Transcript

In slaughterhouses where large numbers of sheep are killed, they sometimes train what is called “the Judas goat” to lead the sheep to their slaughter.  

The sheep are broken into small groups of around ten and placed in stalls.  The Judas goat then leads them from their stall to a ramp.   Halfway up the ramp, the goat stops, and the sheep walk through a door to their death.  

The sheep blindly and quietly follow the goat, not knowing the march is to their death.

The Judas Goat stands, watches, and waits for the sheep to go through the door, and then he returns down the ramp to the next stall to lead another group of sheep up the death ramp, through the door, to their death.  He repeats this action over and over again.

Of course, the Judas goat is a reference to Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed the Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God, in the Garden of Gethsemane, and our Lord was taken and led to the Cross, where He willingly shed His blood and died for our sins.

Like the Judas goat, Satan, who is a murderer from the beginning, leads the unbeliever to their destruction and through death’s door to eternal death in the lake of fire.

Most of the world unknowingly, blindly walks in darkness and follows the devil in life.  They walk “according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air [or the devil], the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.”

People need to be saved from the power of darkness and from being led by the devil to their destruction.  As our Lord told the Apostle Paul on the Damascus Road, our purpose in sharing the gospel of grace is the same today,

“To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.”

Luke 11:14-16: “And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered.  But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils.  And others, tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven.”

Did you hear that Satan got arrested?  They got him on possession.  One of our Transformed by Grace viewers sent me this joke.  The benefit of telling jokes is that others tell you theirs, which I thoroughly enjoy.

A man was possessed by one of Satan’s demons in this account.  And here in verse 14, Luke records that the Lord “was casting out a devil, and it was dumb.” 

Casting out demons was a common occurrence in Christ’s ministry.

As Mark 1 states, “And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils….And he healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils…” (1:32,34).

Demon possession shows that Satan desires to control people.  The demon possessing this particular man here in Luke 11, in his cruelty, rendered him speechless and made him mute.  And the demon controlled his tongue.

But in Christ’s authority as the Son of God and Creator of all things, He very simply cast and threw this wicked demon out of this man and released him from Satan’s control.

As one commentator put it, “Luke even describes the miracle with a slight air of humdrum.”  It was one of many times the Lord cast out demons, and it was always very simple for our Lord to do.

By this act, and all the many times Christ cast out demons, the Lord demonstrated His power over the kingdom of darkness led by Satan.  He further demonstrated His kindness toward the people He delivered from the darkness and cruelty of demon possession.  And it all showed that He was “the Christ,” or the Messiah, “the Son of the living God.”

The commission that Christ gave His disciples before He ascended to heaven, or the Great Commission, will be in effect again following the Rapture of the Church. 

At that time, during the Tribulation, demon possession will be rampant and take place again in vast numbers.

This will especially be true after the midpoint of the Tribulation, when Satan and his angels fight against Michael and his angels, and Satan is defeated. 

As a result, Revelation 12:9 tells us that the devil “was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”  At that time, the devil will be enraged and full of “great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”

But when people trust in the gospel of the kingdom in the Tribulation and do the things that that gospel requires, they will be able to do as the Lord says in Mark 16:17, “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In My name shall they cast out devils.”

When Christ cast the demon out of this mute man, verse 14 tells us that “when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake.” 

After the man was delivered from the demon, he suddenly went from being speechless to talking.  And then you couldn’t get him to stop talking once he started!

The result was that “the people wondered.”  The crowd that was gathered around when Christ cast the demon out of the mute man was amazed.  His talking and rambling demonstrated the reality of the miracle and the demon’s dismissal.

And the people marveled, and the Lord’s miracle created a stir among them.

But this episode of casting out a demon produced a second reaction also.  First, there was amazement, and second, there was an accusation.  As verse 15 adds, “But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils.”

The undeniable and convincing nature of the miracle forced some in the crowd, in their unbelief of Christ, to offer an explanation for it.  And they were quick to offer a slanderous and false explanation for the Lord’s miraculous power in an attempt to discredit Him.

They attributed the Lord’s ability to cast out demons to Beelzebub, or Satan, the chief, or ruler, of the devils.  They accused Christ of casting out demons by the power of Satan and being in league with him.  Since they were not willing to credit Christ’s work to God, they resorted to ascribing it to Satan.

The title “Beelzebub” is derived from the worship of the false god Baal in the Old Testament.  Baal was the supreme god worshiped in ancient Canaan.

Over time, various locales in and around Israel developed their own distinct forms of Baal worship.  And Beelzebub refers specifically to the Philistine god Baal-Zebub worshiped at the ancient city of Ekron (2 Kings 1:2-3,6,16).  

Baal-zebub means “the lord of flies.”  And archaeological excavations at ancient Philistine sites have uncovered golden images of flies.

In the time of Christ, this false god from a city of the Philistines, Israel’s ancient foes, had become a symbol of Satan and a Jewish name for him.

Instead of rejoicing in this man being delivered from a demon or opening their minds and hearts to who Christ truly was, people in the crowd closed their minds, and in their blindness and unbelief, they attributed Christ’s casting out of a demon to Beelzebub, or Satan, the ruler of the demons.

Verse 16 tells us that “others” in the crowd, “tempting Him, sought of Him a sign from heaven.”  First, the people were amazed.  Second, some accused.  Third, others asked.

As if this incredible miracle of casting out a demon wasn’t enough, others in the crowd asked for another miracle and a sign from heaven. 

These observers did not see the casting out of the demon as sufficient enough evidence, and they demanded from the Lord an even more powerful and magnificent sign.

Those who made this request, however, were not honest truth seekers.  They were “tempting Him,” Luke wrote, or testing Him. 

They were demanding that He disprove the charge that He was in league with the devil by performing a miracle from heaven, or a spectacular display of heavenly power, showing that His works were indeed of God.

Isaiah 35:6 prophesied that one of the signs of the Messiah was that “the tongue of the dumb [would] sing,” or the mute would be healed and sing and shout for joy.  And here a mute man had been delivered from Satan, healed, and was talking. 

Their Messiah had gloriously healed this man right in front of them, but in their unbelief, they asked for a sign from heaven.

Luke 11:17-23: “But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth.

“If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub.  And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges.

“But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.  When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace:

“But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.  He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.”

The miracle was told entirely in one verse and with minimum detail, while the Lord’s response covers several verses.  The emphasis of the passage was on explaining what Christ’s casting out of demons meant.

Verse 17 states, “But He, knowing their thoughts.”  As God, Christ knew the thoughts of those in that crowd.  He knew the thought processes, purposes, and motives behind their charges and challenges.  He knew that out of their rejection of Him, they had asked for a sign and were not honestly seeking the truth.

But, in His mercy, the Lord responded and reasoned with them and showed them how illogical it was to accuse Him of casting out a demon through Satan and his power.

The Lord told this crowd of people with their mixed reactions, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth.”

Christ’s argument was that it was a self-evident, unquestionable truth that any kingdom divided against itself would be ultimately devastated and brought to ruin.  And it was an equally indisputable fact that a house divided against itself would fall.

Any kingdom, any household that fights against itself cannot stand. 

Whether it is a large-scale kingdom or even on a smaller scale in a family, it will self-destruct if it is divided against itself. 

If a kingdom or a family hopes to remain intact, it must work together and rally together in unity.  However, if one part undoes what another part does, or works against it, or one side takes up sides against another within a kingdom or a household, it must ultimately fall apart, and failure and destruction are inevitable.

Speaking of a kingdom, the kingdom of darkness, the Lord then asked, “If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand?”

First, you see that the Lord affirms that Satan has a kingdom, a kingdom of darkness.  And that kingdom is united in its purposes.

Demon possession was a work of the devil and of the kingdom of darkness.  If Satan were empowering Christ to cast out demons, then his kingdom would be divided and working against itself.

Christ argued, how could He be working for Satan, when He was working against Satan?  If Satan was empowering Christ to work against his own demons, why would Satan fight against himself and the work and purposes of his own kingdom and his angels?

To empower Christ to cast out a demon and free a man who was under his control would weaken the devil’s position and his kingdom, not strengthen it.

And it would mean that Satan’s kingdom would be divided against itself, and as with any kingdom that is divided against itself, it would therefore not stand. 

The Lord’s accusers, who claimed that He cast out demons by Beelzebub, needed to stop and think about how Satan benefited from the miracle Christ had just done.

To sum up Christ’s argument: the man was possessed by a demon and under the control of Satan.  The mute man was delivered from that demon and the control of Satan.  The power to remove demonic possession is against Satan’s desires and kingdom.  If this act had been due to Satan, then his kingdom was divided and, therefore, it could not stand.

The Lord then added, “And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges.”

Secondly, the Lord reminded His critics that some of their own countrymen were at that time casting out demons.

Of this practice, Mark 9:38-39 gives an example, “And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in Thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us.  But Jesus said, Forbid him not…”

The Lord told His critics here that if He was casting out demons by Beelzebub, or Satan, then “by whom do your sons cast them out?”  Their sons were doing the same thing, so were all who cast out demons doing it through Satan, including their sons?

If casting out demons showed that someone was allied with Satan, then why were they not suspicious of their own sons and other countrymen, who also cast out demons?  Why did they not accuse them of casting out demons by Satan? 

If they thought that their sons cast out demons by God’s power, which they absolutely did, why did they not think the same of Christ when He did so? 

They accused Christ of casting out demons by Satan, but when their sons cast them out, they considered this to be an act of God.  So the Lord pointed out their inconsistency.  

If Christ cast out demons by Satan, then so did their sons.  But if they cast them out by God’s power, then so did Christ.  It was one or the other.

The Lord told them that their thoughts and beliefs about how their sons cast out demons were their “judges,” or they were conclusive witnesses who condemned their reasoning and accusation of how He was casting out demons.

And the Lord went on and said, “But if I with the finger of God cast out devils.”

With this, the Lord answered the accusation that He was in partnership with the Devil.  The true explanation was that Christ was casting out demons with the finger of God.

The Lord’s reference to “the finger of God” recalls Moses’s miracles and the plagues in Egypt (Ex. 8:19).  At that time, the Egyptians confessed that “the finger of God,” was at work when they could no longer reproduce Moses’s miracles.  And the Lord claimed the same active, undeniable divine power as the source of His miracles in casting out demons.

And because of this and Who He is, Christ said, “no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.”  His miracles done in the power of God indicated the coming of their Messiah and the arrival of His kingdom.

The kingdom of God was near and declared to be “at hand” at that time.  The people of Israel were in the presence of the King of the kingdom of God and their Messiah.

Rather than casting out demons in the power of Satan, an allegation which made no sense, Christ told them that the kingdom of God had come.  And that kingdom is so much greater in power and authority than the kingdom of darkness.

The miracles of Christ casting out demons demonstrated the power of God’s kingdom and the authority of its King over the forces of evil. 

And He, Israel’s Messiah, will demonstrate His power over evil and wickedness in His kingdom, when He rules in righteousness, justice, and peace.

Rather than casting out demons through Satan or being under him, Christ then taught how He is so much greater than the devil and superior in power.  In verse 21, the Lord said, “When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace.”

The strong man in this analogy is Satan, the ruler of the demons.  The demon-possessed man was evidence of his power and control in his kingdom.

The devil is pictured as a strong man, who is fully armed.  His own castle is fortified, his troops are on guard, and his goods within its walls are undisturbed. 

Satan has much goods and spoils in terms of human captives and souls in his possession, and he keeps people imprisoned under his authority in his kingdom of darkness.

But Christ came to this world to defeat Satan and his kingdom.  Thus, the Lord said, “But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.”

Christ is “stronger than he”, or Satan.  And when He entered this world and invaded his territory and came upon one of the devil’s demons and engaged Satan in battle, He overpowered him, vanquishing and destroying his armor and weapons, claiming and dividing his spoils, and liberating his victims.

This is what setting the mute man free from the demon who had possessed him demonstrated.  Christ did it because He is infinitely stronger and greater than Satan. 

And Christ delivers and sets people free from Satan’s kingdom of darkness when anyone trusts in Him, and believers are set free into the kingdom of God.  Satan’s dominion is plundered one life at a time when people trust in Christ.

Matthew Henry put it well, “Before Christ appeared, all was quiet, because all went one way; but the preaching of the Gospel disturbed the peace of the devil’s palace.”

The Lord then stated, “He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.”

Then Lord stated that it was impossible to be neutral in the battle between Christ and Satan, between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light.  There is no gray area.

And each person must decide.  The Lord makes it clear here that if you are not with Him and on His side, you are against Him and on the enemy’s side.

And in light of this, the Lord said, you either gather or you scatter.  Those who are not with Christ and not part of His work of gathering people like sheaves and sheep into the barn and fold of His kingdom are working against Him, and they scatter people and drive them away from Him and His kingdom.

And by these words, the Lord turned the tables on His accusers.  It was they, not He, who were in alliance with Satan.  Their opposition proved they were not with Christ.  And not being with Christ meant that they were with the enemy, Satan.

Luke 11:24-26: “When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.  And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished.

“Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”

The Lord explains more about the dynamics of demonic possession here.  The Lord is also referring to the man He had just delivered from a demon, who was a picture of Israel nationally.

After a demon is cast out and “gone out of a man,” the Lord said, “he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none.”

The Lord stated that an unclean spirit cast out of a person initially goes through arid places seeking rest.  David stated in Psalm 68:6 that “the rebellious dwell in a dry land.”  And all demons are in rebellion against God. 

Water is a symbol of life, blessing, provision, renewal, purification, and the presence of God.  In contrast, dryness symbolizes death, lack of blessing, famine, hopelessness, judgment, and separation from God (Psa. 63:1).

Thus, it is that unholy angels walk through dry places.  And in those dry places, they seek a place of rest, but don’t find any.  Spiritual separation from God, having no relationship with Him, leads to restlessness for both demons and people.

After wandering for a time, the demon decided that “I will return unto my house whence I came out.”  The demon’s “house” here is a human body.  And the demon decided to return to the man from whom he had gone out and to repossess him.

Verse 25 tells us that “when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished.”  In other words, after the demon had left, the man had tried to reform himself.  The demon found that the man had swept out some bad habits, decisions, and addictions in his life. 

And the demon found that he was “garnished,” or he had put things in order in life, and he made things look good.  There had been a distinct improvement in the man’s behavior, morality, and appearance before others.

The demon also discovered that this man was still wide open to his presence and possession because no superior power occupied him.  God was not living there.  Just because he cleaned up his life didn’t mean he was saved and had eternal life.

As J. Vernon McGee put it, “Reformation is no good, friends. If everyone in the world would quit sinning right now, there would not be more Christians.  To stop sinning does not make a Christian. Reformation is not what is needed. Regeneration is what is needed.”

Finding the man still a part of Satan’s kingdom, cleaned up, but spiritually empty and open to repossession, the demon found and invited seven other demons, who were even more wicked than himself, to possess this man, and they all then took up residence in him.

As a result, the Lord said, “and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”

The point is that, like this once-mute man whom Christ delivered from the demon needed to believe in Him as Messiah, so did Israel. 

The Lord was driving demons out of Israel as a whole in great numbers all over the land, but Israel nationally needed to receive and believe in Jesus as their Messiah.

If they did not, each one, the man and Israel, could end up in a worse condition. 

When you see that number “seven” in relation to Israel’s prophetic program, it’s often pointing to the seven-year Tribulation.

If Israel continued in her rejection of Christ, and tried through the law, religion, and her traditions to reform herself and clean herself up, the Lord was saying that they were leaving themselves wide open to an even worse attack of Satan as well as the judgment of God within the Great Tribulation.

Are you with Christ or against Him?  Please trust Him right now as your Savior, that He died for your sins and rose again.  Believing this simple gospel message, you are on the Lord’s side, you are saved from judgment, and you have the sure hope of heaven.