The Accusation of Being Controlled by the Devil

Introduction: The Two Humiliating Accusations Against Jesus

0:02 This sermon was preached on Sunday morning, September 16th, 1984, at the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey.

0:15 Now will you turn with me please to the Gospel of Mark, but this time not to the 8th chapter, but to the 3rd chapter, as we continue our expositions in Mark's inspired record of the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. We read again this morning Mark chapter 3, beginning with verse 19b, and concluding the reading with verse 30.

0:48 Mark chapter 3, 19b.

0:53 And he cometh into a house. And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when his friends heard it, they went out to lay hold on him, for they said, He is beside himself. And the scribes that came down from Jerusalem said, He has Beelzebub, and by the prince of the demons he is casting out the demons.

1:23 And he called them unto him. And he said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.

1:46 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.

1:55 But no one can stand against him. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. can enter into the house of the strong man and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man, and then he will spoil his house. Truly I say unto you, all their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and their blasphemies wherewithsoever they shall blaspheme.

2:20 But whosoever shall blaspheme against the Holy Spirit has never forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin, because, they said, he has an unclean spirit.

2:40 Let us plead with God to give us light as we come to study this portion of the word of God. Our Father, in the reading of the earlier passage, we were baffled. We were vividly reminded of the awful possibility of being dull and slow in understanding.

3:06 In the hymn we have just sung, we have acknowledged that the Holy Spirit alone is the author of true illumination. And now we come in our corporate prayer and cry with the psalmist, O Lord, do you open our eyes that we may behold. O Lord, do you open our eyes that we may behold wondrous things out of your law. Give us to understand and to feel the weight of this portion of the word upon our consciences.

3:41 Give us to see with new dimensions of understanding the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hear our cry and come to our weighty and needy hearts. We plead through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

4:04 Now I have read in your hearing this morning, as I did two Lord's Days ago, one of the most astounding and in many ways shocking passages to be found anywhere in the Gospel of Mark and in one sense anywhere in any of the four Gospel records. In this passage, our Lord, at the height of his great glory, says, The usefulness and popularity in the area of Galilee is made the brunt of two humiliating and withering accusations. In verses 19b through verse 21, we have the record of his being charged with insanity, with emotional and mental derangement, a charge that was made, according to the text of Scripture, by his friends. It was his friends, at least perhaps relatives, those who were not his avowed enemies, and were bound to him at least in virtue of some earthly ties, who with pity seek to lay hold of him because they are convinced that he was beside himself,

5:28 he was out of his mind, he was suffering a mental breakdown, and they drew that conclusion simply because he was so consumed with zeal for the work of his Father and compassion for men, that he allowed that zeal and compassion to disrupt an ordinary schedule of feeding his body. One wonders who is insane, according to this passage.

5:56 But then in verses 22 and following, we have the record of the second humiliating and withering accusation, namely, the accusation that our Lord was demon-possessed and in league with the devil himself. In our previous study, we examined the first of these accusations. Today, we take up the second, Jesus accused of being in league with the devil. And as we think our way through the passage, there will be four major headings to our study, three of them we will cover this morning, and God willing, two weeks from today, when I return from my vacation, we will take up the fourth.

The Accusation Made: Circumstances, Perpetrators, and Substance

6:40 First of all, we have the accusation made in verses 22 and 23. The accusation made. And under this heading, there are three units of thought. First of all, the circumstances of the accusation.

6:59 In Mark's gospel, there is no specific, description, of the incident or incidents which precipitated this accusation. Mark was content to leave us with the general description of the mighty works of our Lord Jesus as they were performed throughout Galilee, and in particular, his own repeated record of Jesus' mighty power in the casting out of demons. In chapter 1, verses 21 to 22, Mark gave us that graphic description of the man with an unclean spirit crying out in the synagogue and Jesus casting out the demon. Then in verse 34, he gives us this summary statement that he was healing many that were sick with diverse diseases and cast out many demons. 1 and verse 39, he went through all their synagogues preaching and casting out demons. Chapter 3 and verse 11, And the unclean spirits, whensoever they beheld him, fell down before him and cried, saying, You are the Son of God.

8:16 So Mark has been very careful to establish previous to this record of the accusation made that our Lord's ministry in Galilee was continually attended by his evident power over all demonic hosts. He was casting out many demons. And when the demons would seek to speak, he would repeatedly charge them to be silent. However, when we turn to the parallel passages in Matthew 12 and in Luke 11, there the Holy Spirit is recorded that the circumstances of this accusation were not just the general manifestation of the power of Christ in casting out demons, but that there was a specific manifestation of that power with reference to a special case of demon possession, and it was our Lord's power in that special case that precipitated this accusation. Turn to Matthew chapter 12, for here is a case where the parallel passage does indeed help us to understand more fully the whole flavor of the passage. Matthew 12, verse 22. Then was brought unto him one possessed with a demon,

9:45 blind and dumb. The demon possession in this case rendered a man sightless and speechless. He could neither see nor speak. And he healed him insomuch that the dumb man spoke and saw, and all the multitudes were amazed.

10:06 And said, Can this be the son of David? But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This man does not cast out demons, but by Beelzebub, the prince of demons. And then it's evident as we read through the remainder of this passage that Matthew is describing precisely the same incident that is here recorded in Mark chapter 3, verses 22 and following. So the serpent, who has lived in the land on earth, he's now a man of being from heaven.

10:39 He has been brought to the same place where he was a virgin. He is born into a new age. He's brought into a new world. He's brought into a new world from the time of the prophets.

10:47 He's been, by the way, brought into a new life. And he's brought into a new life in the same place where the Son of God is, which is death, and the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, I have come unto you in this world and I have come in the spirit of the Sign, the Spirit of the Holy Spirit. I have come unto you.

11:05 time, so it was well known to all who saw it, blind and speechless. And his blindness and his dumbness were attributed to the direct influence of a demon that had invaded and taken hold of his personality. And when the multitude saw the demon cast out and the blind man no longer having to feel his way, but with full sight, able to move about freely as any other man with full sight, and the man from whose lips there had not come for some time any articulation of any word, who perhaps could grunt and make signs for things he wanted, and now he speaks freely and openly, they are so astounded that against the backdrop of the general manifestation of the power, of Christ in healing, in preaching, and in the casting out of demons, some of the light begins to dawn upon them, and they raise the question according to Matthew 12 and verse 23, can this be the son of David? Instructed in the Old Testament scriptures concerning Messiah's identity

12:29 as son of David, and that, When Messiah would come as David's greater son, he would come exercising a powerful ministry of deliverance over all the powers of the enemy of God and of his people. Some of that light began to dawn as the credentials of Jesus become more and more patent so that there was a rumbling, a rumor through the crowd. Could this indeed be David's greater son? Could it be that we are actually beholding Messiah in our midst?

13:08 That the ability of this man to see and to speak is nothing less than proof that the son of David is amongst us. And Matthew says, when the Pharisees heard this, then they said, he has a demon. So you see the circumstances of the day of the Messiah. The circumstances of the accusation are very specific.

13:32 Christ's general popularity, profusion of miracles and casting out of demons, this striking incidence of the defeat of the powers of darkness beginning to move the hearts and minds of the multitudes to recognize Jesus for who he was, David's greater son. Now, this crowd of people knew from previous experience that the moment people left them to follow Jesus, that was the end of their influence. And it was that set of circumstances that precipitated the accusation. Now, notice as our second subheading, the accusation made, we've looked at the circumstances, now the specific perpetrators of this accusation. And here again, we bring the three gospel records together, the synoptics, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. And there's an interesting progression of definition. Luke simply writes, some of them, Luke 11, 15, some of them, that is some out of the crowd said, he has Beelzebub.

14:48 Matthew says that it was the Pharisees, but Mark says with even greater precision, the scribes, that is the ones from Jerusalem, the scribes, that is the ones from Jerusalem, Matthew says that it was the Pharisees, but Mark says with even greater precision, the scribes, that is the ones from Jerusalem, Matthew says that it was the Pharisees, but Mark says with even greater precision, the scribes, that is the ones from Jerusalem, said, he has Beelzebub. Now, is this a contradiction? No. There is just a wonderful synthesis.

15:11 Luke says, some of them out of the crowd. Now, obvious if they were Pharisees, Sadducees, or anything, they had to be there to see it, if they were to make comments upon it. Now, we are told by Matthew that they were Pharisees, but now we are told by Mark that there were scribes, the ones from Jerusalem, but now we are told by Mark that there were scribes, the ones from Jerusalem, there is no contradiction, for the Pharisees refers to a specific religious sect, a scribe or a doctor of the law to a specific function, and we would say office. In fact, we find the terminology in Mark, the scribes of the Pharisees.

15:48 So the Pharisees, as a sect, had their own scribes, who were the official transcribers of the text of Scripture, and had come to occupy, de facto, a place of official authority in the instruction of people out of the law of God. The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat, Jesus said. Now, it is these people who are the specific perpetrators of this accusation. Here are the ones who were following Jesus wherever he went, the religious leaders, Here are the ones who were following Jesus wherever he went, the religious leaders, Here are the ones who were following Jesus wherever he went, the religious leaders, Mark is careful to underscore, it was the scribes, that is, the ones from Jerusalem. Now, what were they doing all the way up there in Galilee? Why had they made the trip all the way from Jerusalem? Well, remember, Jesus' earlier ministry was in southern Palestine, in Judea.

16:51 And now, at this point, if you think back a couple of messages ago, you'll remember in chapter 3 we read, that in the Galilean ministry, not only were people coming to Him from all over Galilee, chapter 3 and verse 8, but from Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan and Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude hearing what things He did, came unto Him. So as the report of His mighty power in the upper part of Palestine drifted down to the southern part, not only did it draw those who wanted to see and hear and be healed, not only did it draw those who wanted to see and hear and be healed, not only did it draw those who wanted to see and hear and be healed, not only did it draw those who wanted to see and hear and be healed, But it drew up with them these great opposers of the ministry of the Lord Jesus. And so there were found on that day not a few of the scribes, that is, the Jerusalem scribes. So much for the circumstances, the specific perpetrators. Now notice what the text tells us about the substance of the accusation. And the structure of the original points to the fact that the accusation had two prongs or two dimensions.

18:00 It is not just one thought repeated, but it is a two-pronged accusation. Look at the language of the text. And the scribes that came down from Jerusalem said, He has Beelzebub. Beelzebub, and by the prince of the demons, he is casting out the demons.

18:25 So the two prongs of their accusation were these. That he was possessed by the devil, and secondly, that he was doing his work in union with and under the power and direction of the devil himself. Now in the accusation, the word Beelzebub, is used. Now what in the world does the word Beelzebub mean? Well if we just look in the text it's obvious, that everyone understood it to be a synonym for Satan or the Devil. Because we read in verse 23, And he called them unto him, that is, Jesus, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? Thou, people, say that I am doing this by the power of Beelzebub. He takes up the word Satan as a synonym.

19:16 synonym for Beelzebub. And you find that all the way through the passage and all the way through the parallel passages. Now, I will not weary you with all the theories as to how this word Beelzebub, or more literally, transliterated out of the Greek, Beelzebub, came to be a synonym for Satan. Probably the most accurate and briefest summary explanation that I found in all of my reading is given in the Baptist Commentary on the Gospel of Mark, and I'll just read these few sentences to you. The name has been variously interpreted. The name from which it came was Beelzebub, Lord of the Flies, one of the God of the Philistines. And you read about this in 2 Kings chapter 1. You remember one of the kings sent to Beelzebub to see whether or not he would recover from his sickness. The God was named Beelzebub.

20:12 He was doubtless from his supposed control over the swarms of flies and similar insects that tormented those who dwelt in the east. After a time, the Jews, thinking all heathen deities to be evil spirits, adopted this name as a title of the chief of evil spirits, but changed it by one letter, making Beelzebub into Beelzebol. Some think that this change they intentionally degraded and insulted it, even as a word, by turning it into a name which meant Lord of Dung or Lord of the Dunghill. So by changing just one letter, it becomes not Lord of the Flies, but Lord of the Dunghill. But others, apparently with better reason, make it mean Lord of the Mansion or Lord of the Dwelling, that is, Lord of the place in which evil spirits dwell or substantially head of the family of evil spirits. He who rules them as a man rules his household. This sense best corresponds to the form of the word and best suits the allusions in

21:27 the New Testament. Now that's all you need to know about Beelzebub. And you can read much more if you're interested, but the bottom line is this. Our Lord and his contemporaries understood that the word Beelzebub was not the word of the Lord. It was the word of the Lord. It was the word of Beelzebub or Beelzebul to be a synonym for Satan. And this accusation that Jesus was first of all possessed by the devil was not made for the first time on this occasion. Back in the Judean ministry we read in John's Gospel chapter 7 and verse 20, the multitude answered, you have a demon who is seeking to kill you. Jesus had told them that they were seeking to kill him for a miracle performed. And they said, ah, you're

22:21 possessed of a demon. Your irrationality is to be explained by the fact that an evil spirit has possessed you. Who's trying to kill you? Chapter 8 of John in verse 48. Here we find a repetition of that accusation. The Jews answered and said unto him, say we not well that you are a Samaritan and you have a demon? As to your pedigree, you're nothing but a half-breed. That's what they were saying. A Samaritan was a despised half-breed. Your pedigree, you're a Samaritan? Spiritually, you've been possessed by a demon. And remember the incident recorded in Matthew 12, but back in chapter 10, Jesus said if they've called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more his servant.

23:15 Not only was he charged with being possessed by the devil, he was called the devil himself.

23:23 So the substance of the accusation is very straightforward and clear. That our Lord was possessed by the devil. That's the meaning of the phrase in Mark. You have Beelzebub as an abiding present condition. You are demon possessed. And furthermore, the miracles and the wonders of the works you do, you do them in union with and in conjunction with the one who indwells you. You have Beelzebub and by the prince of demons, by his authority in league with him, you are casting out the demons. So there's the picture given to us by the word of God. The accusation coming to our Lord in a context where there could be no denial.

24:17 That he had miraculously delivered multitudes and in particular, this blind and speechless man from the power of the devil. And with all of their cynicism, with all of their unbelief, even these Jerusalem scribes could not deny that the miraculous had occurred. They are conceding that there was a real demon who had really been cast out. The question was not the activity of the casting out of the demons. The question was what lay behind the power to perform that activity. And they say he's devil possessed. He's devil controlled. So much then for the accusation given. Now notice in the second place, the refutation given by our Lord. The refutation given by our Lord. And under this heading

The Refutation Given by Our Lord: Form and Substance

25:14 note, first of all, to whom this refutation was given. The text says, verse 23, he called them unto him and said unto them in parables. And who are the them? Well, if we look at the context and check the parallel passages, he is speaking particularly to these Jerusalem scribes who made the accusation. Now this is not our Lord's normal pattern. Often he just lets accusations run off his back, as it were. Now this is not our Lord's normal pattern. Often he just lets accusations run off his back, as it were. Like water down a duck's back. But here our Lord is fulfilling the biblical mandate. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceits. And so our Lord calls this group unto him. We read in one of the parallel passages, knowing their thoughts. He didn't need to hear the murmuring that they began to spread amongst the people. This accusation that he's possessed by the devil and

26:19 works under the direction of the devil, he knew their very thoughts. And he calls them to himself. And now notice in what form the refutation is made. To whom was it made? Particularly these scribes. In what form? The text said, he said unto them in parables. He's going to refute them in a certain linguistic form. And here, parable simply means by way of similitude.

26:49 Illustrations which the most unskilled in formal logic could perceive and grasp. Not parables in the sense that we generally think of them, rather lengthy stories to illustrate a basic spiritual truth. But he's going to use analogies. He's going to use illustrations from common experience. In other words, our Lord is going to answer them, not at the plane of syllogisms and logical structures and deductions. He does that in other places. But here he's going to use the more popular approach of what we would call common sense observation that will make these people in the theater of their own conscience be utterly stilled. And in the presence of those who hear the refutation, see that that accusation was sheer nonsense. Our Lord is going to show them up publicly to themselves and to others. All right.

27:48 Having looked at whom it was made, the scribes of the Pharisees, in what form the refutation was made, parables. Now look at the substance of the refutation. The refutation begins with a question. It advances to a two-fold illustration and then it has a conclusion. And that's the pattern of the text. I didn't put it that way. The Holy Ghost did. Here it is. It begins with a question. Notice, how can Satan cast out Satan?

28:20 Beelzebub is chief of the demons, the devil himself. And you say that demons are really being cast out by me, that I'm not playing games, that real demons are losing their hold upon human personalities so that the devil's grip is being relinquished over them. He says, now the question I pose is this. How can Satan, be an adversary to himself? All men know that no intelligent power works against itself and defeats its own purposes.

29:05 You would think a man insane who said it is my purpose to erect a house. And from eight to twelve every morning, he lays up two hundred block, and from one o'clock to four o'clock, he tears them down. And you come back a week later and you say, what are you doing? He says, I'm building the foundation of a house and you watch him from 8 to 12 he lays up 200 blocks and you come back at night and there's not a block laid up you say what have you done?

29:33 he's torn down he keeps on doing it you say the poor something wrong no man intending to build a house tears down what he's established now you see everyone says that common sense tells you that well that's what the Lord is appealing to here with this question he said you say that I'm really casting out demons I'm not playing games we're not going through a charade just an apparent casting out of demons so that people are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning just an external change with no internal deliverance you're acknowledging that I am truly casting demons out of man well I ask you a question does Satan or how can Satan become an adversary to himself? the whole teaching of the Bible is that Satan is committed to possess and to regulate and to dominate as many human lives as he possibly can how can Satan now suddenly become the defeater of his own kingdom? he asks the question the answer is self evident then he gives a two-fold illustration first of all of a kingdom and then of a household and if a kingdom be divided against itself that kingdom cannot stand you see a kingdom is both an organization of human beings

31:00 and an organism with living relationships between those human beings and those who govern and lead them now the question of our Lord in this illustration is that, not the question but the assertion of our Lord is if a kingdom be divided against itself that kingdom cannot stand where do you think Marx got his notion divide and conquer? probably got it right out of the scriptures it's a known fact that no organism or organization can long stay in any posture of stabilization if it is divided against itself it becomes defenseless it slays itself and likewise Satan is a self-defeating being with a household and if a house or a household be divided against itself that house will not be able to stand what is a household? it too is both an organization of human beings and an organism with living relationships and if each person in the household is set against the other there's no recognized government rule no recognition of mutual rights everyone's a law to himself that household crumbles! now again the illustrations cannot be debated a kingdom divided against itself

32:29 falls, it doesn't stand a household divided against itself does not stand that leads then to the unavoidable conclusion of verse 26 and if Satan has risen up against himself like a kingdom divided against itself like a household divided against itself if Satan has risen up against himself and is a self-defeating being and is in reality divided he cannot stand but has an end Satan's kingdom has come to an end if he is indeed divided against himself if your accusation is true, Jesus said then the devil is bringing about the destruction of his own kingdom but you scribes know your Bibles better than to come to that conclusion for you know that it is the prerogative of Messiah to destroy the devil's kingdom you know your Bibles well enough to know that it is Messiah as God's anointed king who will put all of his enemies beneath his feet you scribes from Jerusalem know better than to take a posture that dares to assert that Satan is destroying himself and so our Lord's reputation is utterly unanswerable by these scribes from Jerusalem and then in verse 27 we have the end of the Bible which is the end of the world's history. in verse 27 we have the end of the world's history. in verse 27 we have the end of the world's history. in verse 27 we have the end of the world's history.

The True Explanation: The Stronger Man Binds the Strong Man

33:56 explanation offered by our Lord. After giving a refutation, now he moves to an explanation of what really has happened. Do you want the real answer to the question, how did the demon go out of that man who hitherto was blind and speechless? How did the demons go out of all of these people who from the multitudes could come forward and bear witness that they were under the control of demonic powers until I, Jesus of Nazareth, spoke the word of exorcism and commanded the demons to come out? Here is the true explanation. And I say it is an explanation because it begins with a word that is called an adversative. It is a strong adversative. It sets up an antithesis. The Lord is going to demonstrate a contrast. Verse 27, but, here's the true explanation, no one can enter the

34:55 house of the devil. No one can enter the house of the devil. No one can enter the house of the devil. No one can enter the house of the devil. No one can enter the house of the devil. No one can house of the strong man and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man, and then he will spoil his goods. Now what's at the heart of this parable as Jesus gives a true explanation of why these demons are being cast out? Well, he's telling them that it's impossible for a well-guarded house to be plundered by another person unless the plunderer is stronger than the owner and guardian of the house. And if you look at the parallel passage in Luke, you get the impression that the Lord is not describing an ordinary house kept by an ordinary man, but in Luke 11 and verse 21, he says, when the strong man, fully armed, guards his own place, he will spoil his goods. Now what's at the heart of this parable as Jesus gives a true explanation of why these demons are being cast out? Well, he's telling them that his goods are in peace, but when a stronger than he shall come upon him and overcome him, he takes from him his whole armor wherein he trusted and divides his plunder or his spoils. Now you kids, listen. Ever see a picture of a pirate?

36:14 You know what a pirate was? We have pirates in our day, but not after the figure of this passage or after our illustration. The Lord Jesus is using the illustration. It probably has its closest parallel in our perception to that of a pirate. Now think with me of a hardened pirate. He's been 20 years engaged in piracy. He's lost one eye and he has one of those patches over his eye, scars on his face and down his arms. He's six feet four inches tall. I'm about six foot one with my shoes on, so three inches higher. And he weighs 230 pounds and there's not an ounce of fat on him. It's all bone and muscle and sinew and scar tissue. I mean he is a real pirate. You got a picture of him now with his scraggly hair and beard and a patch over his eye and his shirt torn and every time he just moves his arm there's a ripple of hardened muscle and he's a wise warrior. He's boarded dozens of ships and subdued hundreds of soldiers. He's

37:22 Australian. wrong man. He just doesn't have a big voice and a big sword. But he's produced over the long haul in piracy, and he's gathered his loot from his 20 years of piracy, and he has it all in his place where it's set apart. No windows of access, all reinforced concrete or thick stone, whatever pirates use to build their lair and hide their loot. And in it, there's all the fine china and the gold and the silver that he has pirated from ships upon the high seas. And now he sits in front of the one place of access, cross-legged, arms like this, short sword in his teeth, long sword stuck through his belt. Lying next to his side is his musket. I mean, this guy is armed to the teeth. And you happen to come

38:18 along and you see a most strange thing. You see someone crawling up on his hands and knees, approaching the pirate's lair, the pirate's den. And they desire to take away all of his jewels and all of his hoarded possessions. And as you look a little closer, you find it difficult not to begin to giggle, because you notice what's crawling up to take on the pirate is a little scrawny guy about five feet seven, a hundred and seven pounds, and all he's got on is a bathing suit.

38:52 suit. Unlike young David, he doesn't have a slingshot, doesn't have a pea shooter, doesn't have for nothing. See, that poor guy, he's going to squash him. He's going to mash him.

39:06 And sure enough, the blue guy gets up and stands in front of the pirate and says, I want what's in your house. And the pirate goes, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Take it if you can. Ha, ha, ha. See, a real pirate's laugh. And then, lo and behold, this poor fellow that just really something wrong with him, he comes charging at the pirate. And all the pirate does is with one back of his hand, he just swats him across the shoulders and sprawling every which way, pulling it out. You say, well, that fellow's never going to get in there and plunder the pirate's goods. Why? The pirate's too strong for him. And he says, well, that fellow's never going to get in there and plunder the pirate's goods. You may watch day after day from your place of hiding, different people come. Each one who comes, some of them the pirate doesn't laugh with such disdain. He must go out and really wrestle with them and fight with them. But ultimately, he either dries them off,

40:02 defeated and bleeding, or he leaves them dead at his feet and throws their carcasses into the woods. But then one day, one day, you see someone coming towards the pirate's lair, not six foot four. Six foot eight. Three hundred and twenty pounds. He looks like some of the biggest offensive linemen in the NFL. And just like the pirate, you look for a little roll of fat here, there, there, just isn't any. And this guy is just absolutely awesome in his physical strength and bearing. And he too comes armed with him. And he comes into the

40:53 minutes of the clashing of steel and the grunts and the groans. And then in a few minutes, the pirate lies dead at his feet. And he goes through and opens the door and marches out and begins to load up all of his donkeys with the pirate's goods. What's happened? Someone stronger than the pirate has come and defeated the pirate so that he might take his goods. Now that's just...

41:23 This is a Jesus parable just dressed up into piracy. That's what Jesus is saying. Now you want a true explanation of what's happened? Here's the explanation. The explanation is not that I am demon possessed and in league with the devil. That's utterly irrational. Can Satan defeat Satan? A kingdom divided itself cannot stand. A household divided against itself cannot stand. But here is the true condition. The strong man, the spiritual pirate, the devil, has gone forth to sally forth into the world to capture what? Not gold and gems and jewels, but human souls. And he's put

42:12 them in his lair, in his prison. And he sits by the door and he defies anyone to take his goods. And as long as that man was blind and speechless, the devil could sit at his door. And he could sit at his door and he could sit at his door and he could sit at his door and laugh. Who can touch my goods? Jesus said, I'll tell you who's touched his goods. I'm the six foot eight, three hundred and twenty pound strong man. I have come and have bound the strong man. And now I'm taking his goods. And the fact that that man can see and speak is not evidence that I'm demon possessed. And in league with the devil, it's evidence that the devil's met his match and is going down to defeat. That's the true explanation. That's the explanation of the whole message of God's blessed truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. That the stronger

43:22 than the strong man has come. And from the moment of his baptism, when he identified himself with sinners, what is the next crucial activity? He goes into the wilderness to come into his first hand to hand combat with the devil. And when that combat is over, what does the scripture tell us? The devil departed for a season. He left with his tail between his legs to mix the metaphors. Then he was engaged throughout the earthly ministry of the Lord. And when the devil would seek to use the vocal chords of those who were in his hands, he said them, which I've heard and I've heard them say, not with the devil. But they were not in their homes but with the people of the world.

44:10 The first thing the man knew was that he was demon possessed. He wasn't a demon. He was just a devil. It didn't matter to him what his name was. The devil was never human. It was never human in the first place. Eternally in the first place. The devil was one who came from the dead. The devil didn't come from the dead. He came from the dead. He came from the dead. And The works of the devil. And that's precisely what he did in his life, in his ministry, but supremely in his death and in his glorious resurrection. And that's the explanation for why the blind and the speechless man could now see and speak. Now, what does all of that say to us? Well, by way of application, let me press home three very evident truths that lie right on the surface of the passage.

Application 1: The Horrible Picture of the Human Heart Duped by Empty Religion

45:09 First of all, this passage presents a horrible picture of the human heart and mind, especially when that heart and mind are duped by empty religion. What a horrible picture of the human heart and mind, when duped and prejudiced by empty religion. Here these scribes of the Pharisees see everything that the common multitudes see. And the multitudes are beginning to draw a connection between what they see and all the ancient prophecies about Messiah.

45:51 Surely, no one could do more than he has done to me. The picture of David's greater son, is this not the son of David? When they heard that, they said, he has beheaded him up by the prince of the devils. He is casting out devils.

46:11 How could intelligent men make such a foolish statement? Jesus shows up the folly of it. Can Satan cast out Satan? Does a kingdom intent on success divide itself up and destroy itself?

46:26 Does a household committed to stability turn in upon itself and consume itself like a pool of pariahs or barracuda? Of course not! Anyone can see how stupid their explanation was. Yet they were men who lived in the scriptures.

46:45 Their official task was to transcribe the text of the Old Testament and to expound it. And yet when they see what they cannot deny, is the actual text, casting out of devils, so blind, so dull, so perverse with their hearts and minds, they'd rather draw a conclusion that a seven-year-old child could see through, than admit that he might be who he said he was. I tell you, as I studied this passage, it humbled me afresh to say, oh God, left to myself, that's the conclusion my heart would make. My heart left to itself determined to maintain its independence, its pride, its self-righteousness, unwilling to take the posture of a needy, unclean, undone sinner, and to see in Jesus Christ the only hope of salvation. I too would live with conclusions as irrational and nonsensical as the one with which these scribes of the Pharisees were living. And listen to me. Some of you are sitting here today living with conclusions, conclusions about Jesus Christ just as ridiculous.

48:04 And you know what the bottom line is? You love your sin. And any conclusion you make about Christ that's accurate, you know is a conclusion that draws one great implication in its train. You've got to leave your sin.

48:22 You've got to leave your sin! And it's your sin that you love! The Pharisees, it may be the sin of self-righteousness. We're not Gentile dogs!

48:35 We! We are Abraham's seed! It may be some sin in terms of a foul and vile lust. It may be ambition.

48:45 But whatever it is, this is the common denominator, the reason you will not confess Christ to be what He evidently is as He is proclaimed in His Word. And listen, as you have seen Him work in the lives of men and women around you, the one reason you will not acknowledge it is you know you're going to have to forsake your sin. Now, stop all the smokescreen, and everything else, and get honest. Isn't that the issue?

49:10 You won't leave your sin. Your sin of self-sufficiency, your sin of pride, your sin of lust, your sin of ambition and greed! What a horrible thing is the human heart that in the face of the gracious Son of God, who is God's strong man, who's come to do what? Not shut us up in a prison house called the Christian life, set us free from the devil, but rather call Him the devil, and be set free from the one who's got us in this prison house, and sits with arms folded in front of the door.

Application 2: A Powerful Plea for Unity in God-Ordained Institutions

49:46 I say this passage presents a horrible picture of the human heart and mind, particularly when duped by empty religion. But, and I only touch on this briefly, and I want to come to the third, it presents a powerful plea to the maintenance of unity in every God-ordained organization and organism. I could preach a whole sermon from that secondary application. I just simply want to point towards it.

50:13 Jesus establishes as a fundamental axiom of human experience, every kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Every household divided against itself cannot stand. What a plea to maintain unity at any cost, short of sin, in any God-ordained organization and organism. And if I understand, my Bible, God has three, the home, the state, and the church.

50:44 You and I, as those who understand this, ought to resist anything that disrupts the unity of home, church, or state. Only when the pursuit of righteousness demands that disruption, Jesus said, I came not to send peace but a sword. Attachment to Christ will sometimes disrupt the peace and the harmony of a home. I fully understand that.

51:10 I fully understand. That a state may become such a promoter of sin and ungodliness, that the price for commitment to righteousness may be imprisonment or death at the hand of the state. I know that. I'm fully aware of the exceptions.

51:26 But the general principle is this. Short of sin, we must cherish the unity of every God-ordained organization and organism, because without it, it turns inward upon itself and itself destructs. That's why the Bible says, These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are an abomination to him. And you know what the last one is?

51:48 Proverbs 6, 19. He that sows discord among the brethren, that sows discord. Why? He's sowing the seeds that bring the church down in self-destruction.

52:07 God uncovers those who for years have carried out a campaign of insidious efforts to disrupt our unity. We must hate those whom God hates with a pure and holy hatred. Praise for their conversion, yes, but in their state of commitment to disrupt the house of God. Do not I hate them that hate thee with perfect hatred?

52:35 We read it in Psalm 101 this morning. May God take all the jellyfish sentiment out of us and give us holy principle to stand where God stands. I leave you to work out. There are no further implications, but now the final application.

Application 3: A Wonderful Display of the Person and Work of Jesus as Deliverer

52:55 This passage presents a wonderful display of the person and work of the Lord Jesus. 1 John 3, 9 says, For this purpose the Son of God was manifested to destroy the works of the devil. Now follow closely. I am not saying that every unconverted man, woman, boy or girl is demon-possessed, but I am saying every one of you is devil-controlled.

53:30 There is a difference. Ephesians 2, 1-3 says that every person who is yet unregenerate, dead in sin, walks according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the Spirit who is at work in the sons of disobedience. 2 Timothy 2, 26 speaks of those who are taken captive, captive by him unto his will. John 8, 44 says, You are of your father the devil and the lust of your father it is your will to do.

54:02 Hear me, unconverted man, woman, boy or girl, hear me. Listen, listen. I am not saying your personality has been invaded by a personal evil spirit and that if you are not a Christian you are demon-possessed. I am not saying that, but I am saying this.

54:18 You are devil-controlled. And there is only one way to get out from under his control. That is to have the stronger than the strong man do his work in your heart and life. The one who conquered him in life, conquered him in death, conquered him in resurrection, can conquer him in your life.

54:41 He can break those chains of lust that bind you to that woman with whom you are bound in such cords of lust and sinful illicit sexual relationships that you sitting there today, say, I could not break away if I wanted to. I have good news. Jesus Christ can change your could and your want. He can change your want and he can change your can and your could and your cannot and your could nots.

55:13 He is the stronger than the strong man. Sitting there today, bound to your fears, feeling the lash of the strong man, the devil himself who lashes you with those terrible lashes.

55:28 The one who is going to make you the kind of fiend. The one who can take away your pain. The one who can take away the pains of your inner sorrow. And he can make you who you need him to find.

55:40 Who can snatch as it were the whip from his hand. Jesus Christ can and does for all who come to him and see that he bore in his own body the wrath of God against sin. That fleeing to him and to the fount an open to the liberty of the forgiven and the cleansed sons and daughters of God. Oh, how this passage sets forth a marvelous display of the person and work of the Lord Jesus.

56:13 Why do you despise so gracious a Savior? Why do you remain indifferent to so mighty a Deliverer? He's come to do now what He did then to set at liberty the captives. And you believe His lie that the quickest way to bondage is to become a Christian.

56:33 That's the lie the devil tells you. He says, come a Christian? Why don't you stop doing this? Stop doing that?

56:39 You start doing this and you'll end up going to prayer meet and reading your Bible. You won't watch those stupid things you're watching. I mean, that's just...

56:47 My friend, listen. Take it from many of us who've been on both sides. The devil's a cruel master. Christ is a gracious, gracious Lord.

56:57 His yoke is easy. His burden is light. Oh, don't believe the devil's lies that keep you in his prison house. It's his lies that keep you locked up.

57:08 Believe Him who is the truth who said, come, and I will give you rest. My yoke is easy. My burden is light. Oh, come to the very Savior to whom the multitudes flocked there, probably back in Capernaum.

57:23 And those who could not help them, themselves came into His presence. And He did for them what they could not do for themselves. And that's the gospel. We don't tell you to do something for yourself.

57:36 We tell you, go to Him who can do for you what you cannot do for yourself. And ask Him to do it for you in His grace and in His mercy. He hath the elves above. No, blessed be God, the Spirit of the Lord.

57:50 God was upon Him. In one of the parallel passages, Jesus said, if I, by the Spirit of God, cast out demons, then has the kingdom of God come among you. And you see where Christ is present by the Spirit, breaking the power of the devil. That's God's kingdom come into the hearts and lives of men.

58:14 His kingdom is here. Many of you were once in that prison house. And the devil, like the pirates, sat there gloating in the fact that he had you safely absconded in his place, but now you're free. Not because you were clever, not because of anything you did, but because of the grace and the power of Jesus.

58:37 Oh, my dear sinner friend, plead to Him. Cry to Him. Throw yourself upon Him. And child of God, live out what God has made you.

Closing Prayer and Future Study

58:48 His free man, that you might be Christ's bond slave, bound to Him in cords of love and affection. Amen. God willing, in our next study, we'll take up that final thread in the passage. The sober warning of our Lord with which the passage closes.

59:08 And let us pray that God will help us to come to that passage looking in on the warning from the outside and not as those to whom it is directed. Because we have heard things such as we've heard today and go on our way saying, oh well, another service, another sermon, another harangue, all of that will be in a minute, the challenges that we must face. Not that we should say, well what, it's just a confession, it's a way of saying this. We have heard it.

59:40 We have heard it. We haven't heard it before. It's been a long time, they have been passing away, by christ's grace, by his grace, because we've been displays, we haven't heard it for ten years. And yet they've been there for ten years in their homes in their homes, in their homes.

60:03 For many, many years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, ten years, goods having bound the wicked one we thank you for that mighty deliverance wrought on behalf of needy sinners and oh this day may some who came to this hour in the prison house be set free by the power of christ we thank you for our lord jesus and we pray that his own word taught and preached and applied this morning will do its saving and sanctifying work in all of our hearts and to your name and your name alone be praise honor and glory now and forevermore amen