GOD'S FINGER VERSUS THE STRONG MAN

GOD'S FINGER VERSUS THE STRONG MAN With grateful acknowledgement of these sources of direction and inspiration: the Holy Spirit; the Word of God; C. Peter Wagner, Confronting the Powers and Churches That Pray; Joy Dawson, Intercession: Thrilling and Fulfilling; R. A. Torrey, The Power of Prayer; Dick Eastman, Love on It's Knees; Cindy Jacobs, Possessing the Gates of the Enemy Jan 26, 2003 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] Introductory A young man went into a candy store and told the man behind the counter, "I need three boxes of candy. I need a $5 box, a $10 box and a $20 box of candy." The man asked, "Why do you need three boxes of candy?" He replied, "I've got a date with a girl that I'm really excited about. It's the first date. Handshake=$5, Hug= $10, Goodnight Kiss= $20 That night he went to pick the young lady up and the family invited him in to have a meal with them first. As they sat around the table the father turned to the young man and said, "Son we say grace before our meals, would you please pray for us." He bowed his head and he proceeded to pray the longest, the most eloquent, the most sincere sounding prayer you have ever heard. When he finally finished, his young date leaned over and she whispered, "I had no idea that you were so spiritual." He whispered back, "I had no idea that your daddy owned a candy store!" A man who had recently bought a female parakeet with a salty vocabulary got a call from his minister telling him that he was planning to stop by the following week. Worried about the bird's language, he called a friend who had two well-behaved male birds. One recited the Lord's Prayer, and the other held a rosary it its claws and repeated Hail Marys. "Would it be okay if I brought my bird over for a few days?" the man asked his buddy. "Maybe my parakeet will pick up some good habits from yours." The friend agreed, so the man took his female parakeet over and put her cage next to that of the two devout males. Suddenly the first male parakeet stopped praying and turned to the other. "You can knock it off now; we got what we were praying for." I want us to our strategy of praying for people who are not yet Christians. We will be refreshing our Harvest Basket in a few minutes. But first, a little Bible study on what is arguably one of the most interesting passages in the Gospels. The Text Our text begins at Luke 11:14. The first 13 verses of this chapter recorded for us some of Jesus' teaching about prayer. Dr. Luke, under the direction of God's Spirit, records this narrative right after these words of Jesus: "Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:11-13) The teaching is clear-God answers prayer. And this truth is punctuated by that last statement: the Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. Matthew records another statement of Jesus in his record: "The Father will give good gifts to those who ask Him." [webmasters note: Matthew 7:11] The ultimate good gift is the Holy Spirit. He is the source of comfort, assurance and power in our Christian lives. We pick up at verse 14: "Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been dumb spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, 'By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.' Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven." You know, I really don't know what to say about this second group. Jesus has just healed a person who couldn't talk by driving out of him a demon that was mute, and they are asking Him for a sign from heaven!? The first group (the other gospels clarify that they were Scribes and Pharisees) had an interesting (but totally wrong) observation. And it's the one that Jesus picks up on. They said Jesus was exercising demonic power when He worked this miracle. "Beelzebub" was the name of the ancient healing god of Ekron, from whom King Ahaziah tried to secure information about his healing-he had fallen through some lattice and was apparently seriously injured. His real problem, though, was that he went to a foreign pseudo-god about his healing instead of the God of Israel. This was the god Baal-zeebub, variously rendered Beelzebub. Some scholars even suggest it is another name for Satan himself. This healing god of Ekron was also a high-ranking demonic principality. In Mark's and Matthew's accounts of this story he is referred to as the "prince of demons" (Matthew 12:25, Mark 3:22). These teachers of the law were accusing Jesus of exorcising demons through the power of a demon-a very important demon at that. Why did they do that? Because, like so many scoffers, agnostics and liberal theologians today, they had already made up their mind that Jesus was not sent from God. And if He is not from God He cannot be using any kind of divine, supernatural power. So, if He is not from God, and He is doing supernatural things, then logically He is drawing from some evil power source. You get into so much trouble when you start believing the lie that Jesus is not who He said He was. That's a bad assumption, and these folks were confused. Verse 17: "Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: 'Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub. Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges.'" (Luke 11:17-19) Jesus shows the obvious inconsistency of their charge against Him. Basically, Why would Satan cast out Satan? That's crazy. Satan is out to steal and kill and destroy, and he doesn't go around helping people out of the bondage's he himself imposed on them! Pick up at verse 20: "'But, if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.'" The kingdom of God here refers to the rule of God coming on the earth. It's God's heavenly rule crashing in on earth. It is the answer to the prayer, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." [webmasters note: Matthew 6:10] The Kingdom of God on earth was always prophetically anticipated to be evidenced by miracles, signs and wonders-God doing wonderful things among men. And those kinds of signs were always understood to signify the arrival of the Kingdom. When John the Baptist was in prison and was having second thoughts, he sent his disciples to inquire of Jesus if He really was the One who was to come-the one who would bring the Kingdom in. Jesus responded this way: "Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the good news is preached to the poor…" (Luke 7:22) So it isn't Beelzebub mysteriously dismantling the work of his four star general, Satan. It is Jesus, the Messiah, doing the things that mark the ushering in of the New Kingdom on earth! Notice how He puts it, too: "…I drive out demons by the finger of God…" (verse 20). The finger of God was an ancient Jewish expression that referred to God's power and God's Spirit. Pharaoh's magicians were awestruck by the plagues Moses was able to produce in Egypt and they said to Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God!" (Exodus 8:19). Jesus was claiming in no uncertain terms that the power He drew from was not demonic. It was anything but demonic-this miracle was the work of the Holy Spirit. It was the finger of God! Next we encounter a somewhat detailed explanation of how the Spirit of God works effectively in the cosmic battle with the enemy. We will pick up at verse 21: "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 in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils." (Luke 11:21-22) The strong man is the devil. He is trying to defend his stolen property-the souls of human beings in this fallen world. The only one who can overpower him (overpower is the word NIKAO, from which we get our popular brand name Nike-it is also the name of the Greek goddess of victory)-the only one who can overpower the strong man is the finger of God-God's Spirit. Matthew details the imagery a little further: "How can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house." (Matthew 12:29) What Jesus did, when he delivered the man with the mute spirit, was this-He bound, tied up, the strong man (Satan, the demon) and took back the thing of value-the man's ability to speak, which is what the devil had stolen to begin with. But to get the valuables, He had to subdue the strong man who was at the door guarding the booty. Do you see what He is saying? I not only did NOT perform this miracle by demonic power, I actually whooped up on the demon and took his stuff from him! So don't go accusing ME of working under demonic control-I am the NIKE who overcame the demonic powers! Matthew's and Mark's accounts record that Jesus went on from this juncture to bring some very solemn words of judgment. In essence He said, You turkeys have just done the unthinkable-by attributing this act of God to the power of the devil, you have blasphemed the Holy Spirit-and that sin, my friends, is one for which there is no forgiveness. Never profane the finger of God! Spiritual Warfare This narrative gives us a peak into the realm of spiritual warfare. Spiritual warfare is a popular topic, and you can easily get off into a lot of wild notions-some of them are neither spiritually healthy nor biblically sound. But spiritual warfare is a very real issue, and we are very much a part of a much larger cosmic contention between God and Satan. We human beings, made in the image of God, fashioned for the Garden of Eden but banished because of our sin, we are the booty in this war. Satan wants to destroy people. He wants to drag as many as possible down into the Lake of Fire with him when he is judged. That is the place called Hell, the place of eternal torment, the second death. Every person who ever sinned against God is bound for that judgment. Satan is delighted with that prospect. But Jesus has interfered. When He voluntarily gave His sinless life on the cross, He made substitutionary atonement for sinful people. Because of His sacrifice, those who trust in Him can escape the fires of hell and be restored to Paradise when the final bell rings for this planet. Do you see what this story about healing a man with a mute spirit illustrates? By His death, burial and resurrection, Jesus has plundered Satan. NIKAO-He has overcome him forever! He entered the house, tied up the strong man, and rescued every man, woman and child that is held captive by the law of sin and death-every one who will accept His offer of salvation. He made a mockery of Satan's strength. Here's how Colossians describes it: "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross." (Colossians 2:15) Listen to the rest of that passage about our deliverance through Christ: "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:13-14) Spiritual warfare? The war has already been won for those who will accept God's grace in Christ. But there is still a battle for the souls of men and women, because not everyone has accepted that grace. God has called us, men and women, boys and girls, who are already delivered from the enemy, to work in the great commission of gathering back into His kingdom others who are still in bondage to sin, death and the devil. How do we do that? By faithfully presenting the good news that anyone who wants to can now be reconciled to God. It seems easy when you say it that way, doesn't it? Then why don't people pour into the kingdom by the thousands all the time? They are deceived, and kept in a state of deception by Satan and his demons. The Bible says that this good news we offer is "…veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." (2 Corinthians 4:3-4) But, if they are blinded to the gospel, how can we possibly get through to them so that they can be saved? Think first how you were saved. How did you finally come to understand the light of the glory of the gospel of Christ? What lifted your blinders? What toppled your fine-sounding arguments against Christ? What finally brought you a revelation of God's grace and forgiveness? The Holy Spirit, the finger of God-the only power that can overcome the strength and the deception of the strong man. Now the crux of the matter. How do we move the finger of God against the strong man who has our friends, family members and others bound in a prison of sin and death? How do we get the power of God applied to overcome the strength of the strong man? The same way the Holy Spirit got released over your life to bring you the revelation and conviction you needed to make an informed decision about salvation. I say "informed decision" because if you are blind and cannot appreciate the glory of the gospel of Christ, why would you be interested in obeying it? Only when they understand the gospel can people appreciate the beauty and wonder of what Christ has provided for them. Back to the question-how can the power of God be unleashed against the devil so that he can no longer blind, bind and deceive these precious people? The same way it was released in your life-someone prayed for you. Perhaps many people were praying for you. When we pray over people who have not yet accepted Christ, we are involved in a spiritual fight. We are actually entering the territory of darkness to tie up the strong man. But we are not really doing it ourselves. We are going in the power of God, in the name of Christ, pointing the finger of God in the direction of those we feel called to intercede for. When you meet in your cell group and you pray for your friend and another's sister and the other guy's co-worker, you're not a spectator any more. You are a key player in the battle for souls. You are an intercessor. You are praying the way Jesus called you to pray - "'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'" [webmasters note: Matthew 9:37-38, Luke 10:2] You see, when you write Sam's name out on that harvest prayer card, and you lift him up in prayer, you are asking the Lord of the harvest to send someone, anyone-maybe even you-into Sam's life with a clear and compelling message about God's offer of salvation. You are imploring God that His Spirit might tear the blinders off Sam's mind so he can appreciate the glory of the gospel and appropriate it to himself. And when we lift that basket up on Sunday mornings and pray corporately, we're not just playing along with a gimmick, or perpetuating a relatively new tradition. We're not just yawning through another prayer. We are storming the strong man's territory, armed with the finger of God, looking to bind the devil in the name and authority of Jesus. Why? Because someone we love is trapped in his prison! Motivated by our love for him, we are interceding with heaven for his release. We want Sam to be part of the kingdom harvest! Listen, God has made it clear that He answers prayer. He moves based on our intercession. He is responsive to our requests. In fact, He tells us "…you have not because you ask not!" (James 4:2) Our very identity as Christians involves our being a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9)-that means we are intercessors for others. Our com-mission is to make disciples of all nations. All over the world, God is burdening the hearts of His people to pray for those whom they know who are lost. Have you asked Him whom you are to pray for? You are probably not called to pray for Abu Aman in Nigeria, or Carlos Renteres in Argentina. But my guess is you are commissioned to pray for someone you know who is not yet part of the kingdom. Just the individuals in this room could be intercessors for literally hundreds of people, by name-people we know, or know of. Commit to pray for those you sincerely believe God wants you to pray for. Ask Him. Obey Him. Pray for your charges every day, every hour ask God to bring them closer to a knowledge of the truth. Make yourself available to God to share the gospel with them. But whoever God sends to them in response to your prayers is okay with you-as long as they hear the gospel in a clear and compelling manner and they receive it before their judgment day. Did you know that of the 5 billion people populating the globe today, fully two billion are Christians? What if every one of them began this morning to pray passionately for four or five non-Christians to come to know the Lord? Given that there would be considerable overlap, the whole world could conceivably encounter Christ, see the light of the glory of the gospel of Christ, and respond in faith in a matter of days! Let me put it this way-do you think it would honor the Lord if His whole church was on its face in intercession on behalf of the other three million? Would this please the Father? And if we ask Him for bread will He give us a stone? If we ask Him for an egg will He give us a scorpion? But if we ask Him for the Holy Spirit, will he not give it? If we ask for the finger of God to work miracles of conviction will He not do it? If we ask Him to bind the strong man who kidnapped our friends and family members, will He not overcome? God is calling each of us believers to overcoming prayer on behalf of those who are not yet believers. I would exhort you in four ways: 1. An overcomer-intercessor recognizes the power and the malevolence of the enemy and stands against his schemes. We have a wily, pernicious enemy, whose tools are lies and whose schemes are subtle and sneaky. But the safest place in the world is in communion with the Lord, praying to Him. 2. An overcomer-intercessor recognizes the superior power of Christ and operates under His name and His authority as he engages the enemy in warfare prayer. "Greater is the one who is in you than the one who is in the world." (1 John 4:4) 3. An overcomer-intercessor stays with the task, knowing that even though the exact complete answer to his prayers may not be obvious yet, God is at work in response to faithful prayer. Prayer changes us. Prayer changes others. Prayer changes "things." Prayer changes the church. Prayer changes the world. Luke 18:1 - "Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up." 4. An overcomer prays with spiritual strategy. Pray that those on your "Win" list would: 1. Have their blinders removed from their minds so that they could see and understand the light of the glory of the gospel of Christ (2 Cor 4:4) 2. Have their areas of stronghold healed, and all their arguments that stand against the knowledge of God would be destroyed 3. Receive the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ, suddenly able to see Him as He is and understand His love for them. 4. Be confronted by the living Christ, like Saul of Tarsus knocked off whatever donkey they're riding and blinding by His glorious presence 5. Encounter some Spirit-led Christian who is ready to gently and respectfully share the reason for the hope that is in him Conclusion - Completion of Harvest Prayer Cards and Placement in the Basket.     [Back to Top]