The Joshua Victor Theory

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. Today in our Gospel reading, we find the longest and most descriptive passage of Jesus casting out a demon. It’s a startling glimpse into the spiritual world, and the powers that afflict humans under the devil’s influence—but also an amazing proof of how powerless they are against Jesus, the Son of God. The man who is suffering this demon affliction is the most tormented of any demon-possessed person described in the Bible. He is possessed by a multitude of demons, and he has been driven raving mad. Well known to the villagers of that region, he lives in complete isolation, away from human community, choosing instead to live among the graves of the dead. In their attempts to restrain him, they had chained him many times, but he possessed superhuman strength, and shackles could not hold him. It’s truly a despairing and frightening situation both for the man and the people who live...

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. Last week we heard how Jesus healed a man who was deaf and mute. But there was no hint that his condition was anything but physical problems with his ears and tongue. Today, Jesus commands a “deaf and mute spirit” to leave a young boy, who is being tormented and abused by this demon. Both the boy’s desperate father and Jesus also, clearly recognize the demon is causing the boy’s physical afflictions. Comparing the two readings seems to show that some physical illnesses have simple physical causes in the body, while at other times, a spiritual cause can produce physical symptoms. The skeptic in us might already say the young boy was just an epileptic. We’re not to assume that everyone who has epilepsy or seizures is demon-possessed, are we? That would certainly go beyond what the passage is saying. But on the other hand, are we ready today, to acknowledge that some afflictions may h...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. In today’s Epistle reading, we’re shown what our real spiritual warfare is about, and how we arm ourselves to fight in this battle. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. When I was in high school and college, there was this fun video game where your character sat at the controls of a giant robotic suit. A small person at the seat of the controls was enclosed in a giant walking robot, heavily armored and loaded with powerful weapons. The robotic “suit” made it’s wearer incredibly strong and ready for battle with a host of nasty enemies. Paul describes the armor of God using the language of Roman military armor, which was lighter and more flexible than the bulky medieval armor that we often think of worn by “knights in shining armor”. But the armor Paul describes is not just inanimate armor plating that we lug around. The spiritual armor Paul describes i...