Holy Home Invasion

Tied up at Gunpoint

There’s a HUGE crash as the front door flies open! Before anyone knows what’s happening, a handful bad guys have you and your family tied up and at gunpoint.

I don’t pretend to be a victim of a home invasion and certainly never hope to be. I hate it for anyone of you who may have been.

But did you know that Jesus actually talks about one of these attacks in Scripture (Mk 3:22-30)? Not only that, He’s actually the One who pulls it off! I’m telling you, there’s some wonderfully wild stuff in the documents we call the Bible. Do yourself a huge favor and read it for yourself.

An Accusation from the Home Office

Interestingly, the Lord shares this story while He’s at a residence in the fishing village of Capernaum in Galilee. A team of religious leaders from the home office have arrived. They think they’ve figured out how the radical Rabbi/Carpenter is kicking some serious demonic tail.

According to them, Jesus has the ability to exorcise evil spirits because He’s actually playing for Satan’s team. They accuse Him of being a mole or a plant. Their theory is that demons do what He says because it’s all part of the devil’s con game.

Our Savior tells these so-called experts to pump their brakes. They’ve got it all wrong. He’s got supernatural connections alright. But it’s with the Holy Spirit of God. They’re on an eternally slippery slope when they accuse Him of collaborating with the very one He came to defeat.

Wild Reports out of Galilee

As we mentioned earlier, this is at a home in Capernaum. It’s either the house Peter and Andrew share or the Son of God has His own place. It’s actually the same location and same moment when Jesus’ family comes to take Him home because they believe He’s lost His mind (Mk 3:20-21).

Not only have Mary and His brothers arrived. Some religious honchos have come to town to get to the bottom of all the wild reports they’re hearing from Galilee. Chances are local scribes and Pharisees made a 9-1-1 call to Jerusalem after Jesus handed them their lunch five times in a row (Mk 2:1-3:-6).

Jumping to Conclusion

A team of Jewish lawyers have already come to their conclusion before they come to town. Christ isn’t crazy. According to them, it’s worse than that. He’s controlled by Satan.

“But the teachers of the religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, ‘He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where He gets the power to cast out demons’” (v22).

Jewish Bible Scholars

In the original language, Mark describes these teachers using the Greek word γραμματευς/grammateus. It literally means one who writes. Back in the day, this is somebody who works as a clerk or specializes in written documents.

In this case, those documents are the Scriptures. And at this time, we’re talking about the Old Testament since it is the ONLY testament around in the early First Century. They’re big-time Bible scholars.

Did You Hear the One about the Lawyer?

These religious teachers are experts in God’s Word and its application. They are seen as lawyers when it comes to God’s Law. So apparently lawyer jokes go back a few years. These attorneys will soon find out the joke’s on them.

John Mark has mentioned scribes on three previous occasions (Mk 1:22; 2:6, 16). But this is a new crew. These are the big dogs who’ve made the 85-mile trip from Jerusalem to put an end to this nonsense in north.

Beelze-what?

They cut to the chase and make their charge. “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons” (v22). The translators of the NLT have tried to do us a favor and do the heavy lifting for us from the original Greek. But there’s some cool stuff going on here.

“Satan” is actually “Beelzebul” (Gr. Βεελζεβουλ/Beelzeboul). It’s the proper name for a Philistine deity, a variation on “Baal-Zebul” which mens “Baal the Prince.” The Israelites liked to twist it into Beelzebub, a putdown that means “lord of flies.”

Savior from Heaven or Trojan Horse from Hell?

Beelzebul is the handle they gave the devil as the demonic boss of all evil spirits. Just about every appearance of this title is in connection with this same story in the first three Gospels (Mt 12:23-32; Lk 11:14-23).

Their point is that Jesus casts out evil spirits because their satanic supervisor has told them to go. “That’s where He gets the power to cast out demons” (v22). According to them, Christ isn’t our Savior from heaven but a Trojan horse straight from hell.

A Teachable Moment

But whattaya know…the Son of God graciously sees their vicious indictment as a teachable moment. “Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration” (v23). He invites them over to explain.

The Lord doesn’t light them up. He doesn’t throw them under the bus. Instead He takes a moment to teach. There’s a lesson for all of us. His response is compassionate and caring.

Jesus begins by asking these scribes a question. “How can Satan cast out Satan?” (v23). Okay, boys. Since you’re the religious experts, tell Me how this works. He asks them to explain how in the devil’s name this would happen.

Gotta tell ya, the first thing that came to my mind is that scene in “Liar, Liar” where Jim Carrey beats the stuffing out of himself.

Civil Wars and Family Feuds

The Jewish teachers have got nothing. It’s almost like they haven’t thought their theory through. Jesus follows with a couple of examples of why their idea doesn’t hold a drop of water.

First He says, “A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse” (v24). A nation with that level of turmoil will destroy itself from the inside out. Its own citizens are its worst enemy. That even goes for Satan and his evil empire.

Secondly, the Son of God explains, “Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart” (v25). Okay, do I really need to explain this one? I think we all know families that are more than ready to play the feud…and I DON’T mean with Steve Harvey! Of course, I don’t mean yours. Heaven forbid.

Closing the Loop

With after drawing those examples, the Lord closes the loop and tells them how ludicrous their assumption is. “And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand? He would never survive” (v26).

Again, nothing but crickets from these Jewish hotshots. Don’t you just wonder what this moment must have been like? How long does Jesus wait in awkward silence before He continues?

Holy Home Invasion

At some point, Christ continues. “Let Me illustrate this further. Who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house” (v27).

Here’s where we get to the home invasion. Let’s break it down so we understand who’s involved and what’s going on.

Satan’s Turf

Jesus uses the strong man’s house as a picture of Satan’s turf. Thanks to our sin and rebellion, we’ve opened the front door to the devil so he could walk right and rule our fallen world.

Our Savior tells His team how “Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out” (Jn 12:31). Paul warns the Corinthians how the evil one “is the god of this world” (2Cor 4:4). In other words, the strong man’s house is our fallen world.

Our Hero to the Rescue!

There’s only One who has the muscle and authority to break in and take the devil down. You get three guess as to Who that is and your first two don’t count. Yup. Jesus. I knew you could do it.

But there’s more to this holy home invasion than just overpowering our enemy. Jesus will “plunder his goods” (v27). What in the world does the devil have that the Lord would want? Us.

That’s right, Christ crashes through the front door in order to free us from the power of Satan, sin, and death. We’re the stuff He’s come to steal! Our Hero has come to our rescue!! This scene makes “Taken” look like a fairy tale.

Tweet This

Just in case these religious teachers have missed His point, Jesus sums it all up. And to do so, He makes sure their paying attention by dropping the phrase “I tell you the truth” (v28).

This little expression is Jesus’ way of telling everybody He’s about to say something important. VERY important. No, it doesn’t mean that He’s been playing fast and loose with the facts up till now. This is His way of saying this is the bottom line of what we’re talking about.

“I tell you the truth” (v28). This is the first time of the fourteen times the Lord uses these words here in Mark’s Gospel (Mk 6:11; 8:12; 9:1, 41; 10:15, 29; 11:23; 12:43; 13:30; 14:9, 18, 25, 30). Each time He does, it’s His way of getting everyone’s attention. If there was social media back in the day, He might say, “Tweet this!”

No One Is Beyond God’s Reach

Okay. Everybody listening? Listen up. “All sin and blasphemy can be forgiven” (v28). Whoa. Picture jaws on the floor all around the room. Think about what Jesus has just said. There’s nothing you and I can do that can’t be forgiven.

There’s no sin and no slander that God won’t forgive. Not adultery. Not armed robbery. Not murder. Not suicide. That includes breaking any or all of God’s Top Ten (Ex 20).

How’s that possible? Because of one incredibly important fact. Jesus is a better Savior than we are sinners. No one, and He means NO ONE is beyond the reach of His rescue.

One Very Important Exception

Apart from one very important exception. The Lord spells it out. “But anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences” (v29).

What in the wild world of sports does this have to do with the scribes accusation of Jesus playing for Satan’s team or His point about the holy home invasion? Turns out, everything.

Rejecting His Rescue

To blaspheme (Gr. βλασφημεω/blasphemeo) is to defame, slander, insult, speak evil against somebody. It’s intentionally trashing someone’s reputation. In this case, slandering the Spirit of God.

It goes a little something like this. The Holy Spirit’s job is to open our hearts to God’s goodness. We insult Him when we reject His offer of rescue in the form of the Son of God.

Sawing off the Branch

When we turn our backs on Jesus, we give God’s grace the Heisman. That’s when we blaspheme the Holy Spirit. You can’t shake your fist at your Forgiver while at the same time accepting His forgiveness.

Or as the Message puts it, “You are repudiating the very One who forgives, sawing off the branch on which you’re sitting, severing by your own perversity all connection with the One who forgives” (v29 The Message).

Evil Spirit or Holy Spirit?

Mark tells us this is exactly why Christ connects the dots for the scribes. “He told them this because they were saying, ‘He’s possessed by an evil spirit’” (v30).

Possessed by an evil spirit? Are you kidding me?!? Not even close. Jesus isn’t possessed by some evil spirit. He’s baptized by THE Holy Spirit! As a matter of fact, all three Members of the Trinity were there at the Jordan River that day (Mk 1:9-11).

It was an amazing moment when His Heavenly Dad gave His Son the ultimate “attaboy,” while the Spirit gave Him the supernatural ability to carry out His unbelievable search and rescue mission of sinners like you and me.

Evil spirit, no. Holy Spirit. Yes!

Tied up in Knots

So what do we do with all this talk of demonic possession, religious accusations, holy home invasions, and slandering the Spirit of God? I admit that it can get just a little confusing.

What has you tied up in knots? What has a hold on you that won’t let go? A sin? An addiction? A temptation? A self-destructive behavior. No matter how much you try or struggle, you can’t get free.

Let Him ALL the Way in

The great news is there’s Good News. There is Somebody who can cut you loose.  Jesus is able to punch demonic forces in the throat because He has the unlimited power of God’s Spirit at His disposal.

Only when we allow the Son of God to enter our lives do we have any hope of taking out the evil we’ve allowed in. Let Him in. I mean ALL the way in! Let Him do what He does best.

Do you need a holy home invasion? To be honest, we all do at some point.

©2017

Jay Jennings

A Letter to the Home Office

Sometimes you find the coolest things in the weirdest places. Who would ever expect to see God inspire His Word to be written in a letter from a couple of local pagan political appointees to a Persian dictator? Well that’s exactly what went down in Ezra 5:6-17. In this section of Scripture, the author cuts and pastes a note from some dudes named Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai back to King Darius. They’re concerned about the huge construction project back on the pile rubble that used to known as Jerusalem. Nobody back at the home office notified them about this. They check in just to make sure the Jews have all the proper permits and paperwork. But a funny thing happened after these local officials licked the envelope and dropped this in the mail. God decides to supernaturally include this letter in the Bible. Yeah, sometimes you find the coolest things in the weirdest places.

First of all, the folks who originally wrote this note are “Tattenai the governor of the province Beyond the River and Shethar-bezenai and his associates, the governors who were in the province Beyond the River” (v6). Beyond the River is actually the official name of an area under Persian rule just west of the Euphrates River. The authors of this letter are people appointed by the king to keep an eye on things. They’re not so much power players but political appointees who got their jobs because they support the king. There are actually ancient documents listing Tattanai as the governor of the region under Darius. The city of Jerusalem and the land of Judah would have fallen under the jurisdiction of Beyond the River. It’s only natural that these local officials want to know what in the world is going on right under their noses.

This letter from Persian bureaucrats actually includes some very cool details about the reconstruction of the temple. It gives us an interesting view of the scope and history of the project from a non-Jewish third party. First of all, they describe it as “the house of the great God” (v8). The city is in rubble. The temple is destroyed. But the reputation of the LORD still resonates throughout the land. There is a level of respect and honor for Yahweh in the words of these administrators. 

Tattenai and the boys also tell us about the kinds of building materials used by the Jews as well as their construction methods. “It is being built with huge stones, and timber is laid in the walls” (v8). The phrase “huge stones” describe stones so incredibly large that they can’t be carried. This is literally “stones of rolling.” Wait a minute! Were Mick Jagger  and the Rolling Stones providing musical entertainment in Jerusalem? Well, the Stones have been around a long time and Keith Richards may look like he’s a couple of thousand years old, but they did NOT play a temple gig back in 522 BC. At least I don’t think they did. The Israelites are building not just with these massive stone blocks but beams of timber running inside the walls. This is not only typical construction techniques of the day for large buildings, but the same method used by Solomon’s crew the first time around (1Ki 6:36; 7:12).

The letter also lets us in on the incredible work ethic of the Israelite craftsmen. “This work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands” (v8). They’re making up for lost time. Remember, a gang of Samaritans sabotage the project for 16 years (Ez 4:4, 24). God uses the prophetic pair of Haggai and Zechariah to light a fire under His people to get things going again (Ez 5:1-2). Once they’re back on the job site, they make HUGE progress. They are committed. They are tenacious. And the officials of Beyond the River make note of the fact that what’s going on at the temple project “prospers at their hands” (v8). They aren’t just throwing this new temple together willy nilly. This is quality craftsmanship.

This note to the home office quotes Hebrew officials as to the nature of what they’re up to. “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth” (v11). They let these local Persian officials just who’s REALLY behind this effort. It’s the “God of heaven and earth” (v11). They’re not just serving some regional franchise deity. This isn’t your garden variety god. He’s in charge of of it all. Heaven. Earth. If you’re scoring at home, that’s pretty much everything. Take a look around. Whatever you’re looking at, He’s the God of it. That’s the God they served. That’s the God we serve.

Zerubbabel and his leadership team make it clear that this isn’t new construction. “We are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished” (v11). Just for review, that “great king of Israel” is the one and only Solomon. You can read all about the original project in 1 Kings 5-7. Solomon built the glorious first temple in 966-960 BC, 450 years before this reconstruction effort.

These local bureaucrats even find out why the Israelites have to rebuild the temple. It seems that their ancestors had a bit of an issue with Almighty God. “Because our fathers angered the God of heaven” (v12). If their predecessors listed their relationship status with God on Facebook, it would probably be “it’s complicated.” The dust of the original temple hadn’t even settled when our boy Solomon started jacking around with other idols. It seems Sol was more concerned about his harem than his God (1Ki 11). That started a long, slow slide of idolatry and evil among God’s people and their kings.

When it comes to the kings of Israel, Manasseh was the poster boy of evil (2Ki 21:1-17). “He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel” (2Ki 21:2). He brought back old school idolatry that folks did back in the day. Manasseh put altars to false gods everywhere, including IN THE TEMPLE! He made witchcraft, the paranormal, psychics, fortunetellers, and mediums all part of the worship in Jerusalem. This crappy king even went so far as to offer his own son as a burnt offering! He wasn’t alone in his idolatry and led the people of God away from God. 

Yahweh might be slow to anger but He will get there eventually. “His anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh provoked Him” (2Ki 23:26). To say that “our fathers angered the God of heaven” is a bit of an understatement. Over and over and over, Yahweh tried to get His people back into obedience for their own good. He tried everything. But they kept turning to other gods to make their offerings (2Chr 34:25). And laughed at His handpicked prophets until He really had no other choice. “But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against His people, until there was no remedy” (2Chr 36:16).

The Israelites tell Tattenai and his buddies how God eventually called on a pagan dictator to do His work. “He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia” (v12). Everybody knew all about Nebuchadnezzar. For 40 years, he was the baddest man on the planet. Yet he was just a puppet in the hand of Almighty God. Yahweh used Nebuchadnezzar like an errand boy to get the attention of His people when they turned their backs on Him. “Therefore He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of the sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged. He gave them all into his hand” (2Chr 36:17). The Babylonians burned the city to the ground, including the temple, and bulldozed the massive city walls. It was an absolute bloodbath. Nebuchadnezzar’s army hauled the best and brightest of the survivors. They left behind the poorest of the poor and hauled most of the survivors back to Babylon (2Ki 24:3-17; Jer 52:12-16).

Seventy years later, the Persians are the new bullies on the block after knocking off Nebuchadnezzar. God taps King Cyrus on the shoulder and supernaturally suggests that he let His chosen people make the Exodus 2.0 (Ez 1:1-4). The Jewish leadership give these local officials know that they have the royal stamp of approval for their project (v13-16). If they will just check with the home office, they’ll see that everything is on the up and up (v17). Instead of shutting down the project until they get an answer from King Darius, we read earlier how God kept things rolling until they got a response from the capital (Ez 5:5).

It’s tempting to overlook what seems like a boring document from a bureaucrat to pagan dictator as unimportant. But God made sure that Ezra stapled it in the book he wrote about the Jewish return to Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the temple. In this note, we read about the massive construction effort, the quality of the work, the diligence of the labor, but most of all, we read of the God who was behind it all. Yeah, sometimes you find the coolest things in the weirdest places.