Bringing Freedom to People

If you read the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke in the New Testament), an unusual event seems to occur over and over again:
Jesus goes into a place, announces the Good News that God has come near to people, and all of a sudden, evil forces seem to come out of hiding.

We see an example of this in Mark chapter 1-
Jesus is in a synagogue teaching with tremendous authority, when an evil spirit shrieks out through a man, "What do you want with us Jesus? Have you come to destroy us?!" This appears to be the inaugural power encounter that sets a whole kingdom movement in motion.

It quickly becomes evident that whenever the Good News that God has come near to people is announced, demonic forces lose their composure and come to the surface. It's nothing to get all worked up about, it's simply a part of doing the works of Jesus.

Recently @ a training seminar, I was talking about the nearness of God's rule, and how He touches our lives. In the midst of this, a demonic force manifested in someone. Now, when something "supernatural" like that happens, often the tendency is for people around them to get all worked up emotionally and everybody starts talking at once.

Jesus is much more relaxed about these kinds of things! And I suspect that his model is the best one for us to pattern ourselves after. We never see him running out to buy a tin foil hat, or stomping around a room shouting and screaming...
In every case he simply tells the opposing forces to stop acting out and to be quiet, and then He tells them to leave.

So this is what we did. And it worked because Jesus has given his ministry to each of us who follow him.

It's one of the most beautiful things in the world to see the Spirit of God bring freedom to a person that was being oppressed and injured by the enemy. Once they were bound up and felt shameful and unloved. But Jesus encountered them in that state and brought them into a wonderful freedom.

We have a call to do his works, whenever and wherever they're needed. It's a wonderful privilege, and I'm in for life.