November 5, 2012 I Cast Out Demons

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

November 5, 2012   I Cast Out Demons

Page 75        Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37

Tours of the Holy Land include several stops around the Sea of Galilee, including Capernaum. There are ruins of a synagogue in Capernaum that is similar in style and location to where Jesus was teaching in the text we are reading for today. When I visited Capernaum I took time to ponder what it was like that day when Jesus cast the demon from the man who was possessed by an evil spirit.

Jesus demonstrated he was the Holy One of God, the Messiah, by teaching with authority and by exercising authority over unclean, or evil, spirits. The religious leaders at that time would quote Moses, or one of the Old Testament prophets, as the authority for their teaching. Jesus said, “I tell you.” (The phrase ‘I tell you” appears 153 times in the Gospels.) The religious leaders were powerless in the face of evil. The evil spirits submitted to Jesus, the Holy One of God.

Through his crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus has defeated the forces of evil, sin and death, and Jesus has delegated his authority to the church: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:17-20).

As Jesus began teaching in Galilee, he announced “The time has come” (Mark 1:15a). Jesus didn’t mean time, as in looking at a clock; he meant God’s time had come, a new era was beginning. This era continues through today. The people of God are called to live in the truth that the authority of Jesus has been passed on to our generation, the truth that the forces of evil have been defeated by Jesus, and the truth of Jesus’ promise, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

How different would your life and your church be, if you sought to live each day in the truth of Jesus’ victory?

Sē’lah

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What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

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The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

November 6, 2012   I Healed the Sick

Page 75-76   Matthew 8:14-17; Mark 1:29-39; Luke 4:38-44