ESCAPING OUR ATTENTION

 There's something going on in the Gospel records that can be overlooked if we're not careful. Let's take a look at Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

It doesn't matter what Gospel record you choose to read, you find the same overlooked event happening. You'll notice the power of the Word of Christ. For example, He often confronted demonic beings. These unclean spirits are the angels we designate as "fallen" because they took part in Satan's rebellion as recorded in Isaiah's five "I wills." (Isaiah 14:13-14). Their Luceriferian assignment is to snatch away the gospel from the lost lest they believe and are saved. (Luke 8:12). 

During these confrontations, Jesus issues commands to them: "Shut up! Come out of him!" (Mark 1:25). In the famous incident in Mark 5, Jesus orders the unclean spirit, "What is your name!" and the demon obeys by telling Him. It's at this time that Jesus tells them to enter the swine and they obey. These two incidents will suffice; you can read about other interactions with the spirits and Jesus commands to them.

When we read further in Mark's record, we read of Jesus' issuing this command to the wind of a Sea of Galilee gale: "Hush! Be still!" (Mark 4) The winds obey and immediately they became perfectly calm. 

But reading further in the divine records, something very much different occurs. On several occasions, after Jesus heals someone, He issues the same order to them: "Tell no one." For example, in Mark 7:36, after healing a deaf mute, we find this: "And He gave them orders not to tell anyone; but the more He ordered them, the more widely they continued to proclaim it." 

Then we read about the egregious case of disobedience when Christ healed a leper: "Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. ⁴³ And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away, ⁴⁴ and He *said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” ⁴⁵ But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that ^[a]Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but ^[b]stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere." (Mark 1)

Now we come to the escaping-our-attention-part. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of Glory, forces the wind to obey Him; He forces the demons to submit to His commands. But in the instances given above, He commands but does NOT force obedience. The question is, "Why?" 

The answer is that free will exists and Christ will not violate it. In the Gospels, we see the active opposition to Jesus' Person, work, and claims of Christ mushrooming. But He doesn't stop it, although He could have. 

In the most important issue that faces any human being, "Who do you say Jesus is," the unforced choice is yours--is He the Son of God who did for all your sins, past, present, and future? Did He rise from the dead? Is He the only one you trust for eternal life? God does not predetermine your choice. You choose to have nothing to do with His Son and He will let you have your go your way apart from Him. But remember, Hell will be locked from inside.