Astonishing Amazing Authority, Mark 1:21-28

 

Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. ²² And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

²³ Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, ²⁴ saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

²⁵ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” ²⁶ And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. ²⁷ Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” ²⁸ And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

 

Jesus wastes no time.

After calling His disciples to be fishers of men, He started fishing.

Immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue...

Synagogue, means assembly.

Interestingly, synagogues, came from the time period we’re reading about on Sundays.

During the 70 years of captivity in Babylon, they started having little assemblies, synagogues, to gather and worship.

Jesus entered the synagogue. He entered the assembly.

He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8.

Wherever two or more are gathered (assembled) together in My name, there I AM in the midst of them. Matt. 18:20.

Today, if you are in Christ, He is in you. Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, you are not your own, you are bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body. 1 Cor. 6:19-20.

Jesus entered the synagogue, He went to Church, as was His custom. Luke 4:16.

We should follow His example. And His Word. “Forsake not the assembling together of yourselves...” Hebrews 10:25.

Everybody needs a Church family, even if online, we need a place to gather, a place to call home.

However, don’t make it a rigid, legalistic, rule.

There are good reasons to miss Church.

Like Tex, last Sunday. He was headed out the door to walk to Church, when he heard a groan from the backyard. His neighbor had fallen. Good Samaritan Tex, helped his neighbor get off the ground, get in a chair, get hydrated, get back in the house.

That was the right thing to do. He was doing the Lord’s work.

Never be too busy with ministry, to minister.

Jesus had a habit, a tradition, a custom of, going to Church. Was it mandatory? No. But it was necessary to fulfill all righteousness, like His baptism.

It was necessary to carry out His Divine Eternal Purpose.

You have a Divine Eternal Purpose. To find it and fulfill it, you need to follow Jesus...

And Jesus went to Church. Still does.

So, Jesus entered the synagogue and taught.

He didn’t just go and sit and take a nap. He was present. He got involved. He offered His Gift and calling.

If He is in you, He will do the same through you.

Whether assembling online or in person, Jesus through you is salt and light, making a difference, praying for the people, the preacher, the Presence of God, helping, serving, finding and filling His place for you, in the work of the ministry.

Jesus entered the synagogue and taught.

That’s how it worked in synagogues back then. A certain part of the service allowed for a visiting rabbi, or teacher, to read from Scripture and then, elaborate on it.

Jesus went to Church and taught.

²² And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

The scribes read Scripture and quoted rabbis. They were book smart, had head knowledge.

Today they’d download a sermon from google and impress you with scholarly quotes and technical jargon and data.

They might be entertaining, probably not, probably boring, no matter what, they’d have no Authority, no Power.

 Jesus brought Scripture to Life. He spoke with Authority.

How did that happen? Where did that come from?

Don’t say, “Because He was God.” He was. And is. But remember, He willingly took off His Divinity to put on the constraints of humanity.

So, He had to do what we have to do.

2 Tim. 2:15. He studied Scripture to show Himself approved.

Hebrews 5:8. He learned obedience through the things which He suffered.

Obedience earns authority.

In Matthew 8:5-13, about the same time as our text in Mark, a Centurion pleaded, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.”

⁷ And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

⁸ The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

¹⁰ When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! ¹¹ And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. ¹² But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ¹³ Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

Jesus prayed more earnestly, more intensely, more fervently, than any man. Luke 22:44. Hebrews 12:4.

He waxed strong in Spirit and grew in favor with God and man. Luke 2:40, 52.

Obedient to the Spirit, led by the Spirit, Jesus went into the wilderness to fast and pray for forty days. Then, He came out in the Power, the Authority, of the Spirit. Matthew 4:1, Luke 4:14.

Jesus learned obedience. Earned authority. Went to Church. Taught what He learned and earned.

You can too.

²³ Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, ²⁴ saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

 ²⁵ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” ²⁶ And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. ²⁷

Jesus went to Church.

The devil did too.

Was he a first time visitor, or was he a regular, one of the greeters?

One thing’s for sure. The unclean spirit knew Jesus and was probably trembling. James 2:19.

We see that same obnoxious demonic manifestation today in those crying out against Christ. 

Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth.

This is the first time in Scripture the phrase “Jesus of Nazareth” is used. It was a derogatory term, for, “nothing good can come out of Nazareth” as the saying went.

The demon knew that the crowd knew that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem. Saying those words would discredit Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah.

But remember the demon is terrified and trembling as his next words reveal:

Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

Psalm 16:10. For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.

The demon cried out with a loud voice, convulsed, trembled in fear, knowing his destiny is Sheol, the lake of fire, and Jesus, the Holy One of God, has the Authority to send him there.

Jesus went to Church to teach.

The demon went to interrupt, disrupt, steal, kill, destroy, the Word from being taught. John 10:10.

Jesus used what the devil meant for harm as an object lesson for His Authority. And an encouragement to the people who might be thinking: "If God uses someone from Nazareth, perhaps He will use me, too."

Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” ²⁸ And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

The people were astonished and amazed at His awesome authority and spoke so often to one another about the Lord that His fame spread everywhere.

When we do that, the Lord likes it so much, He listens and records it...

Malachi 3:16-17
Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name.

¹⁷ “They shall be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts, “On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.”

Are we childlike enough to be astonished and amazed by the Word of God?

Do we share among ourselves, on our social media, to all those God's given us, the astonishing, amazing things we've seen and heard from the Lord and His Word?

Or do we just rage about the corrupt, debased, strong delusions of the world?

As Christians, our job, our ministry, our Great Commission is to share the Good News of Jesus, not the bad news of satan.

They shared Jesus, and His fame spread everywhere.

We can do that too.

Will we?

Let's pray.

Lord Jesus, we just read how the people were astonished and amazed by Your teaching and Your works, help us to be that way too. We just read how You took authority over evil. Since You are the same, yesterday, today and forever, and You live and abide in us, we invite Your authority to flow through us against evil. Then, with amazement and authority we will talk about You one to another, spreading Your love and light and fame throughout the world until You come and take us Home. Come quickly Lord Jesus.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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JerUSAlem Burning, Ezekiel 24:1-14

 

GOD’S WORD ALWAYS COMES TRUE.

Every jot. Every tiddle.

Heaven and earth will pass away but My Words will by no means pass away. Matthew 24:35.

Again, in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Around 588 BC.

The New Living Translation says, “On January 15, during the ninth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity.”

This is an important date, also recorded in 2 Kings 25:1-4, Jeremiah 39:1-2, 52:3-7.

Whenever God points to the clock, the calendar, in the Bible, we should pay attention because, it’s for us. He knows one day the earth will open its’ mouth and speak, undeniable proofs of God’s Word. Archaeologists will uncover, ancient documents will speak, of the Truth of God’s Word.

2 “Son of man, write down the name of the day, this very day—the king of Babylon started his siege against Jerusalem this very day.

This time God points at the clock not only for us in our day, but also for those in Ezekiel’s day. Because on that very day four or five hundred miles west of Ezekiel, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, surrounded Jerusalem, and began an eighteen month siege that ended with the destruction of the city. (Jer. 52:5-7).

Why did God tell Ezekiel to write down the day?

Because they had no television, internet or phones. So, in a month or two word would finally reach Ezekiel in Babylon that the siege had begun. He’d say, “I already know, God sent me a text on the very day it happened—see I wrote it down.”

This was Divine knowledge, Divine Confirmation, and Divine Judgement.

The siege was judgement on Judah for their ongoing evil. Something Ezekiel (and other prophets) had been warning about for years.

For four years Ezekiel had been preaching, “Judgement is coming. Judgement is coming...”

For four years many ignored.

But on that very day, what he said would happen. Did happen.

Then, they wished they would’ve listened.

Interestingly, providentially, this very week, while we are on this very Scripture, it’s been four years since I started preaching at Church in the Clubhouse. Week after week, twice a week, for four years warning after warning, judgement is coming, judgement is coming...

For four years many ignored.

But one day, on that very day, what I said would happen, will happen.

Then, they’ll wish they would’ve listened.

3 And utter a parable to the rebellious house, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God:

“Put on a pot, set it on,

And also pour water into it.

4 Gather pieces of meat in it,

Every good piece,

The thigh and the shoulder.

Fill it with choice cuts;

5 Take the choice of the flock.

Also pile fuel bones under it,

Make it boil well,

And let the cuts simmer in it.”

Choice meat from the choice flock, simmered well. This sounds like a fine stew being brewed. Which made the hearers’ ears perk up. They could relate. They thought all along, they were the choicest of the flock, the elite meat, safe and sound within the cauldron walls of Jerusalem. No matter what the prophets said, they thought God was about to MIGA (Make Israel Great Again).

6 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God:

Okay guys, listen up, here comes the blessing, the announcement, God is going to make us healthy, wealthy and wise, because we are so awesome in His eyes.

“Woe to the bloody city,

To the pot whose scum is in it,

And whose scum is not gone from it!

Ruh roh!

Bloody city refers JerUSAlem’s violence and bloodshed.

The scum depicts “rust” signifying deep imbedded corrosion, corruption.   

Four years of warning came flooding their memory, especially the part from Ezekiel 11:2-12, where they said they were the elite meat and the city was their safe cauldron, but God said, they were not the meat and the city was not their cauldron, but they would be brought out of the city and be slain by the sword.

That was one of the many Words of the Lord they had ignored, but...

GOD’S WORD ALWAYS COMES TRUE.

Every jot. Every tiddle.

Heaven and earth will pass away but My Words will by no means pass away. Matthew 24:35.

Bring it out piece by piece,

On which no lot has fallen.

Just as the Lord said, they were brought out and slain, siege by siege.

7 For her blood is in her midst;

She set it on top of a rock;

She did not pour it on the ground,

To cover it with dust.

JerUSAlem brought this judgement on herself.

She shed her blood from her midst.

Pay attention! From the midst of JerUSAlem is USA. From our midst we shed the blood of over ONE MILLION INNOCENT babies per year.

JerUSAlem set her blood on display on top of the rock, she did not cover it. She had no shame or remorse for her sin. 

Just this week Massachusetts mass murdering governor and a demonized horde shamelessly applauded as she signed into law a bill welcoming the slaughtering of babies up to the moment of birth.

Why are the Christians yawning?

Why are the Pastors silent?

Are we JerUSAlem thinking, even if we live in sin, God will make us great again?    

8 That it (the blood) may raise up fury and take vengeance,

I have set her blood on top of a rock,

That it may not be covered.”

Blood crying out raises the fury of the Lord to take vengeance.

God will not allow such blatant, arrogant, disregard for the sanctity of life.

Since God was moved by the cry of the blood of one man, Abel, how much more the innocent blood of babies?

In the US, since Roe v Wade in 1973, 67.5 million (and growing by one every twenty-eight seconds) have been violently, painfully, slaughtered.

9 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God:

“Woe to the bloody city!

I too will make the pyre great.

10 Heap on the wood,

Kindle the fire;

Cook the meat well,

Mix in the spices,

And let the cuts be burned up.

The siege intensified, the judgement grew hotter.

The city was surrounded.

None went out, none came it.

All supplies were cut off.

Death toll went up.

Food supply ran low.

Some resorted to cannibalism.

The wall was breached, a bloodbath ensued, all were taken captive or killed.

What happened then foreshadows what will happen again, only worse. The great tribulation is quickly approaching.

11 “Then set the pot empty on the coals,

The city lay empty and in ruins.

That it may become hot and its bronze may burn,

That its filthiness may be melted in it,

That its scum may be consumed.

Turn up the heat, consume the city with fervent heat, for nothing can be done to cleanse the scum, and the corruption therein.

Which is exactly what happened, and what will happen.

The earth will melt with fervent heat, therefore we look for a new heaven and a new earth wherein righteousness dwells. 2 Peter 3:10-13.

12 She has grown weary with lies,

And her great scum has not gone from her.

Let her scum be in the fire!

13 In your filthiness is lewdness.

God’s judgement is just.

She did this to herself.

Judgement fell because of her lies, her scum, her filthiness, her lewdness.

Because I have cleansed you, and you were not cleansed,

You will not be cleansed of your filthiness anymore,

Till I have caused My fury to rest upon you.

Time after time the Lord tried to cleanse you, but you refused.

Year after year, month after month, day after day, moment after moment, He knocks.

Each time.

You refused.

One day, perhaps this very day, you will stand before Him.

Your choice will have already been made, a thousand times, every knock you wouldn’t answer. Every Word you rejected, every time, you told Him, “No. I choose my way. Not Yours.”

Wrong choice because Jesus said:

John 14:6
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

And...

GOD’S WORD ALWAYS COMES TRUE.

Every jot. Every tiddle.

Heaven and earth will pass away but My Words will by no means pass away. Matthew 24:35.

So, on that very day, His Word will be fulfilled, and you will receive your choice, because Love doesn’t force, and you will go your way into the eternal lake of fire. Rev. 20:15, 21:8.

14 I, the Lord, have spoken it;

It shall come to pass, and I will do it;

I will not hold back,

Nor will I spare,

Nor will I relent;

According to your ways

And according to your deeds

They will judge you,”

Says the Lord God.’ ”

That’s the end of Ezekiel 24.

That’s the beginning of the time of the gentiles.

From that moment when Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, to this moment, Jerusalem has been trampled by the gentiles (not under the sovereign rule of Israel).

We are living near the end of the time of the gentiles.

What’s the time of the gentiles?  

THE TIME OF THE GENTILES

God set the precedent with Abraham.

Genesis 15:16
But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.

Abraham’s descendants won’t move into the Promise Land, until the sin of the inhabitants is so bad that the Lord wipes them out to make room for His people.

Then, fast forward from Abraham about 2,000 years and listen to Jesus talking about the end of the times of the Gentiles.

Luke 21:24
 And they will fall by the edge of the sword and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

He’s talking about our not so distant future.

At the end of the Great Tribulation, the world will be led by a ten nation coalition under the leadership of the antichrist.

They will gather for war against Jerusalem. Their sin will be so bad that the Lord will wipe them out to make room for His people.

That Armageddon will end the time of the gentiles.

Daniel 2:44
And in the days of these kings (the ten-nation coalition) the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

Then, the blindness that has been on most of Israel will be lifted.

Zechariah 12:10
And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.

Jews alive at the end of the Great Tribulation will recognize Christ Jesus, and mourn, and grieve, and repent, and turn to Him, and all Israel will be saved.

Romans 11:25-26
For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. ²⁶ And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

“The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob.

 

DAYS OF DECEPTION

Today we sit on the threshold of all these things being fulfilled.

How do I know?

Because when Jesus was asked about the end times, the first thing He said was, be not deceived.

Matthew 24:4, Mark 13:5, Luke 21:8
 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you.

So, a major characteristic of the end of days will be deception.

Paul confirmed it:

1 Timothy 4:1-2
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, ² speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.

Deceiving spirits, speaking lies, in hypocrisy. Deception. Deception. Deception.

Because the Lord loves you so much and wants you to be aware of the times in which we live, He gives you object lessons, just to be clear.

Just this week we received a text from our credit card company stating that STUBHUB tried to bill our credit card $876.70.

Thankfully, they declined the transaction and asked if we were trying to make that transaction.

We weren’t.

We jumped through the hoops to close our card and order a new one.

Then we posted the warning to let others know to be on guard.

We also posted this prayer:

Lord we pray those thieves are caught and convicted to the fullest extent of the law. More importantly that their hearts are convicted and they stop this mad dash toward hell and turn to You, and live.

Lord, I pray You protect my family and friends and those who read this from the ever growing deception of the devil. Please rebuke the devourer that comes to steal, kill and destroy. Give us wisdom to walk in Your Ways and avoid his snares.

Thank You.

We trust and love You, forever.

Amen

Then, before the ink dried, we received a phone call. Thankfully it went to voicemail.

An automated robocall with an AI-generated voice message claiming a purchase of over $900 for a PlayStation 5 and headsets was made on a Walmart account in my name, urging me to call back or press "1" to cancel the transaction.

Upon investigation we discovered:

THIS IS A SCAM. DO NOT CALL BACK AND DO NOT PRESS A NUMBER TO CANCEL.

Google says: "This is a widespread phishing scam. A common automated robocall or AI-generated voice message claims a pre-authorized purchase of around $900 (often a PlayStation 5 and headset) was made on a Walmart account in your name, urging you to call back or press a number to cancel it".

Again we posted the warning and another prayer:

Thank You Jesus, for exposing the deceiver, rebuking the devourer, stopping the mouth of liars, and crushing the serpent's head.

Thank You for telling us, we shall know the Truth, and the Truth, shall set us free.

We trust in You with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding. In all our ways we acknowledge You, and You direct our paths.

We won't worry about anything, but pray about everything, with thanksgiving, and Your peace that passes understanding guards our hearts and minds.

Thank You.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

Shortly thereafter we heard these comments:

Heather: “I just had Google try to take 8 different charges totalling $189 out of my account. Thank goodness I had fraud alerts. The bank cancelled my card. You have to be soooo careful these days”

Cindy: Jimmy got one the other day for $1200.00....the bank blocked”.

  Glenda: “I just had to cancel and reorder my credit card too, for the same reason.”

Sadie & Dennis: Their entire checking account of thousands of dollars was drained due to some Robinhood bitcoin investment scheme.

All of that a day before preaching this message.

When speaking of the end times the first thing Jesus said, is “be not deceived.”

We are living in days of deception.

Be not deceived... and be not discouraged, but encouraged, for when you see these things taking place, lift up your head for your redemption draws nigh. Luke 21:28.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore comfort one another with these words.

1 Corinthians 15:50-58
Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. ⁵¹ Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— ⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. ⁵³ For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. ⁵⁴ So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

⁵⁵ “O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”

⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸ Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

This very day may be the day because:

GOD’S WORD ALWAYS COMES TRUE.

Every jot. Every tiddle.

Heaven and earth will pass away but My Words will by no means pass away. Matthew 24:35.

The siege is set, the match is lit, the battering rams are in hand, the pot is boiling...

This very day, the Lord commands, today I set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, My Way, or your way.

Which way do you choose?

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your Word that always comes True. Thank You for the honor to know You, the Way, the Truth, the Life. Thank You for warning us of these days of deception, as the times of the gentiles draws to a close. Now help us to follow hard after You, doing Your will, being soul winners and disciple makers, so that of all those You’ve given us, none are lost.

Thank You, Lord.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

Prayer Requests:

Call or text: 612-554-2522

Email: pray4measap@aol.com

Facebook: Church at WPV

Books: amazon.com/author/dougspurling

Watch online:

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This was feed for you to read. Now it’s Seed for you to sow.