Article January 30, 2012 Issue

Spiritual poise silences anger

By Walter Rodgers

Imagine for a moment walking into a classroom, an office, a fast food restaurant, or even into your church. Suddenly, someone, perhaps a total stranger, singles you out and targets you with his or her wrath. Such a lambasting may be threatening and even portend a physical assault. 

That is pretty much what happened to Christ Jesus when he encountered a violent lunatic as he entered the old synagogue at Capernaum on the northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee. The mentally distressed man launched an unprovoked verbal tirade. Luke’s Gospel says the man “had a spirit of an unclean devil” (4:33). For a few moments it got pretty ugly with the fellow making an unpleasant scene.

The assault began with the man yelling at the top of his voice, challenging Jesus, “Hi! What have you got to do with us Jesus, you Nazarene—have you come to kill us? I know who you are all right.” Next we are told simply Jesus rebuked the mental malady directly saying, “Be quiet! Get out of him!” and the man was instantly healed of his rage. We are also told the onlookers were amazed at Jesus’ power and authority (see Luke 4:31–36, J. B. Phillips).

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