Scripture Scribbles: January 28, 2024

the Gospel

Mark 1:21-28

Then they came to Capernaum,
and on the sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and taught.
The people were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;
he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"
Jesus rebuked him and said,
"Quiet! Come out of him!"
The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him.
All were amazed and asked one another,
"What is this?
A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him."
His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.

the devotion

“What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.”

The lover of our souls has absolute authority. Through him, through his word, all of creation came to be and is lovingly, tenderly held in existence.

He has authority over all that is good and beautiful.
He has authority over Satan and all that is evil.
The gates of hell cannot prevail against him.
He is love and mercy itself.

I think oftentimes hell’s creatures try to convince me otherwise. How could a loving God allow such a mess? How could he allow such pain and suffering? If he has absolute authority, why am I and the world so broken?

In a recent experience of pain and isolation, I was deeply discouraged. I asked the Holy Spirit to come into the mess. But in the same breath, I excused God, thinking I could understand why he wouldn’t want to be with me at my worst like this…I could understand why he wouldn’t want to love me when I was turning away from him, curling up in a ball of tears and discouragement. What a disappointment I must be, I thought, to him who has done so much for me.

In the weeks since that dark low, Jesus has been showing me that it is actually in those dark times when his love for me is most apparent. He already knew me, he already knew that moment, he already knew the darkest, most shut off, broken parts of my heart when he made his great saving act for me. My ugly parts do not surprise or disappoint him. His love is not contingent on my performance.

In the weeks since that dark low, I have been meditating on the authority of the Lord. His absolute authority necessarily means that he is allowing this suffering in my life for good. His absolute love means he is with me in all things but will never overpower my will. Friends, the gates of hell are no match for Jesus the Lord. So these places in my life are not held by the enemy. They are conquered by Jesus. 

Under his authority, I can trust the work he is doing in the mess. He is preparing me for eternity little bit by little bit. He is not anxious about my imperfections or the details of my life. He knows them intimately and they all fall under his beautiful, victorious authority. And that is where my peace comes from. It doesn’t come from circumstances being just right, or from me doing everything right. It comes from who he is and what he has done.

Today’s devotion is written by Lucia Parker