Raw Power

Theme: The power of Christ revealed 2,000 years ago lives in His people today.
Text:  Luke 4:31-37

Here’s a thought: A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) concluded, “If God were to take the Holy Spirit out of this world, much of what the church is doing would go right on; and nobody would know the difference.”

Socrates taught for 40 years, Plato for 50, Aristotle for 40 and Jesus for only three. Yet the influence of Christ’s three-year ministry infinitely transcends the impact left by the combined 130 years of teaching from these men who were among the greatest philosophers of the ancient world. Jesus painted no pictures, yet some of the finest paintings of Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci received their inspiration from Him. Jesus wrote no poetry but inspired Dante, Milton, and scores of the world’s greatest poets. Jesus composed no music, but Haydn, Handel, Beethoven, Bach, and Mendelssohn reached their highest perfection of melody in the hymns, symphonies and oratorios they wrote to praise Him. This humble carpenter from Nazareth has enriched our lives much more than we realize.

His unique contribution to the human race is the salvation of the soul! Neither philosophy nor art, literature or music could accomplish this. Only Jesus Christ can break the enslaving chains of sin and Satan. He alone can speak peace to the human heart, strengthen the weak and give life to those who are spiritually dead.

We get a taste of why Jesus Christ has made such an impact on so many people in the Gospel of Luke 4:31-37:

31 Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath began to teach the people. 32 They were amazed at his teaching, because his message had authority. 33 In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice, 34 “Ha! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are - the Holy One of God!” 35 “Be quiet!” Jesus said sternly. “Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down before them all and came out without injuring him. 36 All the people were amazed and said to each other, “What is this teaching? With authority and power he gives orders to evil spirits and they come out!” 37 And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area. NIV

Jesus demonstrated His power and authority through His: Words (Luke 4:31-32)

Since He could no longer work in His home community of Nazareth, Jesus quickly left for Capernaum. This town became the centre of His Galilean ministry. The citizens were more receptive, so He performed many miracles there.

On the Sabbath, perhaps a week after His trying experience in Nazareth, Jesus was once more in a synagogue, this time in Capernaum - another reference to Jesus worshipping regularly with God’s people.

The attitude of His hearers and the results that followed were quite different from those in His hometown of Nazareth. The people were amazed by His words because He spoke with authority. This contrasted sharply with the way the scribes taught. They hesitated to assert anything independently, preferring to quote others to support their position. Further, they often engaged in hair- splitting debates over issues far from the practical, everyday needs of the people. Jesus’ popularity came from touching the heartfelt needs of His hearers. We who want to help people can learn from His example.

Consider all the needs around us that people feel today:

• Struggles with relationships.

• Confusion about parenting.

• Misplaced priorities.

• Stress and anxiety.

  An old milk bottle was fished out of the Pacific Ocean during World War 2. It contained a piece of water-soaked paper. The writing was too faint to be deciphered, so the FBI was called in.

  Various tests were made, and chemicals were applied. At last, six words stood out in startling clarity. The message read, “Two quarts of milk, no cream.”

There is often much hype over the newest, hottest speaker or author, resulting in disappointment. Do you want to be as solid as a rock in what you say? Do you want to impact people by being sure of what you say when you talk about God and life? Immerse yourself in the study, memorization, meditation and application of the Bible.

In Deuteronomy 4:5-9 Moses promised the people of Israel that living by the Word of God would make an impression upon those who did not know the Lord:

5 See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. 6 Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” 7 What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8 And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today? 9 Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. NIV

Values, morals and the meaning of life are now all “up for grabs.” People try to understand how and why we are here. The Bible provides the answers to these ultimate questions. Don’t sell our Lord and His Word short! Let our words reflect the same power that Jesus spoke with almost 2,000 years ago.

Jesus demonstrated His power and authority through His: Words
and

Works (Luke 4:33-37)

As remarkable as Jesus’ teaching was, His interaction with one in the crowd was even more startling. This man, with his evil spirit, would have been looked on as unclean and would not have been admitted within the synagogue walls; he had probably crept in unseen (from The Pulpit Commentary). Under the influence of the demon, he cried out with a loud voice, interrupting Jesus. It

was a cry of anguish from a being who knew himself to be doomed. The demon knew that he could not withstand the power of Christ, and he knew that Jesus was the Son of God. He knew things that most of Jesus’ human companions had not yet come to understand. Demons are evil and very intelligent. They have been around a lot longer than we have. James 2:19 says that even the demons believe there is one God - and shudder.

Jesus immediately silenced the evil spirit. Though the demon publicly acknowledged Jesus as the “Holy One of God,” this was not exactly the kind of testimony Jesus wanted. The credibility of any witness depends mainly upon their character. The Lord did not want or need the demon’s help to reveal His identity. It was not the time for widespread public attention.

Jesus’ following words were to call the demon out of the man. The evil spirit would not surrender without a struggle, violently throwing the man to the ground. But these final efforts were futile before the power of Jesus, and the man was set free.

The crowd stood in amazement at what happened. Exorcists had two main methods of expelling demons (according to The IVP Bible Background Commentary): (1) scaring the demon out or making it too sick to stay - for example, by putting a smelly root up the possessed person's nose in the hope that the demon would not be able to stand it - or (2) invoking the name of a higher spirit to get rid of the lower one. Jesus spoke a few words to banish the evil spirit. The people were amazed that He cast out demons and did it with such authority and power. The region was soon buzzing with excitement over this miracle.

The question of demonization raises problems for many people today. Some reject the whole idea. The phenomena that the Bible ascribes to demons they explain as the activities of persons with serious mental illness. This can be true in some cases, but certainly not all. Some may have ascribed all sickness to demonization 2,000 years ago, but the Gospel writers carefully distinguish between demonization and diseases.

The Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) does not refer to demonization or evil spirits often, yet the problem frequently arises during Jesus’ ministry. Many believe Satan and his cohorts made an all-out effort to thwart Jesus’ work, and the many demon possessions reported in the Gospels were one example of this attack. When God speaks and moves, the powers of darkness do all they can to resist.

Movies and television shows have brought demon possession to the public's attention. While some of these programs have left people with distorted ideas and excessive fears of demon possession, they have at least conveyed some idea of Satan’s evil and hideous powers. Whatever conclusions we may come to

about demon possession today, we cannot escape the realization that Satan and his allies are a force.

Some say that we don’t need power evangelism today. What we need, they say, is love evangelism. There is no Biblical or practical reason to choose one or the other. We need the gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit. Yes, power can certainly be abused to control and hurt people. The type of power Jesus demonstrated and the power available to us today through the Holy Spirit reflects the love of God and the rule of God.

American pastor A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) concluded, “If God were to take the Holy Spirit out of this world, much of what the church is doing would go right on; and nobody would know the difference.”

Some teach that signs, wonders, and miracles ceased with the original apostles, but I don’t see this in the Bible. I am not satisfied with the degree to which we see Mark 16:15-20 fulfilled today here in North America:

15 He [Jesus] said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” 19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. 20 Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it. NIV

This description of followers of Jesus in the early church should apply to us today. We aren’t to be spooky or unnecessarily strange. The Lord intends for us to be naturally supernatural and supernaturally natural.

I suspect some believers spend more time thinking about their enemy than their Saviour. Some are preoccupied with the devil and demons. God doesn’t call us to focus on cursing the darkness but to share the light that dispels the darkness.

The British evangelist, Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947), told a story of having frightening dreams one night (https://www.sermonillustrations.co.uk/2016/06/16/oh-its-only-you). At some point, he awoke and looked around the room, aware of a demonic presence. There, near the foot of the bed, was Satan himself. Smith said with a sigh, “Oh, it’s just you.” He then rolled over and went back to sleep.

I pray we will realize the power available through the Holy Spirit. Yes, the devil

and demons are real. They are not, however, the evil counterparts to Jesus. We are not involved in a battle between two forces with nearly the same power. Jesus Christ silenced that demon almost 2,000 years ago with no trouble. Jesus now lives within us by the Holy Spirit and wants to demonstrate His raw power through us.

How can you get such raw power?

• Ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Saviour.

• Ask Him to fill you with His Holy Spirit.

• Expand your capacity for spiritual power through praying, fasting and

  confessing your sin.

• Keep your spiritual eyes open and your spiritual ears attuned to power

  encounters (but don’t look for a demon behind every bush).

• When challenged by the enemy, remember who you are in Christ!

  A mechanic in Mangum, Oklahoma, answered the distress call of a woman motorist whose car had stalled. He examined the car and informed her that it was out of gas.

  “Will it hurt,” she asked, “if I drive it home with the gas tank empty?”

  We need power to operate our vehicles. The same is true in life. Those who attempt to go on without the power provided by God may find that they can coast downhill for a while, even roll up a slight grade for a moment. But soon, a time will come when the road will not permit further coasting, and life is stalled. Fortunately, God provides the power for us anytime we are willing to have it if we keep the funnel unclogged with sin and turn toward His abundant grace and supply.

  Jesus demonstrated His power and authority through His:

  Words

  and

  Works

  The power of Christ revealed 2,000 years ago lives in His people today.