A Day of Messianic Miracles – Mark 1:21-34

In this section we have the first miracles recorded by Mark. There are a suite of miracles in these verses that all take place on one the Sabbath day. It was a day of miracles! These Messianic miracles were a fulfillment of Bible prophecy and demonstrated that Christ was who He claimed to be. “What Jesus Christ did, reveals Who He is.” The account before us particularly emphasizes the authority of the Son of God (note the word ‘authority’ in Vs. 22 and 27). In this sermon we consider this Divine Authority of Christ in three areas.

Look firstly at His…

Authority in Doctrine (Vs. 21-22)

The Revelation of His Doctrine (Vs. 21)

1. ‘Capernaum’ = located on northern end of Sea of Galilee. Was to be Christ’s ministry head quarters for much of His Galilean ministry.
2. “entered into the synagogue” = was Christ’s regular practice to attend the synagogue. Luke 4:16 “…as his custom was…” A synagogue was a Jewish meeting place used for Sabbath worship as well as a school during the week for the teaching of the law. It also functioned as a court for handling certain offences.
3. ‘taught’ = Christ was both the Master Preacher and Teacher. What He taught we are not told by Mark but from His other recorded teaching, we can probably guess that it included the great themes of repentance from sin, the coming kingdom etc.…

The Reaction to His Doctrine (Vs. 22)

1. ‘astonished’ = A strong word meaning “to strike out” (Wuest) “to be exceedingly struck in mind” (Vine) “Jesus teaching struck the people like a blow, knocking them out of their normal state of mind.” (Hiebert)
2. ‘for’ = reveals the reason for their amazement
3. “he taught them as one that had authority” = Christ’s message was authentic. Christ’s message came with authority because:
   1. He preached as the Son of God (His Person)
   2. He preached the truth. Christ was truth incarnate, the living Word (John 1:1,14; 14:6). The scribes preached man made tradition, Christ preached the eternal truth of God’s Word.
   3. He preached with power. Christ’s whole being was under the control of the Holy Spirit. His preaching came with Holy Ghost unction (Luke 4:18; Isaiah 61:1) “…Never man spake like this man.” (John 7:46)
4. “not as the scribes” = the teaching of the scribes was dry as dust and came from corrupt, hypocritical lives (Matt. 23:13-29) Matt. 23:23 “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law…” “Christ cut through this tangled mess of religious red tape.” (Phillips)
5. Challenge: The people were moved by Christ’s message but admiration and astonishment are not the same thing as saving faith. Many were awe struck by the power of Christ’s words who did not submit to Him in faith to receive Him as Lord and Saviour. Illustration: Christ’s sermon at the Nazareth synagogue (Luke 4:16- 30). First, they wondered at His gracious words (Luke 4:22) but by the end of the sermon they “were filled with wrath” (Vs. 28).

Look secondly at His…

Authority Over Demons (Vs. 23-28)

The Reign of the Demon (Vs. 23)

1. “unclean spirit” = the character of evil spirits. They are unclean morally and bring defilement into the life of an individual.
2. “he cried out” = he screamed, shrieked. Luke adds “with a loud voice”. Appears that this took place while Christ was preaching. His anointed words brought the evil to the surface.
3. Demons actively seek to possess people and bring them into bondage (Matt. 12:43-45). Satan seeks to hold the lives of men and woman captive. He is the murderer and destroyer of lives.

The Resistance of the Demon (Vs. 24)

1. “let us alone” = ‘alone’ translated from an interjection arising from a spirit of anger and fear (like “Ah!” or “Oh!”).
2. “what have we to do with thee” = essentially, he is saying “I don’t want anything to do with you!”
3. “art thou come to destroy us” = not annihilation but ruination. Messiah would ruin their power and activity. He also the possibility of being thrown into the bottomless pit (Luke 8:31). But Christ came to bring destruction to Satan’s kingdom! 1 John 3:8 “…For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8)
4. “thou Jesus of Nazareth…the Holy One of God” = this demon knew who Christ was! He clearly acknowledges Christ’s Deity and Purity. Remember, this demon was once a godly angel who basked in the presence of God in heaven until he followed Lucifer’s rebellion and became a fallen angel.
5. “It was His holiness, however, that burned like fire in the soul of the poor man’s tormenting demon. It was like lightning, which both burns and sheds dazzling light. His Holiness, before which even the shining seraphs shrink (Isaiah 6:2), exposed the abysmal vileness and wickedness of this foul spirit. He shrank from it, called out against it, and writhed beneath its glare.” (John Phillips)

The Release from the Demon (Vs. 25-26)

1. “hold thy peace” – Christ rebuked the demon. Christ basically said “shut your mouth!” Christ does not tolerate a testimony from a polluted source, even though that testimony be true (See Paul’s example also in Acts 16:16-18) Note: This debunks the idea that “so long as the words are true” it doesn’t matter what medium is used to communicate them (e.g. Christian rock and roll).
2. “come out of him” – Christ removed the demon. Christ had absolute power and authority over this demon. He could do nothing but release his hold on this man’s life. Christ can still set captives free today!
3. “when the unclean spirit had torn him and cried with a loud voice” = reveals the total rebellion and opposition of the demon to Christ. He had not choice but to leave but he releases one final display of Satanic rage before departing. Luke’s account reveals that the man was thrown down in the midst of the people (Luke 4:35). “Satan tempts, plagues, and buffets none so fiercely as those who are in the act of being delivered from his tyranny forever.” (Trench)

The Response after the Demon (Vs. 27-28)

1. Amazement (Vs. 27)
   1. ‘amazed’ = means “astonishment passing into awe” (Hiebert). They were thunder struck, dumfounded and staggered.
   2. “What thing is this?” = in Luke’s account “what a word is this!” (Luke 4:36)
   3. “What new doctrine is this?” = ‘new’ in the sense of quality rather than time. Christ proclaimed “timeless truth, stripped of all traditionalism and error, truth backed by a life in touch, moment by moment, with heaven.” (Phillips) “It was fresh with the dew of heaven upon it.” (Wuest)
   4. “for with authority commandeth he” = Christ’s authority was demonstrated both in words and in deeds. His miracles added further weight and power to His claims.
2. Announcement (Vs. 28)
   1. The word soon spread like wildfire across the region. ‘fame’ comes from the word ‘hearing’ or ‘report’
   2. So rapid was the spread of the news that by night fall, most of the city of Capernaum was at Christ’s door step (Vs. 33)

Look thirdly at His…

Authority Over Disease (Vs. 29-34)

Christ Heals a Mother (Vs. 29-31)

1. Her location – Peter’s house (Vs. 29)
   1. ‘forthwith’ = immediately. Here we have miracle following miracle in quick succession
   2. “house of Simon and Andrew” = appears to be Peter’s home which became a base of operations for our Lord
2. Her languishing – sick of a fever (Vs. 30)
   1. “sick of a fever” = ‘fever’ comes from the word ‘fire’. She was lying prostrate, burning up with fever.
   2. “they tell him off her” = Luke says, “they besought him for her” (Luke 4:38)
3. Her lifting – Jesus’ touch (Vs. 31)
   1. Luke as a Physician adds a touching detail – “he stood over her” Pictures Christ bending over the patient as the Great Physician.
   2. “took her by the hand” = the touch of the Master’s Hand
   3. “immediately the fever left” = instant and total healing
   4. “she ministered unto them” = having received of Christ’s grace and mercy, her response was to serve Christ and His servants. Many receive of God’s healing grace but then go on to live self- centered lives. Not so with Peter’s mother in law. Her gratitude for Christ’s goodness in her life drove her to loving service.

Christ Heals a Multitude (Vs. 32-34)

1. The setting for the crowd – sunset (Vs. 32)
   1. “they brought unto him” = impf. Tense “they were bringing” Pictures the steady stream of people making their way to the house
   2. “diseased” = physical sickness
   3. “possessed with devils” = spiritual sickness (sometimes physical diseases and ailments associated with demon possession also)
2. The size of the crowd – whole city (Vs. 33)
3. The saving of the crowd – Christ healed them (Vs. 34)
   1. “divers diseases” = Christ’s power was sufficient to meet every individual need. He healed many people of with many different problems.
   2. “cast out many devils” = like the man described in Vs. 21-28, these people also experienced Christ’s deliverance.

Conclusion

Have you been delivered from the disease of sin? Have you been delivered from the bondage of sin and Satan? Are you saved, born again? For those of us who have been saved, do we serve our Saviour with love and gratitude?

Sermon 8 of 59 in Mark Series

Sermon Audio Id: 1215181946216370