Jesus answers hostile accusations

Luke 11:14-26

Once, when Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn’t speak, his voice returned to him. The crowd was excited and enthusiastic, but some said, “No wonder he can cast them out. He gets his power from Satan, the king of demons!” Others asked for something to happen in the sky to prove his claim of being the Messiah. He knew the thoughts of each of them, so he said, “Any kingdom filled with civil war is doomed; so is a home filled with argument and strife. Therefore, if what you say is true, that Satan is fighting against himself by empowering me to cast out his demons, how can his kingdom survive? And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own followers? For they cast out demons! Do you think this proves they are possessed by Satan? Ask them if you are right! But if I am casting out demons because of power from God, it proves that the Kingdom of God has arrived. “For when Satan, strong and fully armed, guards his palace, it is safe—until someone stronger and better armed attacks and overcomes him and strips him of his weapons and carries off his belongings. “Anyone who is not for me is against me; if he isn’t helping me, he is hurting my cause. “When a demon is cast out of a man, it goes to the deserts, searching there for rest; but finding none, it returns to the person it left, and finds that its former home is all swept and clean. Then it goes and gets seven other demons more evil than itself, and they all enter the man. And so the poor fellow is seven times worse off than he was before.” Regardless of how great Satan’s power is, Jesus is stronger still. Satan, who had controlled the kingdom of this world for thousands of years, was now being controlled and overpowered by Jesus and the Kingdom of Heaven. He will bind Satan and dispose of him for eternity (see Revelation 20:2, 10).

Emptied, Filled

Jesus was illustrating an unfortunate human tendency—our desire to reform often does not last long. In Israel’s history, almost as soon as a good king would pull down idols, a bad king would set them up again. It is not enough to be emptied of evil; we must then be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s new purpose in our lives. If we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, we produce the kind of fruit that pleases God (as described in Galatians 5:22-23). We do not need to fear the Spirit’s control. He does not possess us against our wills or treat us as robots.

07-25-2010 Pray for us while we are at camp. Youth’s lives will be transformed by Christ! & for Safety! That All return Saved & Healthy