Mark 1:21-2721And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. 22And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. 23And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. 25And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. 26And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. 27And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. (Mark 1:21‑27).
THIS is the first of the miracles recorded in the second Gospel, a Gospel devoted to the Lord's service as Son of God among men.
“And they go into Capernaum, and straightway, on the Sabbath, he entered into the synagogue and taught. And they were astonished at his teaching; for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. And there was, in their synagogue, a man with an unclean spirit and he cried out, saying, Ha! what have we to do with thee, Jesus of Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be silent, and come out of him. And the unclean spirit, having convulsed him and cried with a loud voice, came out of him. And all were amazed, so that they questioned together among themselves, saying, What is this? what [is] this new doctrine? because with authority he commandeth even the unclean spirits, and they obey him."
We are told elsewhere, "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." This is a far more general statement of the truth, and concerns you deeply, my reader. For though not possessed by an unclean spirit like the man in the synagogue, are you not walking according to the course of this age, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience? Such are all mankind: not the Gentiles only who worshipped demons, but the Jews who owned the written word of the true God. All alike were by nature sons of wrath, one as truly as the other. Outward privilege did not exempt from the awful path of ruin under Satan's power.
Look at your ways, as they are in the light of God's word. Have you not walked in known sin day by clay? Have you, even this day, set out and gone on with doing God's will as a principle? Do you not know that it has never been so with you for an hour, nay, for a moment? Is not this living in habitual and conscious rebellion against God? Yet is He the giver of every mercy in the face of ingratitude and disobedience. Nor can you shake off the fact that you are part of the world, which, at Satan's instigation, rejected the Lord Jesus, hated Him, and crucified Him. You, like others, inherit that guilt, and can only get rid of it by receiving Him. If you truly repent and believe, you would tell Him (for He is the Judge of quick and dead, and hears all you say) of your inexcusable evil, and confess Him as the Savior sent to save sinners.
The power of Christ's word is here vividly proved. Men were astonished at His teaching in the synagogue, where they used to hear the tradition of the Pharisees, and the arguing of the scribes. His word was with authority: God was in it and with it. The demoniac felt it deeply, and cried aloud, "What have we to do with thee, Jesus of Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.
Jesus rebuked the demon, saying, Be silent, and come out of him;" and the unclean spirit, with evidence of his malice, and reluctant but enforced subjection, obeyed. The lowliest of men, the righteous Servant of God, is the Deliverer from the enemy's power, and this through His word, to the amazement of all.
And you, who have read and heard these words of His, are you so blinded by Satan's power and wiles, that you for whom the Savior came, are more unbelieving than the demons? Bethink yourself how desperate and dangerous is your state before God. To you He sends the word of salvation. Despise it no more, submit to it, that you may be saved. Its efficacy depends on Jesus, God's Son, and on the work of redemption He has wrought. God's love and honor are alike and immediately concerned. Redemption in no way rests on the slightest worth of the redeemed (for in truth they have none Godward), but on the infinite worth of the Redeemer. It is of faith; faith in His word, that it might be of grace. Thus is all boasting cut off, save in the God Who sent His Son to break Satan's power, and save the lost.
Can any good news vie with the message of God's salvation? Why then are you not earnest about a salvation now and for all eternity? The characteristic of the blessings of Christ is that they are everlasting, and of heaven and for heaven, but proclaimed now to faith on earth. I beseech you, let not the word of Christ fall on hard and heedless ears. God is speaking to you in His Son; and what privilege for man greater, unless it be His commending His own love to us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us? God calls on you to believe Him, that you may be justified in virtue of Christ's blood, and saved through Him from wrath. If you make God a liar, by refusing His testimony, it must be to your loss and doom forever. Your guilt is worse than a poor heathen's, and your lot must be far worse.