Please join with me in prayer. Father, we thank you that you have dominion over all kingdoms, over all things. We thank you for your word, that you've revealed yourself to us through your word, and we ask that by your spirit, you would impress onto our hearts your truth, the truth of your gospel, Lord Jesus that more importantly we would see you and love you more for all that you've done for us help us Lord Jesus we ask this in your name we pray amen so when we look at Mark chapter 1 verses 14 through 28 this morning so while you're turning there I'm sorry, I don't know the number in the Pew Bible. Mark chapter 1, verses 14 through 28. Part of the talk in our house of late has been the study that came out that correlates the amount of screen time with shrinking your brain. I don't know if you've heard about that, but we've been talking a lot about that. My kids have rightly accused me of growing up with a lot of TV time, and they're right about that. And you may be saying to yourself, well, Pastor, that explains a lot. But when I was a kid, and they were amazed at this too, watching television early in the morning, we had three channels. The third channel didn't come in that great, so we really only had two. And when you would turn it on, I could hear Bugs Bunny long before I could see him. The tube had to warm up before you could actually see the picture. But you'd sit there and wait until the picture finally became clear. But eventually, when the cartoons were over, the Westerns came on. And I watched some Gunsmoke, some Bonanza, those kind of Westerns. And invariably in the Westerns, you come across this thing, you learn that the outlaws have got the game kind of figured out. Like if they can get outside of the town's jurisdiction, you know, you got the town marshal and he can only have authority within the limits of the town. And so they try to get outside of the town's jurisdiction. Or they cross the border and they say, you don't have any jurisdiction here, marshal. Well, now the county sheriff does, or maybe the US marshal does, but these smaller guys, they didn't. And so the whole goal was to get outside of their reach, get outside of their jurisdiction. You can't touch me here. We're going to talk a lot about jurisdiction this morning as we look at what Christ does in this first chapter of Mark. There's a couple reasons to think about that for us this morning. Sometimes we kind of wish we were outside Christ's jurisdiction. There's places where we wish he would not touch. But then maybe you may be one who thinks that you're outside of Christ's jurisdiction and there's no hope that you'll change. He has no authority at certain places in your life. It seems like darkness may have the upper hand. But you're not outside the reach of Christ. And that's what we're going to look at in Mark chapter 1 this morning. Now, before we get there, just know the early Christians, of course, they're wrestling with, I mean, they don't have power in the public square. They're persecuted. This is not, you know, a popular, well-accepted religion at the time. Some are thrown, as we looked at last week, some are being thrown to wild animals in arenas. They're hoping for some kind of the Lord who reigns over all things to kind of change the situation where they can get a little breather. And they themselves may be asking the question, okay, does the reign of Christ extend over every inch of my life? Because when I look at these things happening, it doesn't seem like it. It seems like a lot of darkness. It seems like it maybe rules the day. That's why we need this text as much as they did back then. You may believe that evil has the upper hand. You may begin to doubt that Christ truly has dominion and rule. In this land, it's wherever you see injustice. Have the upper hand wherever spiritual force seems to be intimidating or dark, whether against you. Your family, your church, and you may begin to question who really holds the power. What if we looked at the Word of God and instead of giving in to our fears and going to bed at night anxious or letting sin have the final word, we recognize that Christ's jurisdiction encompasses all things. Whether You know, instead of living like some kind of fugitive or some kind of outlaw outside of the kingdom, we think we can be outside the kingdom, but kind of sometimes live that way. Instead, what if we submitted to the gracious reign of Christ in our lives, every aspect of it? That's what this text teaches us this morning. So let's read it. Mark chapter one, verses 14 through 28. Now, after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God and saying, the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel. Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting the net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, follow me and I'll make you become fishers of men. And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little farther he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them. And they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. And they went into Capernaum and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching. where he taught them as one who had authority and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. But Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be silent and come out of him. And the unclean spirit convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice came out of him. and they were all amazed. So that they questioned among themselves saying, what is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him. And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. Now wherever Jesus Christ's foot enters or passes goes. He has authority and jurisdiction that supersedes all human authority, all human priorities, and even all spiritual borders that speaks of a greater kingdom than anything witnessed on earth. Now where do we see this? First, Just a quick one more definition of jurisdiction, just for good measure, from our own Supreme Court in 1838, the case of Rhode Island versus Massachusetts. They defined jurisdiction as the power to hear and determine the subject matter in controversy between parties to a suit to adjudicate or exercise any judicial power over them. I like that, adjudicate or exercise any judicial power them the power of judgment so here we're going to see that Jesus isn't he is not borrowing authority from some higher power he embodies it he's not echoing commands from others so we see his jurisdiction in these verses in verse 15 as he's declaring that the kingdom has come near repent and believe in the gospel. Very clearly, he's saying the kingdom is near. It is imminent. He is there. The kingdom has come. This is God's kingdom breaking in on the kingdom of man and the kingdom of darkness. And he's immediately calling them. You must repent and leave that way of life that has been apart from God. and you need to turn and come believe in the good news of the gospel. The good news being that Christ himself, that God is faithful and that he's going to do everything necessary to redeem his people out of their lostness, out of their wayward life. He is going to accomplish it all as the king. And that's the good news they're called to receive and put their faith in and believe. So he has jurisdiction to command all men and women to repent. Verses 17 and 20, he's commanding these future disciples, Simon and Andrew, casting their nets in the sea, for they were fishermen. Now we read the text this morning in Jeremiah, it was a text of judgment. Again, we've got also this picture of judgment, but in that text, it talked about God saying, I'm going to get some fishers, fishermen. And he's talking about the Babylonians are going to be fishermen, and they're going to fish all of the Israelites who have rejected me and worshiped idols instead, and we're going to bring them into judgment. Here, Jesus is using this fisherman idea in the sense of he's going to take these disciples and they're going to become fishers of men. In a sense, there is a judgment, but the fisher, the people that these fishermen retrieve will be judged not guilty, redeemed. They're to redeem and rescue through the gospel all those who have been given to Christ. And so he is calling them to this. And as you can see, it's always been astonishing to me how they respond. Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. What is it about Jesus that they just drop it all? I love how Mark in his gospel uses the word immediately a lot. We're moving along. Going on a little farther, James and John, his brother, mending the nets, and immediately he called them. And they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. I mean, even the human priorities, okay? We talk about how Christ's jurisdiction surpasses even that. Human priority would say, look, back in this day, your family was everything. You did not just abandon your family. They left him in the boat. That's the authority and jurisdiction of Christ. Verse 22, as he begins to teach in the synagogue, they're astonished at his authority in teaching, not as the scribes. See, scribes would appeal to all the rabbinical teaching. They'd say, well, Rabbi so-and-so says this. And based on that, Rabbi so-and-so says this. And based on that, Rabbi so-and-so says this. And that's how they would teach. They were always appealing to a higher authority. Jesus just taught. You can imagine if you're used to people teaching you that way, and all of a sudden you've got this guy that's just speaking as if it's his. They are astonished. They are astounded. They're disturbed. In verse 27, as we look at Jesus confronting the demon, verse 27, they were all amazed. What is this? A new teaching with authority? He commands unclean spirits? Even those obey him? Okay, it's one thing, kind of in the human realm, that this man seems to have authority, but the unseen realm? Again, they're amazed and disturbed. And so again, just as we look at wherever the presence of Christ is, wherever His foot touches, whether it's on the shore of Galilee or the synagogue floor, for that matter, your own personal fears, His rule is active and real. and even the spiritual realm submits. He doesn't compete with other powers. He overrules them. Every other authority must yield to him. A Greek word, exousia, the word for authority. It's not just power, but it's a rightful power. That's what we call jurisdiction. He's not just strong, he has the divine right to rule. So wherever he is, his reign rightly follows. Lastly, just where we see his jurisdiction and we see his authority, we see this in other scriptures as well. Obviously, it's not just in the Gospel of Mark. Matthew 28, 18, which I know you're familiar with, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. In Colossians 1 verses 13 we're told that God has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved son. So this is an invasion of a greater kingdom. We're being brought out of darkness as Christians and being placed into a greater kingdom that supersedes everything. It reshapes Every priority you and I have, it reshapes our identity and calls for our allegiance. So we can see that in the text of Mark chapter one, that Jesus does have jurisdiction. He has authority. And if we're only so simple for us to believe it that easily. even in the text itself. How does it start? The passage, verse 14. Now, after John was arrested. Already in the context of Jesus showing his jurisdiction and authority, we're reminded that John, the forerunner, who is for God, who is paving the way for Christ, is arrested. The powers that be, they want no part of this. Arrest means to stop. We do not want this kingdom. We do not want this kingdom bringer. Stop John, arrest him. Any message about that? So already, and even last week as we looked at Jesus in the midst of wild animals and temptation in the desert, the struggle is real because of our sin and what we've turned the world into. Hostile to God, hostile to the gospel. And yet in the midst of this, here comes King Jesus. So we shouldn't be surprised that we too still are disturbed with the idea that Christ has such complete authority and jurisdiction, not only over our entire life, but over all of creation. We give him access only in places of our life where we're not threatened. We already feel like we have total jurisdiction and control ourselves. In fact, we'll take some of his commands and consider them only good advice rather than the edicts of a righteous and holy king. And that's the problem. Now again, going back to the original audience, we say the early Christians listening to this, they're under Roman oppression. Does Jesus really reign? Has he abandoned us? Has he forgotten us? They'd be very much tempted to see the kingdom of Christ as maybe spiritual only. It didn't really translate into their physical, real lives. I thought Christ reigned. And so they may begin to disconnect all their suffering and persecution from The fact that, did Jesus really ordain this? Again, we compartmentalize too, in a way. We become pretty good at it. We experience this. We act like the rule of Christ and his authority only applies to certain areas for us. So we might trust him with Sunday, but not with Monday, so to speak. You might trust Jesus in the crisis you're in, but you don't even think about him day to day. Or flip that around, vice versa. You can invite him into your private beliefs in your private life, but not into your public behaviors, or invite him into your public behaviors, but not into your private life. In a sense, we domesticate the king. But of course, the heart issue we deal with when we do this is very prevalent in the Gospel of Mark of what he's going after, what Christ is going after. It's a deeper heart issue. It's one where we continually want to retain control We want kind of a selective sovereignty of Christ, in a way. We love to say that Christ is sovereign, but we really want him to be kind of selective where he's sovereign. He can rule where we're comfortable. Again, not where I'm threatened. Don't take that away. Don't change that part. So the idol that we're basically serving, again, is that it's self-rule. The first commandment violation. We want the independence. We want the autonomy. And whenever it is we give in to that idol, whenever it is we worship that idol, we are resisting the king's jurisdiction. I'm outside your jurisdiction here, Lord. No authority here. We end up reducing all of his commands to advice or maybe his kingship to influence. You know, you can be a great consultant, Lord Jesus. You're a great consultant on my life, but you're not the king. You know, advice We like to give each other advice, little wise things we say, and we may or may not adhere to it, kind of pick and choose advice. But the gospel is not just advice. The gospel is declaring that we are lost and that we have to be completely made new by Christ. And once we're made new, We've been bought with a price and we belong to Him, all of us, body and soul. We like to reframe some of our obedience as optional. That's good for them, they need that, I don't. Or even reshape what it means to be a disciple to fit our own personal goals, rather than surrendering to what Christ has called us to. So there's multiple ways that our own sinful hearts do this, even as Christians. We resist His jurisdiction. But, of course, the gospel gives us the answer we have to remember when we find ourselves and the Holy Spirit is putting His finger on these places in our life where we're resisting His rule. And as we see in his life in the Gospel of Mark, he made the disciples into fishers of men. He made them into fishers of men. He promises to make us into faithful followers and subjects of his kingdom. That's just part of the good news, guys, but that was a very good word for me to study and think about this week. Of course, why? Because the one with ultimate jurisdiction who commands all things, took our place under the law verdict. And that verdict was condemnation for rebellion and a lack of belief. He didn't do that. Jesus didn't rebel. Jesus had no lack of belief or understanding of the jurisdiction of God or his power or authority. We're the ones that did. Yet he comes under the condemnation of the law for that so that he can issue a new decree as the king. that you and I in Christ are not guilty. And now we're beloved by God. The same that said of Christ in Mark chapter one, this is my beloved son with whom I'm well pleased, is now true of those in Christ. In doing this, he transferred us out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his beloved son. He paid our entrance fee with his blood. So again, see the contrast. He didn't just proclaim a kingdom and say, now you, you better get your act together and work hard if you want to come into my kingdom. He paid the price. He didn't say, just keep the rules and I'll let you in. We were outside the kingdom and without hope, but the king came and died for us to save us. He rose from the dead, conquering death. He destroyed and defeated the devil. And He brought us in by grace. So do as a Christian and as a follower of Christ, you have to fear whether you are allowed entrance into heaven. Do I measure up to God's righteous perfect standard? If you're on your own, the answer is no, you do not. But Christ's righteousness, His standard, He met the standard in perfection and He gives you that. If you're having to measure up every week, wondering if God accepts you or not, it's going to be a rough time for you. As you and I continue to struggle with sin, even as we're talking about this morning, we continue to resist even the rule of Christ, even as we say we love him. But if Jesus has jurisdiction over sin, over Satan, over death, then he not only has certain, certainly he has jurisdiction to forgive you of everything you've done, but also to transform you. You are not beyond His reach. Again, He doesn't just call us, He promises to make us into something new. I don't know if there's one thing you hang on to this morning, but I want you to hear that. I will make you become fishers of men. That is authoritative, is declarative, that is his jurisdiction, and that is his desire for all who call upon his name. He will make you. Not only are you not guilty, but you're beloved by him, welcomed and secured. cherished children, accepted not by your performance, but all by the King's mercy." When we think about the truth of that, we're reminded that Christ reigns and the gospel is going forth. He is making us into faithful disciples amidst all of our ongoing failures and struggles. I think I put should, and we should be hopeful, but let me change that. You get to be hopeful. You get to repent. All because of Christ and His Spirit. You find immediate forgiveness in Christ. daily leaving behind old kingdom darkness ways and instead turning to believing the gospel and taking up ways of life according to the everlasting kingdom of God. That's the response we're called to. To see all that Christ has done for us, it's all by his mercy we come into the kingdom and it's all by his mercy we live in the kingdom. And he will make us into disciples. He exercises His authority in our hearts, in our habits, in our hopes. Do you believe that? I mean, instead of separating part of your life out into compartments, well, Jesus, I'll give you Sunday, but the rest of the week, I got other things going on. Things I gotta tend to for myself, I know how to deal with it. What if you yielded even those days to Christ? When we're called to an obedience that's very hard, to love a brother or sister that's really offended us, it's much easier just to gossip and trash their name. It's a lot easier, and in fact, it's a lot more satisfying to the sinful nature. It feels powerful. It's a lot harder to love them and obey the commands of Christ, to attempt what He's called us to do in Matthew 18, to go to the brother and sister that's offended us. That's a lot harder. But what instead, Realizing the love Christ had for us that he's called us into his kingdom and done everything necessary for us and will preserve us and bring us to completion That you're loved and welcome to say I'm willing to do this for you Lord. This is hard, but I'm willing to do this help me do this instead of when it's time to share the gospel and witness, where we're called to actually be a fisher of men, where those who don't know Christ are placed before us and the Spirit has opened up an opportune time to share. We do it instead of shrinking back. Because we know that he reigns in the midst of opposition all the time. Apparent opposition to us. It looks like hopelessness. It looks like this person will never change. It looks like this environment is not a place where the gospel can go forth. Yet, even as John the Baptist was arrested, Christ proclaimed the kingdom. And he's with us and empowers us to do the very same thing. The only way this is possible is because of Christ's Spirit that lives in us, that we could do any kind of change like this because we're united to Christ. Our obedience flows out of abiding with Him, and He gets all the glory. So, there's a glorious reality to knowing and thinking about the fact, the truth, that there's no part of your life outside the jurisdiction of Christ's grace. No part. If you've never received the grace of God in Jesus Christ, you've never known that you could be forgiven for the way you've lived the life before where Jesus says, leave that life, repent, turn from it and believe in me. the gospel that I will take care of you and do all things to bring you to forgiveness, to bring you to completion, to transform you and sit you with me on my throne. You could believe that now. His arms are open. His jurisdiction encompasses all. And his invitations for you. If today you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. The king has come near. His kingdom is here. Instead of being outside or attempting to be outside the line of his jurisdiction and power, which is impossible, why don't you step back across the line, not away from his rule, but step into it. Lay into it. Lay down your self-rule. Receive the pardon. Understand the purpose for which you've been called as a beloved of God. and experience the very peace that only His reign gives. Come home to the jurisdiction of God's grace. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for, again, your gospel. Lord, it's impossible for us if we're honest to go through a week or even a day and not see places where we push back against your call, against your rule. We're so thankful that we can turn to you and know freely we are forgiven in Christ. So Lord, we turn to you with our sin, believing in the gospel that we're forgiven, that we have a standing and a righteousness that comes from you. And we ask that you would encourage us, and Father, with hope, we get to see the opportunity to live more like true followers, true subjects of your kingdom, instead of the old kingdom we were a part of. We ask that you would remind us this week and help us each day. And we thank you for your promise that you will make us fishers of men. We give you thanks in Christ's name. Amen.