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Mark 1:21-28 - Jesus heals a man with a unclean spirit

This is the first account of a miracle by Jesus in the book of Mark.

It occurs in Capernaum, where on the Sabbath, Jesus teaches in the synagogue and amazes the people because He teaches with authority.

 What exactly does it mean here? In the previous post, similarly I mentioned Jesus having authority. Here, what we should pick up is this - that Jesus teaches as one above the law - completing the law, instead of the scribes, who attempt to "understand" the law in making it ritualistic. Jesus himself is the fulfillment of all old testamental law, and his teaching is expository of that.

So what is this revolutionary teaching that Jesus brings?
Repent, and believe, for the kingdom of God is near.

We've grown up hearing this many times already. Not so revolutionary to us, on this side of the Bible looking backward. To the Jews, however, who spent their lives hearing "Sacrifice this and that for this sin", and "Do this but not that", this is the overview of the entire law. This short statement is exactly what God wants, no longer the pathetic attempts at living correctly.

Then comes the man with the unclean spirit. He cries out against Jesus - asking if He has come to destroy them, and declaring his knowledge of the identity of Jesus as the Holy One of God. However, Jesus does not acknowledge anything, but instead tells the spirit,"Be silent, and come out of him!"

Why doesn't Jesus acknowledge this newfound fame and authority?

1. The time has not yet come for Him to reveal Himself to the world. God has His time for all things, this included.

2. Jesus's death on the cross is deemed necessary for the payment of our sin. The Jews would probably not crucify their King, thus probably the refusal to be acknowledged.

3. A demon's acknowledgement is not a trustworthy one - if Satan himself came to you and proclaimed some random dude Christ come again, would you believe him?

Nevertheless, from other revelations we do know that Christ is truly the Holy One of God, of course. But these are probably just some of the explanations we can use in apologetics.

Needless to say, then, the spirit leaves the man and the crowd is astonished - Jesus's fame spreads throughout Israel.

What have we learned?
1. Jesus commands all things - be it law or demons. He is sovereign.
2. God's will works in ways we do not expect. He has His own time for everything, and His purpose for everything. We shouldn't question or wonder so much, because these things are not for us to know. On hindsight, perhaps we can see the reason for some things in our lives. Sometimes, we'll never know. Nonetheless, God's will is perfect - as displayed here, and we can trust in it.
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