Lesson 12 – When the Spirit Casts Out

Matthew 12:28-30

But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.

If your life is part of the public spectrum you know what it is like to live with constant criticism. Maybe you're not assailed as much as a politician, but opposition to your every decision weights you down.

Jesus too faced unfounded criticism. Unable to counter Godly teaching, the Pharisees diverted attention from Christ by accusing him of receiving miraculous powers from Satan. Jesus responds with brilliant argument, one so clear there is no doubt the power displayed in his life was not only not of Satan, but used solely in opposition to evil. There was no room to falsely accuse our Lord of working against the Father.

So often, those on fire for our Lord are accused by those who have no real desire to understand the deepness of their faith. You see it all the time. Churches drawing large crowds are spoken of as having softened the requirements of the gospel. Believers rejoicing in their faith are said to be living in a dream land, one that will return to reality when they begin to face the troubles of life. Those who claim miracles or having seen angels must be stretching the truth as liars, just seeing things, or seeking fame and attention. Religion has always shied away from those things we cannot explain, and criticism has been our weapon of choice to combat those we oppose.

Still, when people don't see the power of Christ in us, there is nothing to draw them to faith. Maybe it is time for believers to ask the Spirit to reach out and touch us in such a way that we'll be wrongly accused of having some supernatural power living within us.

As it is, most of us don't seem to have any sort of Spiritual touch upon our lives. As often illustrated, a court would have a hard time of convicting us of being a believer. Without the touch of the Spirit casting out evil from our lives, we're simply not an outstanding witness of our Lord.

LORD JESUS

I invite you touch my life so that others will see you in me. Control me with your Spirit and may it overflow so that others will be drawn to you. Amen.