“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.“ (Mark 1:1)

Have you ever wanted to share the gospel, but have been afraid to do so because of a fear of lack of knowledge or being uncertain where to start in sharing the gospel with someone?Well, I have.The next six devotionals will be designed to explain the basics of the Christian faith or, in other words, what is essential for a Christian to understand to be a Christian and what we need to share with non-Christians every chance we get.These devotionals will be designed to help us reflect on Jesus Christ this Christmas season and on the great salvation which is found in him alone.This will benefit our own hearts and minds, but we will hopefully be more aware of the opportunities that we are given to share the gospel with those we meet this Christmas season.

I don’t know about you, but I love Thanksgiving and Christmas.What I don’t like is that our increasingly secular society seeks to downplay and distract us from the biblical importance of some of the most of the significant Christian holidays such as Christmas.Don’t get me wrong, Christmas presents, family traditions, food, and fun are a joyful part of the Christmas season that Christians should enjoy, but we should pray to God that our delight and passion for Him and his Word would far surpass our delight in any other good things that we have the privilege to enjoy this Christmas season.In order to be intentional to reflect on the significance of the upcoming holidays, let’s begin to think together about Jesus Christ and his gospel.

Mark 1:1 says that Jesus is the Son of God.Why is this statement important? Well, it is important for many reasons, but especially because it declares that Jesus is the second person of the one Triune God of the Bible who is fully God and fully man.This statement is unique because, if it is true, Jesus is God which means that he has authority over all things.The next question is: “Is there any biblical evidence that Jesus (the God-man) had authority over all things?”YES, thankfully there is indeed!For example, evidence for Jesus’ authority in the gospel of Mark includes:

1. Teaching Authority – Jesus taught with authority, not as the Scribes and Pharisees.Jesus, as the God-man, was his own source of authority and others were amazed as they noticed that he taught with authority (Mark 1:21-22).

2. Authority Over Evil Spirits – Jesus had authority over Satan and his demons who recognized and affirmed who Jesus is as the Son of God and that he has authority over them (Mark 1:23-28).

3. Authority Over Nature – Jesus calms a storm (Mark 4:35-41, other examples occur when Jesus walks on water, feeds 5,000, and turns water into wine).

4. Authority Over Death – Jesus restores the life of Jarius’ dead daughter (Mark 5:21-24, 35-42, also Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in John 11).

5. Authority Over Sickness – Jesus healed a man who could not walk.He was healed by the words of Jesus which showed his effectual power and authority (Mark 2:1-12).

6. Authority to Forgive Sins – This is remarkable and the most significant example of Jesus’ authority as as the God-man because only God can forgive sins and that is exactly what Jesus Christ did (Mark 1:1-12).When Jesus says that the man’s sins are forgiven, he is claiming to be God (which the scribes recognized) and proves that he is by not only healing the man physically, but more importantly spiritually which can only take place when God forgives of a person of his/her sin.In Mark 1:5-12 we see the significance of what Jesus did:

7. “And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”-he said to the paralytic- “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

The only think that kept Jesus from being a blasphemous sinner who claimed to forgive sins as the Scribes accused him to be, is the fact that Jesus Christ is indeed our sinless God who can and does forgive the sins of all those who truly repent of their sin and have genuine faith in him. We serve a mighty God!

In all these examples of Jesus’ authority, we see that Jesus is the divine Son of God, and his divinity is validated by the miraculous acts he performs.The divinity of Christ, the supporting evidence, and the implications of the evidence is a great place to start when sharing the gospel with someone.

No matter what difficulties or uncertainties that we face, we can trust and rely on God because he is our only source of lasting hope and true salvation.May this first part help you, and those whom you have the opportunity to share with, better see and understand the greatness and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ!

PRAYER CONCLUSION

Father, please cause our minds and thoughts to be consumed with a reverent awe of you and the work of salvation that you accomplished through Jesus Christ. Help us to fear you more than we fear man when we have opportunities to love others by sharing the gospel with them. Please give us boldness and love. Amen.