Every kingdom divided

Every kingdom divided

Scripture:

Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.  “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.

Observation:

In this passage, we see another of the Lord’s encounters with a demon-possessed man whose demon has rendered him blind and mute. The Lord heals him, and he is then able to both talk and see to the great amazement of all the people. They begin asking among themselves if Jesus is really the Messiah but the Pharisees, in their hardened hearts instead slander Jesus by saying His success is by the prince of demons.

The Lord Jesus knows their thoughts and explains to them simply that just as a kingdom or city or household divided against itself will not stand, so too if Satan drives out Satan, his kingdom will quickly crumble. The Lord then questions the Pharisees by whom they perform their exorcisms. In Jewish tradition, Pharisees too were able to perform exorcisms using herbs and prayer, and even invoking the names of past greats like King Solomon. When the Lord said “they will be your judges”, He could be referring to people like Solomon, David, Moses and Abraham whom the Pharisees may have used in their exorcisms. A very notable difference in the exorcisms was that Jesus was able to drive out the demons by a word, while the Pharisees needed elaborate ceremonies and methods. They were jealous of the Lord’s power and authority and thus sought to slander Him.

The Lord then declares that He drives out demons by the Spirit of God, and this is proof that the kingdom of God has come upon them. This again reinforces His indirect declaration to the people that He is indeed the true Messiah.

Then, the Lord explains further regarding exorcism how it is akin to tying up a strong man first before plundering his house. The demons are illustrated as the strong man, and the persons possessed are the possessions of the house.

This principle is also important in prayer evangelism where we bind the god of this age and the spirit of unbelief before praying for the salvation of particular lost souls.

Application:

Demon-possession is real today as it was when Jesus walked the earth more than 2,000 years ago. He has given us His full authority, and we who serve Him are able to drive out demons in Jesus name and set spiritual captives free and bring healing to them. This authority and this ministry should not be taken lightly, but every true believer has that power given to him or her by God to take authority over demons and set people free.

There is an important lesson too about the kingdom, city or household divided. Satan works very hard to bring every household to division. It is so important for us to pray and work for the unity of our households, our cell groups, our church. If we become divided, we will crumble. Unity is paramount.

Regarding spiritual warfare too, there is an important lesson for us to pray to bind the principalities and authorities over particular areas, before praying for blessings and revival and salvation of souls, especially when the church undertakes special God-ordained events or projects for the extension of His kingdom.

Prayer:

We thank You, Heavenly Lord, for the great authority You have given us, over powers and principalities and demons. Teach us, Lord, to use this authority and power by Your name, for Your purposes, in Your timing! Thank You, Lord, for this lesson too on the importance of unity. We pray for Your Spirit of unity, Lord, to be strong and firm, in our families, our cell groups, our churches. Teach us Lord to pray. Enlighten our minds to know how to bind strongholds and principalities and powers. Give us Your special anointing in prayer. May Your name be praised forever. In Jesus name, Amen.