No Nose



Matthew 12:22-30
22Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw.
23And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?”
24But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.”
25Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.
26And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
27And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges.
28But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.
30Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

There is an ancient cliché, dating back to at least the 12th Century that says, “She cut off her nose to spite her face.” It means that you seek to harm another but your actions actually cause you more harm. It is said the phrase originated when the nuns in Europe feared attack by the Vikings and would disfigure their faces to avoid rape. Abraham Lincoln also gained fame for the phrase “A house divided against itself cannot stand” spoken during his second inaugural address. The truth is the concept of fighting against your own best interests originated with Jesus!

As Jesus continues His compassionate ministry of healing and restoration a demon possessed man is brought to Him who has lost speech and the ability to see. Of course Jesus heals the man by casting out the demon that torments him. Immediately Jesus is accused of colluding with Satan in order to have such power. The Pharisees can see that He has power and can’t possibly deny what they have seen with their own eyes. But to admit that this might be God – they cannot allow that concept to stand. So they put Satan into the mix. Even the general population expresses doubt. Verse 23 is actually phrased in the negative in the Greek. “This one isn’t the Son of David, is he?” Surely this guy isn’t the guy, is he? So Jesus masterfully points out the flaw in their charge. No one with a right mind sets himself against his own goals.

Jesus continues to push back at the established religious leadership. While they cannot deny His power, they still deny His deity. Even today we are surrounded by those who know His story and yet deny His deity. It is a dangerous place to stand. Those who want to continue to deny Him are cutting off their nose to spite their face.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

יהוה שָׁמַר--Yahweh Shamar (God Watches)

Image
Psalm 121 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. There are numerous passages I cling to when stress takes over my life. I would be hard pressed to declare a favorite, but this psalm would come close. So this morning I listened to Psalm 121 about 20 times as I meditated through the verses. First, I want to point out that the word or idea of shamar appears in every verse expect 6. The NIV uses the word "watch" while the ESV uses "keep". The...
Read more

Excusez-moi

Image
2 Kings 23:31-37 31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-fiv...
Read more

Narrow Door

Image
Luke 13:22-30 22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them , 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at tabl...
Read more