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Luke 11:14-28

09 Oct

14 One day Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn’t speak, and when the demon was gone, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed, 15 but some of them said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” 16 Others, trying to test Jesus, demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.

17 He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive? 19 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 21 For when a strong man is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe— 22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.

23 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

24 “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ 25 So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. 26 Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.”

27 As he was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, “God bless your mother—the womb from which you came, and the breasts that nursed you!”

28 Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”

Luke 11:14-28

Dear God, what an interesting exchange. I don’t understand spiritual warfare as taught and demonstrated by Jesus enough. I’ve read books like This Present Darkness that showed a certain view of spiritual warfare, but I don’t really understand it. What Jesus describes here is a bit foreign to me.

What really struck me as I read this passage this morning was the people in the first paragraph just have no idea what’s going on, but they are trying to figure things out. Their finite human minds are trying to make sense of Jesus and what’s happening. Is he legit? Should he be embraced or feared? Should they follow him or ignore him? They just didn’t know. And while I know that I am to follow Jesus, there is still so much I don’t understand. And frankly, I don’t know that I ever will understand a lot of it on this side of life. The percentage of knowledge and understanding I have against the universe’s reality is so infinitesimally small that I can’t imaging it would even register.

Father, I’m walking into this day today completely ignorant. I know the people I’m worried about. I know what I think the problems are, but I don’t really understand the problems. So please give me the knowledge and insight you need me to have, and then help me to willfully accept thing things that are not for me to know. And help me to know when I need to pray more about demons and Satan messing with different situations. Help me to not miss an opportunity to do something you need me to do.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 9, 2025 in Luke

 

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Emails to God – A Humble and Grateful Gentile (Matthew 15:21-28)

22 Feb

21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.”

23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”

24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep ofIsrael.”

25 The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said.

26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”

27 “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”

28 Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

Dear God, I wish I understood the geography better. I see that this woman was from the region where Jesus was visiting, yet he seemed to be able to easily tell that she was not Jewish. What is interesting is that I have always read verse 24 as being directed at the woman, but it almost implies here that he was speaking to the disciples. Hmmm.

But by the time the woman gets in front of him he has a very frank conversation with her. I have journaled on this passage before, and my take now is the same as my take then. I think Jesus was interested in helping her, but only if she really believed and was willing to exhibit her faith in God. In verse 27, her response includes the idea that you are the master, the Jewish nation is your table, and she acknowledges that she is a dog under it. She showed him that she wasn’t just there to “use” him for a miracle for her daughter, but that there was a brokenness in her that included submission to you.

It is interesting to see people who come to our charitable clinic. Some are haughty and arrogant. They are rude and entitled. The staff and volunteers are often caught off guard by these folks. Don’t they realize the gift they are receiving from the community? How can they be so ungrateful? Then there are the others who are truly grateful. They stop me in the store, pull me aside and thank me for what we have done for them. They ask to come into my office to express their gratitude. The encouragement that their words give me is amazing.

Father, help me to be like these grateful patients when I interact with you. Help me to be the kind of blessing to you that they are to me. Help me to remember the blessings you give to me and to count them one by one, the greatest of which is to be able to sit here right now and communicate with you. Thank you for my children. Thank you for my wife. Thank you for my parents. Thank you for my job. I am grateful to have these opportunities to serve others and to feel your affection in return through my labors of love. Help me to learn from the humility and gratitude of this Gentile woman so that my wife will be made complete in your peace.

 
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Posted by on February 22, 2012 in Matthew

 

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Emails to God – Who will Pass This Way? (Matthew 8:28-34)

21 Dec

28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”

32 He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. 33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

Dear God, the end of verse 28 strikes me: “They were so violent that no one could pass that way.” There was a problem in the community’s midst and no one was willing to deal with it. Instead, they all worked around it and just waited for it to go away.

I can easily see myself doing that. The easiest thing to see in my life is homeless people. I run across them all of the time in my work, and they are soooo hard to help. Frankly, it’s intimidating to help them because you know it will require 1.) so much and 2.) so long. There isn’t a quick fix for some people. We have to invest in them, and, unfortunately, I find that I am not often up for the investment.

On the other hand, I saw some people last week make the decision to invest in someone’s life. They found a woman who is seemingly homeless. I say “seemingly” because it is hard to know exactly what the truth is. They brought her to us for dental care, but, between this one couple at one church and other man at another church, they have helped her with food, shelter, and even got her a job. How will it end? When will it end? Where will it end? I don’t know, but I know that I really admire these people because they decided to do what the people in this story wouldn’t do. They went the way that others didn’t want to pass and reached out to help.

Father, first, I pray for this woman and the people who are helping her. Guide her and direct her on her path. Draw her into you. Help her to feel you and your presence. Give her a long-term solution for her life. Second, I pray for the people who are ministering to her. Protect them and give them the strength, wisdom, and discernment they need to be your hands and feet to her. Give them an extra measure of joy this Christmas. And, finally, I pray that you will guide my family and me through each situation we encounter. Give us the courage to “pass that way” so that we might be a source of your love for others. Help me to teach your compassion to my children. Help me to understand what it is you would have me to do at any given moment.

 
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Posted by on December 21, 2011 in Matthew

 

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