Liar, Lunatic, Or Lord?

Introduction

Throughout this gospel, Mark has been seeking to unpack just who Jesus is. I mean, the first eight chapters are devoted to revealing Jesus as the true Son of God who has come to establish and build his kingdom. It’s devoted to revealing Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah, the one the prophets spoke of who has come to save humanity from their sin.

Rightly understanding who Jesus truly is and then how we respond to that truth is of utmost importance to your life.

This may sound like an exaggeration but I assure you it is not. Nothing matters more in your life than how you answer and respond to the question of “Who is Jesus?”

Nothing will have a greater eternal impact in your life than how you answer that question.

Problem

What we’re seeing in our text this morning are several wrong theories about the identity of Jesus.

Throughout human history people have attempted to answer the question, “who is Jesus?” and have come up with incredibly wrong theories. In fact, we’re seeing this struggle that people had with Jesus here in the text.

His own family thought Jesus was a madman, that he was “out of his mind (verse 21).” The religious leaders of the day accused him of being in league with the Devil himself (verse 22), and we’ll see Jesus’ stern warning to those who accuse him of this later on in verse 29.

However, in our current cultural context, people today may not be as quick to label Jesus as a madman or demonic, but we’ve crafted another false narrative, and that is one of Jesus as a legend. We’ve created a mythical Jesus. One who was a good moral teacher. A person who taught peace and love and kindness. But certainly not someone who was divisive. Certainly not someone who would demand our submission to His Lordship. Certainly not someone that would call us sinful or unrighteous and to repentance.

We see this all over our culture today. Politicians love to quote certain words of Jesus in speeches to emphasize their agenda. Every Christmas or Easter season news organizations will write articles on the historical Jesus as a leader who emphasized love and acceptance. We try to twist Jesus to fit our narrative and what we want.

Even within the church today pastors and leaders tend to shy away from the controversial sayings of Jesus and stick to what is more accepted by the culture out of fear of rejection and persecution.

And so, we’ve created this mythical legend of who we want Jesus to be. One who fits within our comfort level. But the problem is, Jesus has not given us this option.

C.S. Lewis in his incredible work, “Mere Christianity” addresses this problem of Jesus’ identity head on. In fact, I’ve stolen his wording for the title of this sermon.

Lewis says,

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” - C.S. Lewis

The argument that Lewis is making is that there are only a few options available to us when dealing with the identity of Jesus. He’s either a liar, he’s insane, or he is in fact, Lord. But he’s saying the one thing Jesus didn’t leave open to us was the notion that he was just a good moral teacher. If you study the things Jesus did and said, there’s no way you could come away thinking he’s just a good moral teacher.

Big Idea

Jesus is not a lunatic to be ignored or a liar to be condemned. He is the Lord who demands our allegiance and deserves all of our worship.

Main Aim

The aim of this text is to show us, from Jesus’ own words that he is the promised Messiah who has come to crush the head of Satan (Gen. 3:15) and to triumph over and set free those who have been held captive under Satan’s dominion and rule (Col. 2:13-15). He is the Son of God, the King of kings, the Lord of lords. He is mankind’s redeemer and savior. And our right response to Jesus’ identity is to fall to our knees and declare him as Lord (Phil. 2:9-11).

And so, with that, let’s, from this text, identify these wrong theories of who Jesus is. Then, let’s hear from Jesus himself as he makes clear his identity and purpose. Lastly we’ll see how the true identity of Jesus affects us, what Jesus’ identity means for us, and what difference it makes to us.

Body

Let’s first tackle:

Who Jesus Is Not.

We see two incorrect theories of Jesus’ identity proposed in verses 21 and 22.

Let’s look at theory #1

Verse 21,

Mark 3:21, And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

This is the lunatic theory.

Now, any theory is just a way to make sense of data, of information.

If you’ve been with us from the beginning of Mark, we’re only in chapter 3 but Jesus has already done and said some pretty remarkable things. In fact, some of the claims he had made about himself were incredibly strong.

In Mark 2, Jesus refers to himself as the Son of Man. This is a reference to a figure mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures, Daniel 7 to be exact. This “Son of Man” mentioned by Daniel was a divine figure from heaven who would come to judge the earth at the end of time. The Jewish people were familiar with this term, and for Jesus to use this to describe himself would have been seen as incredibly inappropriate and blasphemous.

We’ve also seen in Mark already Jesus forgiving sin, making himself equal with God.

He referred to himself as “lord of the Sabbath.” What he meant when he said that was that he is the author of the Sabbath. Now, think with me for just a second. When was the Sabbath instituted? At creation, Genesis 1 and 2. Meaning, Jesus was saying, I was there, I’m eternal, I’m God. I’m the Creator.

We’re only in chapter 3. It’s only getting better from here.

So, Jesus is doing and saying all these things in a hyper-religious culture. Can you at least somewhat understand why his family in verse 21 would think, he’s lost his mind?

If I began to claim the things Jesus claimed. I’m eternal, Scripture is speaking about me, I’m the fulfillment of it all. I can forgive your sins. I’m the creator, follow me.

Do you not think that my wife, probably along with my parents, my family would sit me down, try to get me off the stage, away from the pulpit, and convince me that I need to get some help, I need to go see someone. Somethings off.

This was the struggle his own family was having in this moment.

A second theory is shown in verse 22.

Mark 3:22, And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”

This is the liar theory.

Basically the religious leaders know they have to do something with Jesus. They can’t just ignore him or brush him aside because people are following him and he’s tearing down their system of religious oppression and control over people.

His power and authority can’t be denied. He’s healing people. He’s casting out demons. He’s teaching in such a way that’s causing awe in people. Great crowds are coming from all over to see him. This is a massive movement and they sense and feel their grip on people’s lives beginning to loosen. So, they have to do something with him.

Sadly, rather than submitting to the lordship of Jesus as the Redeemer and Messiah they instead accuse him of being a liar and that his power is actually demonic. They say, he’s doing all these things through the power of Satan.

Now, Jesus, who’s never afraid of a fight confronts this evil accusation head on, in fact, he calls this accusation blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. A blasphemy that is unforgivable.

Look at verse 29.

Mark 3:29-30, “but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

This is a stern warning to these religious leaders. It’s cause for caution ourselves.

And so, what is this? What is he saying? Many of you here if you have a church background maybe have heard of this “unpardonable sin” or this “unforgivable sin.” But what is it? This can strike fear in the hearts of many who fear they’ve committed it. Can they now never be forgiven? Can a Christian commit this sin of blasphemy?

To understand this, it’s important to read this within the context of the passage. And so, again, what was the accusation against Jesus? That his power and authority to heal, and cast out demons, and teach was from the Devil himself. They said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul.” Beelzebul is a title for the prince of demons. So, they’re saying, “It’s not the Spirit of God who gives Jesus this power to do this work, it’s Satan.”

This is blasphemy. A verbal reviling, a verbal defaming of God’s name, His work, and His power. It’s looking at the good of God and calling it evil. That’s blasphemy.

Now, I believe this was a warning that Jesus was giving to these religious leaders. I don’t believe with their accusation that they had crossed the line. But what Jesus is doing here is saying, “You better check yourself.

And here’s why I think that and what I believe sheds light on what this “unforgivable sin” actually is.

Look at verse 28. I know we’re working a little backwards but that’s intentional to unpack this.

Jesus says,

Mark 3:28, “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter,”

Well, how can Jesus say here that all sins and blasphemies will be forgiven and then in the very next verse say that blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven?

Well, let’s answer that question from the gospel of Mark. How is one forgiven? Through repentance and faith.

Mark 1:4, “John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”

Mark 1:14-15, “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

And so, when Jesus says in verse 28 that all sins and blasphemies will be forgiven, he’s saying that all sins and blasphemies will be forgiven from which you repent.

And so, what happens in a person’s heart when they commit blasphemy against the Spirit? Well, this sin puts you, as John Piper puts it, “beyond repentance.”

You see, blasphemy against the Spirit is not a one-time occurrence. It’s not, “I said something foolish in anger and frustration or pain and now I’m incapable of being forgiven even though I’ve repented and sought God’s forgiveness.

God is not in the heavens looking down on a person who is genuinely repentant and saying, “No, I will not forgive you.” A person that repents is forgiven. That’s the hope of verse 28.

I’ve wrestled through this text this week. The elders have wrestled through this text with me this week. This is hard but hard texts are worth digging into. I’ve sought to define as best I could what blasphemy of the Spirit is.

Here’s how a few others have defined it.

Johnathan Pennington said,

[Blasphemy against the Spirit is] “a specific, active, and final choice to declare the person and work of Jesus as being demonic in origin.” - Jonathan Pennington

TJ Tims said,

“Blaspheming the Spirit of God is condemning the ministry of Jesus as the ministry of Satan.” - TJ Tims

Danny Akin says,

“The unpardonable sin is to knowingly, willingly, and persistently attribute to Satan the works of God done by and in Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit, who testifies to these truths in your heart.” - Danny Akin

Here’s my feeble and humble attempt to define it.

Blasphemy against the Spirit is the wilful, active, and knowledgable rejection, defaming, and belittlement of the person and work of Christ which so grieves the Spirit that He withdraws His convicting power which would lead to repentance.

Why does this sin put us “beyond repentance?”

It’s because the role of the Spirit is to draw us to the finished work of Christ where we find salvation and forgiveness.

You see, God the Father has set the plan of redemption. God the Son accomplished the plan of redemption. And it’s the role of God the Spirit to apply the Father’s plan and the Son’s work to our hearts so that we would be redeemed.

But if we resist the work of the Spirt. If we defame the name of God and attribute evil to that which is truly good then at some point the Spirit withdraws his convicting power so that we never do repent and find life in the person of Jesus Christ.

And so, Jesus’ warning to these religious leaders was actually done out of love. He’s warning them against a hardening of their heart which would result in their eternal and guaranteed condemnation.

Can a Christian commit this unpardonable sin? No. Why? Because we have the indwelling Holy Spirit within us. Do you believe and trust in the finished work of Christ on the cross and resurrection for your redemption? Have you repented of your sins? Have you turned in faith to Jesus? Then you are forgiven.

You see, in his response to these wrong theories, he not only dismantles them but we actually see from his own lips,

Who Jesus Truly Is.

If he is not a lunatic, if he is not a liar, then he is Lord.

Check out verses 23-27.

Mark 3:23-27, “And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.”

Jesus swiftly dismantles these theories through revealing his identity and purpose.

There are two kingdoms at play here. There’s the kingdom of the Devil and there’s the kingdom of God. One kingdom oppresses and condemns and enslaves, the other kingdom brings peace, freedom, redemption, eternal life.

Jesus’ argument here is, “If Satan’s kingdom and work is meant to enslave, then how is the work of Jesus in releasing people from their bondage the work of Satan?”

As we have seen in just these three short chapters so far, Jesus is freeing people from their sins, their bondage. He’s healing and bringing new life to those who repent and believe. He’s reversing the curse from Genesis 3 and revealing the Kingdom of God.

This is not the work of Satan, this is the work of the Spirit of God who is ushering in new life.

Think of this world. Think of its brokenness. There’s death, disease, poverty, injustice, hunger, sorrow. Jesus is saying, this is the work of the Kingdom of the Devil. The work Jesus does is overturning and overthrowing Satan.

His reign is coming to an end. He’s had a stranglehold on God’s good world, he is strong, but Jesus is stronger.

Jesus here is unpacking the gospel. He’s saying to those listening, “Before I can do anything in you I must do something for you.”

He’s saying, for you to be truly free, I must bind up the strong man (verse 27). And how does Jesus ultimately bind the strong man? By being bound himself.

This gospel of Mark finds its crescendo, its climax at Jesus’ death and resurrection. But the whole path to the cross is revealing that Jesus is stronger than the Devil. He is mightier than he who is in the world. That he is the one who will crush the serpents head.

Through his preaching and teaching, through his healing and miracles, through his casting away of demons, and even through his raising people from the dead he’s showing that he is Lord, that he is the Mighty One, that he is stronger.

And Jesus was strong enough to be weak himself, to be bound, to have his life plundered on the cross so that he could ultimately pay the penalty for our sin and ransom a people back to God.

Tim Keller says it this way,

What we see on the cross is the Judge receiving divine judgment. What we see on the cross is the power and justice of God going into the divine sacrifice of God, receiving in himself the punishment we deserve, paying the penalty for our sins, not going to a throne, going to a cross. There’s mightiness.

There’s the ultimate strength, when the Lord of the universe is strong enough to be weak in order to pay the penalty for our sins so someday he can destroy evil without destroying us. That is the ultimate strength, the strength to be weak, the strength to forgive, the strength to be willing to suffer and die. Because of that, Jesus Christ has forever changed what it means to defeat evil.

Application

And so, what do we take from this? How does the life and teaching of Jesus affect us? How do we take this warning that he gives to these religious leaders? How do we now live in light of example and Lordship of Christ?

Let me give you three quick points of application. Three words actually: Run, Submit, Follow.

Run from sin.

Very few people truly recognize the seriousness of sin. We’ll get to this several chapters from now but in Mark 9 Jesus says,

Mark 9:43, “And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.”

Now, our hope is in Christ and for those who believe and trust in him, they are saved eternally and the work that God has begun in them he will complete it.

Yet, do not take that truth, that we are held secure through Christ to then treat sin lightly. The mark of a true believer is that when confronted by the Spirit over their sin they repent and turn in faith to the hope found in Christ and his cross.

Submit with joy.

The logic follows this way. If Jesus is not a lunatic and is not a liar, then the only option left is that He is in fact, Lord.

And if He is Lord then nothing else is. Meditate on that sentence for a moment. If Jesus is Lord and nothing else is, how does that affect how you live your life? I would say it should have a radical impact on our every aspect of our lives.

Follow His example.

How did Jesus overcome evil? He overcame evil with good. On the cross Jesus defeated evil in a way no one would have imagined. He laid down his life. When Peter drew the sword as the mob was coming to arrest Jesus, what did Jesus tell him? “Put it away.”

In this life we will face persecution and oppression. We will be mistreated and abused, mocked and shrugged off.

What do we typically want to do in response? We want to fight. We want to hurt them back. What is that. It’s the flesh, it’s the affects and residue of sin that still remains. It shows that we still drift into worldliness and the kingdom of this world.

Rather, let us, through the power of the Spirit follow Christ’s example to defeat evil with good. That’s living under the reign and rule of God. That’s following the example of Christ. This is the reason the gospel must be proclaimed. This is the reason why we must remind ourselves and one another of the gospel daily. As we look to Jesus we become like him.

Conclusion

I pray that this text today would not cause us to grow anxious but rather fill us with confidence that we are trusting in a Savior who is stronger than he who is in the world. May we submit to him as Lord with joy. May we follow his example to defeat evil with good and thus further the kingdom of God. And may be run from sin to chase and pursue the greatest treasure found in Jesus.

Keller, T. J. (2013). The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive. Redeemer Presbyterian Church.Application