If Satan casts out Satan

Then one was brought to him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute, and he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.' But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 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. Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."

- Matthew 12:22-32

The lectionary now skips forward. In the future, I may consider blogging the gospels on a chapter-by-chapter basis, rather than following a lectionary. I find the gospels build upon the stories in chronology; it's important to have a sense of what has been learned and what you carry with you through the sequences of the narrative. I'd like to hear from my readers if they have thoughts on this.

In between Saturday's reading and today's, Jesus has made several more healings, chosen his Twelve Apostles and sent them out on their first mission (to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," not Gentiles) - giving them instructions on their conduct, on persecution and martyrdom, and encouragement in their witnessing. In other passages, John the Baptist and Jesus have been rejected, and Jesus rebukes the Galilean cities in which he performed great works but his gospel of repentance was rejected. He has preached, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." And finally, he begins to receive open hostility from the Pharisees. Today's encounter continues this theme.

Then one was brought to him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute, and he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.' But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 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." My study bible notes here: "Filled with pride and envy, the Pharisees found in this miracle a pretext to attack Jesus, accusing him of having Beelzebub (v. 24) as the source of his power. Beelzebub/Baal was the prince perhaps of "the dung heap" or "the flies" -- a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kin. 1:2-16); here he is called ruler of the demons (v. 24). Demons do not fight against themselves, but are cast out by God's power through the Holy Spirit (v. 28), whose action signals the present reality of the Kingdom." It's important to understand that the healing of the "blind and mute" is considered a messianic sign (see Isaiah 35:5-6). So, it is natural that the population should ask, "Could this be the Son of David?" as the Messiah was understood. The Pharisees, of course, accuse him with a different theory, of working by the power of demons, and not the Holy Spirit. Messiah or Christ means "Anointed One" - and it is this spirit of anointing that is being questioned. Jesus replies with an answer about the strength of his power. "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." If his power is more potent than that of the demons, than that of Satan, then what is this power that casts them out? "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad." This is a clear warning that they must make a choice, also that Jesus sees his power and its origin as self-evident: he's working by the power of the Spirit of God, and they must make a choice to follow him or to scatter in the effect of such power.

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." Finally, we are given the strongest possible statement about the nature of this power, and its potency - and therefore the impact of our choices when confronted with the holy. My study bible notes, "Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit -- the accusation that Jesus healed the demoniac by demonic power (v. 24) rather than by the power of the Holy Spirit (v. 28; see Mark 3:29, 30). Every sin against the Son of Man can be forgiven, because the Jews do not yet know much about him. But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity they know from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven. This blasphemy is willful hardness of heart. It attributes the saving action of the Spirit to Satan and refuses to accept God's forgiveness and mercy." I also think it's important to understand this in the sense of the true action of the Spirit, as my study bible points out. Jesus is speaking of effects happening in the here and now, to which they are witnesses. The action of the Spirit is the defining moment of the holy - to reject holiness in one's presence, an act of the Spirit one witnesses, is quite different from rejecting a person one does not know, or their reputation. To be a personal witness to the action of the holy confers a greater responsibility upon one's choices. One passage that we have skipped - in which Jesus is giving instructions to the apostles as they are sent out on their first mission - teaches us that even "the very hairs of your head are all numbered." We can infer, then, that as witnesses to the action of the holy in our presence, we are known, our encounter purposeful, for some reason. From this we conclude that it is a moment made for choice, for an opening to understanding, a gift, an offering of something we can accept or refuse.

So, what we can conclude from this passage is its emphasis on the power of choice - that we are offered a choice. And that we must take care that our hearts are not hardened: that we cultivate spiritual eyes and ears so that we may properly perceive what is in front of us, and make good discernment. How are we to know the truly spiritual, the holy? How are we to make this choice? It all happens in the cultivation of a heart that is open to the spiritual, that is capable of discerning. We "pray to our Father who is in the secret place", we seek to know this reality and to encounter it for ourselves so that we may understand and be open to it. How will you know what you encounter today? How will you make your choice? Sunday (yesterday) we celebrated Pentecost - the coming of the Holy Spirit, and its anointing throughout the world, this gift to us. How will you come to know that and understand it for yourself?