When we look at all the accounts in the Gospels and Acts in which demon possession (having a demon, unclean/evil spirit, etc.) is described, we find the following facts. Thirteen passages include references to demon possession of some sort. Of these, six are clearly about demon possession, one is probable (Acts 19.11-20), five are general (Mk. 1.32-34, for example) and one is questionable (Acts 16.16-18).
A question about what the Gospels tell us about demon possession is immediately raised. Why was demon possession seemingly so prevalent during the time of Jesus’ walk upon the earth? Based upon the record of the OT, demon possession did not occur in the time before the life of Christ. At the least, if people were demon possessed, no mention is made in the Hebrew Scriptures. Further, except for the three references in Acts (8.7; 16.16-18; 19.11-20), the matter of demonic activity is not addressed in any other book of the NT. The reality of Satan is discussed at times, but not demons (James 2.19, 1 Corinthians 10.20-21 and Revelation 9.20, 16.14 and 18.2 have no bearing on demon possession at all.).
One other fact bears consideration: after Matt. 17.14-18, Mk. 9.38, Lk. 9.49 and Acts 19.13-16, demon possession is not mentioned again in the Synoptic Gospels or Acts. Why did such an important issue cease to be an issue in the Gospels and Acts? In over half the book of Matthew, most of Mark and almost two-thirds of Luke, demon activity is not mentioned at all. We might find our answer by looking at what the Evangelists were saying about Jesus.
A good starting point is Matthew 4.1-17, Mark 1.12-15 and Luke 4.1-21. Each of these passages is an account of the beginning of the ministry of Jesus. In these texts, two things occur. First, Jesus is led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit and is tempted by Satan. Second, he then publicly announces his ministry. In Matthew and Mark, Jesus announced, “The kingdom of heaven/God is at hand.” In Luke, Jesus read from the Scroll of Isaiah (61.1-2). After reading, he declared, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” In effect, he was proclaiming the advent of the Kingdom of God. The announcement of the kingdom had temporal and eternal consequences and meanings.
Look back at the temptation of Jesus by Satan in the wilderness. The testing of Jesus was an earthly battle, and a battle in which he defeated Satan. All throughout his ministry, Jesus would suffer attacks by Satan. He never lost a single battle; he always won. Jesus’ conflicts with Satan were fought in time. These battles were played out in his encounters with demon possessed persons. Jesus was able to free the demon possessed because he had defeated the Devil.
Matthew 12.22-29 and Luke 11.14-23 show us the greater truth involved in Jesus’ encounters with the demon possessed. These two stories of Jesus’ casting out a demon and the response of the crowd and the Pharisees go to the heart of the battle between Jesus and Satan. When Jesus cast the demon out of the blind and mute man, the crowd asked, “this man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” The Pharisees, on the other hand, accused Jesus of casting out demons with the power of Beelzebul (Satan), the ruler of the demons.
Obviously, everyone, Pharisees and the crowd as well, knew what the power to cast out demons implied. Only the Messiah would be able to do so. Isaiah wrote, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners; to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God’ to comfort all who mourn in Zion.” (Isa. 61.1-2). These are the verses Jesus read in the synagogue in Nazareth. After reading, he declared the words of this passage to have been fulfilled. He was the fulfillment. The Kingdom was at hand because he, the Messiah, the anointed one, had come.
The Pharisees understood what Jesus’ casting out demons meant. To recognize his power to do so by the Spirit of God would have meant they believed him to be the Messiah. They could not do so for a variety of reasons. Just as the people in the synagogue of Nazareth were enraged by Jesus’ declaration, the Pharisees as well were angered. How could the son of a simple carpenter be the Anointed One? Quite frankly, the Pharisees probably expected the Messiah to be one of their own.
The important part of this story is found in how Jesus defended himself and what he was doing. He first pointed out the ridiculousness of the charge he was casting out demons by the power of the Demon Lord. Such a scenario would mean a kingdom would be “divided against itself.” If Satan fought against himself, if “Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.” Jesus then said, “how then will his kingdom stand?” Jesus next statement went to the heart of the issue.
“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can anyone enter the strong man's house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.” (Matt. 12.28-29) Two conclusions can be drawn from Jesus’ declaration. First, he was declaring himself to be the Messiah who was ushering in the Kingdom of God. Second, he was publicly declaring his power over the Devil.
Jesus said, “how can anyone enter the strong man’s house (Satan’s kingdom) an carry off his property unless he first binds (defeats) the strong man?” By casting out demons, Jesus was “entering the strong man’s house” and was carrying off his property (the demon possessed). Because he had defeated the Devil (manifested and proven in the Wilderness Temptations), Jesus had both the authority and the power to take Satan’s “property.” (See 1 John 3.8) Such a truth was too great and traumatic for the Pharisees to believe. All they hoped for, if they accepted Jesus, would have been denied them. They, as both the religious and cultural elite, could not bring themselves to acknowledge Jesus, and, thus, be required to bow before him.
The victory of Jesus over Satan was both a spiritual and physical reality. For about half his ministry, Jesus was engaged in conflicts with the minions of Satan. He won every battle and encounter. At some point, these kinds of battles ceased to be an issue. Thus, in the Synoptics, encounters with demon possessed persons was no longer a kind of battle in which Jesus would be engaged. He of course still battled with Satan, but on an entirely different kind of field. The conflicts became more subtle. Conflict with the Pharisees, Sadducees and the High Priest and his supporters were the rule. In these encounters, Jesus had to do battle with the religious lies and untruths by which Israel was bound.
Understand, the people of Israel and their religious leaders were not demon possessed. They were deceived. One does not have to know the source of deception in order to be mislead. People simply accept, without thinking, popular ideas and concepts. One of the ways the Devil tempted Jesus was the offer of a wholly religious world. The Devil said to Jesus, “all these things (the kingdoms of the world) I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” (Matt. 4.9) Jesus was being told he could achieve his goal by acknowledging the superior power and position of Satan. Jesus, though, did not want a religious world. Israel already had religion, but still was powerless to rescue those trapped in darkness.
Jesus replied to Satan, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” Satan was shown his place in God’s scheme. He was defeated and commanded to leave. Only the more powerful of the two combatants could command: Jesus commanded Satan and Satan had to obey; he had no other choice. Jesus then declared the source of his power: the Lord your God. Jesus recognized the ultimate power of God in his own life, and he declared the Lord was Satan’s God as well. Satan had no power over Jesus at all. His defeat was a reality and would be declared further when Jesus went to the Cross and was resurrected from the Tomb.
Jesus refused to believe the lies of the Devil. He rejected legalistic religion and opted instead for faith. If the good news was ever to become a reality, Jesus had to go to the Cross. He could not settle for anything less. He had to die. His death and resurrection was the final declaration of the totality of the victory of God over sin, death and the Devil.
No comments:
Post a Comment