Christ calls us to be a partnered with Him in His renewal of all things and it s a fight

Transcription

1 / Renew Part III (Victry) Mark 5:1-15 And they came t Jesus and bserved the man wh had been demn-pssessed sitting dwn, clthed and in his right mind, the very man wh had had the legin (v. 15) This man wh was trmented has been delivered He has been renewed (Cf. 2 Cr 5:17) I ve seen this renewal & transfrmatin (severe and nuanced) = beautiful Jesus cast ut demns as ne f the functins f His mercy f ministry1 and as a demnstratin that the Kingdm had cme If I cast ut demns by the finger f Gd, then the kingdm f Gd has cme upn yu (Luke 11:20) What the In-breaking Kingdm f Gd des is challenge every ther claim t pwer Everything that cmes against the lving rule f Gd Everything that keeps peple in bndage Everything that keeps peple frm right created rder These things are engaged and challenged Christianity is a fighting religin. It thinks Gd made the wrld that space and time, heat and cld, and all the clrs and tastes, and all the animals and vegetables, are things that Gd made up ut f His head as a man makes up a stry. But it als thinks that a great many things have gne wrng with the wrld that Gd made and that Gd insists, and insists very ludly, n ur putting them right again. 2 Christ calls us t be a partnered with Him in His renewal f all things and it s a fight In Mark 4 and 5 Jesus demnstrates His pwer and authrity ver nature, evil, sickness, and death In each case Jesus is exhibiting renewal the crrectin f smething gne wrng Jesus wrks these acts f renewal by merely speaking He rebuked the wind and said t the sea hush, be still (4:39) He had been saying t him, Cme ut f the man yu unclean spirit (5:8) (even with legin) He said t her, Daughter, yur faith has made yu well; g in peace, and be healed f yur afflictin (5:34) And taking the child by the hand, He said t her, Talitha kum! (which translated means, Little girl, I say t yu, arise! ) (5:41) 1 Mark 1:23 27, 32 34, 39; 3:11 12; 5:1 20; 7:25 30; 9:17 29, 38; 16:9, 17 C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, p Britt Merrick

2 2 The wrds f Christ affected change The Wrd f Gd affects change Hebrews 4:12 and Ephesians 6:17 In the same way that ideas change and shape histry and the wrld Gd s ideas (which we call truth) cnfrnt and crrect all that is wrng in histry and the wrld This is why t be n missin is t be a truth-teller The truth abut demns is that they are defeated! The victry was wn at the crss, is displayed in histry, and is cnsummated at the final judgment Revelatin 19:10 tells us that the devil will be thrwn int the lake f fire and brimstne and trmented day and night frever and ever The devil and his demns knw this and this is why in Mark 5:7 the demnized man says d nt trment me In the parallel accunt in Matthew 8:29 the questin is put this way: Have yu cme t trment us befre the time? I.e. the appinted time f judgment Cf. Mark 1:24 Have yu cme t destry us? The devil and demns knw they are defeated and their fate is sealed It is nt a struggle between equal and ppsing pwers Gd is greater! Demns shudder at the identity and in the presence f Jesus (Cf. James 2:19) Jesus is the victrius King f Glry! Because His Kingdm has cme, we shuld see and experience victry ver evil nw But because His Kingdm is als cming we will nt see the fullness f that victry yet We see signs f renewal, but nt yet cmplete renewal We see this with ur salvatin as it pertains t sin Penalty, pwer, presence All accmplished but unflding We understand this with miraculus healing Since His kingdm is already we shuld experience healings tday Since His kingdm is nt-yet we will nt experience cmplete healing (renewal) until He cmes again in victrius glry and renews all things Sme d nt quite get this and think either: Miraculus healing shuld always happen, r that miraculus healing never happens They fail t see the already/nt yet nature f the kingdm Perhaps it wuld be helpful t think f this in terms f death Jesus did nt nly cnquer sin, but als death (Cf. 1 Cr 15) But peple still die ne day, they will nt (Revelatin 21:4) Death is defeated, but still present fr nw (Cf. sin and sickness) 2010 Britt Merrick

3 3 As it is with sin, sickness and death, s it is with Satan and demns They are defeated but still present Just as we deal with sin, sickness and death, we have t deal with demns One day we will nt the victry will be cnsummated When Jesus ascended, there was still death, sickness and demns But their defeat was secured at the crss When He descends again they will be vanquished nce and fr all Newness will cme in fullness Fr nw the victry is experienced in signs f renewal that freshadw the fullness But, we shuld see and experience signs f victry and renewal nw (the miraculus!) This is what we see in the Gspels and in Acts The Gspel is the gd news f renewal we are called t be, d and tell the Gspel This actin will always result in demns being dealt with When Jesus began t preach the gspel in Galilee demns als came ut f many (Luke 4:41) When Philip went and preached the gspel in Samaria unclean spirits came ut f many crying with a lud vice (Acts 8:7) Jesus sent Paul t preach amng the gentiles that they may turn frm darkness t light and frm the pwer f Satan t Gd (Acts 26:18) Because the mdel f Scripture is that when the gspel ges frth demns are dealt with Then we shuld expect ppsitin But we shuld als expect t see immediate and tangible evidence f Christ s victry ver evil as we live life n missin = Nrmal Christianity signs f Christ s kingdm, victry and renewal What shuld als be nrmal t Christian missin is dealing with demns the way Jesus did He is ur mdel fr missin S, hw did Jesus deal with demns and s display renewal? He verbally cmmanded them t leave (Mark 5:8) Subsequently, hw did the church in Acts deal with demns? They verbally cmmanded them (Acts 16:16-18) Hw shuld we deal with demns? The primary mdel we have frm Jesus and Acts is the verbal cmmand/rebuke This wuld have been what the disciples wuld have seen Jesus d and s what they wuld have dne This is what we ught t d when cnfrnted directly with demns 2010 Britt Merrick

4 4 Why wuld Gd want us t speak directly t demns rather than just pray and ask Gd t d it? 3 That is a little bit like asking: Why d we share the gspel with peple rather than just pray that Gd wuld reveal it t them directly? Why encurage smene verbally r rebuke smene penly (as tld in Scripture) Because thrughut Scripture and histry we see that Gd has chsen t wrk thrugh peple rather than independent f peple Part f this is praying (2 Cr 10:4 and Eph 6:18) part f it is mre direct invlvement and actin Thereby he enables us t gain the jy f participating in eternally significant ministry and the jy f triumphing ver the destructive pwer f Satan and his demns in peple s lives. It is nt that Gd culd nt deal with demnic attacks every time we prayed and asked him t d s, fr he certainly culd and he n dubt smetimes des. But the NT pattern seems t be that Gd rdinarily expects Christians themselves t speak directly t the unclean spirits. 4 We shuld als think abut this: Scripture gives n indicatin that demns can knw ur thughts, s it makes sense t speak cmmands and rebukes ut lud Sme bject t cmmanding demns verbally because f Jude 9 says: Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued abut the bdy f Mses, did nt dare prnunce against him a railing judgment, but said, "The Lrd rebuke yu!" Hwever, in cntext this passage is nt talking abut Christians and their encunters with demns but rather ungdly persns wh deny Jesus Christ. They are described as peple wh live immral lives, defy authrity, and scff at supernatural beings. (Jude 8, NLT) The pint is these ungdly peple have n understanding (v. 10) f spiritual beings and verstep their bunds when they scff at (r revile) them The reference t Michael the archangel is t illustrate that even such a pwerful creature did nt g beynd the authrity that Gd had given him He did nt dare rebuke the devil in and f himself, but relied upn the Lrd s authrity ( The Lrd rebuke yu. ) Hell: He still spke t the devil (hw sme deduce frm this that we shuld nt is beynd me) The lessn f the verse is simply Dn t try t g beynd the authrity Gd has given yu. 5 Jesus gave us authrity t cast ut demns in His name t all believers! (Mark 16:17) And he gave us the mdel f verbally cmmanding them S, what d yu say? Jesus said, Cme ut f the man yu unclean spirit (Mark 5:8) Paul said, I cmmand yu in the name f Jesus Christ t cme ut f her! (Acts 16:18) D what yu see Jesus and Paul ding in the Bible be biblical! 3 Fr these thughts I am indebted t Wayne Grudem s Sytematic Thelgy p Grudem, Grudem, Britt Merrick

5 We may d this in intercessry prayer (ut lud) We may d this n behalf f smebdy while in their presence We may use Scripture (Ephesians 6:17 and Matthew 4:1-11) 5 Be biblical and be thrugh In Mark 9:25 we read He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying t it, "Yu deaf and mute spirit, I cmmand yu, cme ut f him and d nt enter him again." Cf. The Ventura Huse The authrity fund in name (I.e. identity) f Jesus is the key Nt as a magical incantatin But as pertaining t His identity and ur being truly identified with Him Acts 19:11-16 When the name f Jesus is invked crrectly, as the ne wh we urselves wrship and see as supreme, and ur identity with Him is authentic, then we rightly exercise that authrity When it cmes t living life n missin, Jesus wants us t use what He has given us! And He has given us authrity t cast ut demns in His name! He delegated this authrity t the twelve (Mark 3:15; 6:7), t the seventy (Luke 10:17), and t all believers (Mark 16:17) And these signs will accmpany thse wh have believed: in My name they will cast ut demns (Mark 16:17 a-b ) This was the mdel f Jesus. It is the mdel in the bk f Acts. It was the practice f the church after Acts: All the authrity and pwer we have ver them (evil spirits) is frm ur naming the name f Christ, and recalling t their memry the wes with which Gd threatens them at the hand f Christ their Judge, and which they expect ne day t vertake them. Fearing Christ in Gd and Gd in Christ, they becme subject t the servants f Gd and Christ. S at ne tuch and breathing, verwhelmed by the thught and realizatin f thse judgment fires, they leave at ur cmmand the bdies they have entered, unwilling and distressed, and befre yur very eyes put t an pen shame. (Early Church Father Tertullian ca. 160 ca. 220 A.D, Aplgy) Because the identity f Jesus is always the issue This is where demns attack Which is why the Wrd f Gd is necessary t a life f missin And this is hw demns are expsed 1 Jhn 4:2-3 2 By this yu knw the Spirit f Gd: every spirit that cnfesses that Jesus Christ has cme in the flesh is frm Gd; 3 and every spirit that des nt cnfess Jesus is nt frm Gd This actually wrks The true identity f Jesus is always the issue! 2010 Britt Merrick

6 6 The basis fr ur authrity is (1) the identity f Christ, (2) His wrk n the Crss, and (3) ur identity in Him 1. The identity f Christ Philippians 2:9-11 Gd highly exalted Him, and bestwed n Him the name which is abve every name, s that at the name f Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, f thse wh are in heaven and n earth and under the earth, and that every tngue will cnfess that Jesus Christ is Lrd, t the glry f Gd the Father. 2. Christ s wrk n the Crss Hebrews 2:14 tells us that Jesus tk n flesh and bld that thrugh death He might render pwerless him wh had the pwer f death, that is, the devil Clssians 2:15 (NLT) tells us that Jesus disarmed the spiritual rulers and authrities. He shamed them publicly by his victry ver them n the crss. Because the bld f Christ speaks f His death we read in Rev 12:11 that while in cnflict with Satan in this wrld believers they vercame him because f the bld f the Lamb and because f the wrd f their testimny 3. Our identity in Christ Galatians 3:26 (ESV)says fr in Christ Jesus yu are all sns f Gd, thrugh faith. 2 Crinthians 5:20 calls us ambassadrs fr Christ These things allw us t cnfrnt demnic ppsitin withut fear 1 Jhn 4:4 Yu are frm Gd, little children, and have vercme them; because greater is He wh is in yu than he wh is in the wrld. 2 Timthy 1:7 fr Gd gave us a spirit nt f fear but f pwer and lve and self-cntrl Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strng in the Lrd and in the strength f His might. James 4:7 and 1 Peter 5:9 Resist the devil and he will flee frm yu 2 Crinthians 10:4 the weapns f ur warfare divinely pwerful Ephesians 6:16 the shield f faith with which yu will be able t extinguish all the flaming arrws f the evil ne. Smetimes, it is still difficult In the dzens f demns I have cast ut in the name f Jesus there have been a cuple times where I was unsuccessful This was true fr the disciples as well 2010 Britt Merrick

7 7 Mark 9:17-29 (stry) Jesus rebuked their unbelief (9:19) it was a faith issue And Jesus said certain kinds require prayer (9:29) He did nt mean that they had t pray instead f practice the nrmal verbal rebuke they had learned frm Jesus Jesus des just that and casts it ut What He seems t have meant (in light f that fact that he first rebuked their faith) was that they had t have already been cultivating a life f faith building prayer In ther wrds, the bys were just nt n their game at the mment they were spiritually weak Yu want t be effective in missin, yu have t be practiced in prayer. Our spiritual cnditin (which is largely determined by ur prayer lives) is a majr factr in ur success in dealing with demns It is nt enugh t just expel demns, but we must als install Christ Matthew 12: Nw when the unclean spirit ges ut f a man, it passes thrugh waterless places seeking rest, and des nt find it. 44 Then it says, 'I will return t my huse frm which I came'; and when it cmes, it finds it unccupied, swept, and put in rder. 45 Then it ges and takes alng with it seven ther spirits mre wicked than itself, and they g in and live there; and the last state f that man becmes wrse than the first The idea being, I think, it is nt enugh t cnfrnt evil, we must als install Christ This is why s many nn-gspel centered rganizatins and mercy ministries are falling shrt in my pinin We have t be (1) Christ and gspel centered and (2) we have t have Gspel bld humility 1. Our nly hpe in these matters is Christ and the truth f the Gspel 2. The Gspel gives us bld humility (Cf. The Lin and the Lamb) Pride is Satan s sin it shuld nt be urs Luke 10: The seventy returned with jy, saying, "Lrd, even the demns are subject t us in Yur name." 18 And He said t them, "I was watching Satan fall frm heaven like lightning. 19 Behld, I have given yu authrity t tread n serpents and scrpins, and ver all the pwer f the enemy, and nthing will injure yu. 20 Nevertheless d nt rejice in this, that the spirits are subject t yu, but rejice that yur names are recrded in heaven." And that we belng t and are identified with the Glrius King wh is making all things new! And in Him we have victry!!! 2010 Britt Merrick