Saturday, August 17, 2024

Torsten Löfstedt, "Successful exorcism do not prove you follow Jesus"

  

Successful exorcism do not prove you follow Jesus

 

As was mentioned, Matthew drops the reference to the unknown exorcist (Mark 9:38-40; Luke 9:49-50), which at least in Mark’s version would have contradicted Matt 12:30, but adds the following quote that shows just because someone is successful in casting our demons in Jesus’ name, that person is not necessarily recognized by Jesus as one of his own:

 

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?” Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.” (Matt 7:21-23 NRSV)

 

The first sentence in this quote has a parallel in Luke 6:46, the rest is unique to Matthew. Matthew’s point is that discipleship entails more than being able to carry our exorcisms. In fact, as in Mark (but unlike Luke), the allegiances of the person carrying out the exorcism do not determine its success. Mark and Matthew suggest that the Holy Spirit works miracles in the power of Jesus’ name, even if the one uttering the name is not a true follower of Jesus. In direct contrast with Luke, Matthew teaches that exorcistic success does not necessarily mean that one is in good standing with God.

 

Even though he apparently does not value exorcism as highly as Luke, Matthew agrees that one of the things followers of Jesus are called to do is to cast out demons. When Matthew tells about Jesus commissioning the twelve disciples, he relates that Jesus gives his disciples authority over demons (Matt 10:1) as was also the cast in Mar (6:7) and Luke (9:1). Matthew adds material to his account, so that it can be taken to refer not only to the commissioning of the original twelve, but also those who would follow Jesus after the resurrection (see Matt 10:17-25). Matthew incorporates into his account of the commissioning of the seventy-two (Luke 10:1-16), but he does not include the disciples’ rejoicing over their authority over demons (Luke 10:17). This is consistent with Matthew’s downplaying the importance of exorcism. (Torsten Löfstedt, The Devil, Demons, Judas, and “the Jews”: Opponents of Christ in the Gospels [Eugene, Oreg.: Pickwick Publications, 2021], 222-23)

 

 

 

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