With Authority

a group of women who traveled with him who apparently had financial means.

And they supported him, it tells us, I think it's in verse 3 of Luke chapter 8,

Luke 8 · chapter mention

they supported him out of those means.

So the Bible highlights for us that women played a special role in Jesus' ministry.

One of their roles was supporting him financially.

That, by the way, is part of the reason we believe it's appropriate for missionaries

when they're going out to ask for support.

So Jesus was a real man. He needed money just like you need money.

Things didn't appear for him out of thin air during his ministry,

but instead he had people who support him,

just like we continue now 2,000 years later to support those who go out in ministry.

With that, we're going to turn to our passage today.

We're in Mark chapter 1, verses 21 through 28,

Mark 1:21–28

and we're going to continue to ask our two questions that we've been looking at,

which is, who is Jesus and how do we respond to him?

You'll notice in this passage, again, that these are not questions

that I pulled out of thin air,

but they are actually the questions that the gospel of Mark itself is asking.

In this passage, we're going to hear people say or ask,

who is this?

And so the questions that the audience of Mark is asking

are the same ones that we're asking.

With that, we're going to jump right in here.

We're in Mark chapter 1, starting at verse 21.

Mark 1 · chapter mention

You can turn with me in your Bible.

You can turn on your phone.

You can turn in your worship guide near the inn.

No matter where you go, remember that this is God's word.

God tells us that his word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path,

which means that God has not left us to stumble alone in the dark,

but instead he's given us his word to show us the way to go.

And so that's why we read now, starting at verse 21.

And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath,

he entered the synagogue and was teaching.

And they were astonished at his teaching,

for he taught them as one who had authority and not as the scribes.

And immediately was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit.

And 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.

But Jesus rebuked him, saying,

Be silent and come out of him.

And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice,

came out of him.

And they were all amazed,

so that they questioned among themselves, saying,

What is this?

A new teaching with authority.

He commands even the unclean spirits,

and they obey him.

And at once, his fame spread everywhere,

throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.

Let's pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you that you haven't left us alone,

but you have given us your Son in the flesh,

and you've given us this gospel that we would learn about him,

that we would know him, and that we would respond to him.

We ask that you would help us do that this morning,

that you would show us more clearly who Jesus is,

in his glory and his beauty,

and you would also show us more clearly how we can love him,

and follow him, and serve him.

We thank you that that love and that service

doesn't earn anything from you,

and it doesn't prove anything to you,

but instead, it is only by your grace.

And so we ask these things in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

When we began our journey in the Gospel of Mark,

you may remember we were in the desert for quite some time.

For verses 1 through 13,

there was John the Baptist who was out in the desert,

and then there was Jesus who was out in the desert,

and we made this transition from the desert to Galilee,

which would have been in the northwest of Israel,

in verses 14 and 15,

when Jesus begins his earthly ministry.

So Jesus begins preaching in Galilee,

and then we saw,

last time we were in Mark,

verses 16 through 20,

he continues calling his disciples to him,

also, remember, by the Sea of Galilee,

which is this body of water in the north of Israel.

That's why we have the region of Galilee.

It's next to the Sea of Galilee.

Jesus is continuing that here in this passage.

We see in verse 21,

it tells us,

they went into Capernaum.

So Jesus has called these men to himself,

and now they're traveling as a group.

I mentioned last time that Jesus is with us.

He's calling these people,

and he remains with them.

He's not calling them to do it alone.

That's the pattern we see here.

Jesus is traveling with them into Capernaum,

and he's in the same area that he was before.

So if you think about the Sea of Galilee,

Capernaum would be,

well, the way I'm looking at it,

northwest for you would be right here.

So he's right along the sea.

Capernaum would have been and is still a sea town.

It is right on the water.

If you go there today,

you can see the 4th century synagogue,

and you can walk from there right to the seashore.

It's right there.

It's a port town.

It doesn't surprise us then that Jesus calls fishermen

and immediately goes to this area,

and we see the first thing he's doing here

is he's going in to the synagogue.

It tells us immediately on the Sabbath,

he entered the synagogue and was teaching.

Now the tradition then would not have been

that someone barged into a synagogue

and just started giving a lecture.

In the same way,

you would not expect someone

to simply walk into Cheyenne Mountain

on a Sunday morning

and just take over the pulpit.

So our assumption here is,

most likely,

Jesus had been working in Capernaum for some time.

He was well known,

and he was invited to speak in this synagogue.

In fact, if you're familiar with Jesus' ministry,

you'll know that Capernaum

was the city that was called

his base of operations

during his ministry in Galilee.

So Jesus is constantly coming to Capernaum,

returning there.

We'll find out next week,

this is where Andrew and Simon live.

So this is part of his home base here in Capernaum.

And apparently he's become well known enough

that he's invited to teach in the synagogue.

And this is where we find out

that there's something different about Jesus.

By the way,

I forgot to tell you at the beginning,

the two things we're looking at,

you'll see the word authority

is repeated in this passage.

We're gonna see Jesus' authority in teaching,

and we're gonna see Jesus' authority over evil.

Jesus' authority in teaching,

Jesus' authority over evil.

The first thing we see in this scene in the synagogue

as Jesus is invited to teach

is his authority in teaching.

By the way, Capernaum was a large city,

and so we would expect this

to most likely be a large crowd.

There would have been a lot more people

listening to Jesus

than we have right here

in this sanctuary this morning.

And we're told the very first thing

that's important as Jesus is teaching,

verse 22,

they were astonished,

for he taught them as one who had authority

and not as the scribes.

In other words,

Jesus is teaching in a way

that's different than anything

they've ever experienced before,

and this power,

this authority,

is something that comes across

probably in Jesus' content

and also in Jesus' call.

It comes across his authority

in the content and the call.

We would expect that

when the scribes were teaching,

they may have been quoting this person

or that person,

giving different ideas or theories

about what the texts mean.

Jesus has no need to do that.

He can teach directly from the scriptures

without referring to anyone else,

knowing that he himself is the authority,

giving the most direct

and true application

and preaching of these texts.

Jesus is able to speak

as someone who knows

what he's talking about,

not because he studied it,

but because he knows it

intimately and deeply and personally.

He is not referring to other authorities

because he is the authority.

Jesus is not standing up

in front of them and saying,

well, on the one hand,

this passage might mean this.

On the other hand,

it might mean that.

You know, scholars disagree,

but you know,

isn't it interesting

that we see this here in this text?

No, Jesus is speaking clearly

and directly to these people

in a way that hits them back

on their heels,

a way they're not expected,

a way they're not used to,

accustomed to

from listening to the scribes teach.

Jesus is his own source.

He doesn't need to quote anyone else.

And so there's this freshness,

there's this directness

that comes with his teaching

that they're not used to.

We're not told the content

of his teaching here,

but we can guess

because remember in verses 14 and 15,

we're told the general summary

of what Jesus was teaching.

He's teaching that the kingdom of God

has come near

and he's calling people

to repent and believe.

And so that's likely also

what Jesus is teaching here

as he's talking in the synagogue.

He's likely telling them

the kingdom of God is near,

it's at hand,

repent and believe.

That would have been

the other part of this

that would have astonished them.

And Jesus' teaching with authority

would have included

his call here to repentance.

And that's what makes sense, right?

When we think of authorities,

they're people who have power,

who have control.

They're people who are going

to tell us what to do.

And so it's not just here

that Jesus is speaking

as his own source.

He is speaking as someone

who is calling people

to act and respond.

Going along, right,

with our questions.

Who is Jesus?

How do we respond to him?

And so when it tells us

in verse 22

that they were astonished

at his teaching,

what it is not saying

is that they were so impressed

with Jesus

because he gave

such a fascinating TED talk.

Okay?

They were not astonished

in the sense that

Jesus was just telling them

things that were so interesting

and so fascinating,

although he may have.

They were astonished

in, as I mentioned,

a being pushed back

on their heels

sort of way

that this is a man

who's impressive

and scary

and unnerving

and unsettling.

He is speaking to them.

He's probably speaking

directly to their hearts

and their consciences.

He's exposing

what's going on

in their lives.

He's calling them

to change

and repent

and believe.

And we also,

of course,

know not just the fact

that that might be scary

and unnerving.

We know the joy, right,

of watching someone

who can speak authoritatively

about something.

There's a reason

that there are some

videos on YouTube

that have millions

of views

because the speaker

is able to speak

so clearly

and directly

to that situation.

Same is true of Jesus.

He is speaking here

with authority.

And that gets to

our challenge

as people living today

because we live

in a culture now

where we have

a fundamental loss

of trust

in people

who have authority.

And if we didn't

have it before,

we most likely

have it now, right?

We've lived

over the last couple

years with COVID.

We've heard

so-called experts

after the fact

telling us

that they lied

to us about certain things.

We've had new facts

come out.

People maybe

were very sincere

and earnest.

They weren't trying

to lie to anyone.

But we found out later

that what we were told

was wrong, right?

I'm not saying

everything was wrong,

but I am saying

that when it comes

to our leaders

and our politicians,

whether on the right

or the left,

we as people

are increasingly

losing trust

and confidence.

We are losing

the ability

to look at someone

and say,

man, I really believe

that person

is telling me

the truth.

There's one pastor

a couple weeks ago

who wrote this.

Authority is linked

to the control

of information

and no one

is in control

of information anymore.

There is a vacuum

of leadership

and the difficulty

is that nothing

has arisen

to fill the vacuum.

The temptation

for American Christians

is to think

that our country

is falling apart.

Actually, no.

It is the world

that is falling apart.

This is a global

crisis of authority.

Brothers and sisters,

I do not blame you

for losing trust

in the people

who speak

in the world around us.

I don't blame you,

as many of you

have told me,

for stopping

to watch the news,

stopping listening

and watching

because you don't

believe any of it anymore.

Or you know

some of it's true,

you just don't know

what to believe

and what not to believe.

As we come

to this passage,

the point is this.

You may stop

watching the news.

Don't stop

listening to Jesus.

You may stop

listening to the news.

Don't stop

listening to Jesus.

Jesus.

He is still

the one

who tells us

words that are true

in a world

filled with words

that are not true.

Jesus is still

the one

that we can trust.

Jesus doesn't lie

to us.

Jesus doesn't change

his story

from year to year.

Jesus doesn't

gaslight us.

He doesn't say

one thing

and then say

another thing

a month later

and pretends

he never said

the first thing.

and if you think

about the people

that lead

our world today

for many of them

the story

is always changing.

It doesn't take long

before the narrative

shifts.

It doesn't take long

before there's new data

and new information.

When we look

at our Lord and Savior

Jesus Christ

we can look back

at 2,000 years

of the testing

of his words

and know even more

than the people

who received these

for the first time

that he is true

and reliable.

He is a real

and true

and trustworthy

authority.

The audience here

knew that Jesus

was telling them

the truth.

How much more

for us

2,000 years later?

And so the point

is this

Jesus

still speaks

with authority

on September

the 12th

2021.

He is still

the one

in control

and in charge.

And that authority

is not just

his trustworthiness

and his reliableness.

It's also the fact

that he is calling here

for a response.

Authority demands

a response.

That's part

of the definition

that someone

who has authority

is someone

who's in control.

There's someone

who's able to tell us

what to do.

In other words

as we look at

Mark chapter 1

Mark 1 · chapter mention

we are not engaging

together in a book club.

We're not going to make

just fascinating

observations

and talk

and then walk away

as if nothing

had happened.

No, this is a book

that's meant to be

believed

and understood

and obeyed.

Jesus' authority

is not just

in his reliableness

and his trustworthiness

but also

that he calls us

to do

what he's commanded

us to do.

That his commands

are good

and right

and true.

His teaching

requires

a response.

Jesus is not

sharing

interesting ideas

here.

He is proclaiming

and calling

and telling

and commanding.

That's what it means

for him to speak

and teach

with an authority.

And so we have to

answer and listen

to him.

We have to hear him

and respond to him.

Kids,

you know

the difference

between

your parents

and other adults.

You need to obey

your parents.

That does not mean

you're required

to obey

all adults

everywhere,

right?

That's ridiculous.

When I was growing up,

my mom spent

a lot of time

training us

to correctly

respond to

stranger danger

and one of the

things she taught us

is that if we were

ever at a store

and some adult

separated us

from our parents

and was giving us

a hard time,

what we needed to do

was to make a scene

and here's how

we were supposed

to make a scene.

We would say

very loudly,

he is not

my dad

or she

is not

my mom

which is our

way of letting

everyone know

this person

actually has

no authority

over me,

right?

This person

might be an adult,

they might look

like someone

who is my parent,

I want to make

sure all of you

know that they

are not.

And at that point

the idea was

that people would

realize that

something wrong

was going on

and other adults

would come

to help us,

right?

There's this

distinction

between those

who have

true authority

and false

authority.

Now I want you

to imagine

for a second

that I decided

I didn't do

this by the way

but I want you

to imagine

that I was

a devious kid

and I decided

to flip the tables.

What if I decided

in front of everyone

to yell at my mom

this is not my mother

or to yell

at my dad

he is not my father?

Chaos,

right?

The tables

would be turned

in the worst

sort of way.

Brothers and sisters

when we say

that Jesus

is our authority

we are saying

that we have

to answer to him.

He is

actually

our father.

He is

actually

the one

we have to

listen to

and answer

and obey.

When I was

growing up

one of the big

questions

that preachers

like to ask

was this

when was

the last

time

you stopped

doing something

or you

started doing

something

because Jesus

said so?

When was

the last

time you

started doing

something

or stopped

doing something

because Jesus

said so?

Because the

Bible told you

to.

In other

words

is Jesus

actually an

authority

in your life?

When you

read his

words

do you

read them

do you

treat them

as words

of authority?

Another

way of

asking it

would be

this.

What do

you wish

that Jesus

had never

said?

What do

you wish

that Jesus

had never

said?

What are

you tempted

to explain

away or

talk your

way around?

There's

people who

have made

their careers

out of

explaining away

Jesus'

words.

People who

have made

entire

ministries

out of

talking

around

what Jesus

has said

clearly.

Maybe

it's what

Jesus

has taught

us about

rich

entering

the

kingdom.

Remember

Jesus

says it's

easier for

a camel

to pass

through the

eye of

a needle

than for

a rich

man to

enter the

kingdom

of heaven.

Maybe

that's

what you

wish

Jesus

had never

said.

Maybe

it's

Jesus

teaching

on

divorce.

Maybe

it's

what Jesus

tells us

about caring

for the

poor.

Maybe

it's

Jesus'

words

about turning

the other

cheek.

For

all of

us

there are

our hits

list,

our favorite

things that

Jesus has

said that

we want

to repeat

over and

over.

And for

all of

us I

believe if

we're honest

there's our

ignore list.

The things

that Jesus

has said

that we'd

rather not

think about.

That we'd

like to find

neat and

easy explanations

for that

Jesus really

didn't mean

it.

But if

Jesus is

the one

who speaks

with authority,

if he's the

one that we

can trust,

and the one

that we can

believe,

then we

respond to

him by

obeying him.

We

respond to

him by

listening to

him.

We

respond to

him by

seeing our

lives and

our hearts

changed in

their direction.

We want to

be like

Jesus'

followers.

In John

John 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6,

Jesus is

asking the

twelve.

It says

here in

verse 67,

verse 66,

it tells us,

many of

Jesus'

disciples turned

back and no

longer walked

with him.

So Jesus

said to

the twelve,

do you

want to

go away

as well?

Simon

Peter answered

him,

Lord,

to whom

shall we

go?

You

have the

words of

eternal

life,

and we

have

believed

and have

come to

know that

you are

the holy

one of

God.

Brothers

and sisters,

that's the

response of

the Christian.

We look at

Jesus and

we say,

no matter

what you

command us

to do,

we know

that you

alone have

the words

of life.

you're the

only one

who tells

us what's

true and

only tells

us what's

true.

You're the

one we

answer to

and we

obey.

Who is

Jesus?

He's the

one who

speaks with

authority.

How do we

respond to

him?

We follow

him and

listen to

him and

obey him.

Now,

as we only

read the

beginning of

this passage,

we might be

tempted to

believe that

Jesus'

authority was

only expressed

in his

words and

his rhetorical

skill.

Thankfully,

Mark doesn't

leave us

there.

As we turn

to the next

section,

we see

Jesus'

authority not

just represented

by words,

but what he's

able to do

and change.

I don't want

you to lose

the story

here.

If you're

an engaged

reader,

there's an

anxiety that's

meant to come

with this next

part of the

story.

If you're

really in it,

you should

feel something

maybe in the

pit of your

stomach.

What's

happening here

is similar

to what would

happen if I

was preaching

here on a

Sunday morning

and I want

you to

imagine that

while I'm

preaching,

someone walks

into the

sanctuary,

right, and

they just

start screaming

and yelling.

What would you

be feeling in

that instance?

Maybe you've

been to an

event where

there's a

speaker and

someone interrupts,

just walks into

the auditorium and

starts giving

their own speech.

This actually

happened to me

when I was in

college.

I was listening

to a man

give a lecture

in a very large

auditorium.

It was a special

lecture.

He was a

special guest

who had been

flown in to

speak to us

and someone

just wandered

in and started

yelling.

Now what I was

feeling in that

moment, you

might feel a

variety of

things.

Some of you

might just

feel anxious.

Some of you

might be angry.

Some of you

might be

checking to

see if you

truly were

exercising your

Second Amendment

rights this

morning.

There would be

a lot of

different things

that would go

through your

mind.

For me in

that moment,

I was thinking,

do I need to

leave this

auditorium?

Am I

about to

die?

What's going

to happen

here?

This is a

very strange

situation.

That is what

is going on

in this

passage.

There's a

complete

disruption of

Jesus'

teaching.

Let's not

downplay this.

This man is

screaming out,

verse 23,

in their

synagogue,

a man with

an unclean

spirit,

and 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.

In other

words,

he's saying,

why are

you here?

What do

you want?

One person

translates it

this way,

go away

and leave

me alone.

Jesus,

why are

you here?

We were

doing fine

before you

were the

guest preacher.

Everything

was good

before that.

But now

you are

here

disrupting

things.

What happens

next year,

it's easy

for us

to miss

as modern

readers,

but those

who were

the original

audience would

have understood

that this

demon begins

a power play

with Jesus

because there

is common

ideas about

the practice

of exorcism

during this

time.

One of the

techniques

that you

would use

if you

wanted to

gain control

over someone,

especially over

a demon,

is you would

speak their

name.

It was

really important

to know

the name

of the demon

here.

The demon

is trying

to turn

the tables

on Jesus.

He begins

a power

struggle

by saying

his name.

What do

you have

to do

with us,

Jesus of

Nazareth?

I know

who you

are.

In other

words,

I think

I may

actually be

able to

exercise

authority

and power

over you.

I'm going

to test

and see

if your

speaking

with authority

has any

match of

being able

to act

and perform

with authority.

So there's

an inversion

here.

The naming

is supposed

to come

from the

exorcist,

not from

the demon.

And bringing

in the name

is a way

of power.

And so what

comes next

is even

more surprising.

This demon

throws out

Jesus' name,

right?

What do we

expect to

happen in

reverse?

If Jesus

is a good

exorcist,

what is he

going to

do?

Jesus is

going to

say,

oh,

you think

that's a

big deal?

I know

your name.

Jesus

doesn't

say his

name.

Why?

Because

he doesn't

need to.

Jesus

doesn't

call on

any higher

power.

We're going

to see

demons

cast out

later in

the Gospel

of Mark.

By those

who follow

Jesus,

they're going

to do

it in

Jesus'

name.

Jesus

doesn't

call on

any name.

Jesus

doesn't

use,

as we

might expect

if some

people have

pointed out,

any incantation

or spell.

In other

words,

Jesus ignores

all the

rules.

He does

nothing that's

supposed to

give him

an advantage.

Jesus does

nothing that's

supposed to

work because

Jesus doesn't

need to.

That is how

powerful Jesus

is in this

moment.

Jesus doesn't

appeal or

call to a

higher power

because Jesus

is the

higher power.

Jesus doesn't

need to use

anyone's name

because it is

his name that

they need to

tremble at.

Jesus instead

simply speaks

with and by

his own

authority.

Be quiet

and leave.

This is in the

same vein of

what I've told

you before.

I used to say

to some of my

students,

it's time for

you to shut

up and sit

down.

So verse 25,

Jesus rebuked

him.

Be silent

and come

out of

him.

What does

this spirit

do?

Well, 26,

he's silent

and comes

out of

him.

No matter

what you've

seen, no

matter what

these people

in this

passage have

seen, they

have not

seen power

like this.

They have

not known

about power

like this.

Maybe they've

heard of

great exorcists

who have the

right incantation

or spell

or name.

They're able

to get the

knowledge.

They're able

to find out

the identity

of the demons

so they can

gain power.

Jesus skips

all of those

things because

Jesus has a

power and

authority over

evil and

demonic forces

that has never

been seen

before.

Jesus has a

power over

evil and

demonic forces

like nothing

else.

Brothers

and sisters,

the same is

true even

now today.

Jesus is

the one

with the

great and

greatest

power over

evil.

He is the

one and

the only

one who

is able

to put

an end

to death

and evil

forever,

once and

for all.

The king

is on

the move.

We are

beginning to

finally see

how powerful

this king

is, how

much he

is actually

able to

do.

One man

says this,

the coming

of the king

and the

inauguration

of his

kingdom

implied the

destruction

and end

of the

kingdom

of darkness.

Jesus here

is showing

that he

has come

to bring

evil to

an end

once and

for all.

He is

not an

exorcist,

he is

the

exorcist.

He is

not a

power,

he is

the power.

power.

He is

the power

that doesn't

need any

tricks in

his bag

because his

word is

enough.

And so

that is why

these people

are able to

say,

what is

this,

a new

teaching

with

authority?

For us,

we respond

to Jesus

by recognizing

how powerful

he is.

We recognize

that as we

submit to

him and

obey him.

we recognize

that as we

take comfort

and joy

and hope

in knowing

that there

is no

force that

can stand

against him.

It's this

same power

that he's

going to

use to

bring freedom

to us from

the bondage

of evil.

It's this

same power

that he's

going to

use one

day to

bring full

and final

freedom in

this world.

And so we

trust and

we hope in

him.

He is the

only one who

can put

death to

death.

Jesus is

the only

one who

can defeat

and end

the kingdom

of darkness.

And that's

what we're

going to see

later on

in the

Gospel of

Mark.

When Jesus

dies on

the cross

and raises

again from

the dead,

he also

shows a

power that

no one

else has.

He shows

the power

to defeat

death.

And so

that's why

the Apostle

Paul tells

us in

1 Corinthians

15,

then comes

the end

when he,

that is

Jesus,

delivers the

kingdom to

God the

Father after

destroying

every rule

and every

authority and

power.

For he must

reign until

he has put

all his

enemies under

his feet.

The last

enemy to

be destroyed

is death.

Jesus has

ultimate power

over evil

in this

world.

He will

show it

by ending

even death

itself.

Who is

Jesus?

Jesus.

He is the

one with

the greatest

power.

Power like

we have

never seen

before.

How do we

respond to

him?

We love

him.

We obey

him.

We trust

in him.

We take

hope in

him.

In his

first book,

in the

Chronicles of

Narnia series,

The Lion,

the Witch,

and the

Wardrobe,

C.S.

Lewis tells

us the story

of the

Pivensey

children who

have to move

away from

their home

because of

the bombing

during the

World War.

They enter

the world

of Narnia

and they

quickly meet

the Beaver

family.

When they

meet the

Beaver

family,

they have

dinner with

them.

After they

have dinner

with them,

they sit

down to

talk and

they find

out about

this lion

named Aslan

who, of

course,

they've never

heard of

before because

they've never

been in

Narnia before.

They have

to ask,

who is

this person?

Who is

Aslan?

Asked

Susan.

They begin

to explain.

Aslan is

this great

king.

He's going

to come

back and

he's going

to make

everything

right.

There's

this poem,

wrong will

be right

when Aslan

comes in

sight.

At the

sound of

his roar,

sorrows

will be

no more.

Lucy wants

to know

if Aslan's

a man.

She's

surprised to

find out

that he's

a lion.

And so

Susan has

this final

question.

Oh, said

Susan, I

thought he

was a

man.

Is he

quite safe?

I shall

feel rather

nervous about

meeting a

lion.

That you

will, dearie,

and no

mistake, said

Mrs.

Beaver.

If there's

anyone who

can appear

before Aslan

without their

knees knocking,

they're either

braver than

most or else

just silly.

Then he

isn't safe,

said Lucy.

Safe, said

Mr.

Beaver.

Don't you hear

what Mrs.

Beaver tells

you?

Who said

anything about

safe?

Of course

he isn't

safe, but

he's good.

He is the

king, I

tell you.

Brothers and

sisters, Jesus

is not

safe.

He is the

one who

comes with

authority.

He comes

with authority

in his

teaching.

He comes

with authority

in his

power over

evil and

darkness and

sin.

But he

is good.

Will you

listen to

him?

Will you

obey him?

Will you

follow him?

Let's pray.

Our Father

in heaven,

we thank

you that

you aren't

safe, that

you are

dangerous and

powerful enough

to protect

us from

evil.

We ask

that you

would give

us the

confidence and

the hope

that comes

from that,

and you

would give

us the

trust and

obedience and

submission to

you that

comes from

knowing that

you are the

authority in

this world and

you are more

powerful than

anyone else.

We thank

you that you

showed your

power, not

in strength but

in weakness,

when Jesus

died for us on

the cross,

taking the

punishment that

we deserved

and raised from

the dead so

that we could

live with him

in new life.

We ask these

things, thankful

that we haven't

done anything to

earn them, but

instead we ask

them in Jesus'

name.

Amen.

For our

closing hymn,

спасибо.

Amen.

,

amen.