PT-1 “Jesus’ Power Over The Natural Realm” (Luke 4:38-40)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/20/2026 8:09 AM

My Worship Time                                      Focus:  PT-1 “Jesus’ Power Over The Natural Realm”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                 Reference:  Luke 4:38-40

            Message of the verses:  “Then He got up and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s home.  Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him to help her.  And standing over her, He rebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately got up and waited on them.  While the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them.”

            This morning we begin looking at what is a fairly long section from John MacArthur’s commentary on these verses which have many things in them to write about.  I want to first begin by writing about something that is near and dear to my heart at this time, and that is the physical effects of the fall are universal and devastating.  Birth is the firs step toward death.  Deformity, illness, weakness,  injury, disease, and death from the universal biography of mankind.  If He is to be the Savior of His people and take them to the perfections of eternal heaven, the Messiah then must have the power to reverse all these natural effects of the fall, and there are many of them as mentioned above.  This passage provides both a specific illustration of and a general reference to Jesus’ power over the natural realm.

            I am learning some things that are making a lot of sense to me this morning, things that I had not realized in my reading of Luke’s gospel in this section before, and it is my prayer that all those who read this will also learn things too.

            MacArthur writes “After preaching in the Capernaum synagogue and casting a demon out of a man in the audience (vv. 31-37), Jesus got up and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s home.  The Sabbath service in the synagogue usually ended around noon and was followed by the main meal of the day.  This is the second Sabbath mentioned in Luke’s gospel (cf. 4:16-30), and both of them featured hostility (either human or demonic) to Jesus (cf. 6:6-11; 13:10-17).

            “Simon Peter had not yet been officially called to be a disciple (cf. 5:1-10; Matthew 4:18-22 and Mark1: 16-20) refer to a preliminary, temporary call; Luke to the final, permanent call to follow the Lord) or an apostle (6:13-14).  Luke did not need to introduce him to his readers, because by the time he wrote his gospel, Peter was known to all of them.  At this point in the narrative, however, he was still a member of the synagogue at Capernaum.  Peter had been introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew (John 1:35-42).  On that occasion Jesus changed his name to ‘Peter’ (Greek) or ‘Cephas’ (Aramaic) to indicate his future role as part of the foundation of the church (Matt. 16:16-18).  Peter was originally from nearby Bethsaida (John 1:44) and now operated a fishing business in Capernaum with his brother Andrew (Matt. 4:18) and their partners, James and John (Luke 5:10), also recently called to follow Jesus (Mark 1:16-20). Having been present in the synagogue to hear Jesus’ unparalleled exposition of the Word of God and witness the amazing display of His power over the demonic realm, Peter invited Him to his house for the Sabbath meal, along with Peter’s brother  Andrew, James, and John (Mark 1:29).”

I will end this portion of this section and Lord willing will pick it up this evening to continue to look at it, as mentioned this is a long section from Luke’s gospel that MacArthur writes about.

5/20/2026 8:55 AM  

Intro to “Jesus: The Divine Deliverer” (Luke 4:38-44)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/19/2026 10:57 PM

My Worship Time                                                  Focus:  Intro to “Jesus: The Divine Deliverer”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                  Reference: Luke 4:38-44

            Message of the verses: “³⁸ Then He got up and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s home. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him ^[a]to help her. ³⁹ And standing over her, He rebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately got up and served them.

⁴⁰ Now while the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He was laying His hands on each one of them and healing them. ⁴¹ Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” And yet He was rebuking them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that He was the Christ.

⁴² Now when day came, Jesus left and went to a secluded place; and the crowds were searching for Him, and they came to Him and tried to keep Him from leaving them. ⁴³ But He said to them, “I must also preach the kingdom of God to the other cities, because I was sent for this purpose.”

⁴⁴ So He kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

            I will do as I have been doing and that is quote the introduction to these verses from John MacArthur’s commentary.

            “The historical records of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ in the Gospels contain all that God has revealed about Him.  Each of the four gospel writers wrote from his own unique perspective and for a distinct audience.  Matthew wrote primarily to a Jewish audience, presenting Jesus as Israel’s Messiah and rightful king.  Thus, while Luke recorded Mary’s genealogy to show Jesus’ physical descent, Matthew gave Joseph’s genealogy, since the royal line came through him.  Matthew frequently cited the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy in Jesus’ life and ministry.  He also referred to Jesus by the Jewish messianic title ‘Son of David.’  Sensitive to his readers’ reverence for and reluctance to use the name of God, Matthew aloe of the gospel writers substitutes the phrase ‘kingdom of heaven’ instead of ‘kingdom of God.’

            “Mark addressed his gospel to Gentiles, particularly the Romans.  Thus he was careful to translate Aramaic words (e.g., 3:17; 5:41; 7:11, 34; 14:36; 15:22, 34) for his readers, and to explain Jewish customs with which they would not have been familiar (7:3-4).  His fast-paced account, marked by the frequent use of the term ‘immediately’ (more than forty times), would appeal to the practical, action-oriented Romans.  Mark presented Jesus as the Servant, who came ‘to give His life a ransom for many’ (10:45).

            “Luke presented a carefully researched, historically accurate account of the life of Jesus Christ.  He addressed a broader Gentile audience than Mark, and presented Jesus as the Son of Man (a phrase he used more than two dozen times), the answer to mankind’s needs and hopes.

            “John was written much later than the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) to supplement and complement them.  Its supreme, overarching purpose, as stated by John himself, is to present Jesus Christ as God, and to encourage its readers to come to faith in Him: “These have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name’ (20:31).  The same purpose could be given for the other three Gospels.

            “Yet despite their different emphases, all the Gospels present the revelation of Jesus Christ as God in human flesh.  They reveal Him to have been born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died as a substitute for believing sinners, and to have risen from the dead three days later, forever conquering death for all the redeemed.  Repentance from sin and faith in Christ and His work bring complete forgiveness of sin and eternal life.  The divine truths, spiritual realities, singular accomplishments, and glorious promises they record as part of the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus demand that the Gospels be studied carefully.

            “Along with the claims Jesus Christ made, the gospel writers also presented convincing evidence for the validity of His assertions.  To that end, Luke marshals the historical evidence to make an extensive, irrefutable case that Jesus is the God-man, Messiah, and only Savior.  Luke’s concern (like the other gospel writers), then, is not primarily with the historical details of Jesus’ life and ministry, but rather with what those accurately recorded details incontrovertibly prove about Him.

            “The closing section of chapter 4 might appear at first glance to be a series of brief, disconnected comments that sum up a certain period of Jesus’ life.  But they are in reality very carefully connected.  The Jewish people wanted to see signs to prove that Jesus  was the Messiah (cf. 11:16; Matt. 12:38; 16:1; 1 Cor. 1:22), and in this brief passage Luke provided some for them.  He revealed Jesus’ divine power over three realms: the natural realm, the supernatural realm, and the eternal realm.”

5/19/2026 11:28 PM

 

“His Power” (Luke 4:35-37)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/19/2026 9:23 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                           Focus:  “His Power”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                 Reference:  Luke 4:35-37

            Message of the verses:  “35 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, it came out of him without doing him any harm.36 And amazement came upon them all, and they began talking with one another, saying, “What is this message? For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!”37 And the news about Him was spreading into every locality of the surrounding region.

            “This passage records a moment in Jesus’ ministry when He confronts a demon-possessed man in the presence of the crowd. His direct command, “Be quiet and come out of him,” demonstrates His authority over evil spirits. The demon’s expulsion without causing harm to the man shows both His power and compassion. The crowd’s amazement reflects their recognition of Jesus’ unique authority, and the spreading news about Him indicates the growing impact of His ministry in the region.”

            Now we have already seen in an earlier SD that Jesus wanted no publicity from a demon.  He therefore rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!”  Now as we can see Jesus did not recite any incantations or perform any rituals; there was no discussion, debate, or struggle as He just spoke, and the demon had no choice but to instantly obey Him.  So when the demon had thrown the man down in the midst of the people in a final, futile act of defiance, he reluctantly came out of him without doing him any harm.  Jesus in His compassion prevented the demon from hurting the man.  Now again as we wrote about earlier we do not know if this man ever became a believer, for he certainly was not a believer as he had a demon indwelling him.

            Now the crowd that was gathered in the synagogue had been amazed at Jesus’ authoritative teaching.  I think that sometime when we look at and study the Bible for a long time that we just kind of not truly think about what is happening and then do not really understand the picture, but think for a moment if you or I was in that crowd and saw what these people saw.  I am sure that our reaction would be much different that just reading about it.  Now the crowd was even more amazed by this demonstration of His absolute authority over the supernatural demonic realm, and they began talking with one another saying, “What is this message?  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.”  What they had just witnessed was unprecedented.  In Matthew 9:33, which goes along with this section in Luke says “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”  The report of this remarkable, astonishing act on Jesus’ part began to spread like wildfire beyond Capernaum into every locality in the surrounding district.

            John MacArthur writes in his conclusion to this section:  “This demonstration of Jesus’ power over Satan and the demons reveals His ability to deliver sinners from their grasp.  Though the forces of hell made an all-out assault on Him during His earthly ministry, Christ effortlessly defeated them.  And by His sacrificial death on the cross, He accomplished the redemption of His people, delivering them forever from the kingdom of darkness (Col. 1:13).”

(Col. 1:13)

^“13 [For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,”

“Believers share in Christ’s victory over Satan and the demons through their salvation and union with Him (cf. Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20).”

(cf. Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20)

“15  I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.’”

“20  The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.”

“Martin Luther expressed that truth in his hymn, ‘A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”:

The Prince of Darkness grim,

We Tremble not for him;

His rage we can endure,

For lo, his doom is sure;

One little word shall fell him.

            I remember a story about Martin Luther who knew that Satan was against him in all the work that he was doing for the cause of Christ through an ink bottle at what he perceived to be Satan.  A man named Philipp Melanchthon (1497-1560) was a close friend of Martin Luther.  I think that perhaps he was with Luther when he through the ink bottle at Satan.  You see Luther was used by God begin the Reformation and so this did not make the devil happy and so he was fighting against it but God was then and still is now and has forever been in charge. 

Spiritual Meaning for my Life Today:  I have this issue of being upset with those in our government who are trying to ruin our country, especially those who are of the party of President Trump, and I know that the Bible teaches that a person has to be born-again in order to get into God’s heaven, and from their actions it does not seem like they are.  Perhaps praying for a great revival in our country would help more than complaining about these people.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Pray for revival in our country and trust the Lord to do this in His own time, but hopefully soon!

5/19/2026 10:01 AM

 

 

"HIs Purity" (Luke 4:34c)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/18/2026 9:31 PM

My Worship Time                                                                                               Focus:  His Purity

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                     Reference:  Luke 4:34c

Message of the verse:  I know who You are—the Holy one of God

            This will be another of my shorter SD’s as I am having some trouble with my laptop.

            It is unlike atheists, liberal theologians, and also cultists, the demons know exactly who Jesus is.  In fact, in the first half of Mark’s gospel they are the only ones who are sure He is the Son of God.  Let us think about this for a moment.  The Bible teaches that God created the angels before He created the world, and when He created them they were all perfect.  Now we know that one third of them fell after Lucifer fell too.  Lucifer I believe was the archangel of the Son of God and it was pride that caused him to fall.  Now if one thinks about this they have to come up with the fact that all of the angels that God created knew exactly who the Son of God is.  Now back to our verse we are looking at this evening.  Expressing the sheer terror of one who is absolutely wicked in the presence of the One who is absolutely holy, the demon screamed, I know who You are—the Holy One of God!  Now like the rest of his fellow demons, this one was forced to acknowledge  that Jesus is the absolutely holy Son of God.  If God’s people are afraid of His holy presence cf. Isa. 6:5; Ezek. 1:28; Matt. 17:6; Rev. 1:17), how much more so a vile wicked demon?  Now Jesus however, did not want or need the testimony of hell.  So therefore, He silenced the demons whenever they affirmed His true identity (vv. 35, 41; cf. Mark 1:25, 34; 3:12; Acts 16:16-18).  Now since Jesus Christ lives in believers as seen in Galatians 2:20), demons fear them, because the One they supremely dread indwells them.

            As mentioned this is a very short SD, and I have one more to do in this group entitled “His Power where we will look at Luke 4:35-37.

5/18/2026 9:46 PM

“His Purpose” (Luke 4:34b)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/18/2026 10:28 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                        Focus:  “His Purpose”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                    Reference:  Luke 4:34b

            Message of the verse:  “Have You come to destroy us?”

            Now in this short verse there will be a rather short SD for this morning.  In this verse we can see the fear, or better the demon was terrified, and it was not only because he knew who Jesus was, but also because he knew what His purpose for him and his fellow demons was.  Let us look at 1 John 3:8 “8  Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”  MacArthur adds “Destroy translates a form of the verb appollumi, which means, ‘ruin,’ ‘bring to nothing,’ ‘abolish,’ or ‘bring to an end.’  The demons have been sentenced to eternal torment in hell for their rebellion against God.  This one was terrified that Jesus was going to carry out that sentence right then and there and send him to the bottomless pit (8:31; Matt. 8:29). 

            “The book of Revelation unfolds God’s ultimate plan for Satan and the demons.  In chapter 20 verses 1-3 the apostle John wrote,

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.  And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of ole, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.

“After the tribulation, as Jesus prepares for His thousand-year earthly reign, He will imprison Satan (and by implication the demons) in the abyss.  The abyss is currently the temporary place of imprisonment for some of the demons (those who sinned in Gen. 6; cf. 1 Peter 3:18-20); Jude 6).”

(cf. 1 Peter 3:18-20); Jude 6)

“18 ¶  For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 19  in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20  because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.”

“6  And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.”

“It is not their final place of punishment, which is the lake of fire (Matt. 25:41).”

(Matt. 25:41)

“41  "Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

“The abyss will be the holding cell, so to speak, for Satan and all the demons during the millennium.  After one last, desperate assault on God and His people (Rev. 20:7-9), Satan and the demons will be thrown into the lake of fire, where they will undergo eternal punishment (Rev. 20:10).”

(Rev. 20:7-9)

“7  And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison 8  and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. 9  And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them,”

(Rev. 20:10)

“10  and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

Spiritual Meaning for My Life today:  When I look at the world today, as it is getting worse off each day as we speed toward the times that are described in many of the prophetic books of the Bible, including the book of Revelation, I see that times are much more difficult.  By reading and studying the Bible it gives me peace because I know that the Lord is in charge of my life, and that the Lord will care for me as I go through this very difficult time with my wife’s illness, but in the end we will all be with Him, and that comforts me.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Continue to trust the Lord to bring my wife to a place where she can get good treatment for her cancer.

5/18/2026 11:07 AM

 

 

 

PT-4 “His Preaching” (Luke 4:31-34a)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/17/2026 6:56 PM

My Worship Time                                                                            Focus:  PT-4 “His Preaching”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                               Reference:  Luke 4:31-34a

Message of the verses:  “And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was  teaching them on the Sabbath; and they were amazed at His teaching, for His message was with authority.  In the synagogue there was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, “Let us alone! What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?”

            I continue to quote from MacArthur’s commentary on this rather long section.

            “There are some who argue that true Christians can be demon possessed; that is, actually indwelt by a demon as opposed to merely being influenced.  One proponent of that view writes, ‘A genuine Christian may become possessed at least to some degree, even to the point where they speak with strange voices or in foreign languages’ (C. Fred Dickason, Angels, Elect and Evil [Chicago: Moody 1975], 191).  Yet Dickason cites no biblical evidence to support that claim, but rather alleged ‘evidence from mission fields and clinical counseling’ (p. 190).”

            MacArthur then goes on to write “In my book How to Meet the Enemy, I summarized the biblical evidence that Christians cannot be demon possessed”

There is no clear example in the Bible where a demon ever inhabited or invaded a true believer.  Never in the New Testament epistles are believers warned about the possibility of being inhabited by demons.  Neither do we see anyone rebuking, binding, or casting demons out of a true believer.  The epistles never instructed believers to cast out demons, whether from a believer or unbeliever.  Christ and the apostles were the only ones who cast out demons, and in every instance the demons possessed people were unbelievers.

The collective teaching of Scripture is that demons can never spatially indwell a true believer.  A clear implication of 2 Corinthians 6, for example, is that the indwelling Holy Spirit could never cohabit with demons:

What harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever?  Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols?  For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God and they shall be My people” (vv. 15-16).

In Colossians 1:13, Paul says God “delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son”  Salvation brings true deliverance and protection from Satan.  In Romans 8:37, Paul says we overwhelmingly conquer through Christ.  In 1 Corinthians 15:57, he says God gives us the victory.  In 2 Corinthians 2:14, he says God always leads us in triumph.  In 1 John 2:13, John says we have overcome the evil one.  And in 4:4, he says the indwelling Holy Spirit is greater than Satan.  How could anyone affirm those glorious truths, yet believe demons can indwell genuine believers? ([Wheaton, III.: Victor, 1992], 22-23)

            “The Lord Jesus Christ’s powerful preaching unnerved this particular demon and he cried out (an exclamation meaning to scream in dismay, fear, or terror) with a loud voice in the middle of Christ’s message.  The demon felt the power of the presence of his sovereign, the Son of God, who had come to invade the kingdom of darkness and free many held captive by the devil by bringing them to salvation. As Jesus preached the good news that He had come to deliver the poor, prisoners, blind, and oppressed, the dreaded reality of his ultimate doom hit the demon, and he panicked.  ‘Let us alone!’ he screamed.  ‘What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?’  The phrase what business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?’  (literally, what is it to us and to You’; cf. the same phrase used by another demon in 8:28) is an idiomatic expression.  What the demon was saying is, ‘Why are You attacking us?’  He knew all too well that Jesus of Nazareth was God the Son, the second person of the Trinity, who had absolute power and authority over him. It should be noted that in a religious environment like Israel’s, demons would rather stay hidden as they sit in religious services.  That is their disguise as ‘angels of light,’ and they prefer not to blow their cover.  Every false religion, no matter how moral, is demon controlled and there are surely demons present in the leaders and the deceived people.  But they stay silent by design.  They could not hold their terror in when the Son of God was present.”

            I truly hope that this section that we looked at this evening will be of great help for those who read it, as was stated there is some lies out their about whether or not a true Christian can be inhabited by a demon.  But think about this, when a true believer is saved they receive the Holy Spirit of God to indwell them, so how could a demon be there too?  They Cannot!!

5/17/2026 7:26 PM

           

 

PT-3 “His Preaching” (Luke 4:31-34a)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/17/2026 8:2 0AM

My Worship Time                                                                            Focus:  PT-3 “His Preaching”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                Reference:  Luke 4:31-34a

Message of the verses:  “And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was  teaching them on the Sabbath; and they were amazed at Hs teaching, for His message was with authority.  In the synagogue there was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, “Let us alone! What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?”

            This morning I begin the third SD from the verses above, and I think that I will have to finish this section up in this evening’s SD.

            MacArthur writes “The second phrase translates the verb daimonizomai, which appears  thirteen times in the New Testament (8:36; Matt. 4:24; 8:16, 28, 33; 9:32; 12:22; 15:22; Mark 1:32; 5:15, 16, 18; John 10:21) and is translated, ‘demon-possessed,’ or ‘demoniaics.’  Like the first phrase, it refers to someone indwelt and controlled by a demon or demons to the point that he cannot successfully resist, not to the general influence demons have in promoting false doctrine (1 Tim. 4:1), false worship (1 Cor. 10:20-21), immorality (1 Tim. 4:1-3), and attitudes of jealousy, divisiveness, and pride (James 3:13-16).

            “Third, the Bible speaks of those with an ‘unclean’ spirit (Mark 1:23; 5:2) or having one Mark 7:25).  Those phrases also indicate that demons indwell their victims.

            “Finally, Acts 5:16 speaks of those ‘afflicted with unclean spirits,’ emphasizing the torment demon-possessed people suffer.

            “In Matthew 12:43-45, Jesus gave an illustration of demon possession.  The demon possessed person is likened to a house (v. 44), once again showing that demons indwell their victims.  For some unspecified reason, this demon left his victim.  It may be that he sought another more suitable person to indwell, or that he was annoyed by the attempts of exorcists (like the sons of “”Sceva in Acts 19:13-14) and decided to leave.  It may even be that he was cast out by Jesus from an individual who never came to saving faith in Him.  In any case, the demon left his victim, and ‘passes [d] through waterless places seeking rest, and [did] not find it’ (v. 43).  But unable to find a better situation, the demon decided to return to the ‘house from which [he] came’ (v. 44).  When he returned, the demon found the house ‘unoccupied, swept, and put in order (v. 44)—a reference to moral and religious reform apart from true salvation.  That made him an even more attractive host for the demon and his friends; demons can more successfully disguise themselves as angels of light (2 Cor. 11:14-15) in outwardly religious people.  The net effect was that ‘the last state of that man becomes worse than the first’ (v. 45).  Ritual exorcisms and efforts at self-reform apart from true salvation will not free anyone from Satan’s kingdom.  Only those who have ‘faith in Christ Jesus…[are] rescued…from the domain of darkness and transferred…to the kingdom of His beloved Son’ (Col. 1:4, 13).”

            That is all that I have time for this morning, and Lord willing will finish this section this evening.

5/17/2026 8:45 AM