A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (pt-2) - [Ephesians 6:10-20]

Well, we started our spiritual warfare series a week ago, but that means I've been studying for two weeks. And I don't know which ones are indicative of spiritual warfare and which ones aren't but I've had a horrible couple weeks all kinds of trials.

It started off a couple weeks ago and someone In a wanna thought they'd do me a favor and try to flush one of my shoes down the toilet in the back room. Thought that was strange enough. I had a scratched cornea and couldn't see for a couple days this week.

And then I don't know if it's some kind of virus thing or something. It's on my tongue and my lip and I had a bronchial infection for the last two weeks. Friday when we're on our way to Battleship Cove, and I get a phone call from Kim.

We've got a flat tire and so quick zipped up and and try to change the tire. And I thought this will be easy. You know I work out and stuff. I'm just gonna change the tire, and you know the demon of flat tire for the visitors that are here.

I don't believe that. That's just I. You know why now what's a trial what's my own fault? What's spiritual warfare? I don't know and So it all started off on the wrong foot when I got all the stuff out of the back the kids were playing it was Up in Lunenburg to the side, and I start popping off the the hubcap.

I thought I can just do this and I popped it off and Kim was standing there, and she said honey What are you doing, and I said? I'm changing the tire. You know I'm the one here. Don't bother me and she goes.

It's that tire not that one. That for sure was not satanic warfare. That was my own sinful stupidity. Of course the last lug nut wouldn't come off etc. Etc. One thing we do know for sure is that the Bible teaches.

There's an invisible warfare. That's going on spiritual warfare. There are things happening that we don't understand. The question that we should ask ourselves. What should we do about that if? You are like the Florida town right after 9-eleven.

The mayor said this in the small filling village of Florida. Satan ruler of darkness giver of evil destroyer of what is good and just is not now nor ever again. Will be a part of this town of Inglis, and she proceeded to try to cast Satan out of the town of Inglis, Florida.

Well, there's an option. Another option would be what they did down in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and. The article in the newspaper says the family that prays together stays together or so the old saying goes.

But how about the family that performs exorcisms together? What happens to them and basically of this man? Got together and the grandmother Supposedly had a bunch of demons and so he stuck two crucifixes down her throat punctured her esophagus.

There was blood all over the police came and as the police arrived He was shouting out at the top of his lungs the devil is inside her the devil is inside her. Is that what we're to do? There is spiritual warfare going on.

How do we go ahead and get the demons out should we get the demons out? Are they really demons? There's a battle going on and ministry means Conflict. I think of Paul even at the end of his life the last chapter he ever wrote.

2nd Timothy chapter 4 he said in verse 7. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith. The Bible's replete with complete with war. Motifs martial art motifs race fight beat our bodies.

Look carefully how we walk press on towards the mark. What are we to do? And if you'll turn your Bibles to Acts chapter 19 I want to paint a picture of what was going on at Ephesus as we soon will get back into Ephesians 6 to find out what spiritual warfare was like in Ephesus and what did Paul say to do?

Did he say bind cast out run use a crucifix use a rosary bead? What does he say to do? But it's almost not fair to jump into Ephesians 6 without going to Acts 19 a passage that talks about what was happening.

What was the climate at Ephesus at the time last week? We saw the seven sons of Sceva and the people were trying to cast they were trying to cast the demons out of people. And the demons made them Naked beat them up and they ran them out of town.

There was all kinds of battles going on. But what we didn't see Was a Acts chapter 19 verse 17 a little bit more of the State of the Union address of Ephesus. And then when we get into Ephesians, I think it'll make more sense as we see this Battle that's going on below the surface above the surface if you will and the conflict when God The supernatural power is at work Satan will try to undo what God is doing or has done Acts chapter 19 right after the Sceva incident.

This became known to all verse 17 of Acts 19 both Jews and Greek who lived in Ephesus. This is good to help us understand the passage and fear fell upon Them all and the name of the Lord was Lord. Jesus was being magnified many also of those who had believed kept coming Confessing and disclosing their practices.

There was all kinds of Gentile demon. Spiritual occult worship Jewish worship that was not right magic. All kinds of spells and things happening verse 19 says and many of those who practice magic Brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone.

Well, some were getting say this is a major dent and they counted up the price of them and found in 50 ,000 pieces of silver and then a great theme in the book of Acts verse 20, so the word of the Lord was growing mightily and Prevailing even in the midst of all the spiritual warfare.

God's Word was doing its work verse 21 as we're still trying to create the scene of The city where these people live that Paul was writing to now after these things were finished Paul purposed in his spirit to go to Jerusalem after he'd passed through Macedonia and a ki saying after I've been there I must also see Rome and after and having sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered him Timothy and Erastus.

He stayed himself in Asia for a while. So Paul's sticking at Ephesus and that time there occurred no small disturbance concerning the way not about Paul. Not about his person his character, but about the issue of Christianity the way.

And it gets intense here Verse 24 for a man named Demetrius a silversmith who made shrines silver shrines of Artemis. Was bringing no little business to the craftsman. These he gathered together with the workmen of similar trades and said men, you know that our prosperity depends on this business.

You see in here that not only in Ephesus But almost all of Asia this Paul Is persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people saying that God's made with hands or no gods at all. Not only is there danger that this trade of ours fall into disrepute.

But also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis be regarded as worthless. That she whom all of Asian the world worship will be dethroned from her magnificence. Here in the middle of Ephesus is this huge temple to worship this false god Artemis or as the Rome Romans would call her Diana and what happened was as many times would happen a meteor would come down and hit the earth and then where that Meteorite hit they would build a temple this particular meteorite.

We think Historians think that it looked like Artemis it looked multi-breasted. It looked like the god of fertility. So makes sense, even though it's a swampy area. Let's build a huge temple over this meteorite so we could go worship this god of fertility.

And certainly back in those days to have a child was everything and they wanted to make sure they could have a child so they built this mother goddess of childbirth right there. Grotesque looking. You can get online and see pictures of this Artemis Diana Creature and she would have a complete high priest who is a eunuch and other priests going around serving her.

And it was quite a business. Some of you have maybe traveled overseas and they have religious places whether Protestant or not Protestant or Christian or some other kind of religion. You go to these places and there's a month.

There's money to be made you can buy little votive things. You can buy little miniature versions of gods because actually if you have to go worship Diana at Ephesus. What if you were coming from Macedonia someplace else and you need to worship you can't get back to emphasis.

So you get a little God out and there's a little Diana and you can bend down and worship her and here Demetrius Doesn't like it because he's not making enough money. Souvenir trades down. All kinds of people would come here and they would actually put money in the temple of Diana because she would be better than the Federal Licensing Commission because she would actually protect the money.

She would ensure the money because who would steal money out of this God's temple. Pilgrims loved her tourists loved her. This is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and look at verse 28. What did they do?

And when they heard this they were filled with rage. They began crying out saying great is Artemis of Ephesus. Can you imagine how they worshipped Artemis? We don't really know but I remember I think about those people that just swing their heads around and doing all kinds of weird machinations.

A City was filled with confusion. Everybody gets into it. They don't even know why and they rush with one accord in the theater dragging along Gaius and Aristarchus Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia.

And when Paul wanted to go into the assembly the disciples would not let him. Maybe he wanted to appeal to his Roman citizenship. Maybe he wanted to preach the gospel. That's more like it Paul said later in first Corinthians 15.

He fought wild beasts in Ephesus. Maybe these were some of those also, some of the Asiarchs verse 31 who are friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to venture into the theater. I mean people are pagan worshiping.

There's all these wild things happening. So then some were shouting one thing some another for the assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know for what reason they had. Come hey, it looks like a good thing to do.

The crowds all whipped up some of our anti Diana and some just are there for the ride. Look down in verse 33 some of the crowd Concluded it was Alexander since the Jews had put him forward and having mentioned motioned with his hand Alexander was intending to make a defense to the assembly.

But when they recognized that he was a Jew a single outcry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours. Great is this? Artemis of the Ephesians. That is amazing one man said in the final analysis.

The only thing heathen ism can do against Paul is to shout itself horse two hours you try to get a word in edgewise great is the Artemis of the Ephesus city city of Ephesians point being. This city was full of diviners full of magicians full of all these little votive people offering of a little votive Idolatry's all kinds of issues.

What would Paul say? Before he left or what would Paul say in prison as he wrote to them? What would you tell them? There's demonic warfare going on now. Let me tell you what to do. Well, it's very interesting.

Let's go to Ephesians chapter 6 and be reminded again of a very popular passage and find out if Paul leaves them in the lurch. Find out what Paul says to them. He doesn't say figure it out on your own get the crucifix ministry and jam him down the throats of people.

What does Paul say and we come to this final section in the book of Ephesus book of Ephesians that kind of just smacks us. We've been talking about husbands and wives and children and parents and Masters and slaves and all of a sudden out of nowhere.

He just says for the rest. You think he'd say something. What do we do with demons? Do we cast demons out? This is amazing. He says We're in a war and here's how you operate the war. Here's what happens in the struggle and the confrontation that it's a high point here at the book of Ephesians.

Just for a review. We were looking last time and this is going to be multi week series. Strategies to hold your ground against Satan and his desire to devour you at Bethlehem Bible Church. That's the theme and let's give you some strategies in review the first strategy.

Against this evil one is that you must not rely on yourselves found in verse 10. We believe here at the church that the point of the passage should be the point of the sermon. I just want to tell you what the text says and means and by the Spirit's power Exhort you to believe it.

Sometimes when we hear sermons, by the way, they are do this and do that. Sometimes we hear sermons. They should be think this way and think that way to have a high view of God this particular sermon.

We're not going to get to these are the five easy things I want you to do when you get home one get the anointing oil oil out to Walk around your house seven times three. We're not going to do that we're going to see what Paul begins to say the church at Ephesus and then we're going to see the authority of Christ as he Cast demons out and see that tremendous passage in Mark chapter 5.

Strategy number one. You can't rely on yourselves when it comes to spiritual warfare. You cannot in other words live the victorious Christian life on your own. You can't do it. Verse 10 says finally for the rest closing word of instruction be strengthened in the Lord literally and In the strength of his might in the his supernatural power that only he has Is the God of the universe you have got to be strengthened by him.

You can't do this on your own. I can't do it on my own. The NEB Bible translates it this way find your strength in the Lord. It's an ongoing thing. It's not something we just say well I'm strong now and I can handle all this and I've understand demonology 101 and how to cast things out.

I'm set. No, this is always Depend on the Lord. Then he tells us in verse 11 how this can be carried out, which would be our second strategy. Number one was don't rely on yourself. Number two was you must rely on God's weaponry makes sense.

One's a negative one's a positive. One states the fact the other one explains how it should be done. Verse 11 put on most like a Commanding officer. No connective just another order put on the full armor of God that you may be able to stand Firm against the schemes of the devil clothe yourself.

That's the language. He could just say be strong in the Lord. But now he's trying to help us with the language and he says you need to put on the garment or the dress are the clothes of another. The full armor last week.

I said it was a Roman hoplite. It's a Greek hoplite. It's a hoplite soldier. Plenty of those around and he's trying to make this point beloved. Be complete with your armor. When you have armor from God make sure you get all the armor of God.

Don't forget something. I remember when I was a football player and we go to have the games and we go in the locker room. It was almost like you check yourself making sure you've got all your things on because you're so nervous that you're gonna go play football.

Remember my first time I Broke the huddle. I was a senior and I was offensive tackle and we broke the huddle and I ran out and assumed my position my three-point stance. And in front of me was a guy who was six six 260 and that kind of thing will make you check to see if you got your chin strap on.

I just thought great so what did I do in our football team. The Tackle would call how the line would block the strategy the quarterback tells the receivers and everyone else what to do. I called the strategy for what the line would do and So I called for a play where the guard would come down and block my guy and I would pull over.

Because I thought I can't block this guy. When I was a junior in high school, I think I was five foot six hundred and thirty pounds. I thought there's no way I can do it. I grew some I Remember when I went to the locker room.

Inside the locker room. They had this kind of shiny slippery cement kind of thing and the coach grabbed my face mask Ava Roth and he was shaking me back and forth. Oh yikes. You're gonna be in a battle.

You better have all your armor. You're not gonna forget your shoes and your helmet everything that God provides if this is a supernatural war. We've got to make sure we're equipped so that what you can see the goal right there in the text that you may be able Capable to stand firm against the schemes of the devil if the victory has been accomplished at Calvary.

We can't lose ground. In other words, we have to maintain our ground. We have to hold out. No surrender. No retreat. No backpedaling. Can't break ranks with everyone else. Remember this is a corporate setting.

This is not spiritual warfare for you the Christian. This is spiritual warfare for you the Christian as part of this church. You've got to be careful because Satan has schemes see that word schemes. It means Wiles it means methods it means stratagems.

It means things that he's cunning and he's smart and he's been practicing for thousands of years. Second Corinthians 1114 says no wonder for even Satan disguises him as an angel of light. He's not so Obtuse to go around with some kind of horns and a pitchfork.

He's smart. He's clever. He has negative bad methods and You put power and methods together and you've got trouble. You're going to need all the armor from God. Keeping your finger at Ephesians 6. Would you turn over to first Peter chapter 5 as I again try to Put some verses on this canvas.

So you see the intense nature of Satan so you will make sure you don't rely on yourselves. So you don't just run into spiritual warfare. Naked you need to be clothed with his armor. First Peter chapter 5.

He just gets done talking about anxiety. He's wrapping up some issues with authority and leadership in chapter 5 in this book that teaches us about suffering. Following the submissive Christ and he says in first Peter chapter 5 verse 8.

Whenever I read Peter I always think of Peter's life by the way. And how Peter denied Christ and what Peter said and did and how Peter here would not want to retreat. Like he did before he doesn't want his people to do that.

Be sober in spirit pay attention. Something that Peter didn't do when Jesus said go pray for an hour sleeping. Be on the alert. Keep your eyes wide open spiritually. Why your adversary? You know what adversary means it means against the law against a lawsuit when you go to jail.

There's someone prosecuting you and they're after you. They're your adversary. The word literally is against the lawsuit the adversary in a lawsuit. He's after you. He's a slanderer. That's what he's called here.

Very interesting that the name of Satan can even be slander diabolos. He slanders he sows discords discord. And what does he do? He does what he? Prowls around like a roaring lion literally he walks back and forth like teachers of old.

Walking back and forth. Peripatetic teaching just walking back and forth. That's the exact word here. He's walking back and forth sometimes when you walk by someone's yard. And they got a big dog in the front yard, and they've got a fence.

You can just see the worn area there with no grass because they just walk all around. Trying to bite you through that until they get to the end and then they walk back to the other side waiting for the next Victim right walking back and forth and here's Satan always on the prowl looking for someone that he might.

What? Interesting word. He's a roaring lion and he wants to devour them. To roar means to howl only used here like a wolf or a dog or a lion just. This howl just in this insatiable desire to try to drink someone down to try to devour them to ruin them.

First John 5 19. John says the whole world lies in the power of this evil one. It's really God's sovereign over everything. But right now here Satan is is having this power and Paul wants us to be careful.

Peter wants us to be careful. Well, let's go back to Ephesians chapter 6 and break some new ground. Regarding the third strategy so we can hold our ground maintain our course so we don't go backwards.

Who knows what will happen in the life of the church? I think when I first became a pastor I was quite naive. I thought if I just came here and taught the Bible there'd be no resistance. Where Christ is building his church, what do you think happens.

Satan is there there are issues and. And Paul does not want The church at Ephesus and he doesn't want you. God doesn't want you to be naive thinking that this is just a cakewalk. This is no big deal. Don't rely on yourselves.

Rely on God's weaponry. Number three the third strategy. You must be biblical because your enemies are many and they're superhuman. You must be biblical because your enemies are many and superhuman. Technically he tells us why we should put on.

He says be strong in the Lord. How put on God's armor. Why. Because there are many enemies and they're supernatural. Look at this passage and mark the hammer mark how many times against is used? For a dramatic literary point for our struggle.

It's not against flesh and blood but against rulers. He didn't even say. And against the powers. Against the world forces of this darkness. Against the spiritual forces. Spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Why do you need armor. Because there are many of these demonic hordes out there. John Calvin said quote he impresses them. And their danger by telling them the nature of the enemy. It's a healthy respect if I could use the football analogy a little bit more.

What would we do throughout the week? We were watch game films of the other team to see their propensities. To see their tendencies to watch the enemy to study. Says you've got to know there's a lot of them.

You've got to be smart. They're invisible dangers. You've got to be diligent. You've got to be earnest. And he uses the word struggle. If you look at your text in verse 12, this is a one-on-one thing.

This is wrestling. It's a struggle, but it's a hand-to-hand thing. I remember when I was growing up in high school. There's something about the wrestlers. I don't know if you're wrestlers here. I'm not trying to Slam the wrestlers or anything, but there's just something about wrestling.

I didn't go for. You know elbowing a guy playing basketball or I was teaching Luke. You know if a guy goes up for a shot and you just kind of poke the guy in the solar plexus a little bit. It messes their shot up, you know that kind of stuff, you know didn't bother me.

You can kind of touch guys a little bit. Sometimes for free throws I would bend down like this and pull the hair and the guy's leg next to me and try to get Him mad at me some guys when they get mad. They can't play well some guys and they get mad.

They play really well, so you had to make sure you knew but some about this wrestlers. Greasy kind of sweaty up real close closer than guys should kind of be just arm hand in hand just Grunting and doing all that stuff, and I just thought It's just too close.

I kind of like the thing you know I could just get out of my personal space, but in wrestling. It's always in your personal space. It's just right there close. Hand-to-hand moral combat to the end as a matter of fact it was moral combat in these days when you would wrestle.

It wasn't you know you pin them and then stand up and they announced the winner and the other guy Kind of sulks off this was lots of times you kill or it was under death this idea of struggle in Ephesians 612 is Close, it's intimate.

It's where the sweat of the other person gets on you kind of closeness and Paul knows that even though they're not tangible beings physical beings. It's close warfare. It's not something that well. You know they've got all the spiritual warfare kind of over there in Shangri-La.

But not here close. It's up there in Timbuktu, but not close to us. It's up close and personal like as some say violent. Close quarter struggle, and did you notice a passage the enemies that we are against are?

People who are pro-choice. The real enemies are the Democrats you see that right there in your text the real enemies are homosexuals. Now they may be enemies along with pro-life Republicans and heterosexuals.

But that's not the issue. The issue is behind all of that behind all the political landscape. There's spiritual battles going on that are fueling that are propelling that are goading on these issues. These are the real people that we're warring against.

They're not technically people they're demons. We're wrestling against them and what does Paul do he kind of just parades them down? It's like you go with me to Iowa to my sister's farm town, and they have once a year a Mondayman, Iowa parade.

You sit there and everybody on the floats. They throw out candies candies for the kids. And here's this car that looks like a cheap Batman car goes by. Here comes like the John Deere tractor. Big corn harvester goes by and they're all throwing stuff out.

I Kid you not on this one. The outhouse company comes by with the trailer with a couple outhouses. We didn't pick up his candy and what Paul's doing is he's parading these things before us. So we start saying to ourselves.

I can't taste them. I can't touch them. I can't feel them. I can't see them. But there are all these people out here that their number one goal is to destroy Christ and his glory found in the local church.

John Stott said Paul gives us a full and frightening description of the forces arrayed against us and Just briefly first. He says they're rulers. Their principalities their sovereign they control things their chiefs.

Then the secondly he says against powers this word talks about authority as well. Notice the plural. Thirdly he talks about world forces. Someone who wants to conquer the world a Hitlerian kind of demon mentality where they want to win over everything and actually the word in Greek is Cosmo Kratz.

How we would English eyes it Cosmo Kratz. Cosmos the world Kratz like you're an autocrat self-rule Cosmo Kratz. Cosmo Kratz or and it's not nighttime darkness here. If you look these Cosmo Kratz are there of the night that is of wickedness.

As seen in verse 4 as well against the spiritual forces of wickedness and heavenly places. Point being if this is all happening, we better do things biblically. We better do things, right? We better say the Word of God is sufficient.

The Word of God is spoken. Paul certainly if this is all happening at Ephesus and he'd been there would tell them exactly what to do and what not to do. If he doesn't tell us to do it, we might be very careful to just go ahead out on our own.

How would we live in a society where there's a invisible warfare going on and Paul tells the church at Ephesus the surrounding churches and now 2 ,000 years later. He tells us what to do. We need to be biblical and Beloved.

It is naive to say if it's in the Bible, then I'll do it. It is hermeneutically naive to say Jesus did something therefore I can do it. It is and We've all been ignorant at some time. I have been as well, but it is ignorance to say If I see the Apostles do it, therefore I must do it.

Sometimes it's fueled by this WWJ D. How do we handle demonic warfare? Well, what would Jesus do we have to be very very careful. One of the best things you can do with hermeneutics and I taught this to the people in India.

And I've taught it to my men as well when you look at a Bible verse you should ask this question. It's a simple question. It's not a completely full of every exception, but this is a simple question when you read the Bible.

Does this describe something or does this prescribe something? That is to say does this describe what was going on? Does it picture it like a newspaper reporter does or does this prescribe something that tells me what to do when you go to a?

Pharmacist you give them the script you give them the prescription because the doctor has prescribed this dose at this time for you. So does the passage tell me what to do? Or does it tell me what has been done and we want to make sure when we do issues like this.

And we deal with issues like this that we don't just say if Jesus did it. Therefore I will too if Jesus walked on water. Therefore I will if Jesus raised people from dead therefore so I if Jesus can command Bread to come out of heaven.

So will I we have to be very very careful. If you look at Ephesians chapter 6 and look down through the passage. Scan your eyes and try to find a place where it says bind Satan cast Satan out rebuke Satan exercise people.

You're saying to yourself. Well, surely there are other parts of the Bible that talk about these things. Paul just didn't say it here because they could get their information elsewhere. That may be true.

But at least look at this passage here. There's nothing about slain in the spirit. There's nothing about words or receptacles. There's nothing about whatever Jesus did and the Apostles did we can to Let me push it even further.

Would it be a good idea if pastors knew how to do spiritual warfare? Would it be good for the leaders of the church and the elders to know how to deal with somebody demon-possessed? Or deal with Satan that'd be probably a good thing for them to do.

Why is it when Paul wrote to Timothy at a local church in which town? At Ephesus. Why did Paul write to Timothy first Timothy and second Timothy and he never said anything about spiritual warfare let alone Binding casting out rebuking etc.

Why didn't he do that? Wouldn't you want to tell him. And the number one problem we run into as Christians is this. We somehow think that we have the same authority that Jesus and the Apostles have. Have Jesus had the Apostles because Jesus did something.

We're gonna have to be careful as we expand this this week and next week that we don't necessarily do it. Let's turn to Mark chapter 5 and I want to show you an example of Jesus and his authority. And then we'll talk a little bit about how it is.

Again at best naive to think that you can do what Jesus did. I Read a title for a book this week by Doris Wagner how to cast out demons a beginner's guide. Read about a book this week pigs in the parlor by the Hammonds and you need to have buckets in front of you.

So when you get exercised out With the vomit comes the demons so you need to have the little popcorn vomit demon buckets. If you were at Ephesus you could sell those for a shekel 95, what do we do? If you can bind demons, why didn't Job?

Well, he didn't know it was all demon stuff going on, but what if he could what if Job could bind demons. What if Job could bind not just a demon in that passage in Job chapter 1 but Satan himself when God Uses the hardest working servant in all the world and universe by the name of Satan to carry out his plan.

Like he didn't Job but all that to say we're gonna back up now just for a minute. And I want to show you how Jesus deals with demons they do exist. They are powerful the disciples don't know what to do.

They're over on the side of the thing just going. They would have no idea until God grants them authority that we'll see later on in the Gospels in an axe and What mark is trying to say is Jesus is Lord over all.

Jesus has power over everything and you will not see the full power of Christ with his demonic. With his ability to exercise the demonic forces, you're not gonna see that ever given to the local church ever.

Now you're gonna have people say well Jesus did it therefore so can I but we're not gonna find it in Ephesians 6. I'm not gonna find it elsewhere either unless you try to go to a passage in Matthew Mark Luke and John our acts and see what they do and you try to do it yourself.

That is the hermeneutical fallacy the Bible interpretation error of if Jesus did it. So can I if the Apostles did it so can I? But again, let's go to Mark chapter 5 and I want to just try to confirm the fact that these demons are powerful.

These demons are strong. You need the authority of God Almighty to deal with these things before you go around trying to cast out demons a beginner's guide. You're gonna end up naked running like those seven sons of Scevas what's gonna happen?

And we'll also talk in weeks to come about how even unbelievers do exorcisms and there seems to be effects. Mark chapter 5. Chapter 4. Jesus was the Lord over the storm and stilled the sea now. He's Lord over these demons.

I just love looking at Christ. I remember I Was asking Sinclair Ferguson in Scotland one day when you're in a passage like Mark 5. It doesn't tell the audience the congregation the reader to do anything.

It doesn't say well Jesus has that authority you have that too. It doesn't say trust in the Lord. It doesn't say Oh worship the King now all those may be implied or not implied. But I said when you preach a gospel like this a narrative a story about Jesus.

I want to tell the congregation to do something. You know after all isn't a sermon more sermons are just kind of life management skills how to cope for another week. No sermons are not life management skills how to cope how to be this or that five easy steps.