Rooted and Renewed

“And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.”—Mark 1:22

Jesus, the divine Son of God, is the founder and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Which means He is the creator, or as John wrote,  

“All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made”—John 1:3. 

And again,  

“He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him”—John 1:10. 

As Christ was and is the Creator of all things, He is then the divine author of the Scriptures. Whenever He spoke to the people, He spoke differently then the various teachers they were used to hearing. Over the years, the Jewish teachers had added to and taken away from the Scripture, offering up various interpretations on the Word that somehow undercut its authority, but when Christ arrived, it was different. He spoke as “one who had authority, not as the scribes.” He could do so because He was the author. Whenever the author is present, there is no misunderstanding and his intent is clear.

Christ would often start off addressing certain situations by saying, “You have heard that it was said to those of old…” But then He says, “But I say to you…” He spoke with a confident authority that left no room for rebuttal. Christ has the supreme authority over all of creation, whether it was physical infirmities (Luke 7:2-9), the spiritual realm (Luke 4:36); the wind, waves, and water (Mark 4:39), along with authority over death itself (Revelation 1:18). He had the authority to lay down His life and take it up again (John 10:17). And once He took it up again, whatever authority He didn’t have before the crucifixion and resurrection, He was given by God the Father after (Matthew 28:18). What does it mean that He has all authority? It means that while Satan might be the ruler of this present yet passing away world (John 16:11, cf. 1 Corinthians 7:31, 1 John 2:17), Jesus is the sovereign ruler and Satan is living on borrowed time. He is a defeated foe, voted out of office by the council of heaven, and he seeks to cause as much damage as he can before Christ takes His proper place as ruler of the universe at His second coming. But as of right now, Jesus rules from heaven at the right hand of God, “waiting from that time until His enemies should be made a footstool for His feet”—Hebrews 10:13.

As we wait for Him to come again, we know that He is ruling now and that there is no trial, tribulation, or terror that He cannot stop. There is no sin that He doesn’t have victory over and there is no situation or person beyond His grace and ability to transform. We are rooted in His Word and renewed as we continually recognize that He has full authority over every situation we face. And we ask Him to intercede on our behalf while giving us the wisdom to understand how to move forward, the grace to bear up underneath our circumstances, or to have Him do more than we ever imagine (Ephesians 3:20). He can restore any relationship, renew any life, complete any work, calm any storm, comfort any soul, convict any heart, and forgive any sin. There is no limit to His ability. He is God. All authority has been given unto Him, and we must trust in it. Amen.