I Am Weak But Thou Art Strong

Mark 3: 20-27

Macho men always want to brag about how strong they are.
One day some boys on a school playground were bragging. Johnny said, “My dad has a list of all the men he can beat up—and all your dads are on his list!”
Later that afternoon a knock came on Johnny’s house
and his dad answered the door.
A big angry man said, “Are you Johnny’s dad?”
He said, “I am.”
“Well Johnny told my son said you have a list
of men you think you can beat up, and my name is on it.” Johnny’s dad said, “That’s right.”
The big guy started rolling up his sleeves and said,
“Well, I don’t think you can beat me up.
What are you going to do about it?”
Johnny’s dad thought for a moment and then said,
“I’ll will ERASE your NAME OFF my list.”

Guys are always bragging about who’s the strongest.
Since 1977 there has been a televised event called
“The World’s Strongest Man.”
Most of the winners have come from Finland, Iceland,
and Eastern Europe.
These guys are required to perform amazing feats of strength
like pulling a Boeing 747 with their teeth.
In 2024, Ryan Stoltman secured his third
World’s Strongest Man title,
solidifying his status as one of the strongest athletes
on the planet.
Standing at an impressive 6 feet 8 inches
and weighing 408 pounds he’s a force to be reckoned with.
He holds the world record for lifting
the heaviest Atlas stone ever (631 lb) over a 4ft. bar.

So who do you think was the strongest man in the Bible?

Are you thinking the guy with long hair who could
kill a lion with his bare hands?
Samson was pretty strong,
but after he got a haircut in the devil’s barbershop,
he lost his strength.

In our passage today, Jesus is going to talk about a strong man;
Hopefully, by the time we finish you’ll know the identity of
the “The World’s Strongest Man.”

Mark 3:20-27. 20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat.
21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”
22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”
23 And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan?
24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.
26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.
27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

On June 16, 1858 more than 1,000 delegates
met in the Springfield, Illinois, for the
Republican State Convention, and they chose Abraham Lincoln
as their candidate for the U.S. Senate,
running against Democrat Stephen A. Douglas.
That evening Lincoln delivered this address
to his Republican colleagues and the main focus
of his remarks were on the issue of slavery:
“Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Convention.
If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could then better judge what to do, and how to do it.

We are now far into the fifth year, since a policy was initiated, with the avowed object, and confident promise,
of putting an end to slavery disconcertment.
Under the operation of that policy, that disconcertment
has not only, NOT ceased, but has constantly intensified.
In my opinion, it will not cease, until a crisis
shall have been reached, and passed.
A house divided against itself cannot stand."

"A house divided against itself cannot stand."
That's a powerful sentence!
Did Abraham Lincoln come up with that phrase all by himself?
No. Well, where did he get it?
He was quoting Jesus.

Whose kingdom is Jesus talking about here?
Who’s the “strong man” that must first be bound?
Who’s kingdom is about to come to an end?

The main reason for Jesus’ coming was to bind Satan,
to divide and destroy Satan’s kingdom.
Now, hold that thought for a moment.

Did you ever look up verses in the Bible that have the words “division” or “divide” or something similar in them?
I found that division is not always a negative thing in Scripture. In fact, sometimes God CAUSED division to take place.
For example, in Genesis - when God created the world
– we’re told that: “God saw the light, that it was good:
and GOD DIVIDED the light from the darkness.” Genesis 1:4

I know quite a few people who when they eat…the various items on their plate CANNOT touch!

A few verses later we’re told “God made the firmament,
and DIVIDED THE WATERS which were
under the firmament from the waters which were
above the firmament: and it was so. Genesis 1:7

And these were pretty good things...
because God SAID it was good.

And then in Deuteronomy we read
“... when you see the sun, and the moon, and the stars,
even all the host of heaven...
which the LORD your GOD HAS DIVIDED unto all nations
under the whole heaven.” Deuteronomy 4:19

God divided the stars unto all nations?
Did you know that if you were in the southern hemisphere
you see an entirely different set of stars than WE see
in the northern hemisphere.
God has divided all the stars unto all the nations under heaven. And that’s kind of a cool thing.

THEN I read this passage in the New Testament:
(Jesus said) Do you think that I have come
to give peace on earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.
For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three.
They will be divided, father against son
and son against father,
mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
(Luke 12:51-53)

WAIT! WHAT???
Jesus came to bring division??
Well, that’s what He said!!!

But if (by definition) if God does something
it’s got to be good… so how can Jesus
causing division in a family be a good thing?

Well, here’s the deal: People live in one of two realms.
They either belong to Jesus or they belong to Satan.
And when you think about this
you begin to realize there are times we’ve seen
ONLY 2 or 3 members of any family come to church.
Maybe the wife. Maybe a teen.
Maybe grandparents.
And that reality can create division in the family
because some members of the family decide to
belong to Christ and others don’t.

By default – if these people don’t belong to Jesus
they belong to Satan.

You see --- belonging to Satan is not all that hard.
You don’t have to DO anything to Satan.
You don’t have to BELIEVE anything to go to hell.
In fact, not believing in God –
not belonging to Christ –
is all it takes.

Well, what about the people who have trouble
making up their minds?
There are many can’t make a decision to save their souls.
WAIT!!!! DID YOU HEAR THAT!!!
THEY CAN”T MAKE A DECISION TO SAVE THEIR SOULS!!

People who do not make up their minds
to believe in and follow God in their lives...
belong to Satan!
Satan’s kingdom is made up of all kinds of people
who simply have not decided that
they want God to run their lives.

Revelation 3:15-16 tells us
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand.
And God’s focus is on bringing Satan’s kingdom to its knees.
His intention is to bind the strong man
and to invite the people who once belonged to the devil
the opportunity at life and hope and peace.

Matthew 11:28-29
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me;
for I am meek and lowly in heart:
and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Now, the problem becomes that Satan has no intention
of letting that happen.
Satan intends to hang on to every last one of those that he has. And one of the tools Satan will use... is family.
That may end up being true.
OR your decision might just make all the difference
in the lives of your family.
They might just come to Christ because
you made that choice first.
By standing off to one side and simply being God’s child
you may begin to make your family jealous of your faith in Christ.

And if that happens, you may be able to
help divide up Satan’s kingdom
and change the eternal fate of those that you love.

Jesus faced continued bitter criticism
from these religious leaders throughout His ministry.
That lets us know that if you’re serving God,
you can be assured that you’ll face criticism.
When Jesus faced false accusations and criticism,
He usually asked His critics some questions,
and answered with a parable.
He turned their rants into teachable moments.
In this case He asked, “How can Satan drive out Satan?”
And then Jesus, the Master Teacher shared one of his shortest, and most enigmatic parables.

Let’s REREAD Mark 3:27… examine the parable Jesus spoke,
27 But no one can enter a strong man's house
and plunder his goods,
unless he first binds the strong man.
Then indeed he may plunder his house.

THE PARABLE: Jesus came to reverse the work of Satan.
The Pharisees were insulting Jesus when they claimed
that He was possessed by Beelzebub.
In Jewish literature, Beelzebub was a chief demon, and sometimes even identified as Lucifer himself.
Jesus used this event as an opportunity
to give a short but powerful parable.

What is the spiritual meaning behind this short parable
Involving the world’s strongest man?
Satan is strong, but Jesus is the strongest!

Jesus announced to the world that He came to drive out Satan, the prince of this world.
He said, “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.” (John 12:31)

I could have said Jesus is stronger,
but He’s the strongest.
Satan is real, and he is strong.
But sometimes we make the mistake
of give him qualities that only belong to God.

God is omnipresent—He is everywhere all the time.
God is omnipotent—He is all-powerful.
God is omniscient—He knows everything.

Satan, which means adversary, is Lucifer, a fallen angel.
He isn’t omnipresent, but he’s fast
and has an army of demons.
Lucifer isn’t all-powerful,
but he is like a roaring lion roaming about
seeking whom he may devour.
Lucifer isn’t omniscient, he can’t read your thoughts.
But, like a snake, he is shrewd and crafty.

So the strong man in this parable is the devil,
but Jesus is stronger.
Satan’s house is this world.
Satan is called the prince of this world
but this isn’t the only world there is.

Jesus is the one who came into the world
and He has bound Satan and then stolen his possessions.
But Jesus wasn’t really stealing anything from Satan.
He was only reclaiming what Satan stole in the first place.

Jesus isn’t a thief sneaking in and ripping off someone.
He’s like a policeman going into a robber’s house
and handcuffing him to retrieve stolen property
that the devil took.
Jesus called Satan a thief. He said in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill destroy; I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full.”
Satan’s “possessions” are people without Christ
The Bible describes people without Christ this way:
“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” (Ephesians 2:1-2)
The Bible says Satan is at work in the lives of people
who don’t know Christ.
Now if you told an unbeliever that they were
under the control of Satan, they would laugh at you.
They would probably say, “Are you crazy?
I don’t even believe in Satan!”

But the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:4,
In whom the god of this world
hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,
lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ,
who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Even for people who don’t believe God or the devil exists,
Satan is actively keeping their minds shut
to the truth about Jesus.
They are slaves to Satan without even knowing it.

Jesus bound and overcame Satan on the cross
The Bible says, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (1 John 3:8)

“By his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil.” (Hebrews 2:14)

So what does this mean to us?
The devil is a defeated foe.
He is still active,
but he was rendered powerless on the cross.
He knows his doom is sealed.

He’s smart enough to read
Revelation 20:10 that says, “And the devil,
who deceived them,
was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur,
where the beast and the false prophet
had been thrown.
They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”
You may be thinking, “OK if the devil is a defeated foe,
he sure is causing me a lot of misery.”
He’s like a wounded animal.
He’s going to fight to the end, although his defeat is sure.

It’s like when the Nazis realized the war was lost,
Hitler issued the Nero Decree.
He told his retreating armies to destroy everything of value. Satan is doing the same thing.
He continues to steal, kill, and destroy.
But he no longer has any authority over you.
He will try to kill your joy,
steal your peace, and destroy your testimony,
but his power is broken.
You can say to him, “Get away from me, Satan,
because greater is he who is in me
than he who is in the world!”

You’re strong, but I have the strongest man living in me!
So that’s the parable.

CONCLUSION
On the evening of June 18, 1850,
a man stood in the bell tower
of London’s Winchester Cathedral staring anxiously out to sea.
All of England was waiting for a report of
the Battle at Waterloo between British general,
the Duke of Wellington,
and the French dictator, Napoleon Bonaparte.

The torch signals from a ship in the English Channel
were sent by code.
The message read: “Wellington defeated...”
At that moment a thick fog rolled in.
The man in the tower signaled the news across the city
To which there was great gloom and sadness
because that meant Napoleon would next invade England.

But hours later the fog lifted
and the rest of the message could be read:
“Wellington defeated the enemy.”

Sadness and despair was replaced with joy and celebration.
When Jesus died on the cross,
it would seem as if He had been defeated.
But when Jesus rose from the dead
the rest of the message was received.
Jesus defeated the enemy!
And we can rejoice today.
The World’s Strongest Man has defeated our enemy!

INVITATION