Although Satan is a real and powerful foe, we need not fear him. Jesus has attacked and overpowered him, and taken away his weapons. He calls all of us to side with Him, and obey His word.
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Jesus – The Conqueror of Satan
Luke 11:14-28
When it comes to the subject of Spiritual Warfare, there are two great mistakes we make. Either we over-emphasize it or we under-emphasize it. Some believers look for the devil under every rock and behind every tree. They blame every sin and problem in their lives on demons that need to be cast out. Other believers completely ignore this spiritual battle, and believe that Satan and demons are just fictional emblems of evil.
Perhaps it would be helpful to see how Jesus approached the subject of Satan and demons. We find from this passage in Luke that Jesus believed that Satan and demons are very real beings. He speaks of Satan, very matter of factly in verse 18, and he speaks of the reality of demons in verse 19 and 20. In fact, Jesus spent much of His earthly ministry casting out demons, as well as healing the sick, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom. No, Satan and demons are not the inventions of a Biblical writer’s overactive imagination. However, we need not cower in fear before Satan, because Jesus has attacked and overpowered Him, and stripped him of his weapons. Therefore, we can face any attack of Satan’s in the power of the Lord and in the strength of His might. If our faith is in Him, we will be more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
In our story this morning we have three things taking place: An Accusation, A Refutation, and an Application. Let’s work our way through the text, and then seek to discover how God wants us to respond to Him from this text this morning.
1. The Accusation (11:14-16)
The Demon Cast Out: Verse 14 says, “And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed.” One day Jesus came face to face with a demon-possessed man who couldn’t talk. Perhaps he was making grunts and groans, but he couldn’t form any words. Jesus knew that this was happening because a demon was controlling this man. So, Jesus simply cast him out. The result? The man began to speak normally! Can you imagine the shock and surprise on the faces of all the people who heard him speaking normally, when five minutes before he couldn’t make any intelligible sounds? This is an interesting story, because it shows us that demons can control certain parts of the person they inhabit. In Mt. 12:22 there is an example of a man who is blind and mute. When Jesus cast out that spirit, he both spoke and saw. In Luke 13:11, we find a woman who was bent double who couldn’t straighten up at all, caused by an unclean spirit. Demons are real and can bring a great deal of suffering and anguish into people’s lives.
The Accusation: Verse 15 says, “But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” We learn from Matthew 9:34, that it was the Pharisees who brought this accusation against Jesus. They said that Jesus was able to cast out demons because He was Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons. Beelzebul was a common nickname for the devil in the first century. Now, why in the world, would they ever conclude that? It seems to me that they were desperately trying to come up with something to discredit Jesus. Everyone knew that these miracles were real, so they couldn’t discredit them by claiming that they were sleight of hand or the result of magic. No, they hated Him. He didn’t fit in with their ideas of how religious people should act. He went around healing on the Sabbath, and allowing His disciples to pluck and eat grain on the Sabbath. Furthermore, He wasn’t afraid to confront them, as we will see in the second half of this chapter. What’s more, the religious leaders were noticing that more and more people were following Jesus, and His influence in Israel was growing larger and larger. Back in Luke 6:11, after Jesus had healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath it says, “But they themselves were filled with rage, and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.” They couldn’t just let this miracle of casting out a demon stand uncontested. They had to do something, so they came up with this really lame accusation.
The Test: Verse 16 tells us that others of these religious leaders were demanding that He give them a sign from heaven. Why? To test Him. They had no faith in Him as the promised Messiah. They were demanding that He produce a miracle for them on the spot. This is very strange, in that He had just did a miracle in their presence, by casting out the demon so that the mute man was now speaking.
2. The Refutation
It Was Illogical: Jesus answers their accusation in verses 17-18, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against itself falls. If Satan also is divided agaginst himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.” Jesus was saying to them, “Why would Satan cast out his own spirits from people that they possessed. If he did that, he would be fighting against himself, and his kingdom would crumble and fall.” It doesn’t make any sense. It was a crazy, insane suggestion, that any sane person could see right through. If Satan is casting out Satan, it would be like a man who takes out a gun and deliberately shoots himself in the foot. Only a mentally deranged individual would do that.
It Was Inconsistent: Jesus continues by saying, “And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges.” There were some Jewish exorcists who also cast out demons in that day. Both Jesus and they were having the same results in casting out demons. It stands to reason that they were both doing it by the same power. Now, the religious leaders would never admit that their own exorcists were doing it by the power of Satan. So, why were they singling out Jesus and saying that He, and He alone was casting out demons by the power of Satan? They were being entirely inconsistent, and these Jewish exorcists would be their judges.
It Was Ignorant: Jesus continues in verses 20-22, “But if I cast 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 undisturbed. But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder.” This accusation showed a complete ignorance of who Christ was. It showed their ignorance of the fact that He was the King of God’s kingdom (20). It showed their ignorance that Jesus was the Ruler of Satan (21-22). Satan is the strong man, who is fully armed with all kinds of weapons. He guards those people that he rules over so that none can escape. However, Jesus is the Stronger One! The religious leaders were ignorant of the fact that Jesus was casting out demons because He was attacking and overpowering Satan, and taking away his weapons. That’s why Jesus could plunder his house and take whatever He wanted. Col. 2:15 says, “When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.” He disarmed the principalities and rulers. What does it mean for a policeman to disarm a suspect? He takes away any of his weapons. Well, that’s exactly what Jesus said He was doing to the devil. Hebrews 2:14 says, “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is the devil.” Jesus disarmed the devil. Jesus rendered powerless the devil. Jesus destroyed the works of the devil.
Folks, this means that Jesus Christ is the only One who can deliver a person from Satan’s clutches. You and I will never be able to do it through determination, hard work, or just trying harder. Many people are able to get free from drugs or alcohol or pornography through self-help programs. However, this is not the same thing as being saved from sin and Satan. The focus of these 12 step secular programs is not the glory of God, but the happiness of self. Satan doesn’t mind if a drunk becomes sober, but still goes to hell. Sinners are in the snare of the devil, held captive by him to do his will. They need to be set free of the guilt and condemnation of sin. Unless Christ sets a man free, he will never be free. But if the Son sets you free, you are free indeed!
3. The Application
You Must Choose Sides: In verse 23 Jesus told them, “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.” If you don’t make a deliberate choice to surrender your life to the rule of King Jesus, you are against Him! There is no neutral ground here. You can’t say, “Well, I may not be for Jesus, but I’m not against Him either.” If you are not for Him, you are against Him.
You see, there are two, and only two kingdoms. There is the kingdom of darkness, and the kingdom of light. Satan is the king of the kingdom of darkness, and his goal is to bring death and destruction to people. Jesus is the king of the kingdom of light, and He brings love and grace to His people. The problem is that we are born into the kingdom of darkness. Unless we repent of our sin, repudiate Satan’s influence in our lives, and surrender to Jesus Christ as our King, we will live and die in Satan’s kingdom, and end up in hell for all eternity. We live in a little bubble for the length of our lives, and when it pops, whatever king we served here is where we will be forever. That’s why we must choose sides with Jesus now!
Jesus goes on in verses 24-26 to illustrate what happens in someone’s life when he tries to remain neutral in this spiritual war. “When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, `I will return to my house from which I came.´ “And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.” Notice that this unclean spirit “goes out of a man.” It is not cast out of a man, but goes out of a man for one reason or another. When it does it passes through “waterless places.” Now this expression has to be metaphorical because demons, being spirits, don’t need water. The demon is like a traveler who is passing through a desert looking for water but not finding any. The demon is miserable. He’s not a happy camper until he finds another body in which to live. Why? For the same reason a vandal is unhappy until he gets a can of paint, or a murderer is unhappy until he gets a gun. Demons need to dwell in bodies to express their evil and mischief.
So, what happens when this demon comes back? He finds the person like a house that has been swept and put in order. Things have improved considerably. Perhaps this describes the person who is able to quite drinking or get off drugs or quit stealing. His life is swept and put in order. The problem is that the house is still vacant. He has not invited Christ to take possession of the house. In Matt. 12:44, Jesus said that when the demon came back, he found it “unoccupied.” This was a man trying to become moral, without Christ. He was a lot like the Pharisees, who prided themselves on their morality. Their lives were swept and put in order. They knew and obeyed God’s law. But what is the end of the story? That demon goes and takes along 7 other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. Morality without Jesus is more dangerous than immorality without Jesus! Why? Because the immoral person knows they are unrighteous and need to be saved. The moral person relies on his own self-righteousness. The immoral people of Jesus’ day loved Him and heard His teaching gladly. It was the self-righteous religious people who hated Him and killed Him. If you try to remain neutral to Jesus by not inviting Him to come in and rule as your King, you are only inviting a much greater enslavement to Satan!
You Must Hear the Word and Obey It: Luke 11:27-28 says, “While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed.” But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” Someone in the crowd, realizing the greatness of Christ, extolled the privilege that His mother Mary had to bear Him and nurse Him. However, Jesus said that it was not Mary that was truly blessed, but everyone who hears the Word and obeys it. The privilege of supreme blessing is available to any disciple who will obey Jesus as his King.
Not only must we take sides against Satan and side with Jesus, but we must then listen to His Word and do it. What is a disciple? Let me give you a new definition. A disciple is someone who spends his life learning everything he can from his Master, and then doing it. Did you hear who this blessing is upon? It’s not upon the person who hears the Word. It’s upon the one who hears the Word and observes it. The more I have thought about it the more I realize how wrong we have gone in our American Christianity. In America it is okay to go weeks, months, or years and never share the gospel. We go to church with lots of other people who never share the gospel, so we figure “hey, we’re just like everyone else!” That’s the problem. We have substituted knowledge for obedience, and think God approves of it. Our churches and bible studies are all geared to pump us as full of knowledge as possible. Folks, I’m just as guilty as anyone else. I have found myself recently trying to figure out a way to give a little less information, so we have time as a church to think, and talk, and pray, and commit to actually doing the Word.
Conclusion
- Realize that Satan is strong: Jesus called him “the Strong Man.” It is absolutely true, that Satan is strong. He is one of the most powerful angels God created. He was strong enough to stir up the Sabbeans and Chaldeans to steal Job’s livestock and kill his servants. He was able to bring fire down to burn up the sheep and servants. He was able to bring a great wind upon his sons and daughters’ house, so that it fell in and crushed them. He was able to cover Job with boils. He is able to empower false Christs and false prophets to do great signs and wonders. In fact, he is so powerful, that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
- Realize that Jesus is stronger: Sometimes we make a huge mistake by thinking that thinking that this spiritual warfare is between two different enemies that are pretty equally matched. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus is not Satan’s counterpart. Michael the archangel would be a much closer match than Jesus. In fact, 1:15-16 says, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him.” Putting Satan in a ring with Jesus is a joke. That’s not a fair fight. Jesus can take Satan out with His little finger. In fact, Jesus already took Satan out at the cross. When Jesus was hanging on that cross, Satan thought he had won. In reality, although Satan got his fangs into Jesus’ heel, Jesus was bringing that boot down hard on the head of the serpent. Although Satan is still around, and doing his best to deceive and destroy, Jesus broke his back at the cross.
- Surrender to King Jesus. Have you ever surrendered your life to Christ as your King? Now, that’s a very different question from “have you accepted Jesus into your heart?” When Jesus saves a man, He rules the man. Christ is Lord, and no one will end up in heaven who doesn’t submit to Him here as Lord. What about you who have surrendered your life to Christ. Are there areas of your life that you need to surrender to Jesus as Lord? Are there areas where Satan is having far too much influence and pull in your life?
- Prepare for spiritual warfare. We have been getting very aggressive lately, going into Satan’s domain, and preaching the gospel to those in his house. You can be sure that he is furious about this, and is not going to take it lying down. We need to prepare for spiritual attacks from the enemy. What should we do about it? Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the armor of God. Clothe yourself with Christ. Trust in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Take up the shield of faith, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. In other words, find your strength in God and His Word. Don’t neglect to spend time with God in the Word and prayer. Make it your highest priority. When Satan attacks, you’ll be ready with the sword, so that you can run him in.
Small Group Prayer: Group into 2’s or 3’s. Take a few minutes to discuss any areas of your life you feel like Satan is still exercising influence or power in your life. Discuss those things and pray for one another.
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