Hearing and Obeying

Old medicine boxes found deep in the Hells Canyon Wilderness

Public Reading: Luke 11:16-34

The Story:

•    Demons

o    We live in a spiritual world

*    There are demons around us as we are in a war between God and the evil one

o    The good news is that Jesus wins! I’ve read the end of the story!
o    In our culture people will typically do one of two things

*    Deny the battle and the forces of evil
*    Focus too much on them

o    In reading the Bible, I see Jesus and His followers holding to a third way

*    They recognize the battle
*    Yet they are secure in the fact that God wins and that they are walking with Him
*    i.e. don’t focus or be scared of demons or the forces of evil, if you happen upon them, just hold fast to Jesus and exercise the authority Jesus gave you through His Spirit

•    Mute demon

o    Note all mute people are demon possessed
o    Yet in this case, a the forces of evil had rendered a man mute
o    Jesus cast out the demon and the man begun to talk

•    Critics

o    The critics didn’t like Jesus
o    So they said that he did things via the power of evil

•    Kingdom divided

o    Jesus responds with some simple logic
o    A house cannot stand divided
o    Satan cannot cast out Satan

•    Finger of God

o    This is very important theological statement!
o    Jesus is saying that if the things that he is doing is from God Almighty, then the rule and reign of God that was long hoped for has come.
o    The end of the world was upon them
o    This is important because it is because the fact that the Kingdom of God has come that we have the Holy Spirit inside our hearts.

*    It is the reason we have been set free from evil, sin and death
*    It is the reason for the cross (i.e. the life Jesus prepares the way for the cross, resurrection and ascension into heaven – not to mention Pentecost.)

•    Strong man

o    The strong man is Satan
o    The stronger man is Jesus
o    Humanity is the ‘plunder’ that Jesus takes away from Satan

•    Clean house

o    When someone leaves the rule of darkness and gives their live to Jesus, we must help them come into the kingdom of God

*    Let us pray for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit

o    It is not enough to simply cast out the demon, they need give their lives to Jesus or the next part of their lives will be worse

•    Blessed are the ones who obey

o    A lady calls out from the crowd “Blessed is Jesus’ mother!”
o    She was trying to honor Mary and Jesus has she saw that the Messiah had come
o    Jesus turns this statement on its head

*    “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it”

o    This, I believe, is the key phrase/verse of the entire passage (Luke 11:14-36)

*    Jesus has destroyed the works of the evil one through his life, ministry, death, resurrection and ascension
*    We have been set free from the bondage of sin, evil, and injustice!
*    Jesus is now telling us to hear the message of salvation and obey His words.

•    The choice is our…do we choose to follow Jesus or to ignore Him, which ultimately means that we fight against Him?

*    Sometimes we are so deep in bondage that we need someone to come into our ‘prison’ and tell us that the chains have been broken and the door unlocked.

•    This is what evangelism is about – telling people that the evil one has been defeated and that there is a better way to live.
•    Let us help carry folks out of the prison of sin and evil which was destroyed by Jesus and help introduce them into the new life of following Jesus

•    Sign of Jonah

o    Jesus goes on to give an example of this “hear and obey”
o    Jonah went to Nineveh and told them to repent

*    The king of Nineveh had them do a three day repentance fast
*    Even the animals were forced to fast!

o    The Queen of the South traveled for months over hard roads to ask Solomon about the God he served

*    She was seeking the presence of God

o    Now Jesus, God Himself, is telling the people of Israel to repent and to seek God like the Queen of the South did.

*    Some folks in the 1st century listened…some did not.
*    The choice is now ours: Are we going to listen?

o    Jesus is here – are we going to hear and obey? Or simply hear and walk away?

•    Light

o    The eyes are the light to the body
o    When you allow Jesus to remove the darkness within you, and fill you up with His Spirit, then your eyes will show it!
o    There will be a glow to your life

•    Obeying

o    St. John writes about this in 1 John 2:3-6:

3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.

o    Believing in Jesus is the first step; the second is to obey
o   Let us take both!

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