Luke 11:14-23 Breaking Into the Strong Man’s House
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: September 2, 2018 Luke 11:14-23
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
Jesus was driving a demon out of a man who was unable to talk. When the demon had gone out, the man began to speak, and the crowds were amazed. But some of them said, “He drives out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” Others, wanting to test Jesus, kept asking him for a sign from heaven. Since he knew what they were thinking, he told them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is devastated, and a divided household collapses. Now, if Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom last? After all, you say that I drive out demons by Beelzebul. If I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own followers drive them out? That is why they will be your judges! But if I drive out demons by the power of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you. “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own mansion, his property is safe. But when a stronger man than he attacks and defeats him, the stronger man strips off that man’s armor in which he trusted and then divides his plunder. “The person who isn’t with me is against me, and the person who doesn’t gather with me scatters.”
(Understanding the Text) This incident starts with Jesus performing a wonderful miracle. A man who could not talk for no apparent physical reason was given back his speech. Was this truly a demon keeping him silent or was it that when we are damaged psychologically it is through the work of demons and Jesus healed the man’s mind, not physically but spiritually casting out the fear that demons had used to twist his mind so that he was mute? It does not say clearly what Jesus’ words about the situation were when He cast out the demon, but I am going to assume that it was a demon and that Jesus’ words were to command the demon to go out because of the accusation made next.
(Revelation of God) This was not the first time that Jesus’ abilities to heal and cast out demons were credited to Satan and demons rather than to the Father. Jesus was careful to always credit the Father for His ability and power. Partly this was humility, but ultimately it was simple truth to Him, and He would not have even thought of hiding anything about His Father.
(Understanding the Text) It always amazes me that people saw all the signs, and then turned around and asked, but give us a real sign. People who don’t want to believe something will never believe no matter how much proof or evidence you give them. On the other hand, people who are open to the leading of the Holy Spirit do not require great proofs; only, the normal signs that should be obvious to anyone. The best sign I think that they can receive is our own relationship with God. It is ironic that the same people who refuse to believe in the evidence that God provides will turn around and gullibly follow Satan’s lies with no proof. They will contort the truth until it fits Satan’s lies because to do anything else would mean to accept their own inadequacy and persistent need for God.
Jesus gives us some insights into the reality of the fight that is going on between heaven and the forces of evil. First, He refers to Satan as having a kingdom. He then refers to the kingdom of God as the enemy of Satan’s kingdom. Satan’s kingdom was this world until Jesus came here and took it away from him. On the cross, Jesus regained the kingdom of earth, but at this point in time, He still referred to Satan as king.
Jesus did not underestimate Satan as we often do. He refers to Satan as strong and fully armed. He indicates that Satan is not sleeping but is instead actively guarding his kingdom, patrolling it, trying to make sure that no one takes it from him. The reason that Satan lost to Jesus was not because Satan was lacking. It was because Jesus had the power and character to overcome Satan. Satan, however, had a weakness. Satan trusted in his own armor, his own defenses, that he had set up to keep God out; Satan believed that he had used the system in such a way that God could not tear down the walls that he had built. However, Jesus was warning Satan here that those walls, or armor, would not keep God from entering and taking back the kingdom that Satan had stolen in Eden.
(Revelation of God) What is the plunder that Jesus will take and divide? Us. Satan stole us from God in Eden. Jesus took us back. It started when He came walking into the garden when He reconnected to Adam and Eve. It continued as He interacted with all of humanity throughout history, but it culminated when He stripped Himself of His powers to become a man and fought Satan as a man and died as a man. Jesus was strong enough to stop being all powerful and to fight Satan as a man. He did all this to take us back from the enemy, not just as a kingdom, but as individuals that He loves.
Jesus was telling us that the sign that they were looking for was in front of them. If He was driving out demons and healing through the power of God, then He was a representative of heaven, and they were faced with the decision of following the Father (the king of heaven) or the king of this world (Satan).
(Application / Prayer) My application for myself is that I am on the winning side no matter how it appears in the world or even to me. Things will get darker and darker and sadder and sadder, but there is joy in my Father’s kingdom, and I am already part of that kingdom, here and now. I am now the “strongest Man” in the scenario because God has put the Holy Spirit in me. He provides me with power that no one can defeat. However, this war is fought on God’s terms now, not Satan’s. God fights by me remaining connected to Him no matter what Satan and his angels throw at me. That is the war-for my heart. As long as I hold onto You, I will win even though by the world’s standards, I may appear to lose. This is what happened at the cross and again and again throughout history. Oh God! I want to win. Hold me close.