Oculi

On the First Sunday in Lent, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into waterless places, the haunt of demons, in order to be tempted by the devil. On the Second Sunday in Lent, a Canaanite woman doggedly begs Jesus to help her daughter, who is tormented by a demon. And this morning, the Third Sunday in Lent, Jesus tells us what happens next after a demon is driven out. We are three weeks into the Lenten fast and thus far each Sunday’s text has been about the devil and his demons. Clearly, our fathers who appointed these texts knew something that we have forgotten in this present age. They knew that demons are real, that they are engaged in spiritual battle against us, and that they do not give up after being driven out.

Today, we imagine that we are so much wiser than our fathers. We know that demons are a leftover superstition of the dark ages, stories made up to frighten naughty children. If the devil exists at all, he is more of an annoyance than a serious threat, a tiny figure in red tights who stands on your left shoulder and whispers into your ear. When we do encounter real demonic possession, we explain it away by calling it something else: epilepsy, multiple personality disorder, or ADHDXYZ.

We don’t know what to think about demons, so Jesus must teach us. No, the devil is not a harmless nuisance, like a buzzing fly. Jesus calls him “the strong man.” Fully armed, he guards his own palace, and his goods are at peace. No man on earth is his equal, no human might against him can avail. Dressed in his armor of lies, he sits secure in his kingdom, and no earthly power can cast him out.

“But,” Jesus says, “If I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Lk 11:20). Jesus sits at the Father’s right hand of power, but when it comes to casting out Satan, it requires only the finger of God to drive him out. And when the devil is driven out, surely the kingdom of God has come to you.

Hollywood has conditioned us to think of exorcism as a bizarre and exceedingly rare ritual. But we do it all the time in the Church, or, rather, Jesus does it all the time. This is Holy Baptism; it’s called the Minor Exorcism. No head swiveling, no pea soup, no crawling on the ceiling, but Baptism is exorcism just the same. The last exorcism we did was for Joanna Grace. We’ll do it three more times at the Easter Vigil in a few weeks. The strong man is driven out by the Stronger Man, with the finger of God, and the kingdom of God comes to you.

And then what? In our text today Jesus tells us what happens next after the devil is driven out. When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest (Lk 11:24). Why dry places? Because demons hate what God does with water. In the beginning the Spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters as He brought order to Creation. The devil hates the order of Creation. Then the woman brought forth a Savior through the water of childbirth. The devil hates childbirth. And today the Holy Spirit brings forth the new man with the water of the second birth, Holy Baptism. So the devil hates Baptism. After being driven out by the water and the Word, he goes through waterless places seeking rest; and finding none, he says, “I will return to my house from whence I came” (Lk 11:24).

You see, even though the devil was driven out of your heart when the Holy Spirit took up residence, he doesn’t give up. Baptism is a major setback, to be sure, but the devil is playing the long game. And he is playing this game with your soul and with the souls of your children. After the demon is driven out, he returns to check on his former home. And it he finds it swept clean, put in order, but empty, that is, devoid of the Word of God which drove him out in the first place, then he moves back in with seven spirits more wicked than himself.

Many parents think that by bringing their child to the baptismal font, they have fulfilled their duty to it as Christian parents. Nothing could be further from the truth. Yes, Baptism grants birth into the kingdom of God, but as any mother knows, giving birth is not the end of the responsibility to the child. The newborn must be fed, clothed, protected, and cared for in 1000 ways. So too with the newly baptized. Baptism is the birth, but then the whole of the Christian life follows. Jesus said, “Baptize them and teach them all my words.” This is the responsibility of the Christian parent, particularly the Christian father, who is to be the spiritual head of the home. And it’s hard work. It is work that is never done. But it is also blessed and joyful work.

When we look at the church today, we see the results of failing to catechize our children. Two generations of Christians are missing. What happened to them? They were baptized. The devil was driven out. But parents didn’t follow up with a lifetime of teaching them the words of Jesus. Look through the confirmation classes in the photo album at the back of the church. You’ll find one in every LCMS church across the country—hundreds, thousands of children. Where are they today? Gone. The pastor may have done the best he could in one hour a week he had with them, but if they aren’t being taught the faith at home, it’s a losing battle. The pastor is to supplement the teaching that’s going on in the home. Because we know that the devil doesn’t give up after baptism. Instead, he engages in a lifelong war of catechesis. And for two generations now, he has been easily winning this battle. Yes, he cannot abide the Word of God. Yes, he has no power against it. But where the Word of God is lacking, where parents merely baptize their children, and perhaps drop them off for one hour a week to be catechized, and consider their duty done, then the devil returns with seven more wicked spirits and fills that vacuum.

Martin Luther says that parents who do not teach their children the faith after baptism have done them no favors. Instead, they have burdened their child with a mighty and lifelong enemy and have not equipped him with the tools necessary to fight that enemy. Jesus says that the last state of that man is worse than the first. Fathers and mothers, but especially fathers, let these words be a warning to you. It’s a hard thing to stand in front of a congregation full of mostly grandparents and say, “Your children and grandchildren are not here because you didn’t teach them the faith.” But this must be said. We must face this truth now so that we can have a chance with the next generation.

On one hand, this an impossible task for parents. Even the most devout and diligent among us will fail to some degree. Yet it is a blessed and noble task, and the Holy Spirit will aid you in this endeavor. Consider this: Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” Mt 6:19–21. They say, “You can’t take it with you when you go,” and that’s true. But there is one treasure that you can take with you, one treasure on earth that you can hope to have with you in the Resurrection: your children.

And so, with God’s help, you must fill their hearts to overflowing with the Word of God. You must teach them to love and cherish it above all earthy treasures. You must lead them by example. You can say one thing, but they know what’s important to you by the way you live. So engage in this joyful and wonderful task as you teach them all the words of Jesus. And then the devil and his demons will find no purchase in a heart that is overflowing with the Word of God, but will flee at the presence of the Stronger Man.

Let us conclude with the Communion Verse for this day: The sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, Where she may lay her young, Even Thine altars, O Lord of hosts, My King, and  my God. Blessed are they that dwell in Thy house: They will be still praising Thee (Ps 84:3–4). Amen.