Luke 11:24…

Jesus has announced His intent to bring to an end the spirit that would divide anyone from God. He has shared the strength required to do so, and demonstrated that He alone has that strength. The only way to drive the strongman from his palace is for a stronger than he to come.

Jesus has come to defeat Satan at every point, and He reveals the ease of the strength of God to do so. It is finger work for God.

In fact, it is only by our denial of the power of God in the Person of the Holy Spirit of God that we allow – and by default empower – Satan to accomplish his goal to divide us from God. Jesus opposes Satan at every turn and He has the power to defeat him.

Sometimes by what we regard as ‘clean living’ we deny the power of God. We may think the power of God is unnecessary in our lives.

The classic example is the person who after a long struggle with a particular destructive behavior finally summons up the will power, or employs some sort of support group, in an effort to succeed against that particular behavior – and is successful. By all outward appearance victory over bad and destructive behavior has taken place. Perhaps the person walking in this degree of victory may even become an example to many and write a self-help manual about gaining victory over the physical impediment by employing some sort of physical method.

Jesus pulls back the curtain to the spiritual realm and lets us know our enemy is spiritual not physical. All the physical methods and all the will power in the world cannot and will not defeat Satan.

It is also revealed Satan does not respond to or respect neutrality when it comes to the things of God. We must be FOR God in order to access the power of God necessary to drive Satanic influence out of our lives once and for all.

Getting ourselves all ‘cleaned up’ by human effort just makes the place that much nicer for the demon spirit to inhabit once again, and explains the never ending cycle in the world of temporary victories followed by even greater falls.

-Pastor Bill