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Continuing our short studies in Luke, this week we are considering Luke 11:14-26. Please read these verses every day this week and, if possible use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
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Luke 11:14-15 (NIV)
‘Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, “By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.”’
Throughout the years that I’ve been a Christian, I’ve witnessed God do amazing things and seen so many lives touched and changed by the power of His Word. I’ve also seen a recurring theme with many people and in particular, many younger people. This theme is that whenever they seem to be experiencing a fresh, close walk with God, something happens to disrupt and to distract them from that walk.
They seem to be on the right road and are travelling along nicely when all of a sudden, it seems as if the wheels come off and they end up in a ditch. Previously, they were doing so well and now they seem to be back to square one. The apostle Paul says in Galatians chapter 5:7 “You were running the race beautifully. Who cut in on you and stopped you from obeying the truth?” (International Standard Version).
Whenever God is on the move and His people are responding to His Word and His direction for their lives, Satan is guaranteed to do his best to destroy what God is doing. The context to our verses today is the call to a deeper understanding of prayer and a strengthening of our relationship with God. Jesus is leading the people into a fresh understanding of the Fatherhood of God and into a total reliance on His love and grace. This ‘knowledge’ results in a different attitude to those around us – it generates a heart of forgiveness instead of bitterness, in instils an attitude of trust in His provision for our life and promotes a life of faith and not feelings.
What do we see next? Satan enters the picture. It’s the same thing that we see over and over again. Satan steps in to a move of God with a view to kill, to destroy and to rob people of their experience with Almighty God.
However, it doesn’t matter how much Satan tries to hinder God’s work, we know that He is the Almighty God and He has complete and utter authority over Satan. I love the simplicity of the verse here. ‘Jesus was driving out a demon…When the demon left.’ There’s never any doubt in regard to the work of the Lord. What He starts, He will complete!
Pray this truth into your life today. It could be that you’re being hindered by Satan in some way, but trust His Word today and submit your life totally to the Lord. Resist the devil and he will flee. He has to. No question about it!
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