Stronger than the World
Today’s reading starts off by simply saying, “Now he was casting out a demon that was mute.” This may not be of significance to our modern minds, but it was very significant at the time of Jesus. At this time, people believed that the only way you could cast a demon out of a person was if you could first get it to admit its name. They believed that once you knew its name, you had authority over it, and it would submit to you. However, in this instance, Jesus could have asked the demon’s name, but it would not have been able to answer. Therefore, he simply commanded it to leave the man. This act of unparalleled authority caused quite a stir. It could not be explained, and so the people resorted to insults and character assassination. William Barclay (1975) once noted, “It is by no mean uncommon for people to resort to slander when honest opposition is helpless.”
Jesus was undaunted by the ridicule of the crowd. Yet, he did not simply ignore their accusations and walk away as some would want us to do today. Jesus was never a door mat for people to trample upon. He met them, blow for blow, at every turn. He challenged what they had always believed and demanded they dive deeper into their faith. The people attempt to slander Jesus, but he turns the tables right back upon them. “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. And 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 cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out?” I wonder if the people were ready for such a response. I see them feeling very superior and satisfied with their own whit… at least until Jesus responds. However, Jesus doesn’t simply put them in their place. He teaches them why they are wrong. This is the love and compassion of Jesus. He doesn’t leave us in our ignorance. He corrects it, and then he leads us to truth.
In response to the people’s disbelief and opposition, Jesus admits that Satan is a strong man guarding what is his. However, one stronger than Satan has come. Jesus easily defeats the armies of the devil. He takes the armor away which Satan attempts to hide behind and sets the captives which he had kept enslaved free. Before Jesus moves on to another aspect of his teaching on the subject of demons and those set free from their control, Jesus makes a very important statement: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” (verse 23). “In the conflict against the powers of darkness there is no room for neutrality” Norval Geldenhuys (1971). We either stand with the strong man protecting his evil dominion or we ride with the stronger warrior to set the captives free. None of us make it through this life without making a choice, but all of us will face the consequences of that choice either in this life or the next.
The man, once mute, sat at Jesus feet while all the people around debated whether Jesus had healed him by God’s power or Satan’s. We don’t hear him saying anything, just listening. I can imagine it was all pretty overwhelming. Now, Jesus turns his attention only slightly from the crowd back to this newly released man. The unclean spirit had left him, but his heart was empty. If it were to be left that way, the unclean spirit would return in greater force and reoccupy his life. Before setting this many free to go about a normal life, he warns him and the people listening to fill up the empty space. We cannot simply be freed from the demons in our life. It is not enough that we are delivered from our spiritual captive. We must then become filled with Christ. We must set the strongest man at the gate of our heart. As David Guzik said, “The heart of man has a vacuum-like nature to it. It has to be filled. If we empty our heart from evil without filling it with Jesus and His good, evil will rush in again to fill it — and sometimes worse evil than before.”
Jesus did not come to merely set us free. He came to fill us with himself. He came to teach us the ways of truth and righteousness. We cannot accept only part of what he has to offer. Either we are completely for him, or we are against him. If we accept the liberation of his message, we must also accept his authority in and over our lives. No matter how strong the bondage you find yourself in, Jesus is stronger! He sets us free and keeps us that way.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
References:
Barclay, William "The Gospel of Luke" (The New Daily Study Bible) (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1975)
Geldenhuys, Norval "The Gospel of Luke" (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1971)
Guzik, D. (6/2022). Study Guide for Luke 11 by David Guzik. Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/study-guide/luke/luke-11.cfm
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