Breakthrough Authority Series

What influences direct and dominate your life?

This is a question that raises the issue of Authority. The whole issue of authority brings some

interesting dynamics…

The recent generations have been said to be generations with an ever increasing level of ‘authority

issues’… a deep resentment and rejection of the roles of authority in our lives.

The tendency is to simplify this as simply those who reject authority… because we don’t want it.

But I believe that the truth is a little more dynamic… that we both resent authority… and long for

it at the same time.

We resent those who have abused and abandoned their healthy authority in our lives…and long for

those who can bless and empower us.

We attach ourselves to our sense of freedom in being independent individuals… who can choose

whatever we want… but long for the voice that can speak from outside our own internal

limitations.

The truth is that we often live between this pseudo independence and the longing to be approved

by someone outside ourselves.

Voices will come lead… whether fashioned with from the accumulation of the past… or those

we hope can save us in the present…. whether human or spiritual.

> We need one transcendent voice that can rise out of the myriad that live within us.

Good news….

Mark 1:21-28

They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began

to teach. 22The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had

authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed

by an evil spirit cried out, 24"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!"

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"Be quiet!" said Jesus sternly. "Come out of him!" 26The evil spirit shook the man violently

and came out of him with a shriek.

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The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this? A new teaching--and

with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him." 28News about him spread

quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

Here we see the very nature that broke through in the coming of Christ… one of Divine authority

was entering a world under the reign of darkness and deception.

If you recall from the initial text from last week…the first words Jesus spoke came as a news flash

that “the time is fulfilled,” as if to say, “Time’s up! You’ve been waiting how many years for

the Messiah to show up? Well, I’m here.

Jesus then makes a cosmic announcement… that “the kingdom of God is at hand.” “At hand”

meaning, within reach, but not quite in the hand yet. The word translated “kingdom” here

comes from the Greek word basileia, and it means first, the authority to rule as a king and, second,

the realm where that king exercises his authority.

So when Jesus says, “The kingdom of God is at hand,” He is announcing His authority. In

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those days when King So-and-so invaded a land, he dethroned and overthrew the reigning power

and released any prisoners that the ex-king had captured. King Jesus walks into Galilee. His

objective is to dethrone and overthrow Prince Satan, and to free His people from the power of evil

and death. Satan would have shuddered, listening to this sermon about the kingdom of God, but to

the captive’s ears it would mean freedom and allegiance to a Savior and King who loved

them and would rule wisely and justly. Unfortunately, the Jews didn’t read Jesus’ announcement

correctly. When Jesus took His message into occupied Israel, where Roman soldiers could be

found patrolling every street corner, most of the Jews read “political revolution” into the

phrase “kingdom of God,” but that was not what Jesus had in mind at all. His kingdom has to do

with His reign in the lives of His people. And He has not lost His desire to reign in our lives, to

reign over us, and to use us to change our world for Him.

Lets consider the nature of his authority…

‘The went to Capernaum’… the town that becomes something of a ‘base of operation’ for Jesus’

ministry during this time.

‘On the Sabbath…. they go to the synagogue’…There’s fascinating and formative in those few

words… for this wasn’t just part of some unique agenda for that particular day… his disciples

write that it was his regular pattern. Here we have “God in the flesh”… God with us… and he

made weekly corporate worship a part of his pattern and rhythm for life.

And as one who had emerged on the scene as a profound teacher at the very least… the rabbinic