Jesus, Misunderstood
Text: Mark 3:20-35
Core Idea: Jesus came to bind Satan and free us from bondage – this is who He really is. Then let us not resist Him but respond with humble submission and obedience knowing that this is the only way of responding to the Savior King.
INTRODUCTION
Good afternoon, Lighthouse. It’s great to see you. Hope you had a great week. And welcome to those who are joining us online. I pray that this gathering will bring honor to God and joy to our hearts. Well, we’re studying through the Gospel of Mark. When we began this series last November, I shared that one of the reasons why it would be beneficial for us to preach through the whole book of the Bible was that it would foster patience, endurance, and commitment to the Word in the church. In other words, we’re not going to jump around the Scripture simply to be more “relevant” or to avoid passages that might be difficult, confusing, and even offensive. Instead, we will wrestle with the Word until God speaks to us – at least that was my commitment as your pastor. I say this because this could be one of those passages that might be hard to swallow and could be easily misinterpreted – but maybe that’s why it’s even more important for us to pay close attention.
As you’ll see, this passage includes a warning from Jesus. We know well that warnings make people uncomfortable – it frightens people – which is why it’s very important for me to remind us that God’s warnings are always driven from His love for us – it’s never to intimidate us. Just as a parent disciplines a child out of love, God warns us to sound the alarm to wake us up from our slumber. It’s to tell us that we’re on the wrong path – or to put it differently, it’s to bring us back to the right path. It’s never to rob us of our joy but it’s to give us life. Jonathan Dodson writes, “Warnings are written to Christians in order to strengthen their faith, promote their joy, and honor the gospel of God.” It’s not so much a threat, but it really is a loving invitation to fix our eyes on Jesus. Then this is my prayer for all of us – that the weightiness of this truth will not enslave us, paralyze us, but liberate us and cause us to live in a manner worthy of the gospel (Phil. 1:27). So, with that in mind, let’s turn our Bibles to Mark 3:20-35. Let me read this for us.
20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that He and His disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When His family heard about this, they went to take charge of Him, for they said, “He is out of His mind.” 22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons He is driving out demons.” 23 So Jesus called them over to Him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” 30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.” 31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call Him. 32 A crowd was sitting around Him, and they told Him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” 33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” He asked. 34 Then He looked at those seated in a circle around Him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”
Amen. This is the Word of God for you today.
Let me share three things from this passage:
THE MISUNDERSTANDING
THE RESPONSE
THE WARNING
1) THE MISUNDERSTANDING
Let’s look at verses 20-22. Here, we see three groups of people who were trying to make sense of who Jesus was. But their interpretations were not only completely wrong, but it also tragically led them to mistreat Jesus. Then who were these people and how did they misunderstand Jesus?
First, we see the crowd in verse 20. “Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that He and His disciples were not even able to eat” – probably because He was constantly ministering to these people. There was no concern for Jesus; their pursuit of Jesus was really about them. In other words, to the crowd, Jesus was just a miracle-worker – He was just a means to their end. I won’t say too much about this because I talked a lot about it last week; but let me just say this: their understanding of who Jesus was caused their pursuit of Jesus to be completely conditional. They probably couldn’t care less if Jesus really was who He said he was – they probably would’ve honored anyone as their king as long as he/she were able to give them what they wanted. Friends, I wonder if some of you are treating Jesus this way – a means to get what we desperately want. It could be a specific job, good grades, this yearning to be loved, a breakthrough in life, and so on. Have you ever bargained with Jesus? “Jesus, if you make this happen, I’ll love you unconditionally, I’ll give you everything. If you give me this, I’ll know that you love me.” I know I have. This is so dangerous because our understanding of who God is will always be in light of our circumstances. We’ll sometimes see Him as a loving God but other times to be cruel solely based on what’s happening in our lives. In other words, we’ll never see Him for who He really is. Then let’s check our hearts: are we truly zealous for Jesus or are we discreetly more zealous for the things that we desire? In other words, are we more zealous for ourselves? Jesus is not a miracle-worker.
Second, we see Jesus’ family in verse 21. His family must have heard about all that Jesus said and did. And Mark tells us that they went to take charge of Him. This is the same word used to describe arresting someone, seizing someone by force. In other words, they were intending to forcefully take Jesus back to their hometown. Why? Because they believed that “He [was] out of His mind.” In other words, to His family, Jesus was a lunatic. They thought Jesus was taking things too far. And because this was their understanding of who Jesus was, they went to seize Him, to “save” Him from further damaging His reputation, His family’s reputation, and from further provoking the Jewish leaders.
Now, maybe this is how some of us feel about Jesus. It’s not that we don’t love Him; it’s just that we feel a little embarrassed. We’re concerned that His Word is just a little off, a bit behind the times, and out of step with our culture. So, we try to soften the rough edges in order to “protect” Jesus’ reputation. But this is incredibly dangerous because if we’re not careful, we won’t be clarifying the Word, but we will be compromising the Word. Brothers and sisters, we must remember that following Jesus means we faithfully stand on His Word even when the world says, “He’s out of His mind.” Do you know what this means? It means that as followers of Christ, we may be misunderstood as well. Our reputation could be damaged. Others may say of us, “She’s out of her mind. He’s so extreme. He thinks he’s better than the rest of us.” But we must see that this is part of bearing the cross of Christ. We’re going to be misunderstood no matter what our intentions are as we seek to faithfully follow Jesus. But when this happens, I pray that you’ll guard your heart as you live out 1 Peter 2:21-23, which says, “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth.’ When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.” I pray that you’ll entrust yourself to God. Jesus is not a lunatic.
Lastly, we see the teachers of the law in verse 22. The news about Jesus must have spread even to the religious leaders in Jerusalem. So, they sent some people to investigate what was happening. And when they saw Jesus, they concluded, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons He is driving out demons.” What’s Beelzebul? It’s a combination of two Hebrew words which literally means “the ruler of the house,” which over time became another name for Satan. In other words, to these religious leaders, Jesus was a liar – pretending to be from God but actually being in league with the devil. They saw what Jesus did and rather than acknowledging that He was doing the work of God, they accused Him of doing the work of Satan by the power of Satan. And their understanding of Jesus ultimately led them to kill Jesus.
Now, it’s so important to see that no one argued, “Jesus never said that” or “Jesus never healed or cast out demons!” Why? It must be because it really did happen. Why is this important to note? Because it means that seeing a miracle doesn’t necessarily produce faith. I wonder if you’ve ever said or heard someone say, “I would believe God, I would become a Christian if I saw these miracles with my own eyes.” But Mark was showing us that you could still end up misunderstanding who Jesus is even after seeing the miracles. They all saw and heard the same things, but the crowd thought Jesus was a miracle-worker, Jesus’ own family thought He was a lunatic, and the religious leaders thought He was an evil liar – not for lack of evidence but for lack of willingness, this willingness to humble themselves and submit to who Jesus really was. Friends, how do you understand Jesus? Some of you may say, “I just see Him as a good teacher – someone to be honored, respected, but not worshiped as a king.” If this is you, please listen to what C.S. Lewis wrote, “I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish things that people often say about Jesus Christ. ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sorts of things that Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher; He would either be a lunatic or else He would be the devil of hell. You must make a choice; either this man was and is the Son of God, or else a madman or something else. You can shut Him up as a fool; you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that option open to us. He did not intend to.” Then who is Jesus? He will tell us Himself.
2) THE RESPONSE
Verse 23. Jesus responded by showing them how illogical their accusations were. “Why would Satan want demons cast out? Why would Satan send demons to torment people and send someone else to save them from this torment? It’s like destroying your own work; it’s to divide your own kingdom. It doesn’t make sense.”
Then He shares a short parable about entering a strong man’s house in verse 27. The strong man here represented Satan and his house, the world that we live in. Using this metaphor, Jesus was saying, “I’ve entered this world to bind Satan and rescue those who have been held captives.” In other words, through this image, Jesus was telling us something important about Himself – that He was stronger than Satan; that, in fact, He didn’t come to help the devil, but to put a decisive blow against his work. Jesus wasn’t a miracle-worker, a lunatic, a liar, or even just a good teacher; He wanted people to know that He was the Lord of the universe, the Savior King, who came to liberate us from captivity and give us life.
We see the world in ruins. The world that God created with love and perfection has been broken apart, poisoned, distorted by the lies of the serpent – filling the hearts of the people with fear, violence, sin, and death. But God has never given us up. And we know this because the moment when sin entered the world, God gave us a prophecy of hope to sustain us. Genesis 3:15 says, “And I will put enmity between you [the serpent, the devil] and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will crush your head, and you will strike His heel.” And here was Jesus saying, “I am the mighty One who comes to crush the head of the serpent. I am the stronger One who comes to bind Satan and set you free.”
But maybe this is why His disciples must have been absolutely confused and shocked when Jesus refused to pick up a sword but was bound and got plundered on the cross. How will He bring victory by dying on the cross? But that’s exactly how He secured victory for us. Colossians 2:13-15 says, “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; He has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” The enemy’s greatest weapon against us was our own sins. So, to ensure our death and destruction, Satan constantly highlighted our sin before God and crushed us with shame and guilt. But when Jesus took our sin upon Himself and received the punishment on our behalf, paying the penalty for our sin, He was disarming Satan by stripping away his greatest weapon against us. There’s now no condemnation. Jesus’ death brings hope for our lives, a reason to look forward to the future.
If this is our understanding of who Jesus is, how should we then respond? First, it means that we don’t have to live a defeated life. The cross crushed Satan’s head for good and we don’t have to fear what Satan could do against us. We don’t have to be slaves to our sin. So, the next time Satan whispers, “Can God really forgive you? Can your sins be washed away?” confidently believe in Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” When Satan points to our suffering and says, “See, God cannot be trusted,” let Romans 8:18 be your confession, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” If Satan tells us that our trials and pain will destroy us, cling to Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” And whenever Satan questions God’s love for us or our love for Him, stand your ground and remember Romans 8:37-39, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Our salvation belongs to Christ our King, and we will overcome the devil by the blood of the Lamb.
Second, it means that we now live in obedience to the will of God. Verse 31 tells us that Jesus’ family finally got to the house but couldn’t get in because of the crowd. Seeing this, the crowd said to Jesus, “Your mother and brothers are looking for you.” And He responded, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” It’s not a coincidence that this story comes here – right after Jesus tells the people that He’s the King who comes to rescue His people. This passage is telling us what it means to be part of His royal family: we live out the will of the King. Jonathan Dodson writes, “Gospel-centered disciples drink deeply from the cup of costly grace and fight to live lives of obedience to King Jesus. Faith in the gospel actually makes us slaves of Christ, who frees us from sin and graciously binds us to His side.” Christians, let us joyfully trust and live out the truth in all areas of our lives. Let us vigorously fight to hold onto the truth even when our marriage is shaky, when our future seems dark, when our hearts are discouraged, when nothing seems to go our way at work, when we feel like giving up, when we are misunderstood. Jesus is our Lord. Let us faithfully stand on His truth.
3) THE WARNING
If you recall, the religious leaders attributed Jesus’ work to Satan. So, Jesus responded by warning them. Verse 29, “Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” I want you to hear the weightiness of His words: “will never be forgiven” – it’s a sin that God will not forgive to all eternity, which means that the person committing this sin will be under God’s wrath forever. This is not easy to swallow. But knowing that this is from Jesus who loved us and gave Himself for us, we must labor to understand it clearly.
Sadly, this passage has been terribly misinterpreted and misused by many – producing grief, confusion, fear, and doubt even in the hearts of believers. Many have been tortured over this, nervously asking themselves, “Have I committed the unforgivable sin?” Then what is this unforgivable sin? Is it to swear against God? Is it to mock God? Is it to be really angry with God for a season in your life? Is it to commit the same sin over and over again? Actually, some have argued that suicide is the unforgivable sin because you wouldn’t have the chance to repent of that sin. But I want to be very clear about this: this teaching is nowhere in the Bible. In fact, the Bible tells us that when we genuinely trust in the finished work of Jesus, we are forever forgiven of all our sins (past, present, and future), and suicide will not undo what Christ has accomplished for us. But, of course, it doesn’t change the fact that this would grieve God’s heart. Then let me share this: there might be someone here or watching this who has become so overwhelmed by depression, guilt, or grief that you feel like this is the only way to be freed from it, to somehow find relief. If this is you, I’m so thankful that you’re here because I have an opportunity to remind you of His love and purpose for your life. Friends, suicide is not God’s will for you. His will for you is that you would entrust yourself to God. If you’ve lost hope, if you’re at that point of unbearable pain, hear what Jesus says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” This is actually the very verse that spoke to me when I struggled with this myself. And hear this: there are others in this community who will also testify that your pain, your grief, your hopelessness will not be how your story ends. Jesus came to bring you life and have it to the full. Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” God has a purpose for you; He has a good plan for your life. So, throw yourself to Him – He will catch you with His everlasting arms.
Okay, then let’s go back to the question, “What is the unforgivable sin?” In verse 30, Mark actually adds a short commentary on Jesus’ words. “He said this because they were saying, ‘He has an impure spirit.’” In other words, the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit is to attribute the Spirit’s power and work of Jesus to the work of Satan. But what does that mean for us practically? I want to share what Pastor John Piper said which brought a lot of clarity for me. He said, “The unforgivable sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is an act of resistance which belittles the Holy Spirit so grievously that He withdraws forever with His convicting power so that we are never able to repent and be forgiven.” Simply, it’s the sin of rejecting Christ even after the Spirit enables you to see the gospel clearly. You understand what Christ has done – you see it, you had a little taste of it, you might have even lived under it for some time, yet you reject it; you oppose what the Holy Spirit is doing. Why is this unforgivable? Because the avenue to forgiveness is rejected. 1 Corinthians 12:3 says, “No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.” It’s the Spirit who draws us to salvation, who leads us to repentance, and who applies forgiveness – but you’re choosing to deny Him. It’s not that forgiveness will not be granted, but that it’s not sought after.
Now, if you’re concerned that you’ve committed this sin, you probably haven’t. The fact that you’re wondering is evidence that God is still at work in your heart. You wouldn’t be listening to this sermon if God has withdrawn His Spirit’s work in your life. So, you don’t need to anxiously ask yourself the question, “Have I committed the unforgivable sin? Have I blasphemed against the Holy Spirit?” Instead, the more important question you should be asking yourself is, “Am I willing to put my trust in Jesus Christ and receive His forgiveness?” Hear this warning from the Savior King who loves you: don’t keep resisting the Spirit’s work in your heart. I understand that you still have a lot of questions. But we can still meaningfully commit ourselves to many things in life even though all our questions may not have been answered. For example, we may not have all the answers, but we still get married, we still have children, we move to a new job, and so on. In other words, you don’t have to have all your questions answered before you could genuinely be a follower of Jesus Christ. Friends, you’re not guaranteed tomorrow. But you do have today. It’s not too late. Jesus says in John 6:37, “Whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” So, look to Christ, confess your sin, and receive His forgiveness.
One last thing: if we know anyone who is intentionally rejecting the Spirit’s work, we must pray and plead for their souls. We need to keep loving them and sharing the gospel with them just like how others have done for us. Let us not give up on them knowing that God is able to soften even the hardest of hearts and save even the most prideful of sinners – that’s exactly what happened to us.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, Jesus came to bind Satan and free us from bondage – this is who He really is. Then let us not resist Him but respond to Him with humble submission and obedience knowing that this is the only way of responding to the Lord of lords, the Savior King.
sermon questions
Read verses 20-22. How does our understanding of who Jesus is related to how we relate to Him? Who is Jesus to you? How does that impact your relationship with Him?
Read verse 27. Jesus came to bind Satan and free us from bondage. What does it mean to live in light of this truth? How does this truth impact us in our everyday life?
Read verses 28-29. Even though a Christian cannot commit the unforgivable sin, how does it still function as a warning and exhortation for Christians?