“The experts in the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and, “By the ruler of demons he casts out demons!” So he called them and spoke to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom will not be able to stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan rises against himself and is divided, he is not able to stand and his end has come. But no one is able to enter a strong man’s house and steal his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can thoroughly plunder his house. I tell you the truth, people will be forgiven for all sins, even all the blasphemies they utter. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, but is guilty of an eternal sin because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.” —Mark 3:22-30
First His family says “He is out of His mind” and now the teachers of the law are claiming that Jesus is demonically possessed and driving out demons with Satan’s power. It is amazing how low people can go when they are seeking to destroy someone, is it not? There was no arguing the fact that Christ had cast out demons–proof was present! Therefore, the enemy sought to twist and distort our Lord’s miraculous works. Satan never voluntarily abandons his possessions. Someone stronger, Someone with more authority, must come and overpower him. That Someone is Jesus, our Victor!
Satan is a creature of vengeance, doing anything he can to keep us from rightly worshipping and serving God. He is always on the prowl, trying to make us like one of his own. If he can’t get us to stop our worship of the Almighty, he attempts to diminish or distract us from Him. He hates God being worshipped because he craves desires to have that worship for himself. Indeed, he desires to be God. The five “I will’s” of the devil are synonymous with the “I will’s” of the King of Babylon presented in Isaiah–Satan being the real power behind that pagan king:
“Look how you have fallen from the sky, O shining one, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the ground, O conqueror of the nations!
You said to yourself, “I will climb up to the sky.
Above the stars of El I will set up my throne.
I will rule on the mountain of assembly on the remote slopes of Zaphon.
I will climb up to the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High!”
—Isaiah 14:12-14
Remember as well that the adversary tempted Jesus with a vain effort to get Him to fall prostrate at his unholy feet:
“Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their grandeur. And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you throw yourself to the ground and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: ‘You are to worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’” Then the devil left him, and angels came and began ministering to his needs.” —Matthew 4:8-10
Jesus counters the teachers of the law’s inane accusations with reason. Rather than avoiding or shunning the opposition, our Lord refutes their charges directly: What would it possibly behoove Satan to fight against himself? How would his kingdom of darkness stand much less advance if he were in constant opposition battling evil against evil?
Satan–depicted by Jesus as the strong man–whose houses are filled with sin, sickness, sorrow, and death, does not give up without a battle. It is he who must be tied up in order for the captive to be set free. Jesus disarmed Satan’s power with the cross. The victory belongs to all believers! We have life in Jesus! All sin carries with it a death sentence–death to relationships, death to fullness of joy, death to character, death to life. When you really think about it, what does anyone ever gain from sin but destruction and death?
Take It to Heart
All the sins against God are open to God’s forgiveness with one exception: blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. In light of the context in which Jesus gives this warning, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit seems to have more to do with a prevailing attitude of defiant hostility toward God–a rejection of His saving power–rather than an isolated act or utterance. It is to prefer darkness after being exposed to the light. It is a persistent attitude of willful unbelief. It is sadly sin against the last remedy, rendering it unpardonable.
“And even though you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he nevertheless made you alive with him, having forgiven all your transgressions. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” —Colossians 2:13-15
Further Reflections
“No more let sin and sorrow grow. Nor thorns infest the ground. He comes to make His blessings flow. Far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found. Far as, far as, the curse is found.” —Isaac Watts