"And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. Now it happened that when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the crowds marveled. But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons." And others, testing Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven. But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a house divided against itself falls. But if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges. 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. He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters."
Good Morning my beloved,
We welcome you to worship today in the name of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for joining us today, whether it's your first time or you are a faithful member of our family in Christ, we're glad you are here.
God commands us to behave righteously; He also commands us to be holy. This transformation is not merely a matter of bringing our outward behavior into conformity with an external standard, but an inward transformation of character, that will work itself out in our external behavior. It is virtually impossible to overstate the how important this unimaginably holy calling is in the lives of those who lead God’s people. Why is the standard so high for spiritual leaders? Because leaders set the pace for those whom they lead. It goes without saying, where the shepherd goes, so goes the sheep. Followers tend to follow those who lead. Satan can undermine more members of the congregation by undermining just one pastor, than he can influence one pastor to go astray by undermining the people of God. This is why pastoral failure is so particularly disturbing, if you can cause just one leader to stray, you can lead the entire church astray. Therefore, if there is any place where spiritual integrity is so crucial, its in the life of the pastoral leadership, because of the immense influence that he has. The pastor must to set the example for every one else to follow, spiritual integrity must start in the life of the man standing in the pulpit. In fact, Zechariah makes that very point in Zechariah 13:7, "Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered."
Integrity is not only important for pastors and spiritual leaders, it is equally as important for all of God's people, so that we can hold one another accountable to the standards by which God calls us to live. I believe we can all agree there is a dire need for faithful pastors who are effective in their responsibility to oversee the church, nurture and feed the flock of Christ, protecting them, caring for their needs, defending them against those who seek to harm them, seeing that all their wounds are tended to, instructing them to directly apply the Word of God to their lives and holding them accountable, teaching them to care for one another. Even though you may not be that you have a formal role in church, it is the congregations responsibility to hold the church leadership accountable, and to selflessly care for those within your reach. Colossians 1:28 says we are to proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. Despite our numerous weaknesses, we have an immense responsibility to uphold the high and lofty standards that God has established. Foolish are those who are reluctant to acknowledge and accept their weaknesses. In 2 Corinthians 12:9, we find that God’s strength is made perfect in weakness because He delights in using situations where our human where our strength is insufficient to demonstrate the greatness of His power. It's in those moments, where our own strength falls short, that His strength becomes most evident. Just look at the story of David, in 1 Samuel 17, a young shepherd boy, who faced the giant warrior Goliath with nothing but a sling and a few stones, yet he triumphed through his own power, but through his faith in God. It is often through my weaknesses that I have discovered the divine power of God is not only demonstrated but also to be celebrated, as it reassures us that He is actively working within our lives.
I am very grateful for the confidence, the trust, the love and encouragement that you continuously give to me, I never cease to be amazed. It often comes from the most unlikely place, at precisely the right time. And please know that I do not take it lightly and I thank God for each and every one of you. It is truly a privilege to proclaim the Word of God to such wonderful, faithful people who truly hunger and thirst for righteousness, and authentically pursue sanctification. And, for whatever praise you render to me I am grateful, I really do appreciate it, because live in a day where people are quick to analyze and judge everyone and everything; churches, church leaders, pastors, anybody involved in spiritual ministry are forever, analyzed and judged. And I suppose all of that does have a place. But it is ultimately only God who can rightly give a man the praise or criticism that he deserves. Only He knows the heart, so the true evaluation of a man, any man, including myself, must be left to the God who truly knows the most secret things of his heart. I am confident that what God is looking for in church leadership, is not perfection, but men whose hearts are totally devoted to Him. And for all my many faults, I want nothing more than to please the God Who graciously called me to faithfully serve Him. The rewards, both now and in the future, for playing my small part in God's redemptive plan, far exceed any personal sacrifices that I have made. But the real reason that I have never wavered in my commitment to Christ, is because I have tasted the joy of true servanthood. I love serving our Lord. That's what it’s all about isn't it? The inside: it’s all about our hearts; it’s all about our attitudes and the motivation behind why we do what we do. I believe this is what needs to be preached to the church today, especially to those who are training for or entering ministry. That's why the apostle Paul says in Colossians 3:23-24, "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. Serve the Lord Christ."
In recent years, the contemporary church has been suffering from this kind of failure of church leadership by those who we once considered models in the faith, have disqualified themselves from ministry by dishonoring Christ. The church has become a disgrace because the integrity of the pulpit has severely been compromised, spiritual leaders have gone against the Bible and the God in which they proclaim to believe, creating a sin friendly version of Christ, for a godless people, who want the illusion of following christ, without the true commitment of the cost. As a result, we have affirmed the perversion of the biblical definition of male and female, celebrated the destruction of biblical marriage between one man and one woman, and normalized the mutilation of innocence children. It is imperative that modern Christianity understands that this Christian life that we are commanded to live, this Christian ministry in which we are engaged in, revolves entirely around emulating Christ, following in His footsteps, walking with Him in the same manner in which He walked. Who are you truly following: Christ, or your pastor? Only one of them is worth truly following. It's all about Christ, and knowing Him more profoundly and more deeply. The reality is, most Christians today know very little about Christ as Lord. If you were to survey contemporary Christians today, you might come to the conclusion that Jesus is just a Savior, though very few truly understand what they've been "saved" from. It doesn't matter how many times you've read your Bible, how many church programs you've signed up for, if you don’t know what it to come to Christ in humility, if you're not walking in a worthy manner, if you don't understand that you deserve nothing, you can’t even be saved. It doesn't do any good to claim Christ if we're not going to live dependent totally upon the Holy Spirit. We are literally watching Satan lead many into deception which will result in eternal judgment. It’s time that we examine our hearts, stand firm in Truth, and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.
Let's pray
Heavenly Father,
Father, thank You for this precious time together today in Your Word. Humble us, and make us what You want us to be, so that we might walk worthy of this calling we have received. In this world of self-exaltation and self-self-love, let us never forget Whose children we are. Children of the One True Living God living in a fallen world under the influence of Satan, deeply corrupted by sin. Thank You Father for reminding us that those of us who claim Jesus Christ as Lord are commanded to submit to His authority in every decision we make, in every area of our lives, not just in words. Teach us the true meaning of humility and what it means to follow You, and make us faithful to that end. Father, we feel the need to ask that You'll work in the hearts of every one receiving this message for Your glory. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Today's Message: A Kingdom Divided Part 2
Let's take out our Bibles and open them to the Gospel of Luke chapter 11. I'll read the entire passage and encourage you to follow along with me as I read to get the text set within our minds, to help us to get a grasp on this very compelling portion of Scripture, then we'll pick back up at verse 18. Luke 11:14-23.
"And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. Now it happened that when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the crowds marveled. But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons." And others, testing Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven. But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a house divided against itself falls. But if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges. 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. He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters."
Week after week as you sit and listen to the Word of God being proclaimed, there will be some things that you're going to remember, things that resonate with you,
and there will inevitably be a great deal that you're going to forget. Frankly, I'm not too concerned with inundating your minds with an overwhelming amount of information that you're going to forget. Rather, my aspiration is to instill a select portion of God's Truth into your brains that you will remember, things that will embed themselves in your memory, so that the Holy Spirit can use them to effect a significant transformation within your heart.
There are literally thousands of pastors who are virtually unknown, with limited resources, that have remained steadfast in their unwavering commitment to Christ, that by God's grace can truthfully say as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." Conversely, on the other hand, there a significant number of prominent pastors, that lead large congregations, with substantial followers, frequently appearing in mainstream media, gaining attention for their "questionable" teaching, that find themselves entangled in scandals that tarnish their reputations or call into question their suitability for ministry, or controversies that disqualify them from ministry entirely. I say all of this to elaborate on Jesus' point in verse 23, "He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me scatters," which is the central theme of our passage.
If you will remember, when we left off, the leadership of Israel who are set against Jesus, were circulating this rumor He was casting out demons and they did not dispute that His power is supernatural. So, instead, they arrive at the conclusion that the source of His supernatural power is not God, but Satan, whom they called Beelzebul, the lord of the flies, the Canaanite god Baal. I suppose, in a way it's understandable, after all, they only had two options. They had to somehow explain His supernatural power, the evidence that He wasn't an ordinary man was too overwhelming, because ordinary men do not have that kind of supernatural power. If He is not of God, and He wasn't an ordinary man, they were forced to claim He had to be of Satan. There's no other option left. There is no other place you can go. He has to be from Heaven or Hell. Let's see how He responds.
Verse 18, "But if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul." This is amazing! He could have just opened up the earth and swallowed them, He could have called down fire from Heaven and consumed them. But He didn't. Instead, He responds with grace and mercy, and invites them to abandon their blasphemous answer, and to rethink their conclusion, illustrating that their claim doesn’t hold up under scrutiny. Their claims that Jesus is removing Satan's destructive work in people's lives by the power of Satan himself is an illogical argument, and it cannot withstand a careful examination of the facts. Why would Satan work against his own interests? He would destroy his own kingdom. It doesn't make sense! Only God has the power to defeat evil. Notice, that He is simultaneously affirming that unity is necessary for any kingdom to stand. Division leads to weakness and weakness leads to destruction. Moreover, He is exposing that their accusation is stemming not from an honest evaluation but from prejudice and a refusal to acknowledge His divine authority. Listen, if you refuse to acknowledge Jesus as God incarnate, operating by God's power, then you are left with no other alternative but to conclude that He is aiding Satan. One of the things that I fear most in the church is division. Because wherever there is division, Satan is in the middle.
Verse 19, "And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges." Jesus' rhetorical question turns the argument back on His accusers, further challenging the integrity of their ridiculous claims. This is brilliant, because they took an uncritical approach to their own exorcisms performed by rabbis, they just said they're doing the work of God. How could you possible attribute what Jesus was doing to Satan and what they were doing to God? If you look at Acts 19:11, God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul and the evil spirits were coming out because Jesus delegated that to the twelve and also to Paul. The Jewish exorcists had never seen anything like that and seeing the power of God, they attempted to do the same thing. They didn't know what they were saying, so some of them even started saying, "I implore you by Jesus whom Paul preaches. And the evil spirit answered and said to them, "I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" However, sometimes Satan will permit false teachers to succeed, so that they appear to be angels of light, to pull off the illusion of deception. It's sad but humorous that the evil spirit recognized divine authority, but the religious leaders did not. Even today, some people are unwilling to accept the irrefutable evidence that they are following a false teacher.
Verse 20, "But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." The phrase "finger of God" is very important language, used three times in the Old Testament. It's a powerful anthropomorphism, a compelling way to help us to understand God’s direct supernatural, sovereign, miraculous action in human terms, as they directly impact the world, for example, in Exodus 8, when the Lord instructed Moses to tell Aaron to stretch out his staff and "strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt." After Pharaoh’s magicians tried and failed to replicate the miracle, they said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God." like when He inscribed the Ten Commandments in Exodus 31, because God is Spirit, and not flesh and blood. It's used once here in the New Testament, by Jesus, after He cast out the demon from a blind and mute man, indicating that Jesus performed miracles by the same power that caused the gnats to swarm and the writing to appear on the tablets of stone. The miracles Jesus was performing could not be explained as anything other than the undeniable finger of God indicating the kingdom of God has come upon you.
In verses 21 and 22, Jesus concludes with a very simple illustration to just how blind they were. "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." The strong man refers to Satan, whose kingdom was undisturbed and protected, until someone stronger comes along, namely Christ and the kingdom of God overpowers it, to rescue the souls from Satan and the kingdom of darkness, who are powerless against Him. Every one of us here today serve as a living testimony Christ has rescued us, delivered from the kingdom of darkness, where we were once held captive, aren't we? Jesus is still plundering Satan's kingdom today, he is defenseless against the powers of God. Only God can open the eyes of the blind, rescuing lost souls from Hell, and their forgive sin. Allah can't save you. Vishnu can't save you. Buddha can't save you. Mother Universe can't save you. You cannot save yourself. Even Mary, the mother of our Lord can't save you. She can't even hear your prayers. Only Jesus Christ, Who was crucified, buried and resurrected on the third day can save you, forgive your sin, no matter how bad they might be, and transform your life. Trust me, I know. He rescued a wretch like me from a lifetime of sin and a debt I could never pay, then claimed me as His own.
That brings us to verse 23, "He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters." This isn’t a casual invitation but a divine ultimatum. His words are very stark and uncompromising. Jesus has just cast out a demon, and the crowd is divided. Some, marvel at His power, while others, accuse Him of working with Satan. Jesus is drawing a line in the sand, He's calling His hearers to make a decision which side their on. Neutrality is no longer an option. "He who is not with Me is against Me."
To help you better understand, just imagine yourself standing in the middle of a tug-of-war game, with two teams pulling fiercely in opposite directions. And, someone shouts, "Pick a side!" — the rope is rapidly moving back and forth, standing still means you’re going to be pulled one way or another. It's like that with Jesus, by standing still, you're either going to be pulled toward one side or the other, the kingdom of darkness or the kingdom of God; there’s no neutral ground. No decision is the wrong decision, because you're naturally aligning yourself against the kingdom of God. There is no salvation in any one else. Are you truly "with" Jesus? Or are you deceiving yourself, playing church, living in the same sin you always have, simply claiming to follow Him. I beseech you to carefully examine your heart. Wherever your thinking is, think it through again. I encourage you to know for certain which side you're on, you only have two options. Christ or Satan. I pray you will make the only right decision. Jesus Christ.
May it be so..
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
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