Binding the Wrong Strong Man - Mark 3-4

Binding the Wrong Strong Man

Mark 3:22-30 (ESV)

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

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.
28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— 30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

In the above passage we read the exchange between the religious leaders and Jesus about Jesus’ ministry and power to heal.   The religious leaders, scourging to this passage, are committing a sin that Jesus clearly states is unforgivable.   They are ascribing a miracle committed by the Son of God to the power and ability of the Enemy of God.   We may not like what we read.  But, what we read is obviously true to the character of God.   God does not and will not allow us to attribute the things He does through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, to Beelzebul, Satan.   Jesus came to do miracles to show the authenticity of His ministry and His position over the universe.   Satan was and is attempting to take control of that universe.  He is the Prince and power of this age.  

Ephesians 2:2 (ESV)
2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—

We are not to ascribe to the Lord the glory due is Name (Psalm 96).   We are not to ascribe to Satan the power of God and the acts of God.   The religious leaders were so full of power and control that they could not see the very image of God in front of them (Hebrews 1:2-4).  Jesus’ point of what He is saying is that before you can take possession of what is in the house you have to bind the one that is over the house.  In this case He is taking about the souls of mankind.  He comes in and binds the person who controls the that soul, Satan.   Note how this is stated here:

Acts 26:18 (ESV)
18 to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

We are in the control and power of Satan.   Christ came to bind him, so that we might be truly free to serve Christ.  The religious leaders of the day, rather than believe that about Jesus, ascribed the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan.   That behavior and belief is stated this way in the book of Hebrews:

Hebrews 10:28-29 (ESV)
28 Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?

The religious leaders of the day were trying to “bind” the wrong person.  They were trying to bind Jesus.  Jesus came to bind Satan.   Those bound in the end were the religious leaders: They were bound in their pride and unbelief.