Luke 11:14-28
Jesus and Beelzebub
14Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. 15But some of them said, "By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons." 16Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven.
17Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: "Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. 18If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub. 19Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 20But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.
21"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. 22But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.
23"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.
24"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.' 25When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. 26Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first."
27As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you."
28He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it."
Jesus takes the devil very seriously...Beelzebub, the prince of demons, was a name taken from the Canaanite God Baal...Beelzebub is known as satan...Jesus drives evil from a mute...Beelzebub leaves the mute and he is able to speak...Some onlookers following and observing Jesus said He was driving out demons in the name of Beelzebub...Others, who were watching Him remove evil from the mute, ask to see a sign from heaven...Satan divides...Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall...
The people, challenging Jesus, had just seen a miracle...But it wasn't enough for some...To the nonbeliever, this was just a evil removed by Someone they compared to the devil...To others they wanted more...They wanted to see another sign from heaven, they wanted to see another miracle...Jesus knew what they were thinking...He tells them that any kingdom (including satan's kingdom) that is divided against itself will fall...So if satan is constantly fighting himself, satan will fall...If evil is always fighting against evil and other evils, the world would eventually be free of evil...But this isn't the case...Evil works with evil...A house divided will fall...Evil preys upon good, and tries to defeat good...Evil wants to fall the house of the good...
Good has came to the people of Israel...Jesus has removed evil from the mute by the finger of God...Jesus tells them that the kingdom of God has come to you (the people of Israel)...Jesus is referring to Himself and His removing the evil from the mute as the kingdom of God...
Today the people, who don't believe in Jesus, would still like to see another miracle...The past miracles are not enough...They need more...Others who today have prayed and seen a great healing miracle, may forget and want more...They or we see the miracle, and then move on...What can Jesus or God do next...They forget about their last answered prayer...
Jesus is more powerful than satan...He is more powerful than evil...Evil knows Him...He fights evil throughout His ministry...As we and the people watching Jesus realize is that there is no neutral position...It is a zero sum game...You either believe in Jesus or you don't... He who is not with Me, is against Me...He who does not gather with me scatters...
Jesus also teaches, another important lesson about the mute who He has driven out the evil...Driving out the evil out of the mute is not enough... He is not healed yet...Something has to replace the void, where the mute left...The evil may come back...Evil spirits may leave a man, but goes and tries to find another place to live...If the evil one finds more evil, it may come back to the mute unless He has replaced it, with good, with the right focus and right attitude...We must now take in the light to be healed, to keep the darkness of evil out...We need to be focused on God...It is good for our health...
We then hear a woman yell about blessing His mother Mary who gave birth to Him...Jesus turns the blessing to His major teachings... Blessed are those who hear the word of God, and obeys it...
There are people who have seen great things and believe what they want to believe...Some people do not want to identify Jesus as the true Son of God...They just think He was a prophet, a good man, or just a good teacher...That is not what Jesus says...You either believe or you don't...He has just told us here in Luke chapter eleven and verse twenty, that He has driven out a demon by the finger of God, and the kingdom of God has come to you (us)...A good man cannot drive evil out of a sick man...A good teacher cannot drive out Beelzebub...Jesus by the kingdom of God has driven out satan...He brings us the kingdom of God ...His miracles have show the power of the kingdom of God...Jesus is, as Thomas finally realizes in John 20:28, our LORD and our God...