Word of Authority
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Too often in my life i find myself lacking in an area Christ has given me power in. Christ is our champion, our victor, our EVERYTHING. His Word has authority, His life was full of power, and He has made that power available to us through HIS WORD! But we have to choose to BELIEVE! This passage in Mark really speaks on the Authority of Christ, and there’s so many applications for our lives today.
21 And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching.
22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.
23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out,
24 “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”
25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!”
26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.
27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”
28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.
The first thing that really should jump out at us is found in verses 21, and 22. It’s easy to just read past the fact that Jesus is teaching in the synagogue on the sabbath. But theres a point that Mark is making here that really applies to our life today.
HIS WORD POSSESSES AUTHORITY
Authority to command and instruct
The people were astonished by Jesus teaching. It was new, it was revelatory, it was authoritative. We see Mark contrast Jesus’ teaching to that of the scribes. The people could perceive the difference between the words of Jesus, and the words of the scribes.
See the scribes were made up of pharisees and sadducees, members of the Sanhedrin, which was the Jewish Supreme Court. These men were Torah professors, and civil lawyers. They were the religious elite. These men knew the law from top to bottom, they found their justification in the law. When they taught, they quoted the Rabbi’s of old, they quoted the fathers of Judaism and therefore rested on the respected teachers who preceded them. They were teaching from Man’s interpretation. They derived their authority from the TRADITION OF MAN.
But not with Jesus. See Jesus taught from a place of sovereignty. The Scribes new the law from top to bottom, and found their self-righteousness in following the tradition of man. But Jesus knew the law from INSIDE OUT! He knew the Spirit of the Law, because He is the fulfillment of the law!
6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “ ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me;
7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”
9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!
10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’
11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban” ’ (that is, given to God)—
12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother,
13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
See Jesus was making a point here. The scribes interpreted the law and implemented the law according to manmade tradition. - They violated the law of honoring their parents with tradition of Corban; “Oh this is a gift to God, therefore I cannot honor you by providing for you”. This was just a way to do something selfish, in the name of something noble.
This is a bonus application: We must be careful not to dress selfish ambition as a righteous mission for God.
We can start out sincere and genuine, and truly wanting to please God, to serve God. But if we are not careful, we can allow self to get involved and before we know it, the thing we’re doing is no longer for God, but a sneaky way of gratifying the flesh.
A very easy example. We can begin volunteering, serving, teaching, all in sincerity, wanting to help, wanting to serve. And maybe we gain a little recognition for what we’re doing, and we allow ourself to glory in that. The recognition feels good, its feeds us, and we move on. But really what’s happened is we allowed our flesh to indulge in the praise of men, instead of the praise of God. And what we will find is, our ears sort of perk up when someone recognizes us; or deep down we find ourselves hoping to be recognized.
We’ve now turned a good work for God into a platform for self. This is just one of many examples, but the point is we must always check to ensure our motives and our hearts are pure. Jesus said
44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?
We must be careful to seek the glory of God, and His glory alone. His treasure and His reward is so much greater than what man can give.
Do you see the contrast? Of man and God?
That’s the difference between Jesus and the scribes. Although Jesus is the SON OF MAN, His authority was divine, as truly being man and God. Every word He speaks is FULL OF POWER! The same power that created the earth. On the other hand, the scribes, although they were teachers of the law, they were speaking EMPTY WORDS. Teaching on the authority of man. Not of God. Heres the application.
Are we living by OUR words or HIS WORD?
We say we believe God’s word, but then we speak our own words. We live by our own words which minister death. It’s HIS WORD that brings life! So what are you saying to yourself? What are you hearing? His word, or your words?
We say we believe God’s word, and then we put more faith in the strength of sin, then we do in the ability of God’s word to set us FREE! We stay in fear; when evil thoughts and temptations come, we freeze and submit to them, instead of instantly taking the POWER we have in Christ to take those thoughts captive! The word says we are DEAD TO SIN! If we really believed that, we would apply that truth the minute we are tempted to think that negative thought, that sinful thought, that evil emotion. If we truly believe God’s word, we will APPLY GOD’S WORD!
That thought that seems to keep defeating you, it always wins because you’re allowing it to stay too long. Have no mercy, pull the trigger, the minute that thought comes, speak to it. Take it captive. Quote the word. Don’t let it stay. The quicker you expel it, over and over again over the course of time, that thought will become weaker and weaker and less frequent. That’s the authority of the Word. Evil CANNOT STAND!
The problem is, we are double minded. And if we operate in double mindedness, we should expect what from the Lord? Nothing.. Listen, God’s Word has the AUTHORITY!
God’s word has the AUTHORITY to COMMAND us, INSTRUCT us, and to CHANGE US!
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
God’s word is sitting here, revealed to us; full of power to transform the mind and the life of the believer. 2 Timothy says scripture is PROFITABLE for teaching, reproof, correction, training in righteousness, that it can make us COMPLETE. But it does not say AUTOMATIC. We must couple faith, with application, and put the word to work in our lives.
We cannot be trained by the word, if we don’t know the word!
And that’s why all too often we just succumb to sin, and our emotions, and negativity, and confusion, when the WORD gives us the WAY OUT! This is not an issue with the word. It’s a matter of BELIEF. Do we really believe it? Are we really applying it? Or are we just letting the flesh, the world, and the enemy hold us hostage without a weapon? That’s right, WITHOUT A WEAPON! SATAN IS DEFEATED, JESUS CONDEMNED SIN IN THE FLESH! THE BODY OF SIN HAS BEEN DONE AWAY WITH! IT’S TIME TO RISE UP AND OPERATE IN FAITH! If God’s word says it, it’s the final authority for the believer.
It’s the final authority, meaning it should be the reference point for everything and everyone in our life.
Authority to cast out darkness
23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out,
24 “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”
25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!”
26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.
27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”
28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.
Notice that the first two things Jesus did when He began His public ministry, (after His baptism and temptation) He preached the Gospel, and He cast out demons. Why is this significant?
The preaching of the Gospel is more obvious;
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Jesus was preaching the only thing that can truly save man. REPENT AND BELIEVE IN HIM WHOM GOD HAS SENT! The means of Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ.
But the casting out of demons; this was the sign, the proof of Gods Kingdom being at hand. Look what Jesus says,
20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Jesus is showing that the power of the Gospel expels the presence of darkness! That the Kingdom of God has come upon us, and hell cannot prevail against it! If you’re here and your lost, and bound by the kingdom of darkness, I’ve got good news:
JESUS HAS BOUND THE STRONG MAN
ALL OF HELL CANNOT STOP YOU FROM BEING SET FREE! SATAN CANNOT PREVENT YOUR SALVATION, YOUR CHAINS BEING BROKEN, OR YOUR BURDEN BEING LOOSED! The only thing that can stop you IS YOU!
So often we try to blame satan, we blame the enemy, when the one to blame is ourself! Satan is a defeated foe; that doesn’t mean he can’t attack, or plant seeds, but our greatest enemy IS OUR FLESH! And the only thing that’s standing between us and walking in the Spirit, is our surrender to God’s word. Darkness no longer has power over us. We may sin and fail, because we do not perfectly walk in the Spirit; but we need to understand that THE STRONGMAN HAS BEEN BOUND! HE CANNOT CONTROL US ANY LONGER! Darkness has been cast out by the Kingdom of God.
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
God, who called light to be out of darkness, has SHONE THE LIGHT OF HIS GLORY INTO OUR HEARTS; in the form of His Son. We, who once were enslaved in darkness, we were children of the devil, are now the righteousness of God in Christ!
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
Do you see the significance? Jesus was showing that the power of God had arrived on earth. That darkness would have no choice but to flee. The Kingdom of God is at hand, Jesus said.
We must understand that the Kingdom of God is already and not yet.
The Kingdom of God arrived with Christ, and today the Kingdom of God is entered by believers the minute they come to salvation. See, The Kingdom of God is God’s authority and right to rule; and the realm in which God exercises His authority.
The Kingdom of God is in the heart of believers. That’s the already. That’s where God is currently exercising all authority.
The not yet will appear when Christ sets up His 1,000 year reign on earth, and afterward destroys darkness finally and for all time. We will see the new heavens and the new earth and Christ will reign forever and ever. And we will be with Him.
His authority is sure. His authority is eternal. And one day, we will see darkness cast out once and for all.
Authority to heal
29 And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her.
31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
32 That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons.
33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door.
34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
First I think it’s important to note that what came first for Jesus was the preaching of the Word. Before a single healing takes place, before a single disciple is called in the Gospel of Mark, Matthew, and Luke; we see Jesus PREACHING THE WORD!
But with the Word, comes healing. Notice that accompanying the preaching of Jesus’ came first exorcism, which we just spoke on, and then the healing of the sick. Here i think it’s important to note that there seems to be a distinction between demons being casted out, and healings taking place.
Sin is the cause of all sickness, and disease. But there are some who would say all sickness is demonic. I think we can see through the natural distinction of Jesus casting out demons, and Jesus healing the sick, that clearly not all sickness has to do with demons. That’s not to say that demonic oppression or possession cannot cause sickness; but it certainly isn’t the cause of all sickness or the bible wouldn’t separate the two.
And although sin is the cause of all the sickness and disease we see in the world. Not all sickness comes from INDIVIDUAL sin. It comes from ORIGINAL SIN. When asked by the disciples about the man born blind, who sinned, him or his parents. Jesus said neither.
Now think about the person who due to their drug addiction, their gluttony, or their neglect of their body, who now has bodily ailments. Clearly, we can see that this was caused by individual sin. My sin of addiction nearly killed me. But not all sickness is demonic, or due to individual sin.
But here is what we need to see for our individual lives.
THE WORD HAS THE POWER TO HEAL YOU
Clearly, Jesus Christ is the word, and He can heal you. He has the authority, He has the power. But we must see that Word for us today, has the power to heal us. First of it all;
IT CAN HEAL OUR MINDS
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
God’s word transforms our minds. It changes the way we think. Before coming to the cross, we have our own opinions, our own worldviews, our own perspectives on what’s right and wrong. And after we get saved, our minds don’t automatically change. If they did, you would see ZERO struggling Christians. We have to apply the Word to our minds. That’s the only way we will ever see freedom our in our thinking, which leads to freedom in our behavior. But we have to believe the Word has the authority to heal our mind, or we will never see our minds healed. If we truly believed God’s word could heal our minds, then we would be fiending for every crumb of scripture; but that’s not the attitude we see. We accept defeat in our thought life and show more faith for the power of sinful thoughts than we do for God’s word. God’s Word can heal our minds, IF WE SO CHOOSE TO APPLY IT! Obviously the word has the authority to HEAL OUR BODIES.
THE WORD CAN HEAL OUR BODIES
We see Jesus healing people in our text in Mark. But at His word we can still see healing today.
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
He heals ALL OF OUR DISEASES! But notice what precedes the healing. The FORGIVENESS OF INIQUITY! We see this exemplified in the story in Mark 2 of the 4 friends who let their paralytic friend down through the roof. The Pharisees thought He was blaspheming because when Jesus saw the faith of the friends and the man, He said, YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN!
When they thought in their hearts that Christ was blaspheming, Jesus says “what’s easier to say? Your sins are forgiven, or rise and walk?” In other Words, to prove that He has the authority to forgive sins, He would give them the tangible proof of HEALING the paralytic. Jesus cannot heal you, if He has not forgiven you! It’s His great mercy and gracious forgiveness that allows for healing!
Healing is for today; and even in situations where we pray and we see Christians pass away, we know that God has healed the believer eternally. And that’s only possible because of the Word of God, Jesus Christ.
THE WORD HAS THE AUTHORITY TO CLEANSE
3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.
I talked about this last week, but BEFORE JESUS DEATH AND RESURRECTION. Jesus said that HIS WORD had made the disciples clean! All it takes is a WORD from Jesus and you are CLEANSED!
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
Jesus died for the Church. Gave Himself up for her, for US! But look how He sanctifies us. BY THE WASHING OF WATER WITH THE WORD! We must be washed by the word of God; and the same way we shower every day, we must bathe ourself in the Word of God daily; we must wash our spouse and our children with the word of God daily! It is the example given by our Lord. Because His Word cleanses us!
12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
As we study Gods word, it judges our thoughts, and the intentions of our hearts. His word will correct us in wrongdoing. Have you ever been reading the Word and just felt conviction about something you’d recently said or done? That God’s word piercing to the division of soul and spirit. Judging our thoughts and intentions. And when we so choose to listen to the Spirit of God, through the promptings of His word, we find ourselves cleansed. The word of God is what changed me in that prison cell. Wasn’t a sermon, wasn’t a vision, or a dream. It was when i began to read the Word of God, things just fell off in my life. Dead things just fell away. Why?
John 17:17–19 (ESV)
17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.
19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.
The truth is what sanctifies us, and HIS WORD IS TRUTH! But this is what I really love about this passage in John. This is what is so great about studying the word of God. You just find these gems, that change you.
Jesus calls us to FOLLOW HIM. So everything we are called to do, He does first, and then gives us the power to do it. Just as everything Jesus sees the Father do, He does.
Jesus said “You sent me into the world, so i have sent them into the world.”
“For their sake i consecrate myself, (or dedicate myself to the service of the Father), THAT THEY ALSO MAY BE SANCTIFIED IN TRUTH” Jesus dedicated His life, and His death to the service of God, that we may be SET APART TO GOD by HIS TRUTH! By His WORD! By His SACRIFICE! See the truth OF Gods word is the Gospel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is what initially sanctifies us, as in gives us Salvation. Sets us apart to God. Then the truth IN God’s word causes us to live a holy life. And the sharing of Gods word has a purifying effect in our lives!
But the point we must see is that we are purified not of ourselves, our own doing or our works but by Christ, and Christ alone. And it’s all because of the place He took on the cross, for us.
We really see this in Mark 1:40. Jesus cleanses the leper. A person with leprosy had to stay 6 feet away from people at all times, and 150 feet from people when there was a wind. The law says in Leviticus 13 that they were to live alone and outside the camp.
The passage beginning in Mark 1:40 shows Jesus touching the Leper, to cleanse him. Jesus strictly charged this man not to tell anyone about His healing, but to only show himself to the priest as a testimony and offer the sacrifice required by the law. But the man didn’t listen. He told everybody. And look at what scripture says.
45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.
The Leper was now running about the city, perhaps he was finally restored to his family, his community, his friends. He lived outside the camp for so long. But notice where Jesus is. Jesus finds Himself, where the Leper once was, out in desolate places, unable to openly enter a town.
Jesus and the Leper traded places.
That’s what Jesus did for us. And that’s the story of the Cross.
THE WORD IS THE FINAL AUTHORITY
21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror.
24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
- it’s the final authority in our life. It’s the standard we are to live by, It shows us who we really are. If we are not looking into the Word, we forget who Christ has made us to be.
THE WORD IS THE FINAL AUTHORITY OF OUR SALVATION
23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;
THE WORD IS THE FINAL JUDGE
22 For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son,
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?
33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
If Christ is the judge, and Christ died for us, are we to believe that He will condemn us for our sins when He is the one who DIED FOR OUR SINS? ARE WE TO BELIEVE THAT HE WILL HOLD THE SINS OF A BELIEVER AGAINST THEM WHEN HE IS THE ONE WHO DIED FOR THEM? We can get so caught up in ourselves and our walks and in our fruit and our works. Brothers and sisters, your salvation isn’t of YOU!
THE FINAL WORD
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
AND THAT IS THE GOSPEL.