At one point during the ministry of Jesus, he was confronted by a man possessed by a demon. This man could no longer see or speak. Showing mercy on the man, Jesus removed the demon which returned the man’s sight and ability to talk. The people who witnessed the event turned to the Pharisees for an explanation of the power displayed by Jesus. Of course the Pharisees did not want to concede their religious authority to Jesus and attributed his healing of this man to the power of the devil.
Jesus used this moment to illustrate the illogical and misguided conclusion of the Pharisees. He began by making the obvious point that the devil would not be driving out demons since they are his personal tools.
“If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?” Matthew 12:26 (NASB)
During this period in time, the Pharisees had already gone on record acknowledging other exorcists as being manifestations of God’s power, but they did not want to acknowledge Jesus for fear of him taking over their lofty status.
“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” Matthew 12:28 (NASB)
To finish his argument, Jesus once again pointed out the absurdity of the Pharisees position, by pointing out that removing demons demonstrated his control over the devil.
“Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.” Matthew 12:29 (NASB)
Jesus let the Pharisees know that they were now on thin ice. They had been given the Word of God, followed by a clear manifestation of God in the form of Jesus Christ, and now they were denying the power of the Holy Spirit. They had rejected Jesus, and now the rejection of this final sign from God was unforgivable.
“Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” Matthew 12:32 (NASB)
Jesus was using this debate with the Pharisees to demonstrate to those watching that his ministry was about healing and love. In contrast, the ministry of the Pharisees had been about restriction and judgment. Jesus clearly points his finger at the true evil coming from the Pharisees.
“The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil.” Matthew 12:35 (NASB)
The Pharisees rejection of Jesus, in essence, sent him to the cross. Like the Pharisees, our response to Jesus determines our eternal destiny. We know now what the Pharisees didn’t know at that time – the cross was not the demise of Jesus – the cross was the demise of the Pharisees. Jesus rose from the grave and now sits at the right hand of God – the true source of his awesome power.
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