Subsídio para a 8ª Lição, da English Class da Escola Dominical em Abreu e Lima/PE.

1. LESSON 8
May 24, 2015
The Power of Jesus
over Nature and demons
Golden Text
“Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and
amazement1
they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even
the winds and the water, and they obey him.” (Luke 8:25)
Useful Practice
When showing the power of Jesus over the natural and supernatural
forces, the Scriptures emphasize his nature and messianic identity.
Scripture Reading
Luke 8: 22-25,35-39
Luke 8:22 - One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the
other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out.
23 - As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall2
came down on the lake, so
that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.
24 - The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re
going to drown!”
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm
subsided, and all was calm.
25 -“Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement
they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds
and the water, and they obey him.”
35 - and the people went out to see what had happened. When they
came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone
1
Assombro
2
Borrasca, tempestade, aguaceiro

2. out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were
afraid.
36 - Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-
possessed man had been cured.
37- Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to
leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the
boat and left.
38 - The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with
him, but Jesus sent him away, saying,
39 - “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” So the
man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for
him.
General Objective
Jesus, as the Son of God, has power over nature and spiritual beings.
Specific Objectives
I – TO HIGHLIGHT the supernatural aspect of the person of Jesus.
II – TO PRESENT the biblical reality of the existence of demons.
III – TO EXPLAIN the limited aspect of demons.
IV – TO SHOW that the work of Jesus is opposed to that of demons
Introduction
In this lesson, we will study the accounts that show the power of Jesus
over the forces of nature and also over demons. So far the disciples had
already seen Jesus healing the sick and setting free people oppressed
by the devil. However, they had not yet seen the Master dominating the
forces of nature, nor someone who was naked and lived in the tombs
being returned to their family life.
These events took place when Jesus calmed a storm and freed the
demon-possessed Gadarene. In both accounts, we see the
manifestations of the power and the mercy of our Lord, who always
sought3
the good of man, though it was necessary to rebuke4
the
3
solicitado

3. physical laws of the universe or to break the power of Satan.
I - JESUS AND THE SUPERNATURAL FORCES
1. Power over nature. Up to this point, Luke had already shown Jesus
exercising power over demons and diseases (Lk 4: 31-44). Now, he
shows Him exercising his power over the forces of nature (Luke 8: 23-
25). The storm emerges here as an impersonal force, revealing that the
original harmony of creation is gone. At this moment, it stands as a
powerful force that must be stopped. Upon receiving the voice command
of the Son of God, uncontrolled forces of nature stop. Jesus puts order
into chaos. The scene was so dramatic to the disciples, as to force them
to ask the following question, "Who is this? He commands even the
winds and the water, and they obey him".
2. Power over demons. If nature is an impersonal force, the same
cannot be said of the devil. The Bible shows that he is a personal being,
that is, endowed5
with personality. Jesus and his disciples had to face
him many times. Even when describing the account of the temptation of
Christ, Luke reports that Satan had left Him until an “opportune time”
(Luke 4:13). Jesus defeated the devil in the wilderness temptation, but
after that He had other encounters with him. In fact, Scripture records
many cases of oppressed and demon-possessed people who had an
encounter with Jesus and his disciples (Luke 4:33-37,41; 6:18; 7:21; ...).
In all the cases, those people were set free and Satan was defeated.
II - JESUS AND THE REALITY OF DEMONS
1. A biblical reality. The Bible is unaware of the idea of a mythological
devil or that he is a product of human culture. In Scripture, Satan and his
demons are shown as real beings. One of the most powerful weapons
used by the devil is to try to show that he does not exist. The Bible,
however, treats Satan and his demons as beings endowed with
personality. Christ himself personally faced Satan in the wilderness and
defeated him (Luke 4:1-13). Jesus also revealed that the devil has a
kingdom and that he works in an organized manner (Luke 11:18). Such
a kingdom is so organized that the apostle Paul shows that evil kingdom
is organized hierarchically (Ephesians 6: 10-12).
2. An experimental reality. In first-century Palestine, the presence of
oppressed or demon-possessed people was an everyday reality. In the
Gospel of Luke, we find dozens of texts showing that truth (Luke 4:41;
6:18). Luke says that Jesus cured many of their diseases (Luke 7:21). In
4
Repreender; repreensão
5
Dotado

4. addition, he even records that Jesus rebuked impure spirits (Luke 9:42);
and that he saw Satan’s fall in each demon that was cast out (Luke
10:17,18). In the light of the Bible, therefore, the reality of demons
cannot be denied.
III JESUS AND THE WORK OF DEMONS
1. Jesus and the opposition of demons. The case of the liberation of
the demon-possessed man, which occurs shortly after Jesus calmed the
storm, is one of the many accounts showing how the demons entered
on a collision course with Jesus: "What do you want with me, Jesus,
Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don’t torture me!"(Lk 8:28), said
the evil spirit. This was expected to happen because of the very nature
of Jesus' mission, which is to destroy the devil's work. (1 John 3:8). This
mission was also entrusted to his disciples (Matthew 10.1, Luke 9.1) and
subsequently implemented by his church (Acts 5:16; 8:6,7).
2. Jesus and the liberation of demon-possessed people. When
asked about having healed a woman with a spirit of infirmity on the Sa-
bath, Jesus replied, "Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abra-
ham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free
on the Sabbath day from what bound her?"
(Luke 13:16). The Greek verb translated as "free" is Luo, meaning, in
this context, "to free from bonds", “untie6
”, “set free”. Jesus came to set
the captives of the devil free. This release is also seen as a healing or
deliverance from the power of evil (Luke 6:18). The word “cured” is
translated into Greek as therapeuo, hence the Portuguese word
“therapy”, meaning “heal”, “cure”, “restore health”. When releasing from
demons, Jesus also treats all the side effects (Luke 10:19).
CONCLUSION
Whether uncontrolled forces are personal or impersonal, Jesus has
power over all of them. In a world that seems inhospitable to us, where
supernatural forces appear to be bigger than us, we have confidence
that God is in control of everything.
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