What Kind of Power are We Seeking?

Jesus teaches and models not that humans don't have power, but that we should wield it in Godlike ways.

Today’s passage includes a bit of a potpourri of events and elements. Let’s look at it through a lens of the nature of power and the dependence it requires.

Jesus begins by giving power to the disciples. It almost feels as substantive as yesterday’s passage (when he said power went out from him). But then he sends them out empty-handed, with no money, no food, no extra clothes. In terms of the norms of human trust and safety, it’s a strange combination: power without possessions, authority without control. Jesus is teaching a lesson here about the Kingdom and what true humanity looks like. The power of the Kingdom will never be about domination or self-sufficiency; it will always run through dependence on God and solidarity with others.

So then there’s Herod, who doesn’t understand this kind of power. For him, power is about hierarchy and fear. He sees Jesus as a threat or perhaps a magician, another spectacle to enjoy, manage, or eliminate. He’s curious but not courageous. His fascination reveals the limits of worldly power: it cannot comprehend humility.

And then the disciples, even having just returned from their mission in which they could perform miracles, falter when faced with five thousand hungry people. They’ve seen and even now handled power, yet they still measure possibility by their own scarcity. Send them away, they say, as if, “What can we possibly do in this situation?” But Jesus tells them to take care of it, a sort of invitation to try again: You give them something to eat. Alas, they still don’t have the vision to be able to do it. So Jesus takes over and teaches that true power is exercised not by control, but by trust that God can do it.

In this moment, it’s a looming question for followers of Jesus across a variety of spectrums - personal, political, and ecclesiastical - What kind of power are we seeking? The kind that protects and controls, or the kind that feeds and frees?

Luke 9:1-17

Jesus called the Twelve together and he gave them power and authority over all demons and to heal sicknesses. He sent them out to proclaim God’s kingdom and to heal the sick. He told them, “Take nothing for the journey—no walking stick, no bag, no bread, no money, not even an extra shirt. Whatever house you enter, remain there until you leave that place. Wherever they don’t welcome you, as you leave that city, shake the dust off your feet as a witness against them.” They departed and went through the villages proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

Herod the ruler heard about everything that was happening. He was confused because some people were saying that John had been raised from the dead, others that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the ancient prophets had come back to life. Herod said, “I beheaded John, so now who am I hearing about?” Herod wanted to see him.

When the apostles returned, they described for Jesus what they had done. Taking them with him, Jesus withdrew privately to a city called Bethsaida. When the crowds figured it out, they followed him. He welcomed them, spoke to them about God’s kingdom, and healed those who were sick.

When the day was almost over, the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so that they can go to the nearby villages and countryside and find lodging and food, because we are in a deserted place.”

He replied, “You give them something to eat.”

But they said, “We have no more than five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all these people.” (They said this because about five thousand men were present.)

Jesus said to his disciples, “Seat them in groups of about fifty.” They did so, and everyone was seated. He took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, blessed them, and broke them and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. Everyone ate until they were full, and the disciples filled twelve baskets with the leftovers.

Psalm 62:5-12

Oh, I must find rest in God only,
because my hope comes from him!
Only God is my rock and my salvation—
my stronghold!—I will not be shaken.
My deliverance and glory depend on God.
God is my strong rock.
My refuge is in God.
All you people: Trust in him at all times!
Pour out your hearts before him!
God is our refuge!

Human beings are nothing but a breath.
Human beings are nothing but lies.
They don’t even register on a scale;
taken all together they are lighter than a breath!
Don’t trust in violence;
don’t set false hopes in robbery.
When wealth bears fruit,
don’t set your heart on it.
God has spoken one thing—
make it two things—
that I myself have heard:
that strength belongs to God,
and faithful love comes from you, my Lord—
and that you will repay
everyone according to their deeds.

Prayer

God,

All power belongs to you, yet you use it to heal, feed, and free. Teach me the difference between the power that controls and the power that trusts. I confess that I often measure what’s possible by what I can see or hold — by my own scarcity. But you invite me to participate in your abundance. So help me to define abundance by the terms of your Kingdom and not my desire for safety and control.

Help me to live with open hands, to rely on you, to truly know that the power you give is never for domination but for compassion. Where I’m tempted to grasp, remind me to trust. Where I seek control, remind me of your love that never fails.

By your spirit & in Christ,
Amen.