Jesus teaches that the kingdom of God has come to us. The sign of this happening is that the Spirit of God is casting out Satan's kingdom from the demoniac, but also from society.
I will stay with this scripture for the next few days.
Matthew 12:22-37 22 Then they brought to him a demoniac who was blind and mute; and he cured him, so that the one who had been mute could speak and see. 23 All the crowds were amazed and said, "Can this be the Son of David?" 24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, "It is only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons, that this fellow casts out the demons." 25 He knew what they were thinking and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26 If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27 If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. 29 Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his property, without first tying up the strong man? Then indeed the house can be plundered. 30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 Therefore I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. 33 "Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgment you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
Do we ignore Jesus' teaching that casting out evil through the works of the Spirit is part of "thy Kingdom come?"
Note: The kingdom of God and the works of the Spirit of God are tied together. The work of the Holy Spirit is done through Jesus in this story. But after Pentecost, the works of the Holy Spirit will be done through all of his followers. After Jesus ascends into heaven, this is how the Kingdom of God continues to enter the world... through the work of the Holy Spirit within believers.
“Jesus is Lord” is a radical claim. One in which we pledge our lives to follow him. And yet, most of us ignore the teachings of Jesus. We reimagine him so that he fits neatly into our world instead of letting him change our entire way of being. This blog was a devotional that walked through the gospel of Matthew (and a little into Mark)identifying where we are ignoring Jesus. And inviting him to change us.
Note to Readers...
Dear Friends,
Although the contents of this blog have been preserved below, new postings to this blog ended on January 3, 2011. But please checkout my new blog: "Embracing Jesus."
April
Although the contents of this blog have been preserved below, new postings to this blog ended on January 3, 2011. But please checkout my new blog: "Embracing Jesus."
April
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