Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, “By Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.” Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven.
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebul. Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.”
As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.”
He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (Luke 11:14-28 NIV)
There are lots of sides in life. That’s very clear this weekend. Know what I’m thinking of? Basketball! The NCAA tournament. There’s Auburn or Duke or Houston or Florida or… Lots of sides! But there are really only two sides in life: God and Satan. There are lots of kingdoms in life. We hear about them on the news: The United States, China, Mexico, Russia, Canada… But there are really only two kingdoms: God’s and Satan’s. There are lots of outcomes in life: Rich, poor, married, single, doctor, welder, teacher… But there are really only two outcomes in life: Heaven and hell. Today God’s Word confronts us with this question: Whose side are you on?
A couple months ago, one of our catechism students came to class with a sad story. At school that day, a classmate wore a unique t-shirt. The shirt had a cross with an X through it. It said, “What sin should I commit today?” Our student went up to the classmate and asked why she was wearing that. She said, “Don’t worry, I don’t wear it on Sundays.” Huh. Whose side is she on?
Before we criticize her, don’t we all have that shirt? No, not that actual shirt. But how often do you and I sin? Sometimes even willingly? “What sin should I commit today?” Don’t we all have her attitude, at least sometimes? To be one person at work and another on Friday nights and another on Sunday mornings. “It’s okay as long as I make it to church on Sunday. Sometimes.” It seems like that girl likes to play lots of different sides. Do you? Do I? Whose side are you on?
As our lesson starts, Jesus drove out a demon from a man who was mute. In the Bible, Jesus constantly confronted Satan and his demons. As soon as the demon left, the mute man was able to speak. Most of the crowd was amazed, but some weren’t so impressed. They thought they had Jesus all figured out. They said, “By Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.”
So who’s Beelzebul? That is a weird name. Beelzebul seems to mean: “Lord of dung.” There’s a similar name that I bet you’ve heard: Beelzebub—with a “b.” Beelzebub seems to mean: “Lord of flies.” Catching all this? Both names come from the name, “Baal.” Have you heard of him? In the Old Testament, many pagan nations believed in a false god called “Baal.” Bible scholars aren’t sure why people were using the name Beelzebul in Jesus’ day, but the point is clear: It was a name for Satan. For the devil. Those people were saying, “Jesus you are using Beelzebul’s power—you are using Satan’s power—to drive out demons. You’re on the same side as Satan!”
Jesus responded with some very famous words: “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall.” Who else said that? Abraham Lincoln. President Lincoln quoted Jesus during the Civil War. In a civil war, who loses? Everyone. We should remember that, especially with the way that some people are talking in our country today. “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined.” What was Jesus’ point? “I’m not driving out demons by the devil’s power! If I were, the devil would be fighting against himself.”
This is a place where we can sense a little sarcasm in Jesus’ voice: “Yes, sure, that makes so much sense. I’m using Satan’s power to destroy Satan. You have me figured out! Not! Satan is evil, but he isn’t a moron! Come on, guys!” Their argument didn’t make any sense. Jesus added, “Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your followers drive them out?” Their criticism of Jesus was actually criticizing themselves. This is how it usually works when people criticize God and his Word: It doesn’t make sense, and they end up criticizing themselves.
So Jesus told them the truth, “But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” There was a better option. Jesus wasn’t driving out demons using Satan’s power. How was he driving out demons? “By the finger of God.” There was another kingdom in the world: God’s kingdom. “The kingdom of God has come upon you.” In other words, “Yes, Satan is real. Satan has a kingdom. Satan has power over people. But Satan isn’t the only one who has a kingdom. God has a kingdom too. I’m bringing you God’s kingdom!”
To describe how this works, Jesus told a little story: “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.” Who is Jesus talking about? Well, the strong man is … Satan. He really is strong. He guards his kingdom. But there is a stronger Man … Jesus! Jesus overpowered Satan and plundered him. This fight is constantly going on behind the scenes. Two strong men—Satan vs. Jesus. But Jesus is stronger.
Whose side are you on? This is important! There are only two options. Jesus says, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Contrary to what we like to think, there is no middle ground. Nobody is neutral. Either you are with Jesus or you are against Jesus. There is no other option. Either you are gathering people closer to Jesus, or you are scattering people away from Jesus. There is no other option. “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Jesus asks us, “Whose side are you on?”
How would you answer that? I bet you would say, “God’s side!” I don’t think anybody here would say, “I’m on Satan’s side!” No way. But think about this: The people who were criticizing Jesus… Whose side did they think they were on? God’s side too. The people who refused to believe in Jesus but asked for more signs… Whose side did they think they were on? God’s side. Huh. There’s a warning here for us, isn’t there? You can think you’re on God’s side and be wrong. You can think you’re on the path to heaven and be wrong. Whose side are you on?
The truth is, by nature, all of us are on Satan’s side. When we confess our sins, we often say, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5). The New Testament puts it like this, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins” (Ephesians 2:1-2). Every one of us, by nature, is a citizen of the devil’s kingdom. Do you realize that? Do we have the power to switch kingdoms? To defeat the devil and join Jesus? No.
We’re just like that mute man in our lesson. What could he do to free himself from the devil? Nothing. Did he just need to think more positive thoughts? No, that doesn’t cure demon-possession. Did he just need to say the right words? No, he was mute. He couldn’t say anything. Did he just need to do more good deeds? Do you see how foolish all this is? He couldn’t do anything to save himself from the devil. He needed to be rescued and saved by God’s grace.
Just like you and me. I’m not saying that you’re possessed by a demon. I am saying that by nature we all need to be rescued from the devil. The greatest danger in life is when you don’t realize that. Maybe Jesus will open your eyes to your need for his rescue today. How often do you use God’s name to slander, like those Pharisees did? Whose side are you on? What sins do you know are wrong in your life, but you refuse to repent of them? Whose side are you on? How many different people are you? One at work. One on Friday nights. One on Sunday mornings. You can’t be in two kingdoms at the same time. Nobody is neutral. Whose side are you on?
If ever you realize how powerful Satan is, if ever you realize how stuck in sin we all are, then hear Jesus’ words, “If I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” Do you hear what Jesus is saying? Jesus has enough power in one finger to crush Satan like an ant. Through his perfect life and his innocent death and his resurrection from the dead, Jesus overpowered the devil. Jesus has brought the kingdom of God to you and me.
“If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). This is what Lent is all about: How Jesus set you and me free. Jesus freed you from your sins when he took all your sins to the cross and died for them. You are freed from your sins. You are forgiven! Jesus freed you from death when he rose from the dead and gave eternal life to all who believe in him. You are freed from the fear of death. You have heaven waiting for you. Jesus freed you from the devil by welcoming you into the family of God. When you were baptized, you were born again into God’s family. Into God’s kingdom. “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” You are free!
So now what? Jesus describes how an evil spirit is driven out of a person, travels around looking for someone to torment, and then goes back to the same person. How does he find him? “It finds the house swept clean and put in order.” He finds the person all empty. What does the demon do? He gets seven demon friends, and they all live in that person again. What’s Jesus saying? We need to be filled up with something. You can get rid of one sin, but if you don’t get filled up with something better, you’ll just latch on to something else. What do we need to be filled with?
At that moment, a woman called out, “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.” Jesus had one true supporter in that crowd! But Jesus corrected her words. He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” What do we need to be filled with? The Word of God. When Jesus wipes the devil and sin out of your heart, there’s a space there. It needs to be filled. We all long to be filled up with something. What do we need to be filled with? The Word of God. “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
Know what the Word of God says? “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” What a promise! Jesus and his Holy Spirit are so much greater than the devil and his demons. “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” The Bible adds, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” There is no power like Jesus. If Jesus is for you, can your sin stand against you? No. Jesus took it away! If Jesus is for you, can the devil overpower you? No. Jesus has overpowered him. If Jesus is for you, what do you need to fear? No one. Nothing.
So whose side are you on? This is so important. There seem to be so many sides in life. But there really aren’t. There are just two sides: Jesus or Satan. Sin or righteousness. Heaven or hell. There’s no middle ground. Not according to Jesus: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” But remember this: Jesus is for you. He proved that once and for all when he died for you on the cross. Jesus is for you! So whose side are you on?
(To listen to this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior podcast, please click HERE. To watch this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior YouTube channel, please click on the link below.)
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