Luke 4:31–37

Find a quiet place, alone and apart from distractions. Be comfortably alert, still, and at peace. Say the Lord’s Prayer. Sing or cant the Jesus Prayer. Pray for family, friends, neighbors, and yourself. Slowly and carefully read the passage of Scripture.

1.         Following the rejection at Nazareth, Jesus travels northwest to Capernaum, which is at the northeast corner of the Sea of Galilee. And as was His habit, He taught in this town’s synagogue, and He did so with power and authority.

2.         In that synagogue was a man who had a demon in him, and the demon knew who Jesus was.

3.         With a loud voice, perhaps intended to produce fear, the demons, as there were more than one but only one spoke, and the demons knew who Jesus was.

4.         These demons, former angels who had followed Lucifer in his heavenly rebellion, knew Jesus could “destroy” them, meaning, they knew Jesus could cast them out.

5.         Jesus commanded their silence and ordered them to come out, whereupon a short battle ensued with the demons attempted to thwart their rejection by throwing the possessed man down to the ground. It did not work.

6.         Those present in the synagogue were amazed at the power and authority of Jesus. They did not question the reality of demonic spirits, rather, they were well aware of them as did most of the pagan world.

7.         One result of this event was that the word spread of His power and authority. And so it is today.