Jesus was clear on the danger of division

JESUS WAS CLEAR ON THE DANGER OF DIVISION
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Luke 11:17 17Jesusknew their thoughts and saidto
them: "Any kingdom dividedagainstitself will be
ruined, and a house dividedagainstitselfwill fall.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Divided Against Itself
Spencer.
Luke 11:17-20
But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, Every kingdom divided against
itself is brought to desolation…
If two ships at sea, being of one and the same squadron, shall be scatteredby
storm from eachother, how shall they come to the relief of eachother? If,
again, they clashtogetherand fall foul, how shall the one endangerthe other
and herselftoo? It was, of old, the Dutch device of two earthen pots swimming
upon the water, with this motto, "If we knock together, we sink together."
And most true it is, that if spleenor discontent setus too far one from
another, or choleror angerbring us too near, it cannotbut that intendment or

design, whatsoeverit be, like Jonah's gourd, shall perish in a moment,
especiallyif the viperous and hateful worm of dissensiondo but smite it.
(Spencer.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(17-23)But he, knowing their thoughts.—St. Luke seems here to bring
togetherinto one narrative two incidents which in St. Matt. (Matthew 9:32;
Matthew 12:22) appearas separated. The points of resemblance, the
dumbness in both cases, both followedby the whisper that Jesus castout
devils by Beelzebub, may have easilyled one who collectedthe facts some
years after they occurredto regardthe two as identical. On the generaltenor
of the passage, seeNoteson Matthew 12:24-30.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
11:14-26 Christ's thus casting out the devils, was really the destroying of their
power. The heart of every unconverted sinner is the devil's palace, where he
dwells, and where he rules. There is a kind of peace in the heart of an
unconverted soul, while the devil, as a strong man armed, keeps it. The sinner
is secure, has no doubt concerning the goodness ofhis state, nor any dread of
the judgment to come. But observe the wonderful change made in conversion.
The conversionof a soul to God, is Christ's victory over the devil and his
powerin that soul, restoring the soul to its liberty, and recovering his own
interest in it and powerover it. All the endowments of mind of body are now
employed for Christ. Here is the condition of a hypocrite. The house is swept
from common sins, by a forced confession, as Pharaoh's;by a feigned
contrition, as Ahab's; or by a partial reformation, as Herod's. The house is

swept, but it is not washed; the heart is not made holy. Sweeping takes offonly
the loose dirt, while the sin that besets the sinner, the beloved sin, is
untouched. The house is garnishedwith common gifts and graces.It is not
furnished with any true grace;it is all paint and varnish, not real nor lasting.
It was never given up to Christ, nor dwelt in by the Spirit. Let us take heed of
resting in that which a man may have, and yet come short of heaven. The
wickedspirits enter in without any difficulty; they are welcomed, and they
dwell there; there they work, there they rule. From such an awful state let all
earnestlypray to be delivered.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
See this passage explainedin the notes at Matthew 12:22-30.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
Lu 11:14-36. Blind and Dumb Demoniac Healed—ChargeofBeing in League
with Hell, and Reply—Demand of a Sign, and Reply.
(See on [1635]Mt12:22-45.)
14. dumb—blind also (Mt 12:22).
Matthew Poole's Commentary
See Poole on"Luke 11:15"
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
But he knowing their thoughts,.... Being God omniscient,
said unto them; the following parables, as they are calledin Mark 3:23 or
proverbial expressions, verypertinent to the purpose, and sufficient to set
aside the base calumnies of the Pharisees:

every kingdom divided againstitself, is brought to desolation;in process of
time, division will end in destruction; and as it does in the kingdoms of the
world, of which there have been fatal instances, so it would in the kingdom of
Satan, was there in it a division, which the calumny of the Phariseessupposes:
and an house divided againstan house, falleth. The Persic version renders it,
"an house divided from the foundation, falls"; the sense is, a family, in which
one part is opposedto the other, issues in the ruin of both; See Gill on
Matthew 12:25, Mark 3:24, Mark 3:25.
Geneva Study Bible
{4} But he, knowing their thoughts, saidunto them, Every kingdom divided
againstitself is brought to desolation;and a house divided againsta house
falleth.
(4) The true way to know the true Christ from the false is this, that the true
Christ has no harmony or agreementwith Satan:and once we know him it is
left for us to acknowledgehim.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Expositor's Greek Testament
Luke 11:17-23. The Beelzebubtheory (Matthew 12:25-30, Mark 3:23-27).
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
17. their thoughts] Rather, their machinations.
Every kingdom divided againstitself &c.] More briefly and graphically in St
Mark “How canSatan castout Satan?”

and a house divided againsta house falletli] The words may also be rendered
‘and (in that case)house falleth againsthouse.’
Bengel's Gnomen
Luke 11:17. Οἶκος, a house, or family).—ἐπὶ οἶκον, upon the house [super
domum]) That is to say, A house divided upon (against)itself falleth, Mark
3:25.[108]The noun is put for the reciprocalor reflexive pronoun, ἑαυτόν.
Matthew 12:26; Acts 3:16; Ephesians 4:16; 2 Timothy 1:18, where see the
note. LXX. Leviticus 14:15;Numbers 10:29.
[108]Vulg. translates, Regnumin se ipsum (or Cod. Amiat. ipso) divisum
desolatur, et domus supra domum cadet(cadit).—ED. and TRANSL.
Vincent's Word Studies
Thoughts (διανοήματα)
Only here in New Testament. Primarily with a sense ofintent, purpose.
A house divided againstitself falleth (οἶκος ἐπὶ οἶκονπίπτει)
Some make this an enlargementon the previous sentence - a more detailed
description of the generals brought to desolation, and render house falleth
upon house. So Rev., margin. It might be takenmetaphorically: the divided
kingdom is brought to desolation, and its families and households in their
party strifes are brought to ruin. Wyc., and an house shall fall on an house.
Tynd., one house shalt fall upon another.

STUDYLIGHTRESOURCES
BRUCE HURT MD
Luke 11:17 But He knew their thoughts and saidto them, "Any kingdom
divided againstitself is laid waste;and a house divided againstitself falls.
NET Luke 11:17 But Jesus, realizing their thoughts, said to them, "Every
kingdom divided againstitself is destroyed, and a divided householdfalls.
GNT Luke 11:17 αὐτὸς δὲ εἰδὼς αὐτῶντὰ διανοήματαεἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Πᾶσα
βασιλεία ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτὴνδιαμερισθεῖσα ἐρημοῦταικαὶ οἶκος ἐπὶ οἶκονπίπτει.
NLT Luke 11:17 He knew their thoughts, so he said, "Any kingdom divided
by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart.
KJV Luke 11:17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every
kingdom divided againstitself is brought to desolation;and a house divided
againsta house falleth.
ESV Luke 11:17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, "Every
kingdom divided againstitself is laid waste, anda divided household falls.
NIV Luke 11:17 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: "Any kingdom
divided againstitself will be ruined, and a house divided againstitself will fall.

ASV Luke 11:17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every
kingdom divided againstitself is brought to desolation;and a house divided
againsta house falleth.
CSB Luke 11:17 Knowing their thoughts, He told them: "Every kingdom
divided againstitself is headedfor destruction, and a house divided against
itself falls.
NKJ Luke 11:17 But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: "Every
kingdom divided againstitself is brought to desolation, and a house divided
againsta house falls.
NRS Luke 11:17 But he knew what they were thinking and said to them,
"Every kingdom divided againstitself becomes a desert, and house falls on
house.
YLT Luke 11:17 And he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, 'Every
kingdom having been divided againstitself is desolated;and house against
house doth fall;
NAB Luke 11:17 But he knew their thoughts and saidto them, "Every
kingdom divided againstitself will be laid waste and house will fall against
house.
NJB Luke 11:17 but, knowing what they were thinking, he said to them, 'Any
kingdom which is divided againstitselfis heading for ruin, and house
collapses againsthouse.

GWN Luke 11:17 Since Jesus knew whatthey were thinking, he said to them,
"Every kingdom divided againstitself is ruined. A house divided againstitself
falls.
BBE Luke 11:17 But he, having knowledge oftheir thoughts, said to them,
Every kingdom in which there is division is made waste;and a house in which
there is division comes to destruction.
But He knew their thoughts and said to them Mt 9:4; 12:25;Mark 3:23-26;
John 2:25; Rev 2:23
Any kingdom divided againstitself is laid waste 2 Chr 10:16-19;2 Chr
13:16,17;Isa 9:20,21;19:2,3
Luke 11 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
Luke 11:14-23 The Vilification of Jesus, Part1 - John MacArthur
SATAN WOULD BE
DIVIDED AGAINST HIMSELF
But (de) term of contrast. They had just said they wanted a sign, however
Jesus knew better!
He knew their thoughts - To whom does their refer? While the immediate
context does not allow dogmatic identification, from comparisonwith similar
passages(cf Mt 12:24+, Mk 3:22+) this is almost surely the scribes most of
whom were also Pharisees. The Jewishcrowds atthis time were not
antagonistic but attractedby His miracles, while the religious leaders were
antagonizedby His miracles. Mt 12:25+ is similar to Luke recording "and

knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them." The factthat Jesus knew their
thoughts offers further proof of His deity, since only God knows the heart (1
Sa 16:7; 1 Ki 8:39; 1 Chr. 28:9; Jer. 17:10;Ezek 11:5)
MacArthur on knew their thoughts - Their whisperings may have been hidden
from the Lord’s ears, but not from His omniscience, since He knew their
thoughts (cf. Lk 5:22; 6:8; 7:39–47;Jn 2:25). Their thought processes,
purposes, and intents were transparent to Jesus, andHe knew that those
thoughts were sinful, blasphemous, and damning. He had every right at this
point to abandon them to their unbelief and its inevitable eternaldoom. Yet
He reachedout to them again in mercy, exposing the irrationality of their
damning false conclusion. (MNTC-Lk)
Knew (1492)(eido)means in generalto know by perception not so much by
experience. Eido is not so much that which is known by experience as an
intuitive insight. Eido/oida is a perception, a being aware of, an
understanding, an intuitive knowledge whichin the case ofbelievers can only
be given by the Holy Spirit. Eido also suggests fullness of knowledge,absolute
knowledge (that which is without a doubt), rather than a progress in
knowledge. The idea is that Jesus knew beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Thoughts (only NT use)(1270)(dianoema from dianoéomai= to agitate in
mind from diá = denoting separation+ noéō = think over) means the content
of what a person is thinking about. It refers to a thought or reflection with an
evil connotationin the presentcontext. Gilbrant adds "This term is akinto
the verb noeo, “to consider,” but emphasizes the result of the activity of
thought. It overlaps into the realm of purpose, intent, and motive. It was a
favorite word of Plato." Six times in the Septuagint - Pr 14:14; Pr 15:24;Isa.
55:9; Ezek. 14:3; Ezek. 14:4; Da. 8:25
Any kingdom (basileia)divided againstitself is laid waste - One is reminded of
the popular saying "United we stand, divided we fall." This is a truth that is

simple and obvious, even to His obtuse protagonists. A divided kingdom
results in civil warand usually the destruction of the kingdom. If Satan was
empowering Jesus to castout demons, Satan's kingdom would be divided
againstitself and would be ruined be ruined.
Divided (3307)(merizo)means to divide, part, share, separate. Merizo - 13x in
NT - Matt. 12:25; Matt. 12:26; Mk. 3:24; Mk. 3:25; Mk. 3:26; Mk. 6:41; Lk.
12:13;Rom. 12:3; 1 Co. 1:13; 1 Co. 7:17; 1 Co. 7:34; 2 Co. 10:13; Heb. 7:2
Laid waste (2049)(eremoofrom eremos = wasteland)means brought to ruin,
be laid waste, become desolate, be devastated(Mt 12:25). Of a prosperous city
meaning to be ruined or depopulated.
A house divided (merizo) againstitself falls - Again this truth of this statement
is obvious. The meaning of house is not clearas it could be strife in a family
(in the house) or strife betweenhouseholds. Most translations (NIV, RSV,
NEB, NASB)imply division and strife within a family. We all have seenthe
devastating effectof divorce on families. "This phrase pictures one house
collapsing on another, what we call today a "house of cards." (NET)The point
is that if Jesus'powerover the demon was derived from Satan, this would be
ridiculous for Satanwas the enemy of Jesus and would hardly empoweran
assaulton his ownkingdom, the kingdom of darkness (cf Col 1:13, Acts
26:18).
Rod Mattoon- We now enter a sectionofScripture that has become very
familiar because ofits use in illustrating truths by famous men. Jesus saidin
verse seventeenthat every kingdom divided againstitselfis brought to
desolationand a house divided againsta house faileth or cannot stand.On
June 16, 1858, Abraham Lincoln gave a famous speechknownas the House
Divided Speechin Springfield, Illinois that was basedon this principle. On

this occasion, Lincolnacceptedthe Illinois Republican Party's nomination for
United States senator. It became the launching point for his unsuccessful
campaignagainstStephen Douglas. Lincoln used this speechto create a
lasting image of the dangerof disunion because ofslavery. At that time, there
was division in the United States betweenthe slave states and the free states.
Lincoln said, "A house divided againstitself cannot stand. I believe this
government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not
expectthe Union to be dissolved. I do not expectthe house to fall, but I do
expectit will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other.
Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it
where the public mind shall restin the belief that it is in the course of ultimate
extinction, or its advocates willpush it forward, till it shall become alike
lawful in all the States, oldas wellas new—Northas well as South."
One thing for sure, Lincoln understood the principle of this passage. He knew
the mess that would be createdin this nation as long as it was a divided
country. We face a divided nation today. The division has been createdby our
selfishpolitical leaders that pit black againstwhite, poor againstwealthy,
homosexuals againstheterosexuals, and now socialismand communism
againstcapitalism.
Socialists andcommunists believe in big government which should be in
charge of our lives and provide for the nation through heavy taxation,
especiallyon those who are financially successful. They strongly believe in
government-controlledhealth care. History shows this is how socialismgets its
foot in the door and gains governmentalcontrol. I don't know about you, but I
don't want to have to getpermission from someone on some government
health-board telling me that I or my family canor can't getmedical
treatment.

Capitalists on the other hand, believe that people should be responsible to
provide for themselves through hard work and private enterprise. They also
believe in a small government with little taxation. They believe the
government should have to live as we do, and balance their own budget and
not spend money they do not have. Our greatnation is in a moral and
financial mess that continues to deepenevery day. One key reasonis because
we have ignored the Lord and we have107 also ignoredwhat was laid out by
our Founding Fathers in the Constitution of the United States ofAmerica.
We've got a mess for sure and we need God's help to get out of it.
Luke 11:18 "If Satanalso is divided against himself, how will his kingdom
stand? Foryou say that I castout demons by Beelzebul.
NET Luke 11:18 So if Satantoo is divided againsthimself, how will his
kingdom stand? I ask you this because you claim that I castout demons by
Beelzebul.
GNT Luke 11:18 εἰ δὲ καὶ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτὸνδιεμερίσθη, πῶς σταθήσεται
ἡ βασιλεία αὐτοῦ;ὅτι λέγετε ἐν Βεελζεβοὺλἐκβάλλεινμε τὰ δαιμόνια.
NLT Luke 11:18 You say I am empoweredby Satan. But if Satan is divided
and fighting againsthimself, how canhis kingdom survive?
KJV Luke 11:18 If Satan also be divided againsthimself, how shall his
kingdom stand? because ye say that I castout devils through Beelzebub.
ESV Luke 11:18 And if Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how will his
kingdom stand? For you say that I castout demons by Beelzebul.

NIV Luke 11:18 If Satan is divided againsthimself, how canhis kingdom
stand? I saythis because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub.
ASV Luke 11:18 And if Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how shall his
kingdom stand? because ye say that I castout demons by Beelzebub.
CSB Luke 11:18 If Satan also is divided againsthimself, how will his kingdom
stand? Foryou say I drive out demons by Beelzebul.
NKJ Luke 11:18 "If Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how will his
kingdom stand? Becauseyou sayI castout demons by Beelzebub.
NRS Luke 11:18 If Satan also is divided againsthimself, how will his
kingdom stand?-- for you saythat I castout the demons by Beelzebul.
YLT Luke 11:18 and if also the Adversary againsthimself was divided, how
shall his kingdom be made to stand? for ye say, by Beelzeboulis my casting
forth the demons.
NAB Luke 11:18 And if Satan is divided againsthimself, how will his
kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
NJB Luke 11:18 So, too, with Satan: if he is divided againsthimself, how can
his kingdom last? - since you claim that it is through Beelzebulthat I drive
devils out.

GWN Luke 11:18 Now, if Satan is divided againsthimself, how canhis
kingdom last? I say this because yousay Beelzebulhelps me force demons out
of people.
BBE Luke 11:18 If, then, Satanis at war with himself, how will he keephis
kingdom? because yousay that I send evil spirits out of men by the help of
Beelzebul.
If Satanalso is divided againsthimself Mt 12:26
For you say that I castout demons by Beelzebul. Lk 11:15; Mt 12:31-34;
James 3:5-8
Luke 11 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
THE JEWISHACCUSATION
AGAINST JESUS IS ILLOGICAL
Jesus now applies the two analogies He has just made regarding the divided
kingdom and divided house in Luke 11:17.
If Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how will his kingdom stand - Of
course the answeris that it cannotstand. Jesus'reasons that if He was
possessedor empoweredby SatanagainstSatan's own demons, then Satan's
kingdom could not stand. No divided kingdom canstand. And thus their
accusationsborder on the absurd. Common sense says their accusations
againstJesus are ridiculous.

Darrell Bock - Jesus argues thatit is a strategyof foolishness if Satanhas sent
one of his henchmen to undo his own work of destruction. (IVP Commentary)
NET Note on "if Satan..." - This first class condition, the first of three "if"
clauses in the following verses, presents the example vividly as if it were so. In
fact, all three conditions in these verses are first class. The examples are made
totally parallel. The expectedansweris that Satan's kingdom will not stand, so
the suggestionmakes no sense.
Divided (1266)(diamerizo from dia = through + merizo = to divide) means
literally to divide (as Jesus'garments - Mt 27:35, Mk 15:24, Lk 23:34, Jn
19:24), in a figurative sense ofa kingdom divided (Lk 17:17, 18), of families
divided by being forced to choose foror againstJesus (Lk 12:53). Jesus'
coming demands a choice and neutrality is not one of the choices!Diamerizo
has the sense of share as in the Last Supper, where the disciples "divided"
(shared) the Passovercup paradoxicallyas a sign of their unity and allegiance
to their Lord.
Gilbrant - The believers made a regular practice (note the imperfect tense
here) of selling their material possessionsand dividing the proceeds among
themselves according to individual needs (Bruce, Acts of the Apostles, p.101).
Of Acts 2:3 Marshallsays, “A flame divided itself into severaltongues, so that
each(tongue) restedupon one of the persons present” (Marshall, Tyndale
New TestamentCommentaries, 5:68). (Complete BiblicalLibrary Greek-
English Dictionary)
Among classicalwriters diamerizo was used by Plato of a butcher who cuts
animals into pieces. The Septuagintuses diamerizo to describe dividing the
earth (Ge 10:25), dividing the nations (Deut 32:8), dividing garments
(prophecy of Jesus - Ps 22:18), dividing land (Ps 60:6; 108:7; Isa 34:17; Ezek
47:21), of David distributing (dividing) food throughout Israel (2 Sa 6:19, 1

Chr 16:3), dividing spoil or plunder (Jdg 5:30; Zech 14:1), and food (2 Sa
6:19).
Thayer - 1. “to cleave asunder, cut in pieces“:ζωα διαμερισθενα namely, by
the butcher, Plato, legg. 8, p. 849 d.; according to a use peculiar to Luke in the
passive, to be divided into opposing parts, to be at variance, in dissension:επι
τινα, againstone, Luke 11:17f;επι τινι, Lk 12:52f. 2. to distribute (Plato,
polit., p. 289 c.; in the Septuagint chiefly for ‫לָח‬ַ‫:)ק‬ τι, Mark 15:24 Rec.;τι τινι,
Luke 22:17 (where L T Tr WH εις ἑαυτους for R G ἑαυτοις);Acts 2:45;
passive Acts 2:3; middle to distribute among themselves:τι, Matthew 27:35;
Mark 15:24 G L T Tr WH; Luke 23:34;with ἑαυτοις added (Matthew 27:35
Rec.);John 19:24 from Ps. 22:18). (Greek-EnglishLexiconof the New
Testament)
Diamerizo - 17xin 17v in the Septuagint - Gen. 10:25; Gen. 49:7; Deut. 32:8;
Jos. 21:42;Jdg. 5:30; 2 Sam. 6:19; 1 Chr. 16:3; Neh. 9:22; Ps. 17:14; Ps.
22:18;Ps. 55:21; Ps. 60:6; Ps. 108:7; Isa. 34:17;Ezek. 47:21;Mic. 2:4; Zech.
14:1;
Diamerizo - 11xin 11v - distributing(1), divided(4), divided...among(1),
divided up...among themselves(2), dividing up...among(1), share(1),
sharing(1).
Matthew 27:35 And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His
garments among themselves by casting lots.
Mark 15:24 And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among
themselves, casting lots for them to decide what eachman should take.
Luke 11:17 But He knew their thoughts and saidto them, "Any kingdom
divided againstitself is laid waste;and a house divided againstitself falls.

Luke 11:18 "If Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how will his kingdom
stand? Foryou say that I castout demons by Beelzebul.
Luke 12:52 for from now on five members in one household will be divided,
three againsttwo and two againstthree.
Luke 12:53 "They will be divided, father againstsonand sonagainstfather,
mother againstdaughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against
daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law againstmother-in-law."
Luke 22:17 And when He had takena cup and given thanks, He said, "Take
this and share it among yourselves;
Luke 23:34 But Jesus was saying, "Father, forgive them; for they do not
know what they are doing." And they castlots, dividing up His garments
among themselves.
John 19:24 So they said to one another, "Let us not tearit, but castlots for it,
to decide whose it shall be"; this was to fulfill the Scripture: "THEY
DIVIDED MY OUTER GARMENTS AMONG THEM, AND FOR MY
CLOTHING THEY CAST LOTS."
Acts 2:3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing
themselves, and they rested on eachone of them.

Acts 2:45 and they began selling their property and possessionsand were
sharing (imperfect tense = over and over they were dividing their possessions)
them with all, as anyone might have need.
For you say that I castout demons by Beelzebul - Jesus is explaining why it
would be ridiculous for Satanto be divided againsthis own kingdom, which
would in factbe the case if Jesus truly did castour demons by virtue of the
powerof Satan. The conclusionis clearthat they were clearly not correctin
attributing Jesus'powerover the demons to the ruler of the demons. Such a
thing would be absurd!
MacArthur - Inconsistenciesoftenappear in the strategies ofthe kingdom of
darkness, since evil is inherently inconsistent, demons operate independently,
and Satanis not omniscient, omnipresent, or omnipotent. He may also allow
his servants to pretend to castout demons as part of their coveras angels of
light (cf. 2 Cor. 11:14–15). ButSatan’s goalis to destroy God’s kingdom, not
his own, and his kingdom is unified in that evil intent. Therefore to argue that
he would empowerJesus to castout demons on an unprecedented scale and
thereby destroy his own kingdom is ridiculous. Yet that is preciselywhat the
Lord’s opponents were doing by claiming that He castout demons by
Beelzebul. Since that option is irrational and untenable, the only alternative is
that Jesus castoutdemons by God’s power.
STEVEN COLE
The Heavenly War (Luke 11:14-28)
RelatedMedia

In 1938, OrsonWelles terrified millions of Americans with his radio narration
of H. G. Wells’War of the Worlds. The drama was so realistic that many
thought that aliens were actually invading our planet, intent on destroying the
human race. It was only fiction; no one should have believed such a far-
fetched tale. But they did.
The Bible clearly affirms that we are engagedin combat with an unseen
enemy that is intent on destroying the human race:“Forour struggle is not
againstflesh and blood, but againstthe rulers, againstthe powers, againstthe
world forces of this darkness, againstthe spiritual forces of wickednessin the
heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). It is a frightening truth which no one should
doubt or ignore. But many do doubt it and live as if it is not true.
The apostle John affirms that “the Son of God appearedfor this purpose, that
He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). Luke is showing that
Jesus’miracles establishHis legitimate authority as the Messiah, the Son of
God, sentto deliver us from the power of Satan. But Jesus’authority put Him
into conflict with the Jewishreligious authorities, who did not want to yield to
Him. Luke 11:14-54 shows the mounting tension betweenJesus and these
religious leaders. Ratherthan approaching Jesus with teachable hearts and
open minds, they accusedHim of casting out demons by the power of Satan
and they challengedHim by demanding some sign from heaven. As such, they
were reissuing the third temptation that Satanhad put before Jesus, to use
His powerfor show by casting Himself off the Temple pinnacle. Jesus soundly
refuted their demands by giving this extensive teaching on spiritual conflict,
the heavenly war. We learn that …
Since Jesus’miracles authenticate His victory over Satan, we must decisively
follow Him.

In other words, this isn’t just a subject to banter about in an interesting
discussion. Lives and eternal destinies are at stake. People cannotignore
Jesus. Theymust decide for Him or they are againstHim. Neutrality is
impossible. We either follow Christ into battle on His side, or we oppose Him
and remain on Satan’s side. These are the crucialissues behind this sectionof
Luke’s Gospel.
1. There is a spiritual battle raging with two and only two sides.
Scripture clearly teaches that Satanis a real spiritual being, not just an
impersonal force for evil. He was an angel who rebelled againstGodand who
commands a host of other evil spirits (called demons) who also rebelled
againstGod. He is here calledBeelzebul, a popular name for the prince of the
demons. The derivation of the name is debated, but it probably went back to
Baalworship and meant, “lord of the temple.” In 2 Kings 1:2, the king of
Israelwas injured and wantedto inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron,
whether he would recover. This was probably a derisive Hebrew pun, which
meant, “lord of the flies.” At any rate, Luke was not concernedabout the
word’s origin or meaning, but only used it as a popular name for Satan.
Satanand his demonic forces are committed to the ultimate harm and
destruction of the human race. To rewrite the Four Spiritual Laws, “Satan
hates you and has a terrible plan for your life!” Since God’s purpose is to be
glorified through the human race, createdin His image, Satan’s purpose is to
defile and degrade people so that their lives do not bring glory to God. Some
of Satan’s demons are more evil than others (11:26), but they all have the
same evil purpose. Since the fall of the human race into sin, every person is
born under Satan’s domain and power(1 John 5:19; Eph. 2:2). Jesus called
him “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31;14:30; 16:11)and Paul calledhim
“the god of this world [who] has blinded the minds of the unbelieving” (2 Cor.
4:4).

In this case, the demon causedthe man to be dumb, or unable to speak (Matt.
12:22 reports that the demon also had blinded the man). We have already
encounteredLegion, who showedus the hideous harm that demons can inflict
on people. While we may not encounter such extreme cases veryoften, we
should not be lulled into thinking that Satanis not alive and wellon planet
earth in our day. As J. C. Ryle puts it (Expository Thoughts on the Gospels
[Baker], 3:17, on Luke 11:14-20),
Do we suppose, because bodily possessionby Satanis not so glaringly manifest
as it once was, that the greatenemy is less active in doing mischief than he
used to be? If we think so we have much to learn. Do we suppose that there is
no such thing as the influence of a “dumb” devil in the present day? If we do,
we had better think again. What shall we sayof those who never speak to
God, who never use their tongues in prayer and praise, …? What shall we say,
in a word, of those who can speak to every one but God? What canwe saybut
that Satanhas despoiledthem of the truest use of a tongue?
Sometimes we look at nice, decent, law-abiding people and assume that they
are not in Satan’s domain, as if there is some large, neutral zone between
God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom. But Satanis a deceiver, and he
cunningly leaves many in their not-too-bad condition so that we look at them
and think, “This person couldn’t be in Satan’s domain!” Do not be deceived!
Even though a personmay not look like Legionor may not be struck dumb
and blind by demons, he or she is still just as much in Satan’s evil domain,
headed for an eternity in hell, if he is not rescuedby Jesus Christ. This means
that every time we proclaim the gospelto a lost soul, a spiritual battle is
raging. There are two and only two sides. Either the person ignores or rejects
the gospeland remains in Satan’s domain; or, Jesus Christ saves him and he
is transferred to the kingdom of God’s beloved Son(Col. 1:13).
2. Jesus Christhas authority over Satan’s power.

In that day, there were a number of Jewishexorcists who tried to castout
demons by specialpotions or incantations or magicalprocedures. Sometimes
they seeminglysucceeded, althoughthey often failed. But every time Jesus
castout a demon, He simply spoke the word and the demon obeyed. Yet in
spite of His obvious power, these skeptics accusedJesusofcasting out demons
by Satan’s power.
We learn from this that belief in Jesus Christ is not simply a matter of having
sufficient evidence. If Jesus had not done these mighty works ofmiraculous
power, or if He had done them by some sleight of hand, surely His critics
would have pounced on this and accusedHim of practicing magic. But they
never used that line of attack. Since they couldn’t dispute the factof the
miracles, all they could do was to accuse Jesus ofdoing them by Satan’s
power. Even though Jesus here knew their thoughts, this did not convince
them that He was from God! Truly, the god of this world had blinded them, as
he does every unbeliever!
Jesus answeredthem by pointing out that if a kingdom or a house is divided
againstitself, it will fall. Similarly, if Satanwere divided againsthimself, his
kingdom would not stand (11:17-18). Then(11:19) Jesus takesup the case of
the Jewishexorcists.Forthe sake ofargument He assumes that these exorcists
had some success. Butthe Phariseeshad never accusedthem of being
empoweredby Satan. If they are going to be consistent, they must say that the
Jewishexorcists also did their work by Satan’s power. Otherwise, those
exorcists servedto judge the Phariseesfor their hypocrisy in singling out
Jesus for condemnation, while accepting the exorcists, who did the same thing.
“But,” Jesus adds, “if I castout demons by the finger of God, then the
kingdom of God has come upon you” (11:20). The term, “finger of God,” goes
back to Exodus 8:19, where the Egyptian magicians recognize God’s power
through Moses.Jesus is saying that if Satanis not behind His power, then

clearly, God is. By saying that the kingdom of God had come upon them,
Jesus was referring to the initial phase of the kingdom as manifested in the
presence ofthe King. Jesus’deliverance ofpeople from Satan’s bondage
anticipates the coming day when Jesus will reign not only in hearts, but on the
throne of David, when Satanwill be bound from his powerful influence on
earth. Until His enemies are made His footstool, Christ exercises His rule from
the Father’s right hand in the hearts of all who submit their lives to Him.
Jesus further underscores His victory over Satan with the parable of
disarming the strong man (11:21-22). Satanis the strong man armed. He is a
powerful spiritual master. His homesteadis the heart of unbelievers. All of an
unbeliever’s powers and faculties are Satan’s possessions, athis use. Further,
these possessions, securelyunder Satan’s rule, are undisturbed, or “at peace.”
The unbeliever, dead in his sins, under the sway of the prince of the powerof
the air (Eph. 2:2) is unaware of his own desperate condition. As Matthew
Henry describes it (Matthew Henry’s Commentary [Revell], 5:697):
The sinner has a goodopinion of himself, is very secure and merry, has no
doubt concerning the goodnessofhis state nor any dread of the judgment to
come;he flatters himself in his own eyes, and cries peace to himself. Before
Christ appeared, all was quiet, because allwent one way; but the preaching of
the gospeldisturbed the peace of the devil’s palace.
Christ is the strongerman who attacks the devil and overpowers him. As Paul
puts it, at the cross Christ “disarmed the rulers and authorities” and
triumphed over them (Col. 2:15). What no mere man could do, Jesus Christ
did in His death and resurrection. Satanis now a defeatedfoe, although he is
still allowedto reign until his being bound at the secondcoming of Christ.

This means that Jesus Christ is the only one powerful enoughto save a soul
from Satan’s dominion and power. Men cannot do it by their own will power
or moral reformation. Even though men can getfree of problems such as drug
and alcoholabuse, or even so-called“sexualaddiction,” through self-help
programs, this is not the same as salvationfrom sin and Satan. The focus of
those programs is never the glory of God, but rather, the happiness of self.
Satanis not unhappy if a drunk becomes soberand still goes to hell. What
that sinner and every sinner needs is the deliverance that only Jesus Christ
can give. As John Calvin put it, “Let us … learn that, as we are all subjectto
the tyranny of Satan, there is no other wayin which [God] commences his
reign within us, than when he rescues us, by the powerful and victorious arm
of Christ, from that wretched and accursedbondage” (Calvin’s
Commentaries [Baker], “Harmony of the Evangelists,”2:72-73).
We’ve seenthat there is a spiritual battle raging with two and only two sides.
Jesus Christ and only Christ has authority over Satan’s powerto deliver us
from bondage to Satan. Third,
3. We are either on Jesus’side or Satan’s side.
Jesus says, “He who is not with Me is againstMe;and he who does not gather
with Me, scatters” (11:23). In other words, neutrality is not an option. You
can’t straddle the fence by saying, “I’m not a committed followerof Jesus, but
neither am I a followerof Satan!” Nor can you correctlysay, “I don’t follow
Jesus or Satan. I’m my own master.” Jesus makesit plain: Either you follow
Him or you are againstHim and in Satan’s camp. Those are the only options.
Jesus goeson (11:24-26)to illustrate what happens to the man who tries to be
neutral: It doesn’t work. Perhaps the man has experienceda moral
reformation, either through the Jewishexorcists orthrough his own will
powerand determination. The demon that he struggled againstfor years has
left him. As Matthew Henry (p. 697)describes it, Satangives order to his

troops to retreattemporarily in order to draw the deluded soul into an
ambush. At first, it is wonderful! The man sweeps up the dirt from his soul
and feels a sense oforder and peace that he never felt when he was in bondage
to his former sins.
But, meanwhile, the departed demon is restless. Passing through waterless
places is a metaphoricalexpressionthat “denotes that to dwell out of men is to
him a wretchedbanishment, and resembles a barren wilderness” (Calvin, p.
84). The demon is not a happy camper until he moves back in. So, he goes and
finds sevenother demons more evil than himself and they move in. “The last
state of that man becomes worse thanthe first.”
What are we to learn from this illustration? J. C. Ryle says it well: “Let us
observe … how dangerous it is to be contentwith any change in religion short
of thorough conversionto God” (p. 25). Jesus’words “are a solemn warning
to us, never to be satisfiedwith religious reformation without heart
conversion” (p. 26). As Martyn Lloyd-Jones points out, “we must always
remember that there are other powers, beside that of Christ, which can give
‘results.’ … It is possible for men and women to get relief from many of their
ills and troubles apart altogetherfrom the gospel” (EvangelisticSermons
[Banner of Truth], p. 179).
This is especiallyimportant in our day when truth and doctrine are setaside
as of no consequence. We don’t really care about doctrine. We want to know,
does it work? What will the gospeldo for me? Will it help my troubled
marriage? If not, I’ll go to the world if it will getme some results. I had a
church member ask me, “If my wife finds help by counseling with a Hindu
psychiatrist, what’s wrong with that?” I didn’t saythis in reply, but later I
thought that I should have said, “If she got relief by sacrificing a chickento
Satan, would that be okay?”

A number of years ago, some people wantedto bring Twelve Stepgroups in
my church, and at first I was open to it. I reasonedthat the Steps seemedto be
in line with Scripture and the program seemedto help a lot of people. Besides,
a number of well-knownevangelicalchurches were using them. But then I
beganreading the literature and I grew increasinglyalarmed. It was obvious
that the Twelve Steps “worked” no matter who or what you chose as your
“Higher Power.” Ithought, “If it works whetheryour Higher Poweris Jesus
or a Buddha idol, then it’s obvious that the Higher Poweris not the real
power.” It trivializes Jesus to lump Him with all the other possible Higher
Powers, as if it really doesn’t matter which one you pick! At that point, I did a
U-turn and told the church that I could not endorse those programs.
Here’s the point: If we get “help” from any other power than Jesus Christand
His gospel, we have not gottentrue and lasting help. You may geta clean and
well-orderedhouse, but you don’t have transformation of your soul. You may
have a sense ofpeace and freedom from the troubles that plagued you, but
you don’t have eternal life. You have a temporarily empty house, whereas the
sinner who repents and trusts in Christ has the Holy Spirit as the new
permanent occupant(11:13). Even more alarming, you may feel content
enough without Christ that you assume that all is well in your soul. Not having
a desperate sense ofneed, you will not flee to the cross to lay hold of the only
true Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose shed blood is necessaryto deliver
you from Satan’s power. In that sense, your laststate is worse than the first.
Also, as Lloyd-Jones points out, when you adopt a false philosophy or believe
a false doctrine, at first it seems to give so much satisfaction. Butafter a while,
it begins to wearoff or disappoint. It leaves you, not just where you were
before, but in a worse condition, because now you distrust everything, even
that which is true. You become cynicaleven of the gospel. He observes,
“There is no type of mentality which is so difficult to treat as that of a person
who has been disappointed by someone or something in which he once
believed” (p. 183).

So, Luke presses you to answerthe question: Is Jesus Christ who He claimed
to be or not? Is His authority as the Messiahsentfrom God establishedby the
miracles He performed? Is Jesus the Sonof God in human flesh? If so, you
must commit yourself to follow Him whatever the consequencesorresults.
You may suffer trials, persecution, and even death. But if Jesus is truly Lord,
if He alone defeatedSatan’s power, then you must commit yourself to Him
and to Him alone, not to Him and to some human “deliverance” orprogram.
How do you do this?
4. The way to be on Jesus’side is to hear the word of God and do it.
As Jesus was speaking, a womanin the crowdraised her voice and said,
“Blessedis the womb that bore You, and the breasts at which You nursed.” It
is interesting that right in the contextof Jesus’teaching aboutdemons, this
woman extols Mary! She may have been well-meaning, but clearly she was
misguided. She was trying to give praise to Jesus by saying, “Your mother is a
woman truly blessedto have a son like you.” Of course, that was true; Mary
was blessedby God to be the mother of Jesus. His response does not deny this,
but He does correctthe direction of this woman’s thoughts. He says in effect,
“Naturalfamily ties to Me are not the point; the point is to hear God’s Word
and do it.” The person who is decidedly with Jesus doesn’tjust mouth pious
platitudes; rather, he hears what Jesus says andacts on it.
This is not to teachsalvationby works becausethe Word of God that we must
obey clearly teaches thatwe are saved by grace through faith alone. But the
Bible is also clearthat saving faith is obedient faith (Rom. 15:18;16:26).
Jesus’clearauthority over demonic forces shows that He is both Savior and
Lord. Therefore, eachpersonis forcedto choose sides in the heavenly war.
Having heard the Word of God, we must now act on it in obedience to Jesus
or else we are opposedto Him and in league with Satan.

Conclusion
During that part of the Naval War College courseknownas Fundamentals of
Command and Decision, the instructor was stressing the importance of being
able to make sound decisions under pressure. A visiting officer from a small
foreign navy spoke up. “Talk about decisions!” he said. “I was 700 miles out
to sea in my destroyerwhen I receiveda dispatch from my base:‘We have
just had a revolution. Which side are you on?’” (Reader’s Digest[5/83].)
Thankfully, our decisionisn’t that difficult! We have some solid evidence to go
on. We have the clearrecord of the gospelaccounts that relate to us what
Jesus saidand did. William Barclayputs it this way (cited by Leon Morris,
The GospelAccording to John [Eerdmans], p. 414):
Either, what Jesus saidabout Himself is false, in which case He is guilty of
such blasphemy as no man ever dared to utter; or, what He said about
Himself is true, in which case He is what He claimed to be and canbe
describedin no other terms than the Son of God. Jesus leaves us with the
definite choice—wemust accept Him fully or rejectHim absolutely. That is
preciselywhy every man has to decide for or againstJesus Christ.
There is a spiritual battle raging with two and only two sides. Clearly, Jesus
has authority over Satanand his forces. We are on one side or the other. If
you are not decisivelyon Jesus’side, you are againstHim. To join His side,
you must believe in Him and follow Him in obedient faith.
DiscussionQuestions
Why is it important to affirm that there is no neutral ground betweenJesus
and Satan? Is there such a thing as a “carnal” or “nominal” Christian?
How should we witness to skeptics who demand proof of spiritual things?

How can we tell if a personis under demonic influence or if he is just acting in
the flesh? Does it make any difference?
If self-help programs help people with their problems, what’s wrong with
them?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 1999,All Rights Reserved.
BOB DEFFINBAUGH
Evidence that Produced Various Verdicts (Luke 11:14-36)
Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man
who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said,
“By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.” Others tested
him by asking for a sign from heaven.
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: “Any kingdom divided against
itself will be ruined, and a house divided againstitself will fall. If Satan is
divided againsthimself, how can his kingdom stand? I saythis because you
claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub. Now if I drive out demons by
Beelzebub, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be
your judges. But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom
of God has come to you.
“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are
safe. But when someone strongerattacks andoverpowers him, he takes away
the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils. “He who is not
with me is againstme, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.

“When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking
rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When
it arrives, it finds the house sweptcleanand put in order. Then it goes and
takes sevenother spirits more wickedthan itself, and they go in and live there.
And the final condition of that man is worse than the first.”
As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowdcalled out, “Blessedis
the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.” He replied, “Blessedrather
are those who hear the word of Godand obey it.”
As the crowds increased, Jesussaid, “This is a wickedgeneration. It asks for a
miraculous sign, but none will be given it exceptthe signof Jonah. Foras
Jonahwas a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this
generation. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of
this generationand condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to
listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now one greaterthan Solomonis here. The
men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generationand
condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater
than Jonahis here.
“No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a
bowl. Instead he puts it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the
light. Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your
whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of
darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if
your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely
lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you.”
Introduction

JoshMcDowellhas written a book entitled, Evidence That Demands a
Verdict. A lawyerfriend of mine tells me that the title is inaccurate because
evidence does not demand a verdict. As I have been studying our text for this
week I would saythat one would be quite foolish to think that the same
evidence would produce the same verdict. In this passagefound in the 11th
chapter of Luke’s gospel, the evidence is the same for all to see:Jesus casta
demon from a man, a demon which causedhim to be dumb.197 All who
witnessedthis event concluded that a greatmiracle had been performed, but
from this point on there is a greatdifference of opinion. The crowdwas
amazed at the miracle; some in the crowd(who, according to Matthew, were
Pharisees,(Matthew 12:24);Mark also tells us that they were teachers ofthe
Law from Jerusalem, (Mark 3:22) concluded that Jesus did this through the
powerof Beelzebub. Others were undecided, or at leastuncommitted, and
askedfor “a sign from heaven” (Luke 11:16). And still others, like the woman
who shouted from the crowd, missedthe point of the miracle altogether(Luke
11:27).
On the basis of this passageI would have to agree with those who say that
“you can prove anything you want from the Bible.” This is not to say that the
Bible proves all points of view. Nor is this to say that it is impossible for the
Christian to find answers in the Bible which he or she can hold with great
confidence and conviction. It is to say, though, that many who view the
biblical evidence miss the point. The beauty of this text is that it not only
shows us how far men can stray from the truth, but it reveals to us why they
do so. Here is a text of great importance to all who would seek to know the
truth, to come to the verdict which the biblical evidence leads us. Let us listen
well to the words of this text, for doing so cankeepus from going astray, and
it can help us to understand and to help those who have missed the point of
God’s Word.
The Structure of the Text
I have outlined the structure of our text in this way:

(1) The Setting: Various Responsesto the DemonDeliverance by Jesus—vv.
14-16
(2) Jesus’Response:
To the Beelzebub Charge—vv. 17-23
To those who would try to remain neutral—vv. 24-26
The woman who missed the meaning of this miracle—vv. 27-28
To those who demand more proof by seeking a sign—vv. 29-32
(3) The RealProblem: Notthe Evidence, but the Eye—vv. 33-36
The Evidence and the Verdicts
(11:14-16)
At some point in Jesus’ministry198 He castthe demon from this man, a
demon which causedhim to be speechless. Proofthata miracle had occurred
was virtually immediate because the man beganto speak for the first time
since he was possessedby the demon. The man’s words made an immediate
impact on those who saw the miracle. The crowd, Luke tells us, was amazed,
which seems to inform us that they believed Jesus had done this deed through
the powerof God. Some, however, did not see it this way. These people,
admitted that a miracle had occurred, but attributed the power to Beelzebub,
that is to Satan,199 andnot to God. They acknowledgedthe miracle about as
reluctantly as some recognizedthe powerof God at work in and through the
disciples of Jesus, as recordedby Luke in the book of Acts:

“What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everybodyliving in
Jerusalemknows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny
it” (Acts 4:16).
In Mark’s accountthey go so far as to accuseJesus ofbeing demon-possessed
(Mark 3:22), as they had also accusedJohnthe Baptist(Luke 7:33).
Others took a more mediating position. They were not willing to acknowledge
that Jesus was the Messiahof God,200 norwere they willing to deny it, thus
accusing Jesus ofoperating by Satan’s power. They thought of themselves as
open minded and willing to be convinced. But they also believed that they had
not yet seensufficient evidence on which to arrive at a sound conclusion, and
so they requested a “signfrom heaven.”
It is significant that Luke (alone) tells us that a signfrom heavenwas
requested. I take it that this “signfrom heaven” was one that would clearly
link with the prophecy of Joel, demonstrating that the “kingdomof God” was
at hand:
“I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and
billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood
before the coming of the greatand dreadful day of the LORD” (Joel2:30-31).
Even John the Baptist did not seemsatisfiedwith the words and the works of
Jesus, and wantedmore positive proof that He was the Messiah(Luke 7:20-
23). Jesus was not willing to give John any greaterproof than that of His
teaching and of His works. There were no signs from heaven for John either.
You will recallthat during the crucifixion of our Lord there was the heavenly
sign of darkness, whichtestified to Christ’s deity and frightened many (Luke

24:44-45;cf. Matthew 27:54). Jesus also taughtthat there would be heavenly
signs which would precede His secondcoming (Luke 21:25-28), and these
heavenly signs are also linked with the coming of the Spirit in Acts 2, when
Petercited a portion of the secondchapterof Joel’s prophecy, which spoke of
heavenly signs. But Jesus wouldnot give such signs here, for this was His first
coming, when He came to save men, not to judge them.
Jesus Challengesthe BeelzebubVerdict
(11:17-20)
In verses 17-32 Jesus challengedthe various verdicts of the crowd which are
briefly summarized in verses 14-16. He first takes onthe charge that He has
delivered this demoniac from Satan’s powerthrough Satan’s power. With a
series ofpowerful thrusts Jesus showedthe logic of His opponents who
accusedHim of being a servant of Satan to be wanting. In two paragraphs (vv.
17-20, and vv. 21-23)He shows the error of their thinking. Eachparagraph
ends with an indictment (vv. 20, 23).
SatanDoesn’tShoot Himself in the Foot(Verses 17-20)
The logic of the opponents of Jesus is apparent. They must admit that a
miracle has been performed by Jesus. A demon was castout. They will not
admit that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. To whom or to what, then, do
they attribute His power? If He delivered a man from Satan’s grasp, perhaps
He did so through Satan’s power. Here was the only “rational” explanation
for Jesus’powerHis enemies could come up with: Jesus was operating in the
powerof Beelzebub, in the powerof Satan.
Jesus’response quicklyshows how foolishsuch a conclusionwas. It was as if
Jesus had said, “Who willingly and knowingly shoots himself in the foot?”

Satanwould not do harm to himself, would he? Why, then would they be so
foolish as to think that Jesus was attacking Satan’s kingdom(by casting out
demons) with Satan’s approval and power? Any kingdom that fights against
itself falls. Satanwould not fight himself. The opponents of Jesus were foolish
to make such a charge againstHim. Not only was it false;it wasn’t even
logical.
Jesus is not yet done with them. There is more. If the power to castout
demons is to be attributed to Satan, then in whose powerare the opponents
own children casting out demons? We see from texts like Matthew 7:22, Luke
9:49-50, and Acts 19:13-16 that a number of Jews were exorcising demons,
some of them (Matthew 7:22) as unbelievers, but all seemingly in the name of
Jesus. If the sons of Jesus’opponents were casting out demons in Jesus’name,
were these men willing to attribute the powerof their sons to Satanas well?
Jesus pressestheir case much further than they wishedto take the matter, but
it was the logicalconclusionof their argument.
Jesus was speaking inHis defense, but in verse 20 He takes the offensive:
“But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has
come to you.”
Jesus has probed their logic (which was faulty), and He has pressedit to a
very uncomfortable conclusion(their sons are operating by Satan’s power,
too, for they also castout demons). Now, He gives them one more logical
thrust: If they are wrong and He is operating in the power of God, then they
must admit that the kingdom of God has come and that Jesus is the King. This
is the very thing they most dreaded, and Jesus has just reminded them of what
goodlogic must conclude: He is the King, whom they refuse to receive.

Attacking the Heart of the Issue - Luke 11:14-28
Rev. Bruce Goettsche
Union Church of La Harpe Illinois
Luke • Sermon • Submitted 5 months ago • Presented10 years ago
1 Peter5:8Revelation12:10Ephesians6John12:311 John5:191 Thessalonians
3:5Ezekiel28:11–191 Thessalonians2:18Isaiah14:13–14GospelSatanSpiritual
Warfare. discipleship
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Transcript
Perhaps you have had occasionswhere someone has made some kind of
outrageous and blatantly false charge againstyou. A goodportion of time it is
an attack againstyour motivation or your character. I have had it happen to
me and I suspectI may have most likely been guilty of doing it to others.
When you are the victim of such things you have a few options before you.
You can run away. You can ignore the charges andtrust that truth will

eventually work its way to the surface. You can getangry and make
outrageous chargesofyour own. Or, you can clearly confront the charges.
This morning we will see Jesus as He facedthe outrageous claimthat His
powerwas actually derived from Satanor that He was motivated by the desire
to destroy others. Jesus confrontedthese charges and taught us some
important truths as He did.
Jesus Came to SetPeople Free
Before we get to the attack we see a brief accountof another life changedby
Christ.
14 Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the
man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed.
A while back I was part of an exercise in Macombwhere I was askedto listen
for words that were distorted in various ways. This was designedto help me
understand the nature of hearing loss. Next I was askedto put on various
types of glasseswhichhelped me understand what it was like to see with
various eye maladies. It was a very sobering exercise.
I don’t know how to imagine what it would be like to not be able to speak or
hear . . . perhaps for years. This man’s world had gone silent. Any
communication had to be through hand signs or writing. The man would have
been pretty isolatedand lost.

The condition of the man, we are told, was causedby a demon. Demons are
agents in Satan’s army just as angels are servants of the Lord. When we read
accounts like this we often have a tendency to dismiss them as fantasy or
exaggeration. Some conclude that demon possessionwas justa primitive way
to describe what we today understand to be mental illness. Not all mental
illness is demon possessionbut likewise notall demon possessionis mental
illness.
Jesus recognizedthe true source of the man’s problem and commanded the
demon to come out of him. The demon obeyedand the man was made whole.
He who could not hear the messageofGod’s love, now heard it clearly. The
one who could not sing His praises now did so enthusiastically. Jesus came to
setpeople free.
This accountdoes not focus on the miracle itself but on the response to the
miracle by those who were standing by. From their response we can glean
severalprinciples.
There will always be some who oppose Christ
But some of them said, “By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out
demons.” 16 Others testedhim by asking for a signfrom heaven.
There are two expressions ofdisbelief. The first group slanderedChrist. They
attributed his work to the Devil. Beelzebub was a term that was a common
synonym for Satan. These people attributed the miracles of Jesus to a sinister
power. What these people are doing is a common tactic of attack. The
approachis simple: if you can’t defeat someone onthe merits of the argument

. . . call them names! In logic this is calledan “ad Hominem argument”. In
other words you attack the person rather than the idea.
We see this all the time in political campaigning. If you don’t like someone’s
policies but don’t want to (or can’t) attack the policies on their merits, you
instead try to create a negative caricature of the person and keeprepeating
that caricature until people focus on the caricature rather than the argument.
Politicians canbe labeledas “dumb”, “softon crime”, “too liberal”, “radical”,
a “philanderer”, “a crook”.You getthe idea. This kind of argument is a
diversionary tactic to take our focus off of the real issues.
The secondgroup of people “testedhim by asking for a signfrom Heaven”.
Their opposition was more passive. Theyhad just witnesseda demon
possessedman being healedbut that wasn’tenough. They wanted more. They
wanted something bigger and greaterbefore they would believe. However, if
Jesus had done something biggerthey still would not have believed.
A House Divided CannotStand for Long
Jesus confrontedthe attack with a logicalargument called“Reductio ad
absurdum” which means to take an argument to its logicaland absurd
conclusion.
“Any kingdom divided againstitself will be ruined, and a house divided
againstitself will fall. 18 If Satan is divided againsthimself, how canhis
kingdom stand? I saythis because you claim that I drive out demons by
Beelzebub. 19 Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your
followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 20 But if I drive
out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.

The argument of Jesus is pretty simple: Satanwill never be victorious if he is
defeating his own agents. If you soldiers are shooting at eachother you will
never defeat the enemy!
The phrase “a house divided” is familiar and many people attribute the
phrase to Abraham Lincoln who said these words at the Republican
Convention in 1858. He was arguing that our country could not continue to
be divided over the issue of slavery. What people don’t realize is that Lincoln
was quoting Jesus!
Jesus took the conclusiona step further. Jesus arguedthat if He was casting
out demons by the power of the devil, then it would seemothers who were also
casting out demons (presumably Jewishteachers)might also be agents of
Satan(a charge they would not want to make).
Suppose you made the statement“you can’t trust a politician”. You believe
the statementand repeatit often. However, having made such a statementyou
should not be surprised when people do not believe what your favorite
candidate says or promises. Take it a step further, if it is true that you cannot
trust a politician, it means that I also can’t trust you if you run for political
office. When you take the statement to its logicalconclusionwe see the error.
Once the error is exposedwe now have to ask:What is our REAL objection?
We might have to acknowledgethatwe don’t like politicians that don’t agree
with us. That’s not a very persuasive argument. They calledJesus names
because He didn’t do things their way.
Satanhas BeenDefeated

In verses 21-22 Jesus said.
21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his ownhouse, his possessions
are safe. 22 But when someone strongerattacks andoverpowers him, he takes
awaythe armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.
Jesus acknowledgedSatan’s strengthand formidabilty. We must not
underestimate our adversary. We are no match for the Devil in our own
strength. However, Jesus has defeatedthe Devil. The Lord is more powerful
than Satanand at the cross Jesus made it impossible for Satanto win the
battle againstthose who belong to Him.
Ezekiel28:11-19 and Isaiah14:13-14 both seemto refer to Satanbecause the
words look beyond the leaderwho is being addressed. These passages teachus
that
Satanwas originally createdgood
He was a leader of the angels
He led a rebellion againstGod (possibly after creation)
He was castfrom Heaven and took up to a third of the angels with him
Satanis called the adversary (1 Thessalonians2:18), the Devil, or slanderer (1
Peter5:8); the Evil one (1 John 5:19), the tempter (1 Thessalonians3:5), the

prince of this world (John 12:31) and the accuserofthe brethren (Revelation
12:10). Satan’s goalis to turn people awayfrom God (and therefore toward
Him). He sometimes will attack in a bold and aggressive manner(as with
Eve) and other times his attacks are subtle and erosive. He patiently works to
move us awayfrom the Lord one little step at a time. And if Satancannot
keepus from the Lord He will try to keepus from enjoying the Lord.
After World War II ended snipers and guerilla warriors continued to kill
people. The battle was over but these men didn’t know or acceptthat fact. In
the same way, Satan has been defeated, but he and his agents refuse to accept
the reality.
Our job is to respectSatanwithout being afraid of Him. We cannot take him
lightly. At the same time we do not have to cowerin fear before the Devil. As
Martin Luther has written in his hymn “A Mighty Fortress”, “the right man
is on our side”. Christ has defeatedSatan through His death and resurrection.
As long as we stand with Christ we cannot be defeated.
In Ephesians 6 we are told about the armor of God. These are things that will
shield us from the Devil. BasicallyPaultells us that if we hold to the truth,
cling to God by faith, hold fast to the promise of salvationin Christ, restin
His peace, live the way God wants us to live, and have a strong graspof the
Word of God we will remain in His protection.
It is Impossible to be Neutral
Jesus boldly said to his listeners, “He who is not with me is againstme, and he
who does not gather with me, scatters.”It’s pretty straightforward:there is
no middle ground.

There are stories from history and literature of a leaderdrawing a line in the
sand or dirt and asking people to decide whether they are with him or against
him. Those who try to straddle the line show that they are not fully devoted to
the leaderat all. Jesus is saying the same thing.
There is no such thing as a “part time Christian”. If you are only a follower
of Christ on Sunday morning then, according to Jesus, youare not really a
followerat all. You cannot straddle the fence! If you are not working to
advance His Kingdom you are working againstHim. They are very sobering
words.
We need to ask ourselves:“Am I hoping to be considereda true believer by
God even though I live like the world?” There is no in between. Maybe you
are sincerelyand truly examining the evidence for Christ’s trustworthiness. If
so, keepsearching. However, understand that until you chooseto embrace
and follow Him, you belong to the followers ofthe Devil.
True Conversionmeans to be inhabited by Christ.
Jesus has one more point to make,
24 “When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places
seeking restand does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’
25 When it arrives, it finds the house swept cleanand put in order. 26 Then it
goes and takes sevenotherspirits more wickedthan itself, and they go in and
live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first.”

Jesus notes that the human tendency to try to live a better life as a simple act
of the will usually doesn’t last long. We aren’t as strong as we think we are.
How many people do you know who have quit smoking, drinking alcohol,
drinking caffeine, watching television, swearing and on and on and have quit
dozens of times? I think of all the times I have resolvedto stop eating junk
food! It is a resolve that is strong for a while . . . at leastuntil the next strong
craving.
Following Christ is not simply about eliminating bad things from our lives, it
is to have a new passionthat replaces the old passionfor sin. The true believer
trades in their addiction to sin for a hunger for God.
One commentatorwrites,
Jesus’point is simple. When you are blessedby a cleansing ofevil that allows
you to receive fresh spiritual input, do not leave your inner “house” empty.
The risk is that the void will be refilled with something even worse than what
had been banished. Neutrality is emptiness, a void that eventually is filled by
something—oftensomething like what was there before. When we do not
respond to God, opportunity becomes tragedy, and the chance for permanent
reversalis lost.[1]
Applications
We’ve drawn severalprinciples from our text this morning:
Jesus Came to SetPeople Free

There will always be those who Resistthe Gospel
A House Divided CannotStand
SatanHas been defeated
It is Impossible to be Neutral About Christ
True Conversionmeans being Inhabited by the life of Christ
Let me add some practicalobservations.
Any Church, organization or ministry that is truly leading people to become
committed followers ofChrist is of the Lord and not the Devil. Let me define
my terms carefully. Any church, ministry, or individual that takes the Bible
seriouslyas the sole authority of God’s truth, defines sin as the Bible does, and
recognizes thatwe can only be made right with God by trusting and following
Christ, is of the Lord. We may disagree with (and sometimes need to confront)
some of the skewedbeliefs ormethods of these groups, but we must not
attribute their work to the Devil simply because it is different from the work
we do. Goduses different people in different ways to accomplishthe same
goal. If people are being led to a genuine and transforming relationship with
Christ they are working for the Kingdom and not againstit.
Life is difficult and some of the battles of life are hard, but as children of God
we should never live as if we were defeated. Christ has conqueredthe grave
and He has broken any power Satan had on us! We canrejoice even in the

time of trial because we know God has defeatedthe enemy. We know the King
is on the throne. We know:God is in Control; He loves us; and He never
makes a mistake.
We are reminded that the Christian life is not simply about getting rid of bad
things in our lives. We must also be filling our lives with the things of God . . .
things that will draw us close, helpus grow, and fill us with His life. We want
to be so captivated by the Holy Spirit that the forces of evil have no room to
influence us. I encourage you to deliberately pursue the things of God. Fill
your life with His Word, His people, His worship. Memorize Scripture, seek
out goodteaching, and fill your minds with songs of praise. Don’t make room
for the Devil in your life.
We must be prepared for spiritual battle. In the course of our lives Satan will
try to trip us up. He will accuse us and try to draw us awayfrom any sense of
intimacy with the Lord. We must fight in the Lord’s powerrather than our
own. The best way to do this is to walk close to Him. The SecretService is
limited in what they can do to protect the President if he veers off course or
dashes into a crowd. If we want to be strong in battle we must stay as close to
Jesus as possible through prayer, studying His Word, and by doing the things
He says. Jesus has come to set us free. He promises to show us the way but we
must follow Him. We must not surrender our freedom in Christ to anyone.
As we conclude the accountI find myself asking, “What happened to the man
who had been deaf and unable to speak? Was he forever changed? Did he
walk with Jesus or did he simply walk away? Did he face greaterproblems
later because he did not replace the demon with something better? We don’t
know.

The real question this morning is about you and me. Will you be swayedby
the slanderous comments of false religions, the secularmedia or popular
opinion? Or will you be one of those who examine the evidence. Rather than
be swayedby the name calling, listen to what Jesus actuallysaid. Look at the
evidence of His resurrection. See the changedlives.
The decisionof whether or not to truly follow Christ is a big decision. Make
sure you make the decisionbased on what is true rather than on the
distortions of the Devil or those who follow Him.
MATTHEW HENRY
That it canby no means be imagined that such a subtle prince as Satan is
should everagree to measures that had such a direct tendency to his own
overthrow, and the undermining of his own kingdom, Luke 11:17,18.What
they objectedthey kept to themselves, afraid to speak it, lest it should be
answeredand baffled but Jesus knew their thoughts, even when they
industriously thought to concealthem, and he said, "You yourselves cannot
but see the groundlessness, andconsequently the spitefulness, of this charge
for it is an allowedmaxim, confirmed by every day's experience, that no
interest can stand that is divided againstitselfnot the more public interest of a
kingdom, nor the private interest of a house or family if either the one or the
other be divided againstitself, it cannot stand. Satan would herein actagainst
himself not only by the miracle which turned him out of possessionof the
bodies of people, but much more in the doctrine for the explication and
confirmation of which the miracle was wrought, which had a direct tendency
to the ruin of Satan's interest in the minds of men, by mortifying sin, and
turning men to the service ofGod. Now, if Satanshould thus be divided

againsthimself, he would hasten his own overthrow, which you cannot
suppose an enemy to do that acts so subtlely for his own establishment, and is
so solicitous to have his kingdom stand."
RICH CATHERS
17 But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: “Everykingdom divided
againstitself is brought to desolation, and a house divided againsta house
falls.
:17 a house divided againsta house falls
Remember that Beelzebulmeans “Lord of the house”
Lesson
Dividing the house
I know that Jesus is talking about Satan’s kingdom, but the principle
translates into areas as well.
We’re seeing the Republican party wrestle with this right now.
The campaignhas gottenso ugly with insults, that if they don’t work to mend
fences soonand coalescebehind a single candidate, there may be too much
bitterness and acrimony to unite for the presidential election.
Illustration
There was a story about two unmarried sisters who lived together. Because of
a slight disagreementover an insignificant issue, they stopped speaking to
eachother. Unable and unwilling to move out of their small house, they
continued to use the same rooms, eat at the same table (separately), and sleep
in the same bedroom. Without one word. A chalk line divided the sleeping
area into two halves, separating a doorwayand fireplace. Eachcould come

and go, cook and eat, sew and read without crossing overinto her sister's
domain. Through the night eachcould hear the breathing of the foe, but
because neither was willing to take the first stepto reconciliationand
forgiveness, theycoexistedfor years in grinding silence.
Their unforgiving hearts left them in a prison of affliction.
Is this a picture of what goes onin your house?
No marriage or family is “perfect”.
Everyone has difficulties.
The question is: Are you going to fight “for” your marriage, or fight each
other?
Are you going to humble yourself and talk to the other person?
Are you going to learn to forgive and let it go?
Solomonwrote,
(Ecclesiastes 4:9–12NKJV) —9 Two are better than one, Because theyhave a
goodreward for their labor. 10 Forif they fall, one will lift up his companion.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up.
11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keepwarm; But how can one be
warm alone? 12 Though one may be overpoweredby another, two can
withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
:18 If Satanalso is divided againsthimself, how will his kingdom stand?
Becauseyou sayI castout demons by Beelzebub.
:18 If Satanalso is divided againsthimself

Jesus is pointing out that their reasoning is ridiculous. If Jesus were
empoweredby Satan, why would He be tearing apart His own kingdom?
JOHN GILL
Verse 17
But he knowing their thoughts,.... Being God omniscient,
said unto them; the following parables, as they are calledin Mark 3:23 or
proverbial expressions, verypertinent to the purpose, and sufficient to set
aside the base calumnies of the Pharisees:
every kingdom divided againstitself, is brought to desolation;in process of
time, division will end in destruction; and as it does in the kingdoms of the
world, of which there have been fatal instances, so it would in the kingdom of
Satan, was there in it a division, which the calumny of the Phariseessupposes:
and an house divided againstan house, falleth. The Persic version renders it,
"an house divided from the foundation, falls"; the sense is, a family, in which
one part is opposedto the other, issues in the ruin of both; See Gill on
Matthew 12:25, Mark 3:24, Mark 3:25.
LOWELL JOHNSON

A HOUSE DIVIDED
Luke 11:14-26
Notice againLuke 11:17. Jesus says, “No kingdom, no nation, no house, no
army, no business, no movement can survive internal war. Impossible!”
On June 16, 1858, Abraham Lincoln gave his famous speechknownas “The
House Divided Speech” in Springfield, Illinois. It was his acceptancespeechas
he acceptedthe Illinois Republican Party's nomination for United States
Senator. He spoke of the division in the United States betweenthe slave states
and the free states.
There is another“house divided” problem. You may have noticed some car
tags on the front of some cars that read: “House Divided,” and on one half of
the tag is “MississippiState” and on the other side, “Ole Miss Rebels.”
Well, Jesus spoke ofa House Divided and He said that that house cannot
stand. What is Jesus talking about?
Earlier in Luke 11 Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray.
In Luke 11:2 Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Fatherin Heaven, Your
kingdom come.” Then in Luke 11:4 Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “and
deliver us from the evil one.”

I want you to see that Jesus believed in spiritual warfare. Jesus believedin a
kingdom of evil, and He believed in a kingdom of righteousness.ThenJesus
said that it is absolutelyimpossible to remain neutral in spiritual warfare.
In this passageJesusis going to unmask the face of evil and teachus some
things about the way the devil and his demons operate.
This is the third time, now, that I have dealt with this incident in the life of
Jesus. I dealt with it as we went through the Gospelof Matthew and again
when we went through the Gospelof Mark. So, I have already given you the
exposition of these verses. So, todayI want to take you in a little different
direction.
You know that in the ministry of Jesus, the religious crowdwas always trying
to find something wrong in His teaching so they could accuse Him. They
hoped to find something in what He SAID that they could use to put Him to
death.
But they went farther. They lookedfor evidence of wrong in what he SAID;
but now they try to find something wrong in what He DID, so they could
accuse Him.
In Luke 11:14 Jesus casta demon out of a man who causedthe man to be
mute – he could not speak. We are told that when Jesus castthe demon out,
the man who once was mute because ofthe demon, now spoke.
187
There were at leastthree reactions to the once mute man now speaking:

1. The multitude wandered– Luke 11:14
They were amazed or astonishedat what they saw. They marveled as they
witnessedJesus casting the demon out of the man. Everyone there knew this
man and knew he could not speak. So, whenJesus castthe demon out, the
greatmajority of the people just stood there spellbound.
2. A secondresponse – Luke 11:15
Some attributed what Jesus did to the powerof Beelzebub, which was an Old
Testamentterm for the god of Baal, which means, “the lord of the flies.” It
was a descriptive term of the devil. Lord of dung. Flies hang around dumps
and garbage and trash and filthy stuff. So, some saidthat Jesus castthe
demon out by the power of the devil.
Matthew's Gospelmakes it plain that they attributed the work of Jesus to the
work of the devil, and Jesus told them then that attributing the work of Jesus
to the work and powerof the devil was an unpardonable sin; a sin that could
not be forgiven in this life or in the life to come.
Jesus basicallysaid, “That's stupid!” Why would Satan work againsthis own
kingdom? Jesus said, “There are two kingdoms. There is the Kingdom of
Satan, or the kingdom of unrighteousness, and there is God's Kingdom – “My
Kingdom” – the Kingdom of righteousness.

And here is what Jesus wants to make clear:EVERY ONE OF US ARE IN
ONE OR THE OTHER OF THESE TWO KINGDOMS. The Kingdom of
Satanor the Kingdom of God.
And FURTHER, you cannot be neutral, you are either FOR God or
AGAINST God.
Every lost person is a part of Satan's kingdom; and every savedperson is in
the kingdom of God, but it is impossible to remain neutral.
Notice Luke 11:23:“He who is not with Me is againstMe.”
There is no in-between. You are either for Jesus oryou are againstJesus.You
are either gathering for Me or you are scattering (Luke 11: 23). You are either
Heaven bound or you are Hell bound. There is no third option!
“No, Preacher!I haven't given my life to Jesus, but I'm not againstHim. I've
just chosento be neutral.”
To choose to be neutral is to choose to remain in the kingdom of darkness. It's
not that you are trying to pick which one to go into. If you are not a Christian,
you are already in the other. If you say, “I just won't decide either way.” Not
to decide is to decide to be againstHim. There is no middle ground.
“Well, Preacher, I'm going to wait until I'm better and then I'll trust Jesus.”

Notice Luke 11:23-26. Jesus gives a strange example of a demon that left a
certain man and wondered for a while. When the demon left, the man tried to
cleanup his house. When the demon returned, he found the “house” (person)
sweptclean– but empty.
So, he summoned sevenof his demon buddies and they entered the person's
mind and threw a devilish party. Jesus observedin Luke 11:26, “the final
condition of that man is worse than the first.” It's not enoughto simply “clean
up” your life if you don't replace the evil with the goodnessofGod.
Sometimes man attempts to just reform rather than giving Jesus full control.
The personhas some “junk sin” in their life that they know they need to get
rid of. They have a desire to change;to reform their behavior.
And maybe they do change some – but sadly, unless they fill the emptiness
with God, they find them-selves back in the same vicious cycle, only worse. It
seems that sevenmore demons have come to torment them.
You see, the lostperson has absolutelyno restraining power againstsin. And
Satanloves to come back into a person's life that he has affectedbefore. Now
he has cleanedup a little, but he is still empty because he has not received
Christ. The only thing that can stopSatan from coming back and coming
back strongerthan before is to receive Christ into their life.
It's not enough to just “turn over a new leaf” or to “cleanup your act.” You
must make sure Jesus lives in your heart. Once a very religious, but lost, man
came to Jesus to discuss God's requirements for salvationand Jesus said, “I
tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he will never experience
salvation.”

If I were to ask you if you know you are saved, the keyto your answeris, “I
know Christ is dwelling in my heart by faith.”
Look at Luke 11:28.
Salvationis not just getting some sin out of your life, it is letting God's Spirit
in.
PETER PETT
Verse 17
‘But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingship divided
againstitself is brought to desolation, and a house divided againsta house falls
(literally ‘house falls on house’).” ’
But Jesus knew whatthe majority of them were thinking and pointed out that
if what they said was true it would mean that in that evil world which caused
such harm there was division within the kingship, and civil warbetweenthe
factions. They would be destroying eachother, house againsthouse. For they
were claiming that He had authority over demons and was fighting against
them with the connivance of the prince of demons. Such a situation would
mean that the combatants could not survive. For division in a kingship always
brought desolation, and a divided house always falls.
Verse 18

“And if Satan also is divided againsthimself, how shall his kingship stand?
Becauseyou saythat I castout demons by Beelzeboul.”
It would indeed mean that Satan was divided againsthimself, faction warring
with faction. How then could his kingship hope to survive? And this was
because they said that He castout demons by Beelzeboul, and was thus
demonstrating that he was on Beelzeboul’s side againstother demons.
J. C. RYLE
Let us notice, lastly, in these verses — the greatevil of religious divisions. This
is a truth which our Lord impresses onus in the answerHe gives to His
prejudiced enemies. He shows the folly of their charge, that He castout devils
by Beelzebub. He quotes the proverbial saying that "a house divided against
itself falls." He infers the absurdity of the idea that Satan would castout
Satan— or the devil castout his ownagents. And in so doing, He teaches
Christians a lessonwhich they have been mournfully slow to learn in every
age of the church. That lessonis the sin and folly of needless divisions.
Religious divisions of some kind, there must always be — as long as false
doctrine prevails, and men will cleave to it. What communion can there be
betweenlight and darkness? How cantwo walk together, unless they are
agreed? Whatunity can there be — where there is not the unity of the Spirit?
Division and separationfrom those who adhere to false and unscriptural
doctrine — is a duty, and not a sin.
But there are divisions of a very different kind, which are deeply to be
deplored. Such, for example, are divisions betweenmen who agree onmain

points — divisions about matters not needful to salvation — divisions about
forms and ceremonies, andecclesiasticalarrangements upon which Scripture
is silent. Divisions of this kind, are to be avoided and discouragedby all
faithful Christians. The existence ofthem is a melancholy proof of the fallen
state of man, and the corruption of his understanding as well as his will. They
bring scandalon religion, and weakness onthe church. "Everykingdom
divided againstitself is brought to desolation."
What are the best remedies againstneedless divisions? A humble spirit, a
readiness to make concessions, andan enlightened acquaintance with holy
Scripture. We must learn to distinguish betweenthings in religion which are
essential — and things which are not essential;things which are needful to
salvation— and things which are not needful; things which are of first rate
importance — and things which are of secondrate importance.
On essentialthings, we must be stiff and unbending as the oak tree, "If any
man preaches any other Gospelthan that which we have preached — let him
be accursed." (Galatians 1:8.). On non-essentials, we may be as yielding and
compliant as the willow, "I have become all things to all men — that I might
by all means save some." (1 Corinthians 9:22.)
To draw such cleardistinctions requires greatpracticalwisdom. But such
wisdom is to be had for the asking. "If any man lacks wisdom — let him ask
of God." (James 1:5.) When Christians keepup needless divisions — they
show themselves more foolish than Satanhimself!

Mark 3:24 If a kingdom is dividedagainstitself, it
cannot stand.
"how Can SatanCastOut Satan?" Or, The Logic Of Spiritual Forces
Mark 3:23-27
A.F. Muir
The spirit of Christ's answerto this malicious attack is calm, fearless,and full
of light. He meets the charge with convincing and irrefutable logic.
I. THE DEFENCE. There are two elements in his argument:
1. A demonstration. It is the familiar reductio ad absurdum, such as one
might use with a schoolboy. It is so simple and trenchant that it straightway
becomes anattack of the most powerful kind. He treats them as children in
knowledge, andconvicts them at the same time of diabolical malice.
2. An inference. Here the advantage is pushed beyond the point expected. He
is not satisfiedwith a mere disclaimer; he comes to a further and higher
deduction. If it was true that he did not castout Satanby Satan, then it must
also be true that he castout Satanin spite of the latter; and that could only
mean one thing. Satan, "the strong man," must have been bound by the Son
of man, else he would not suffer himself to be so "spoiled." This is at once an
assurance full of comfort to his friends and a warning to his enemies.
II. POSITIONS ASSUMED IN IT.
1. The solidarity of evil.

2. The irreconcileablenessofthe kingdoms of light and darkness. - M.
Satannot self-destructive
When the Netherlanders broke awayfrom the bondage of Spain, they still
professedto be loyal subjects of King Philip, and, in the king's name, went out
to fight againstthe king's armies. That was a kind of loyalty which King
Philip refused to recognize. The Pharisees professedto believe that the devil
was content with loyalty like this — that, in fact, he hugely enjoyed the
destruction of his own works by Jesus, and supplied our Lord with all the help
he wanted in that line. A sane man does not burn his insurance policy, and
then setfire to his house as a means of providing for his family, A loyal soldier
will not undermine his own camp and blow it into the air as a means of
increasing the strength of that camp. The captain who is anxious for the safety
of his ship will not step down into the hold and bore a hole through the ship's
bottom. Nor will Satanjoin in destroying his ownkingdom. That Christ came
and destroyedthe works ofthe devil shows that He is Satan's enemy and
Satan's conqueror.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
3:22-30 It was plain that the doctrine of Christ had a direct tendency to break
the devil's power; and it was as plain, that casting of him out of the bodies of
people, confirmed that doctrine; therefore Satan could not support such a
design. Christ gave an awful warning againstspeaking suchdangerous words.
It is true the gospelpromises, becauseChrist has purchased, forgiveness for
the greatestsins and sinners; but by this sin, they would oppose the gifts of the

Holy Ghostafter Christ's ascension. Suchis the enmity of the heart, that
unconverted men pretend believers are doing Satan's work, when sinners are
brought to repentance and newness oflife.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
And the scribes ... - See the notes at Matthew 12:24-32. The occasionoftheir
saying this was, that he had healeda man possessedwith a devil. The scribes,
who came from Jerusalemto watchhis conduct, chargedhim with having
made a compactor agreementwith the prince of the devils.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
Mr 3:20-30. Jesus Is Chargedwith Madness and DemoniacalPossession—His
Reply. ( = Mt 12:22-37;Lu 11:14-26).
See on [1413]Mt12:22-37;[1414]Lu11:21-26.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
See Poole on"Mark 3:22"
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
And if a kingdom be divided againstitself,.... Any of the kingdoms of this
world, and the kingdom of "Satan":
that kingdom cannot stand: not long; its internal broils and divisions will,
soonbring it to desolation;See Gill on Matthew 12:25.
Geneva Study Bible
And if a kingdom be divided againstitself, that kingdom cannot stand.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Expositor's Greek Testament

Mark 3:24-25 set forth the principle or rationale embodied in two
illustrations. The theory in question is futile because it involves suicidal action,
which is not gratuitously to be imputed to any rational agents, to a kingdom
(Mark 3:24), to a house (Mark 3:25), and therefore not to Satan(Mark 3:26).
Vincent's Word Studies
And
Note the wayin which the sayings are linked by this conjunction; an
impressive rhetoricalprogression.
What does it mean that a house divided cannotstand?
house divided cannot standaudio
Question:"What does it mean that a house divided cannot stand?"
Answer: There are three accounts in the Gospels in which Jesus states thata
kingdom divided againstitself is laid waste ora house divided cannotstand
(Luke 11:17; Mark 3:25; Matthew 12:25). All three instances of this statement
are spokenin response to the Pharisees’accusationthat Jesus was casting out
demons by the powerof Satan—a blasphemy that Jesus saidwould not be
forgiven them.
Jesus’argument to the Phariseeswas logical:a kingdom that is at cross-
purposes with itself will fall. Any household riven by infighting will tearitself
apart. Jesus was obviouslycasting demons out of people. If Jesus was in
league with Satan, or if Satanwas somehow working through Jesus, it is
unlikely that exorcisms would be a priority, because why would Satancast

himself out? Satanhas more practicalwisdom than to allow his demonic
underlings to group themselves into warring factions.
By saying that a house divided cannot stand, Jesus is illustrating the fact that
successrelies oncongruency. This is something we see in daily life all the time.
Whether it is a machine, a sports team, a government party, or one’s own
mind, things have to work togetherif anything is to be accomplished. The
Bible says that a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1:8),
and Paul appeals to the churches that there be no divisions among the
believers (1 Corinthians 1:10). In fact, churches should be unified in their
purpose and judgment, avoiding people who cause divisions and create
obstacles contraryto sound doctrine (Romans 16:17). Christians are not to
quarrel but to be unified around a common understanding of truth. “How
goodand pleasantit is when God’s people live togetherin unity!” (Psalm
133:1).
God commands unity among believers because, once conflictenters the midst
of any assemblyor entity, productivity and usefulness inevitably grind to a
halt and the whole organizationis weakenedand becomes vulnerable to
attack. As Jesus said, “Any kingdom divided againstitselfwill be ruined, and
a house divided againstitself will fall.”
A fruit of the Spirit is peace (Galatians 5:22). Christians are, as followers of
the Prince of Peace, peacefulpeople (Matthew 5:9). We are calledto live in
harmony with one another (Romans 12:16) and, as far as it depends on us, to
be at peace with everyone (Hebrews 12:14). Jesus Christis building His
church (Matthew 16:18). His “house” will stand; “his kingdom will not be
destroyed, / his dominion will never end” (Daniel 6:26).
https://www.gotquestions.org/house-divided-cannot-stand.html

A house divided cannot stand – What does this mean?
The famous proverb "a house divided againstitself cannot stand" is found in
eachof the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 12:22–32;Luke 11:14–23;Mark 3:22–
29). In Mark 3, the scribes were accusing Jesusofbeing possessedby
Beelzebul, that is, Satan. They said "by the prince of demons he casts out the
demons" (Mark 3:22). That is when Jesus respondedby saying "How can
Satancastout Satan? If a kingdom is divided againstitself, that kingdom
cannot stand. And if a house is divided againstitself, that house will not be
able to stand" (Mark 3:23–25).
Jesus was saying, essentially, that it is impossible for Satanto casthimself out.
He was pointing out that Satan's goalis to destroy, not to heal; Satan would
not castdemons out of a person in order to promote Jesus, the Son of God, as
a powerful and merciful savior and healer. It makes no sense atall for Satan
to do this.
The "house" in the parable really means a "household" or a family living
togetherbeneath one roof. Just like a kingdom in civil war will eventually
destroy itself, a householdthat is "divided againstitself" will eventually fall. If
there is no harmony and agreementbetweenmembers of a household, it is
impossible for that house to "stand" and be successful. Forexample, imagine
a family with four children. The father and two of the children insist on going
out to dinner, as a family. The mother and the other two children insist on
staying home and having dinner, as a family. They want to eattogether, but
cannot agree onlocation. How soondo you think this family will accomplish
its goal? This is a picture of a householddivided againstitself: it will never
accomplishits aim unless everyone is working in accord. The aim of Satan is
to destroy God's kingdom, to obscure truth, to kill and stealand devour (John

10:10;1 Peter 5:8). How successfulwould he be if he went around helping
Jesus castout demons?
When Jesus told the scribes that "a house divided againstitself cannotstand"
he was exposing their stubborn unbelief. It is obvious that Satan doesn'tcast
out demons; the scribes and Phariseeswere just trying to find reasons to hate
and oppose Jesus becauseHe poseda threat to their religious system. They
depended on their own efforts for salvation, and for that reason, Jesus'
messageofdependence on God was odious to them. They were trying to find
anything—even the ridiculous—that would prove them right and Jesus
wrong.
At one point, Jesus told the Pharisees that they could be free of the practice of
sin (John 8:34). They were knownas the most righteous people around—and
Jesus was telling them they were sinners? They didn't like that! They threw
the virgin birth in Jesus'face, and accusedHis mother, Mary, of being sexual
immoral, saying "We were not born of sexual immorality" and implying that
God was their Fatherbut not Jesus'Father, as Jesus claimed(John 8:41).
Jesus told them then, point blank: "You are of your father the devil" and the
proof was in their murderous intentions and their lies (John 8:44). Again, they
accusedHim of having a demon (John 8:48). Jesus respondedby telling them
"before Abraham was, I am" which is the equivalent of saying "I am
Yahweh." The Pharisees understoodHis meaning. They pickedup stones and
tried to stone Him, but Jesus "hid himself" (John 8:49–59).
This fascinating passagefurther proves that the Pharisees were desperate to
silence Jesus atany cost. Theybecame irrational, liars, and were ready to
murder Him. They were indeed exhibiting the works of Satan, while Jesus
exhibited the works of God. It seems that Satan was working with them to
oppose Jesus by having them accuse Jesus ofbeing possessed. This is
consistentwith the deceptive nature of Satan, who "disguises himselfas an

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