February 23
Leviticus 7-8
Psalm 25:16-22
Proverbs 6:9-11
Mark 3:1-12
It Should Be Obvious
“And whenever the unclean spirits were seeing Him, they would fall down before Him and cry out, saying, “You are the Son of God!” Mark 3:11 LSB
Several times in Jesus’ earthly ministry, He had encounters with people who were demon-possessed. It is interesting to read about their encounters. In today’s passage, Mark explains that whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they immediately recognized who He was. They fell down before Him and said, “You are the Son of God!” In Matthew 8, Jesus met two men who were demon-possessed. When they saw Him they said, “What do we have to do with You, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us?” (Matthew 8:29 LSB) In Mark 1, when Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, a man with an unclean spirit cried out saying, “What do we have to do with You, Jesus the Nazarene? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24 LSB) The scribes and Pharisees did not recognize that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God. They had been studying the Old Testament scriptures their whole lives. They were very religious and followed the law strictly. They taught others about God and about the coming Messiah and yet when He came, they didn’t recognize Him. But the demons He encountered recognized Him instantly. As soon as He came into their presence, they fell at his feet and were afraid because they knew He was the Son of God. They knew His authority and power and they trembled in fear. This tells us that it should have been obvious that Jesus was the Messiah. If even the demons knew it, there is no excuse that the leading religious scholars of the day didn’t recognize and worship Him. They were more concerned with the power and honor that their positions brought than with seeking God and really understanding what the scriptures taught.
The demons’ reactions to Jesus provide a sobering reality for us to consider. The demons knew exactly who Jesus was and yet they did not follow Him. They believed He was “the Son of God, the Holy One of God” but they were not saved. “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.” (James 2:19 LSB) There are many people who believe Jesus is God’s Son, but they have never accepted Him into their heart personally. Romans 10:9-10 explains, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, leading to righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, leading to salvation.” (LSB) It involves more than head knowledge. There has to be an intentional acceptance of Jesus personally into your life and heart to be a follower of Jesus.
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