What Jesus Did : Luke 4:33-37 - Authority Over Demons
by Phil Ware
Authority Over Demons - Luke 4:33-37
In the synagogue there was a man that had an evil spirit from the devil inside him. The man shouted with a loud voice, "Jesus of Nazareth! What do you want with us? Did you come here to destroy us? I know who you are—God's Holy One!" But Jesus warned the evil spirit to stop. Jesus said, "Be quiet! Come out of the man!" The evil spirit threw the man down on the ground before all the people. Then the evil spirit left the man and did not hurt him. The people were amazed. They said to each other, "What does this mean? With authority and power he (Jesus) commands evil spirits and they come out." And so the news about Jesus spread to every place in the whole area. (ERV) Full TextKey Thought
Jesus' authority—his personal power and integrity and the strength of his words—extended over Satan and the demonic world. Demons knew who Jesus was, yet they had no control or power over him. He had power over them. His command cast them out. So many of us today struggle with Satan because we've given him a foothold in our lives through deception, harbored bitterness, lust, or some other "secret" sin. Jesus still has power over Satan and the demonic world. His authority is superior. If we've let Satan build in our lives because of our sinfulness as we confront those difficult footholds and strongholds, we must bring Jesus' authority to bear. That means, first, confessing our sin openly to God in Jesus' name and, second, asking for our sin to be forgiven. Third, we need to not hold that sin secret just to ourselves, but confess our struggle to a strong believer (This often needs to be someone of our same gender.) and ask him or her to hold us accountable and encourage us. We also need to pray in the name of Jesus for deliverance from that sin and power to resist its temptation, asking for the power of the Holy Spirit to transform us. Finally, we need to stay away from evil and keep our hearts exposed to what is pure rather than flirting with the evil that has captured us. Does this work? Well, it's not a recipe or a mathematical formula. Our hearts have to seek after the Lord, trusting that he does have the power to deliver us. For most believers over the centuries, this is the path to victory. That path can be yours, as well!
Today's Prayer
Father, remove all the power of deception that the Devil has in my life and help me confront the areas of my weakness, stubbornness, rebellion, and sin so that my heart, soul, and body can be completely yielded to your direction. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Today's Verses in Context
Jesus went to Capernaum, a city in Galilee. On the Sabbath day Jesus taught the people. They were amazed at Jesus' teaching, because he spoke with authority (power). In the synagogue there was a man that had an evil spirit from the devil inside him. The man shouted with a loud voice, "Jesus of Nazareth! What do you want with us? Did you come here to destroy us? I know who you are—God's Holy One!" But Jesus warned the evil spirit to stop. Jesus said, "Be quiet! Come out of the man!" The evil spirit threw the man down on the ground before all the people. Then the evil spirit left the man and did not hurt him. The people were amazed. They said to each other, "What does this mean? With authority and power he (Jesus) commands evil spirits and they come out." And so the news about Jesus spread to every place in the whole area. Jesus left the synagogue. He went to Simon's house. Simon's mother-in-law was very sick. She had a high fever. They asked Jesus to do something to help her. Jesus stood very close to her and commanded the sickness to leave her. The sickness left her. Then she got up and began serving them. When the sun went down, the people brought their sick friends to Jesus. They had many different kinds of sickness. Jesus put his hands on each sick person and healed them. Demons came out of many people. The demons shouted, "You are the Son of God." But Jesus gave a strong command for the demons not to speak, because they knew Jesus was the Christ. The next day Jesus went to a place to be alone. The people looked for Jesus. When the people found Jesus, they tried to stop him from leaving. But Jesus said to them, "I must tell the Good News about God's kingdom to other towns, too. This is why I was sent." Then Jesus told {the Good News} in the synagogues in Judea.-- Luke Luke 4:31-44 (ERV)
URL: http://www.heartlight.org/wjd/luke/0302-wjd.html
(c)2001-2006, Phil Ware and Heartlight, Inc.
©1996-2002, Heartlight, Inc. - http://www.heartlight.org