Jan.

30, 2000
Luke 11:14-23
Sermon: What Lane Are You In?
Cascades Fellowship CRC

I have developed a passionate dislike for the “center turn lane.” You see, the
“center turn lane” is like neutral territory between the well-defined boundaries of
the left and right lane. It’s like a no-man’s land where the only enforceable law is
the law of gross tonnage. He who weighs the most has right of way. The center
lane is abused, used for circumventing the normal rules of the road by
unscrupulous road warriors. It becomes a region of anarchy in a normally orderly
area of life.
I prefer roads that only have left and right lanes. There is no fudging there – if
your are in the left lane, you are on the wrong side of the road – at least in the U.S.
If you are in the right lane you know you are where you should be – all is right
with the world. There is no neutral territory to worry about.
In Luke's gospel, we are told a story that is a warning to those who want to drive
the “center turn lane” throughout life. It is a story of conflict between two
kingdoms – two lanes, if you will. The story shows our Lord clearly defining the
boundaries between the right lane and the left lane.
The story begins with a man hounded by a demon and badly in need of
deliverance. But the funny thing is, the way Luke tells it, the deliverance is -- well
-- no big deal. How can I say that Christ casting out a demon is no big deal to
Luke? Well, let's set the scene first and then we will see.
Jesus and his disciples have begun their journey to Jerusalem. The Passover is
coming, so the Jews are beginning to recall all the stories about God's deliverance
out of the hand of Pharaoh. Along the way, on the road to Jerusalem, Jesus is
teaching his disciples, and Luke highlights these moments for us in his gospel. In
the first part of our chapter, Jesus taught his disciples how to pray about God's
Kingdom come and told them that if they but seek for him, God will be found and
he will give the Holy Spirit to all who asks. So fresh in the mind of the disciples is
this notion of God as the gracious giver of his Spirit and His Kingdom coming.
Another teachable moment arises when Jesus comes upon this man who can't
speak because of a demon.
Now picking up in v.14. Jesus begins casting the mute demon out of the man and
the man begins talking. The people are amazed. Think about it! Or maybe we
better not. Why? Well, because the writer -- who was operating under inspiration
of the Holy Spirit -- didn't spend much time thinking about it. Normally,
whenever a miracle story is recorded, the reader is given some details about the
characters involved, their history, their town, but not here! Look! In one verse --
two sentences -- we have Jesus Christ delivering a man from a demon that has
held his tongue still from praising God for ... we don't know how long! Luke
doesn't even tell us that. Why? Because the miracle is not the story.
One of the characteristics of Luke's gospel is when there is a confrontation
between Jesus and the religious leaders of his day it follows a formula. The
formula starts with an action -- for example a miracle, or a statement concerning
what his ministry is about -- followed by an attack by those who want to discredit
him. Then, Jesus speaks. He responds to the attack, always in a way that is
decisive and uncompromising.
So for Luke, the real story lies ahead. In vv.15-16, Luke records some responses --
actually two attacks -- to the miracle that are somewhat less than "amazed." In the
first assault, a group of on-lookers grumble, "He does this by Beelzebub, the
prince of demons." Can you imagine that? Who is Beelzebub? The name means
"the lord of the flies" and apparently referred to a slanderous term the Hebrews
used for Satan.
So this group -- by the way, the other gospel accounts record the group as being
the Pharisees and scribes -- watched a man get delivered from a demon and rather
than rejoice, they say "It's because he is in league with the devil that he can cast
out demons." Can you believe it? What the Pharisees are saying is, "Beware! The
Kingdom of Hell is before you!" They are actually saying that Jesus is using the
power of the Satan, the prince of darkness, to cast out demons! The irony here is
just too much. The response of the Pharisees to a miracle is that Christ is a "lord,"
but that he is a "lord" in the hosts of Satan.
The second attack is not much better. This group says in v.16 -- and I paraphrase
-- "Hey, that's pretty neat trick, but give us sign from heaven." They treat Jesus
like he’s David Copperfield and then ask him for a real sign, one from heaven this
time.
What we need to realize here is that there is no talk about the miracle being a fake,
or that it never really happened. In both attacks the underlying assumption is that
something miraculous occurred and it needs to be explained somehow. But both
refuse to recognize Christ for who he is, even though the evidence is right before
them. Somehow, Jesus just doesn’t fit their mold of the Messiah.
So right after healing the mute, Jesus finds himself attacked on two fronts, both
ignoring his miracle -- its implications -- and putting the question to him, "Who do
you really serve?"
Now we get to the response part of the formula, the part that Luke really wants us
to see. He minimizes detail up to this point, effectively fast-forwarding through
the story. Now he slows way down to make sure we get the full effect of Christ’s
response. Let's take a look at vv. 17-23.
Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided
against itself will fall.

Jesus begins by shaming the Pharisee and scribes in the presence of all these
people who, on any other day, would fall over themselves simply to honor their
religious dedication. Essentially he says, "What a ridiculous notion! Why would
Satan destroy his own handiwork? Why would he strive against his own under-
lord who is doing his bidding? You guys know better than that." He uses a
proverb of his day to evoke powerful imagery, revealing to the people how foolish
his attackers are. It doesn't take a huge stretch for the Jews to feel the sting of this
statement. They have, after all, a long history of civil strife.
Then Jesus gets to the heart of this teachable moment. It is here that he defines the
line that divides the road into the right and left lanes. He begins by pointing out to
his accusers that he is not the first to cast demons -- some among their own
number have done the same. If Jesus is a “lord” in the hosts of Satan, then the
Pharisees and the scribes must be the ones making up his hosts.
"But," Jesus continues in v. 20, "if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then
the Kingdom of God has come to you." He places this choice before his accusers --
either casting out demons is of God, or it is of Satan. “Whose side are you on?”
Jesus is asking.
The argument Jesus is using here flies directly in the face of what his attackers
have claimed against him. This isn't the kingdom of hell, Jesus is saying, open
your eyes! This is the Kingdom of God being manifested right before you. The
King is in your midst, establishing his rule in the enemy's territory. Jesus wants
his listeners to know that what he does is done through the Spirit of God. As the
one anointed King by the Holy Spirit, Jesus is making the Kingdom a present
reality, now. This is important to realize.
Remember where Luke has placed this story. Just after Christ has taught his
disciples how to pray about God’s Kingdom come and to seek the gift of the Holy
Spirit, here he is claiming the Kingdom has come! Jesus is telling them -- and us
-- that where the Holy Spirit (the finger of God) is ministering, the Kingdom of
God is present. The act of deliverance, destroying the work of the devil gives
evidence to the presence of the Kingdom. In breaking Satan's grip on the mute
and restoring his voice to praise the Creator, Jesus reveals that he is the King.
That means that now the Pharisees, the scribes, the disciples, the crowd, me and
you have to decide how we are going to respond to the King. Which lane are we
going to drive in? The right or the left? Will we follow the King?
But Christ isn't finished. He wants to make sure that the people know who he is
and what he brings to them. So rather than stop with this revelation, he drives the
point home with a parable. Take a look at vv.21-22.
When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are
safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away
the armor which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.

There is this strongman, Jesus says, who is armed to the teeth, diligently keeping
watch over all his plunder. Now, the listeners would have understood what he
meant by a strongman. They live with Roman rule every day. They deal with
Herod every day. The Jews have their share of strongmen to draw from -- an
emperor and a king -- and who can stand against them? Rome squashes rebellion
like a man squashes an ant. Herod murders his enemies through intrigue. Who
can possibly overthrow the strongman?
Jesus says, there is this strongman, who stands battle-ready, guarding all he owns.
No one can take anything from him. His fierceness secures all that is his and he
enjoys peace because of the fear he inspires. He is safe, unless. Unless someone
stronger comes along. If someone stronger comes along he overpowers the
strongman and takes his weapons from him, diminishing the fierceness the
strongman trusted in to guard his plunder. In turn, he is plundered by the stronger
man and the wealth he held in fear is divided up. Who is stronger than the
strongman? The rightful King.
Remember, Jesus just previously shot down the notion that Satan casts himself out.
So the people would recognize what he meant by this parable is that he is stronger
than Satan. He does more than simply casts the devil out, he takes his armor -- a
sign of ultimate conquest -- he plunders the spoils, sets the captives free from the
sin that ensnared them -- that is the grip of Satan. Darrell Bock puts it this way:
Here is the ultimate cosmic war. Jesus and Satan stand toe to toe in battle. The
miracles are an audiovisual that Satan's cause is ultimately lost. He can do great
damage, as any enemy can; but the die is cast. He will lose.... The stronger one is
the promised Messiah who brings fire and the Spirit. The dividing of the spoil
recalls the imagery of Isaiah 53:12. Jesus' work means that Satan no longer
controls the palace.

Jesus undoes what the Devil has done. He overthrows evil. He severs the bonds
of slavery called sin and shame and invites the captive into the freedom of his
reign. The Kingdom of God has come and the reign of evil is effectively over.
The King has entered the land and he has broken the chains of sin from around
your hands and feet and heart. If you have trusted in Christ – listen to this – if you
have trusted in Christ for your salvation, you are free. Just as God lead the
captives out of Egypt by breaking the power of the strongman Pharaoh, Jesus sets
you free by breaking the dominion Satan enjoyed over you through the power of
sin. You are no longer bound by that pet sin that has entangled you for so long,
tripping you every step of your walk with God. Whether it be anger, greed, pride,
lust – doesn’t matter, the chains were broken when you confessed Christ as Lord.
If we are still bound by our sin – public or private – it is because we have picked
up the chains that Christ has shattered and draped them over our shoulder. It is
because we have loved our sin too much to leave it behind. Child of God you are
free. Leave your chains and follow the King!
Jesus concludes his argument with a defining statement. He wants to make sure
that the people listening understand that simply hearing him out is not good
enough. There is no neutrality, no center turn lane. You must make a choice.
What he says, what he claims about himself, about God, about the nature of reality
demands a response; one is either for the King or against him. There can be no
neutrality with Jesus, one must choose. I think CS Lewis said it best when he said
-- if I may paraphrase him here -- One cannot simply say that Christ was a good
moral teacher, but not the King of Heaven as he claimed to be. For a man to make
that sort of claim -- to make himself out to be the Son of God who brings the
Kingdom of God to earth -- demands that one make a decision about his person,
not his teaching. He is either who he claims to be -- the one stronger than the
strongman -- or he is a lunatic to be dismissed. One cannot ride the fence.
To make the statement clear to his listeners, Jesus returns to one of his favorite
metaphors of shepherd and sheep. Look at v.23.
He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me
scatters.

You are either gathering the flock or scattering it. Coming under the headship of
Christ means continuing to fight the battle Christ began to establish the Kingdom
-- proclaiming the gospel, setting the captives free from the devil’s tyranny. It is
the task of all that call him Lord. If you are not doing this, you are scattering –
aiding and abetting Kingdom of Hell. You are either actively seeking to promote
the Kingdom of God or you are scattering. There is no neutral ground -- no center
turn lane. You must choose to live as a vassal, Jesus says. You must recognize
that the Kingdom of God and its King are marching on the land and you have got
to get into step. You don't need signs and wonders. You need to heed the call and
get in line. Jesus says, “You're either for me or against me.”
Charles Spurgeon, arguably the best preacher to grace the Christian church in the
West, once preached a sermon on a passage found in Exodus that says “And not a
hoof thereof shall be left behind,” speaking about Israel’s deliverance from Egypt.
His point was this, when the King, when God redeems you, he leaves not one
speck in the hands of the enemy. He redeems all of you – even down to every last
hair. So either all of you belongs to God or none of you. There is no in-between,
no center-turn lane. Which lane are you in?
Christ the King calls us to be free and to set free, to be in the right lane. To do
anything less is to be an enemy of Christ.