Mark 1 shows us the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the son of God. His message of repentance, the faith required to believe, and his authority are all on display.

John the Baptist prepared the way,

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

Mark 1:4

I think it’s interesting after Jesus’ baptism the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. When he returned, he began driving out demons (spirits).  Here are the points I noted:

1. The demons knew him and saw his authority.
2. He taught the scriptures with authority.
3. With a word, the demons came out and Jesus silenced them.
4. At once, his fame spread everywhere in the region of Galilee.
5. He healed many, and cast out demons.

We know from the scriptures; demons have zero power in the presence of Jesus. They are silenced, sent away, and they even know their ultimate fate of torture for eternity.  

But knowing this, the demons have no power to stop their evil acts. Much like lost souls have no desire or power to stop living for themselves and harming others in the process.

The cycle of sin and abuse spiral out of control as demonic activity reigns in the lives of people. Whether they try to escape mentally through pleasure seeking, are driven to eating excessively, buy all the latest trends, or drown themselves in work, the insidious power of evil won’t loosen its grip.

 People invite more demons in through their lifestyle choices. Before they know it, the people around them are sucked into the swirling abyss of constant pleasure seeking and escape from pain. Innocent children are affected and turned towards evil too and not by their own choice!

And here we thought the Old Testament was dead and gone.

Nope.

God just chose this place and time to put his Son in the midst of their depraved culture to show us and them who the demons and eventually we—will surrender to.

At the mighty name of Jesus, EVERY knee will bow!

When scriptures like this speak to you and me and God opens our eyes to areas where demonic spirits have more control over our lives than the Holy Spirit, we have hope.

 All we have to do is call on him, my friend.

No demon is too big or too strong for Jesus.

If it’s the spirit of anger—hand him over to Jesus.

If it’s the spirit of fear—trust Jesus to meet your needs.

If it’s the spirit of unbelief—-ask for faith to take over instead.

If its’ the spirit of greed, gluttony, power, or selfishness—-sincerely plead with Jesus to reign over your heart in its place.

If it’s sexual sin, confess to him and repent—he is faithful and just to forgive.

No one is above the need for Jesus.

A centurion and a synagogue leader are perfect examples in the Bible of how the strong may become weak. They heard of Jesus’ power and authority to heal spiritual and physical ailments, and both came to him. They understood authority as leaders of men, who were both holding high positions, yet now power to help the people they love.

No matter how important these men were, they came to a place of humility and understood the greater power of God.

In like manner, no matter how important we think we are, eventually we will all come to a place of humility before Jesus, too.

He has been given all authority and all power. The centurion said,

Just say the word and my servant shall be healed. (Mathew 8:8)

I want that kind of faith and confidence. At the same time, I want the humility to surrender my past, my pain, and all my ugliness to him.

You and I have the wholeness of the gospel and the fullness of Jesus to absorb these next few weeks and I pray we understand it as the complex, deep, and abiding word that it is.

In it we will see miracle after miracle, and healing after healing. But we will also see Jesus submitting to Father God’s will.

If we understand that concept as the most important element of worship, I believe we will walk away from this study with unshakable faith.

I look forward to studying with you! Check out the resources on the blog for your physical and spiritual encouragement!

Moving through the book of Ezekiel you and I will see the glory of heaven and the Spirit of God in motion. Ezekiel is called to prophecy to the house of Israel but is also warned by God about their hard hearts. They will not listen to what he has to say about the coming judgement and their idolatry.

We see this resistance in ourselves and the ones we love, don’t we?

Does anyone want to hear about their lifestyle and habits that don’t honor God or themselves? It’s just not what we want to hear! The people of Israel are no different.

Ezekiel has a mountain of resistance before him and some really bad news to share. So, what does God do? God gives him a picture of the throne of glory and how the hosts of heaven worship and honor God.

The stark comparison of heaven’s glory and proper worship to Israel’s confused mix of a little of God here, and a little pagan there is striking.

The half-hearted loyalty and stiff-necked people are stubborn and resistant to the only true Deity who can give them peace and contentment.

So, I think of Ezekiel as the heart of stone prophet. Not that his heart was hard but that his message was a plea for people to tear down the wall around their hearts that shuts God out. You know that wall all of us carefully build to protect ourselves from emotional turmoil and further disappointment.

Much like Israel, our culture places too much trust in the world around them. They get sucked into the mainstream of life and its ways and before they know it, the principles of God’s law are forgotten. As a society, they depend on jobs, finances, or the government for security and even guidance.

Ezekiel is saying to Israel, and I believe to us, wake up.

He becomes the watchman to warn the people of their wickedness—even though God’s already told him they won’t listen. God puts it this way:

“If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.”

 Ezekeil 3:18-19

Judgement came to the house of Israel, and the people were scattered. Yet God’s plan to redeem and restore them is a beautiful shadow of how He will send His son Jesus, a few hundred years later, to save us.

God tells Ezekeil the exiled people of Israel will be given a new heart!

They will realize their sin and repent of their idolatry.

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people and I will be their God.”  Ezekiel 11:19-20

Questions to Ponder:

• Why do you think the Holy Spirit put theses verses in the bible?
• How does it move you to think, speak, or live for God in a different way?
• Are you a watchman for the lost people within your influence?

The hope of the gospel is to surrender our entire way of thinking to the Lord Jesus Christ and confront the broken awful blackness of our soul. As we lay it before him and ask Him to redeem and restore us, a new regenerated soul is born. We have a one heart with Christ, a new heart and a new spirit.

Gone is the heart of stone with its cracked wall of feeble protection that allows loneliness, jealousy, envy, and greed to seep in and corrupt our souls. In its place is a pliable, open softness towards ourselves, our past, and those around us!

It’s a heart willing to forgive generously, love unconditionally, and move excitedly to honor and please God.

Glory to you, God for the message of freedom to face our sin, confess our sin, and lay it before you for our healing.  A new life here and for eternity!

God bless you, today. I am praying for you as you read this and listen to the message God has for you! You’ll find more encouragement, recipe devotions, and health tips on the blog, so look around and let me know what you think!

I’m expanding my physical and spiritual health ministry into a podcast too; it’s called Family Focused Health and it’s on Spotify! I would be so grateful if you can join me there each week for health topics, scripture, and ways to implement healthier lifestyle habits into our lives.