Matthew 12:22–29 continued
22Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” 24But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”
25And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26“If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27“If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. 28“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29“Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
Focused Thinking:
Jesus responded to their illogical accusation by saying:
Any KINGDOM divided against itself is laid waste.
Any CITY divided against itself will not stand.
Any HOUSE against itself will not stand.
If SATAN casts out SATAN, he is DIVIDED against himself, how then will his KINGDOM STAND?
Jesus proves how ILLOGICAL their accusation is.
27“If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges.
Everyone understood the name BEELZEBUL as referring to SATAN, the PRINCE OF DEMONS or the LEADER of DEMONS.
Jesus was saying, “If it takes Satan’s power to drive out demons, then those of your own group who claim to drive out demons must also be demon-possessed.” The Pharisees who had cast out demons would “judge” these other Pharisees for implying that being able to exorcise demons meant being in league with Satan.
28“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29“Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
WOW! What a CONTRAST!
Jesus cast out demons by the Spirit of God.
This is also evidence that the kingdom of God has come upon you.
The King of the Kingdom has arrived.
The REIGN and RULE of the KING has arrived.
This picture reflects a situation in the ancient world where wealthy people’s homes were virtual fortresses, and their servants could form a small army.
Jesus called Satan a strong man in this parable. His house is the realm of evil where there is sickness, demon possession, and death (refers to a possessed individual in whom Satan’s demons live).
Satan’s property are the demons—those beings through whom he carries out his work in the world. The only way his property could be “plundered” would be for someone to first tie up the strong man; the only way for the demons to be cast out is for someone to first overpower Satan. Jesus’ advent into the world did just that (1 Jn 3:8). Jesus’ actions reveal that Satan can never overcome him.
Although Satan still works in our world, God is in control. Jesus, as God, has “tied up” Satan in one sense; Satan’s ultimate doom is sure, and his power over death was broken at Christ’s resurrection.
Jesus and his disciples were able to drive out demons and end their terrible work in people’s lives. As such, every exorcism was a binding of Satan; one day Satan will be bound forever (Rev 20:10).
Jesus was not in league with Satan, as the Pharisees tried to claim; rather, he had overpowered Satan by refusing his temptations and by constantly freeing people held in Satan’s grasp—either through demon possession or through the power of sin.
Personal Application:
We must also bind the strong man today.
Satan is binding us today with our love of self, love of money and love of pleasure.
Satan is binding us today with the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the boastful pride of life.
- We must claim authority over darkness today.
- We must play offense instead of defense.
- We must engage the culture instead of escape the culture.
We must unite as a church and claim our authority over the enemy.
We must live in the confidence of being the light instead of the fearing the darkness.
We must be an ARMY instead of an ASSEMBLY.
Interactive Prayer:
Father, do it for Your glory. Father, give me the discipline of a navy seal. Father, give me the vision, strategy and authority of a commander. Father, give me the ability to build soldiers. Give me the ability to lead our soldiers to fight and win the battles over evil. Father, give us Your POWER to fight Your battles. Father, give us Your SPIRIT to fight Your battles. Father, EMPOWER us. Make us soldiers who destroy the altars of our enemies and build Your altars on top of their altars. Father, glory Yourself through us.
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