The Authority of Christ (Part 1 of 2)

Mark 1: 14-34

The Authority of Christ (1 of 2)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."
Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.  And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men."  And immediately they left their nets and followed him.  And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets.  And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.
And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching.  And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.  And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are---the Holy One of God."  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"  And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.  And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him."  And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.
And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her.  And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons.  And the whole city was gathered together at the door.  And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. (Mark 1:14-34)

Introduction

Christ, as God, has all authority (Matt. 28:18; Jn. 17:2). That is, he can exercise his sovereignty however he desires. As the sovereign King of the universe, Christ has the right to rule and reign his domain as he chooses. He reigns supreme! He rules over all things. Christ is sovereign over the stars and the starfish, light and darkness, good and evil, man and angel, inanimate creation and animate creatures.

     He governs everything according to the counsel of his will. This includes the wills, hearts, and minds of man. I know what you are thinking, “Doesn't man have free will? How can Christ reign over man's will?” To begin, man has a will, however it is not free. Man does make choices, nonetheless, they are determined by man's nature. Biblically speaking, the nature of man is spiritually dead, fallen, sinful, corrupt, wicked, depraved, and ungodly (Eph. 2:1-3; Rom. 3:10-18).

    If this is the case, then the will of man is in bondage to a sinful nature (Jn. 8:34). It is held captive, enslaved to the sinful nature. Therefore it can only choose sin. It cannot and will not choose God until God chooses it, seek God until sought by God, desire God until God changes the affections, love God until God instills his love in the heart. In other words, man needs to be born again (Jn. 3:3). There have only been three people in the history of the world who have had a free will. One was Christ. The other two were Adam and Eve and we know how that turned out.

     Sinful man needs to be regenerated by God, brought to life by the Spirit of God. Regeneration is the changing of the nature of man by God. The spiritually dead is made alive in Christ Jesus. The enslaved sinner is set free and is no longer in captivity but captivated by Christ. No longer is the sinner shackled by guilt and iniquity, but is enraptured by the beauty and glory of God. Everything in the regenerated believer is transformed: the soul is raised from the dead and made alive, the will is enabled to choose Christ, the affections desire holiness and purity, the mind thinks on the things of God and is made to understand his word, the tongue praises God and sings for joy, and the eyes now see clearly and behold the glory of God in creation.

    Sinful man naturally rebels against authority of all types. We want to be an authority to ourselves. This is the very nature of sin, we oppose God, his right to rule, his character, his laws, and his commands. We simply want to do what we want, when we want, and how we want. Within sinful man is the innate inclination for autonomy. Sadly, this is even the case for many who name the name of Christ and claim to be regenerated. We naturally are repelled by any semblance of authority or submission.

     Submission to the authority of Christ, however, does not need to be viewed in a negative light or as a bad thing. Christ frees rebels from their bondage of sin. It is the authority of Christ that makes this liberation possible. Christ is a gracious and loving master. His yoke is not burdensome but light and easy. Submission to Christ's authority brings glory to God and brings great joy to the redeemed. When sinners are regenerated their hearts are transformed and they now desire to obey Christ and take pleasure in him. Also, Christ is faithful, loving, merciful, patient, and able to finish the work he began and lead us home.

    Just as Christ is the good news of the gospel, his authority is also good news. The authority of Christ is seen throughout the first chapter of Mark. He is the Son of God, has a messenger sent before him to prepare his way, and the Father is well pleased with him. Why? Because he was sent by the Father to authoritatively preach the gospel and call sinners to repent and trust in him for salvation according to the perfect plan of God, rebuke demons, and heal the diseased.

     The authority of Christ is good news. Because of who he is, Christ is able to do what he does. It is Christ who can change a person's mind. It is Christ that can save a lost spouse. It is Christ who can bring home a wayward child. It is Christ who can comfort in death. It is Christ who can strengthen and heal of sickness. It is Christ who can mend broken relationships. Christ authoritatively changes hearts, effects lives, convicts of sin, delivers, and transforms. Jesus' authority is a great comfort. This is good news! Therefore, submission to the authority of Christ is not burdensome but a great joy.

     The focus, and rightly so, is on Christ and his authority. Why did Mark write in this way? This is who God is. He sent his Son invading history and time. God is King and is ruling and reigning, expanding his kingdom, and bringing sinful rebels into subjection. Christ comes in the name of God, preaches, teaches, calls, ministers, penetrates the hearts and lives of men, proclaims the good news, and conquers Satan, sin, the grave, and death. Christ is the good news, he is the message; he died for sinners, he rose from the dead, and he sent his disciples into the world to fish for men.

     Our salvation and joy hinges on who Christ is. If he is anything other than the authoritative, sovereign, sinless, Son of God, then no one would listen, obey, submit, trust, witness, or glorify God. And if Christ is not authoritative there would be no salvation and we would be most miserable, ruined, and yet in our sin.

The Authority of Christ to Preach (vs. 14-15)

The arrest of John the Baptist indicated, it would appear, that it was the right time for Jesus to act and begin his ministry. The time has come, it is fulfilled. John the Baptist was the last of the Old Testament prophets. The time had come for God to enact the new covenant. The entire Old Testament had looked forward to this point. Jesus is the fulfillment. And what did Jesus do? He preached. The silencing of one preacher does not silence the gospel. The good news will go forth.

The message that Jesus proclaimed was the gospel of God. This means that God is at work, he is acting. God is revealing his redemption at this very point in history. The old is giving way to the new. The past is being fulfilled. The fulfillment is in Christ. He is the focus, the center of all things. All of time has been leading to this moment (Gal. 4:4). The gospel is the good news of God's free gift of salvation through his Son.

     Jesus spoke of the kingdom of God. This asserts that God is sovereign, takes the initiative, acts, spreads his territory, and reigning. God has invaded history and conquers men, he redeems them from bondage. The kingdom of God emphasizes God reigning and subduing his enemies, removing their rebellion, and causing them to be his humble subjects. Jesus said that the kingdom was at hand, it is here. The kingdom of God is now, but it is not complete. It's completion is future, but it is a certainty because God will bring it to pass through his Son. Christ brings sinners into subjection to it so that they may obtain salvation in it.

     Sinners enter God's kingdom through repentance and faith in Christ. Jesus summons sinners to repentance. They are to turn from their sin and rebellion and return to God. Sinners are not only to repent, but to believe. The repentant must believe the gospel, believe that Christ is the Savior. This call is made urgent due to the fact that the kingdom is a reality. There is no time to delay, repent now and believe on the Son. Either sinners submit to Christ's command to repent and believe, or they are left outside of the kingdom.

     The authority of Jesus is seen in the heralding of the gospel. It is authoritative because he is God. He is the one who was sent for this very thing, he is the promised Messiah. Not only that, he is the message; he is the good news of the gospel. There is no other being that can preach in this manner and call sinners to himself. Only Jesus has this authority. Jesus' authority is also made clear by his calling people to a decision. He is not suggesting that sinners repent and believe, he is commanding them to do so. This is authority, this is sovereignty.

     Have you submitted to the sovereign authority of Christ? Have you heard the command to repent and trust in him? Have you obeyed that command? Is Christ and his word your authority? Or do you submit to yourself, your reason, your feelings, your preferences, or tradition? Who or what governs you? Who or what do you obey? Do you recognize pride and rebellion in your heart? And if so, are you convicted? If you are convicted, do you repent?