The Strong Man's Trashed House
Introduction: No Neutral Ground
We live in a time that prizes neutrality, or at least the appearance of it. Our culture wants to pretend that it is possible to stand in a dispassionate, objective middle ground, weighing all the various truth claims as though they were vegetables at the market. People want to be "spiritual but not religious," which is another way of saying they want the comfort of a vague deity without the inconvenient demands of a King. They want to spectate the great cosmic conflict between light and darkness from the cheap seats, as though it were a mere theatrical production.
But Jesus Christ, in this passage, detonates the entire notion of a neutral corner. He kicks over the grandstands and sets them on fire. He declares that in the war for the souls of men, there is no Switzerland. There are only two kingdoms, two rulers, and two destinies. Every action, every word, every thought is either gathering for the Kingdom of God or scattering for the kingdom of darkness. The central issue of all existence is allegiance. To whom do you belong? Whose side are you on?
Here in Luke 11, Jesus performs a stunning miracle of liberation. He casts out a demon, and a man who was mute begins to speak. The crowd is amazed, as they should be. A clear display of divine power has occurred right in front of them. But the human heart, in its rebellion, is a marvel of perverse ingenuity. Confronted with a miracle they cannot deny, the religious leaders invent a slander they cannot defend. They cannot deny the reality of the exorcism, so they attack the source of the power. They accuse Jesus of being in league with the devil himself. This is not a simple mistake; it is a calculated, worldview-level rebellion. It is the sin of calling the Holy Spirit a demon. And Jesus' response to this charge is a master class in logic, theology, and spiritual warfare. He exposes their foolishness, declares the nature of His kingdom, and warns them, and us, of the terrifying danger of a spiritual vacuum.
The Text
And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. Now it happened that when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the crowds marveled. But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” And others, testing Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven. But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a house divided against itself falls. But if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed. But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.
“When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.”
(Luke 11:14-26 LSB)
The Undeniable Miracle and the Diabolical Slander (vv. 14-16)
We begin with the setup: a display of raw, divine power and the immediate, twisted reaction to it.
"And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. Now it happened that when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the crowds marveled. But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” And others, testing Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven." (Luke 11:14-16)
The miracle is straightforward and public. A man is in bondage, not just spiritually but physically. The demon has shut his mouth. This is what sin and demonic power do; they silence true praise and true speech. Jesus acts, the demon is expelled, and the man's tongue is loosed. The proper response, modeled by the crowds, is marveling. It is astonishment at the power of God.
But notice the two corrupt responses. The first is a malicious explanation. "Some of them," identified in the parallel accounts as the Pharisees and scribes, see the very same evidence as the crowd. But their hearts are so opposed to Christ that they must invent a narrative to explain away the goodness. They say, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons." Beelzebul, or "lord of the flies," was a contemptuous name for Satan. They are saying, "Yes, this is a supernatural event, but it's black magic. He's the chief demon, and the lesser demons are just obeying their boss." This is the essence of what the Bible calls blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. It is to witness a clear work of the Spirit of God and to attribute it, with eyes wide open, to the devil. It is calling white, black; light, darkness; good, evil.
The second corrupt response is a demand for more evidence. "Others, testing Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven." This sounds pious, but it is deeply cynical. They have just seen a sign. A man bound by Satan was just set free. What more do they want? A trained seal act in the sky? This is not an honest request for information; it is the rebellion of a heart that has already decided not to believe. When a man's heart is set against God, no amount of evidence will ever be enough. They don't want a sign to produce faith; they want a sign to justify their unbelief when Jesus fails to produce it to their satisfaction.
The Logic of the Kingdom (vv. 17-20)
Jesus, knowing their very thoughts, dismantles their slander with impeccable logic. He gives them three arguments.
"But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a house divided against itself falls. But if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." (Luke 11:17-20)
First, the argument from basic common sense. A kingdom in a civil war cannot stand. A family that is constantly fighting will fall apart. If Satan is in the business of casting out Satan, then his entire enterprise is doomed. Satan's goal is to bind men, not to free them. To suggest that he would empower Jesus to go around liberating his captives is strategically insane. It's like saying a general is supplying the enemy army with weapons to ensure his own defeat. The charge is not just malicious; it is moronic.
Second, the argument from their own experience. "If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out?" There were Jewish exorcists operating at that time, some of whom were successful to varying degrees. Jesus puts them on the horns of a dilemma. "You approve of your own exorcists. Are you prepared to say that they are also working for the devil? If not, why do you apply a different standard to Me?" Their own sons, their own disciples, will stand as judges against their hypocrisy. They have one standard for themselves and another, malicious standard for Jesus.
Third, the argument from the only remaining alternative. After demolishing their slander, Jesus presents the terrifying truth they are trying to evade. "But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." There are only two options on the table: the power of Satan or the power of God. Having shown that the first is absurd, the second must be true. The phrase "finger of God" is a direct echo of Exodus, when Pharaoh's magicians, unable to replicate the plague of gnats, conceded, "This is the finger of God" (Ex. 8:19). It refers to the undeniable, direct power of God in action. Jesus is saying, "This exorcism is not just a random act of kindness. It is a D-Day invasion. It is the sign that the kingdom of God has crashed into your world, into your history, and is confronting the kingdom of darkness head-on."
The Strong Man Bound (vv. 21-23)
Jesus then gives a parable to explain the cosmic significance of what is happening.
"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed. But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters." (Luke 11:21-23)
This is the theology of spiritual warfare in a nutshell. The "strong man" is Satan. His "house" is this fallen world system. His "possessions" are the souls of men and women held captive to sin and death. He is "fully armed" with lies, temptations, fear, and accusation. And as long as he is unchallenged, his goods are secure.
But Jesus declares Himself to be the "someone stronger." He is the one who has come to invade the strong man's house. The casting out of a single demon is not just an isolated event; it is a skirmish in a massive war. It is proof that the stronger man has arrived. Jesus is binding the strong man. He is overpowering him. And what is the result? He "takes away from him all his armor" and "distributes his plunder." The armor Satan relies on is deception and the fear of death. Jesus disarms him through His life of perfect obedience and His death and resurrection. The "plunder" is us. We are the treasure that Christ has come to rescue from the devil's hoard. Every soul saved is plunder taken from the house of the enemy.
This reality forces a decision, which Jesus states in the starkest possible terms: "He who is not with Me is against Me and he who does not gather with Me, scatters." In this war, there are no conscientious objectors. There is no middle ground. You are either with Christ, actively gathering souls into His kingdom, or you are by default against Him, scattering and contributing to the chaos of the enemy. Silence is opposition. Apathy is treason. To refuse to gather with the shepherd is to become a wolf.
The Danger of the Empty House (vv. 24-26)
Jesus concludes with a chilling warning about the peril of reformation without regeneration, of cleaning without conversion.
"When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first." (Luke 11:24-26)
This parable is directed at the generation of Jews who were witnessing His ministry. They were being "exorcised" on a national level. The flagrant idolatry of their forefathers was gone. They had swept the house clean with their religious observances and traditions. The house was swept and put in order. But it was empty. They had swept out the old demons but had not invited the true King to take up residence.
And nature abhors a vacuum. A heart cannot remain empty. If Christ is not enthroned there, something else will be. The demon, finding no other place of rest, returns to his old "house." He finds it clean, tidy, and completely undefended. It's a prime piece of real estate. So he goes and gets reinforcements, "seven other spirits more evil than itself," and they move in. The final state of that man, or that generation, is exponentially worse than the first. The first state was simple paganism. The final state is apostate religion, a self-righteousness that has seen the light and called it darkness. This is precisely what happened to that generation. They rejected their Messiah, and within a few decades, their house, Jerusalem, was utterly destroyed.
The application for us is direct and severe. It is not enough to clean up your life. It is not enough to stop doing certain bad things. Moral reformation, self-help, and New Year's resolutions are just sweeping the house. You can sweep out the demon of drunkenness, but if you do not fill the house with Christ, the demons of pride, self-righteousness, and bitterness will move in with seven of their friends. The only true and lasting deliverance is not exorcism, but occupation. The house of your heart must be filled. It must be occupied by the Holy Spirit, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You must not just be emptied of sin; you must be filled with Him.
This is the choice that confronts every one of us. Is Jesus the Son of God, or is He an agent of Beelzebul? Is He the Stronger Man, or is He a fraud? You cannot remain neutral on this question. Your answer determines whose house you live in, who your master is, and where you will spend eternity. Are you gathering with Him, or are you scattering abroad? Is your house occupied by the King, or is it merely swept clean, waiting for the squatters to return?