Luke 11:14-28 – Dealing with the strong man

The reality of demonic activities cannot be dismissed. The Lord Jesus' ministry proved it a thousand times over. One thing that the Gospel of Luke showed again and again, is the Lord's authority over the devil and his demonic forces. But the Lord's conflict was not only with demonic powers; His conflict was also with the religious authority of His day. Here in Luke 11:14-28 we see such a situation. A person who could not talk was delivered. For how long he was mute, we are not told. But the Lord revealed who was behind his condition. He specifically called it "mute." It was common then for exorcists to name the demons in their deliverance exercises. Jesus was just following the common practice of His time. However, we also need to know that not all mutes were caused by demonic dominance. A case in point was the priest Zachariah, the father of John the Baptist. He was struck dumb by the Lord's messenger for his unbelief.  But in the case of this mute, Luke made it clear that it was definitely caused by a mute demon.

What was amazing were the results that followed. People responded to the deliverance differently. Firstly, the victim spoke immediately. Though Luke did not describe his emotion, for sure he must have gone home extremely joyful. Then there were those that were amazed. These were awe stricken. Sincere seekers would. There were also a third category of people - those who opposed it. These were there to create trouble and stir up opposition. And finally the critical were also present. They sneered at the deliverance for its seeming insignificance. They demanded for greater supernatural signs. Jesus dealt with the most troublesome first.

Those trouble-makers insisted that our Lord had cast out "mute" by the power of Beelzebub, a name synonymous with Satan. It simply means "Lord of the flies." How appropriate a name for Satan! Of course Jesus could not leave the challenge unanswered. So He responded to His opponents in three ways. Firstly, in verse 18, He used logic. He reasoned with them. If His power was from Beelzebub, than wouldn't Satan be up against himself? Wouldn't Satan's kingdom be a divided kingdom? Then it would certainly spell his downfall.

Secondly, in verse 19, He used comparison, asking, "By what power did the other exorcists work? How would the people differentiate between what is of God and what is of Satan?" He asked them to tell Him then, by whose name did their own exorcists did their deliverance. And finally, in verse 20, He issued a challenge. "But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." The finger of God is referring to the Holy Spirit. The implication: God's power has now come to dominate. Satan's power had been overthrown by the dominion of God's greater power.

In verse 22, the terms "someone stronger" refer to the Lord. He was basically saying that Satan may have control for a time. He was the strong man. But now our Lord, the "someone stronger" has come. And Satan's armoury has been ransacked, stripped and his spoils taken. His call to all is: stop criticizing and start believing! For anyone who is not with the Lord would be against Him

The crux of Luke 11:24-28 is this. A spiritually cleaned up life requires the continual presence of the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, the demonic power that once controlled could return with other spirits to take possession of it again. A life that is not yielded could be re-dominated by the evil spirits. When that happens, it would bring a more serious disaster. We need to know that having good morals without the Spirit of God is not enough.

In verses 27-28 we are told that a woman shouted out in praise of the Lord's earthly mother, calling her blessed, in the midst of His teaching. Jesus seized the opportunity and issued a call to hear and obey God's Word. He said those who do that are the truly blessed. Praise God! Greater is He Who is in us than he that is in the world. We are God's vessel. Let's bring our hearts like vessels to Him. This overflowing, ever-flowing stream! Just as Paul had made this call: let’s be filled with His Spirit daily, constantly and unceasingly. This is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.