the word of peace that we shared with one another. It is the word that broke bread and drank wine with the disciples on the night when he was betrayed, and the same word that is spoken to you from this altar: “Weak in and weak out, take and eat. This is my body which is given for you. Take and drink. This cup is the New Testament in my blood which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” These words bring life. They bring Christ’s life to you.
What is this word? It is Jesus. It is the very Word of God. What about those people that we come in contact with, those people that God has placed in our lives? What words do they hear? Do you know that in any given day, yours may be the only voice that someone hears; the only voice that knows the Word of God made flesh in Jesus Christ? We’re bombarded with words—the radio, the internet, people around us—and in the midst of so many words, your voice may be the only one that someone hears offering a word of comfort or love. And the more we hear and receive God’s Word in our ears, in our mouths, through our eyes, the more we can give that word of life to others.
What is this word? It is Christ. Christ is God’s word to us, is God’s word for us. His death and resurrection are the final word, the final word to the demons, the final word on sin, the final word on death. May God grant us the grace to believe it and to proclaim those words to others.
Let us pray. Heavenly Father, thy strong word bespeaks us righteous, bright with thine own holiness. Glorious now we press toward glory, and our lives our hope confess. O Lord, may our words be gracious even as your word is gracious to us, and may we give you glory through what we say. In the name of Jesus, amen.
And the peace of God which passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus. Amen.
