Daily Devotional for Friday, September 8

A Kingdom Divided Against Itself 

“And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils. And he called them unto him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan?” Mark 3:22, 23.

It seems strange to think that Jesus, the One who gave the Law and the commandments to Moses, would find Himself an outsider to the religious elite. Yet that is exactly how all four gospel writers describe Jesus’ interaction with the Jewish establishment.

One day the scribes from Jerusalem came to the place where Jesus was teaching and heard His Words. When they were convicted, they lashed out with the accusation that Jesus spoke these things not by the Spirit of God but by “Beelzebub.” Essentially, the Scribes said Jesus cast out demons by the power of Satan, the prince of the demons. 

Instead of rejoicing that the power of darkness had been broken by the power of God, and a helpless one had been set free from the spiritual, emotional and physical anguish of being overtaken by a demonic spirit, they lashed out against the One who set them free. In many ways, we see a similar tragedy play out around us among religious people today. Carnal misgivings might cause us to be angry or disappointed at the results of God’s blessing on each other and we choose to find fault rather than rejoice. God’s heart must be broken to see His children miss the chance to rejoice over the building of His kingdom because someone else is reaching others for Christ. Might we be guilty of insulting the very Spirit who regenerated us when we do this? 

FINAL THOUGHT: When God sets a person free from the captivating power of Satan, every child of God should rejoice and be glad.

Steven Ridings