THIS EPISODE:
Today we're talking about good vs evil. ⇢ We have a real enemy, and he is pure evil. Unfortunately, it's far too easy for us to let our attention be misdirected to lesser "enemies", and lose sight of fighting the “good fight” that matters the most.
Hands down, the biggest problem we face as Jesus followers is not a president, a political party, our constitutional “rights”, or even religious freedoms. It's when we (i) fail to use the life-giving power of Jesus to love & serve others well, and (ii) let our current circumstances keep us from even remembering what that really looks like.
When we're tempted to take our eyes off Jesus & fix them on someone or something else, we've lost already. Let's unpack this and more in today's message…
PRIMARY TEXT:
Mark 1:21-28 (CSB)
Driving Out an Unclean Spirit
21 They went into Capernaum, and right away he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to teach. 22 They were astonished at his teaching because he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not like the scribes.
23 Just then a man with an unclean spirit was in their synagogue. He cried out, 24 “What do you have to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
25 Jesus rebuked him saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” 26 And the unclean spirit threw him into convulsions, shouted with a loud voice, and came out of him.
27 They were all amazed, and so they began to ask each other, “What is this? A new teaching with authority![a] He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” 28 At once the news about him spread throughout the entire vicinity of Galilee.
