John, the brother of James, acts as spokesperson for the other disciples. He tells Jesus of their recent attempt to stop someone from casting out demons in Jesus' name. At issue here is not the practice of exorcism itself. The problem rather is that the disciples believe since this person is not a member of The Twelve, he has no right to use Jesus' name when casting out demons.

Jesus rejects this privatized vision of power. Because this man employs Jesus' name, he is participating in the power of Jesus, and he witnesses to the authority Jesus' name has over evil powers. In the wake of this worker's witness to spiritual power, Jesus discerns no "evil speaking of me."

Jesus' rebuke most likely surprised the disciples. The Twelve saw themselves as a uniquely-endowed, specially-selected group …