The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority!” (Mark 1:27)
The ministry of Jesus was marked by the miraculous. Everywhere He went, awe-inspiring events followed. Revolutionary teaching, scandalous compassion, remarkable healing, exhilarating freedom from demon possession. It’s one thing when a teacher’s words make you scratch your head and open your mind. It’s quite a different story when His words make you stretch your lame legs and open your blind eyes.
One word can be used to describe the ministry of Jesus: authority. In fact, that is what all His miracles and all His teachings point to: His identity as the Son of God and the authority that comes with that crown. He has authority over the power of sickness, over the power of nature, and over the power of evil because He is a power greater than any of them and greater than the sum of all of them. He has all the authority of the collected Scripture and law behind His teaching because He is the origin and fulfillment of every word. He has authority over the religious system and customs because they are the forerunners pointing to His arrival, the shadows pointing us to His light.
Jesus didn’t just announce the arrival of the kingdom of God. He was the manifestation of it. His authority was convincing and convicting proof that the very presence of God himself was breaking in among us.
Give Jesus authority over your life.
Matt LeRoy is coauthor of The Way Forwardand Awakening Grace(WPH).
