“And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit…And crying out with a loud voice, he said, ‘What have you to do with me.’” Mark 5:2, 7
January 11, 2024
Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry encountered a massive campaign launched by Satan and his demons to keep Him from accomplishing His redemptive and dominion work (Col. 2:15; Heb. 2:14-15). See what happens when Jesus comes face to face with a man who has been ruined by evil. There is more to this clash than meets the eye. In this power encounter demonic powers know Jesus but hate Him. Jesus does battle with evil on different fronts. First of all, Satan is defeated. Demons are no match for Jesus’ authority. And, thirdly, a spiritual wreck of a man is transformed. We should not see this combat as unrelated to what we as followers of Christ face in our day to day world. One reviewer of the recent Golden Globes Awards said the following, “It affirmed the chosen ideology of our time, i.e. America Dream individualism, which makes me feel that we are filled with individual agency and are in control, and we can choose our futures.” There is no screaming, naked, physically powerful demon possessed man running toward us out of a cave-tomb. Satan is more subtle in our silken-smooth entertainment culture. This is not a call to fear man but to fear God. If you are a Christian, you are united to Jesus Christ and armed with divine power to destroy the centers of demonic opposition to the gospel. Stay alert to the spiritual forces surrounding you and take every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Cor. 10:5).
H
“Satan cannot give the Christian anything for he has everything, nor can he take away anything because he has nothing.” Vance Havner