The Power of Darkness: Luke 22:47-53
When in the power of darkness, we always need the healing touch of Jesus! The disciples of Jesus found themselves in the power of darkness and it was accompanied by the healing touch of Jesus!
Jesus was praying on the Mount of Olives in company with His disciples. The disciples kept going to sleep, while Jesus tried to get them to stay awake and pray to avoid falling into temptation. Suddenly, Judas showed up with a crowd of people and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. In fact, Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:48b ESV)
The crowd with Judas moved to arrest Jesus. Jesus’ disciples asked if they should strike with the sword! We know from John’s eyewitness history in John chapter 18 that Peter drew his sword and cut off the ear of a man named Malchus, who was a servant of the high priest. Jesus wanted no more of this violence and immediately healed the ear of Malchus!
Jesus asked the chief priests and officers of the temple, and elders why they had not arrested him while He was teaching in public in the temple. In Luke 22:53B Jesus said to the group arresting Him, “But this is your hour and the power of darkness.” (ESV)
The betrayal of Jesus by Judas and the arrest of Jesus by the leaders of the Jews was the hour of His opposition and it was the power of darkness! The word translated “power” is the word for “authority” in Greek and us usually translated by authority. Here it stands for the power and authority of darkness. Jesus’ betrayal led to a time of the authority of darkness, and His followers had to live through that time of darkness!
The followers of Jesus were expecting Him to lead a worldly kingdom to overthrow Roman rule. His kingdom was not worldly, but spiritual! His kingdom was a kingdom of the heart entered into when a person surrenders to Jesus’ rule voluntarily through a new birth! The disciples saw this time as one of darkness because their leader was being arrested and He would die on a cross! Jesus recognizes His betrayal would lead to a time of the power of darkness!
It’s important to see when Jesus’ followers tried to use the power of darkness to battle this betrayal Jesus healed the physical damage done to Malchus.
The power of darkness comes along, and when it does, we need the healing touch of Jesus! The current COVID-19 pandemic and the economic shutdown in our country is the latest power of darkness! It’s a dark time for us! The illness and the economic trauma are both dark!
Times of darkness are frustrating! This one is no exception. It all started with the need to make sure we had hospital beds and medical equipment to handle massive hospitalization, if it was needed. We have that need handled, but the economic shut down continues! Some say it must until we have a cure or a vaccine! I call this mission creep! We defined a mission and then expanded it!
People around our nation are frustrated about the power of darkness we are in because we seem to understand how to manage both the illness and opening the economy, but fear has clouded good judgment and the power of darkness persists!
It seems we should be able to go back to school with what we have learned and play baseball! We should be able to go to church and get a haircut! It brings to memory what Ronald Reagan said in his inaugural address, “Government is not a solution to our problem, government is the problem.” Things seem to be backward again! Government is controlling people instead of people controlling government!
The current power of darkness takes me back to the recession of 2008 through 2010. It feels like things are out of control and darkness looms! It seems like someone just cut off the ear of Malchus and we need healing from Jesus!
Jesus healed our land in the last economic disaster and will heal America today! Yes, it’s the power of darkness, but Jesus heals in the power of darkness! Trust Him and look for His healing touch!