The Book of Luke
James J. Barker


Lesson 9
JESUS CAST OUT DEVILS

Text: LUKE 4:31-37


INTRODUCTION:


  1. In Luke 4:31 we read that our Lord left Nazareth "and came down to Capernaum." Capernaum became our Lord's adopted hometown.
  2. Matthew 9:1 refers to Capernaum as "His own city."
  3. Capernaum has vanished, and today no one even knows exactly where it was located. This is because our Lord said in Matthew 11:23, "And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day."
  4. Here in the synagogue in Capernaum, our Lord cast out "the spirit of an unclean devil" (4:33). Devils are often referred to as "unclean spirits" because moral uncleanness -- adultery, fornication, pornography, homosexuality, etc. can be traced to demons.
  5. Demons desire to possess human beings (Luke 4:35, 36; cf. 8:2), and sometimes even animals. Mark 5:13 says, "And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea."
  6. Our English word "demon" comes from the Greek word daimonion, which is translated "devil" in Luke 4:43 and 4:35.
  7. Our English word "demon" is not found in the King James Bible. They are usually referred to as "devils" and "unclean spirits."
  8. Charles Ryrie said demons "are superhuman with superior intelligence and experience and powers. To deny the existence of demons is not skepticism; it only displays ignorance. To be unrealistic about their power is foolhardy" (Basic Theology).
  9. Our Lord said in Matthew 25:41, "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."
  10. Demons are also referred to as Satan's angels in Revelation 12:7 and 9.
  11. In Matthew 12:24, Satan is referred to as, "Beelzebub the prince of the devils." The book of Revelation indicates that demon-possession will increase during the tribulation period. The world is being prepared for this demonic invasion by an onslaught of filth -- television shows and movies promoting fornication, homosexuality, sadomasochism ("Fifty Shades of Grey"), vampires, zombies, witchcraft, and devils, etc.

 

I. DEVILS ARE RELIGIOUS (4:31-33).

  1. There is a tendency to overlook this, but Satan and his demons specialize in religion. Notice this demon-possessed man was "in the synagogue" (4:33).
  2. Not in the nightclub, or the brothel, but "in the synagogue" (4:33).
  3. Revelation 2:9 refers to "the synagogue of Satan."
  4. Demons are behind all false religion. First Timothy 4:1 warns of "doctrines of devils," and refers to demons as “seducing spirits.”
  5. Revelation 18:2 describes religious Babylon as "the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." This is a picture of the Vatican.
  6. The White House and the news media are trying to downplay it, but most of these murderous terrorists are very devout Muslims.
  7. Satan and his demons deceive people. Revelation 12:9 says Satan “deceiveth the whole world.” And Satan's specialty is religious deception.
  8. In Matthew 24:3, as our Lord sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, "Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?"
  9. Our Lord answered them by warning of religious deception (Matthew 24:4, 5, 11, 23, 24).
  10. Satan and his unclean spirits have been deceiving people for 6,000 years! They have a lot of experience.
  11. The devil is an expert at deceiving sinners.
  12. Revelation 12:9 says, he “deceiveth the whole world.”
  13. First Timothy 4:1 refers to demons as “seducing spirits.”

 

II. DEVILS ARE DESTRUCTIVE (4:33-35).

  1. It appears that this man had only one devil inside of him (4:35).
  2. He did say, "Let us alone" (4:34), but perhaps he was referring to the devil and the man himself.
  3. Oftentimes however, many devils can move into a man (cf. Matthew 12:43-45).
  4. Our Lord asked the demoniac of Gadara, "What is thy name?" and he said, "Legion," because many devils were entered into him (Luke 8:30). There were 6,000 soldiers in a Roman legion.
  5. We can learn much about demon-possession from this story (Mark 5:1-19).
  • Demons are unclean (5:2, 8).
  • They have super-human strength (5:3, 4).
  • They make people wild & uncontrollable (5:4, 5).
  • They make people want to hurt themselves, even kill themselves (5:5).
  • They recognize Jesus, and sometimes they even worship Him (5:6, 7).
  • There are "many" demons (5:9).
  • They love filth (5:11-13).
  • After a person is delivered from devils, he puts his clothes back on, and is in his right mind (5:15).
  1. Satan is referred to as our "adversary, the devil" in I Peter 5:8. In fact, his name Satan is the Hebrew word for "adversary."
  2. Satan has multitudes of demons under his control, assisting him. Like Satan, these evil spirits are full of hatred toward God, and they are bent on doing as much harm and as much damage as they possibly can.
  3. Spurgeon said, "It is no wonder that there is so much evil in the world when there are so many evil spirits constantly seeking to lead men astray.”
  4. It is impossible to rightly understand what is going on in the world today without understanding the spirit realm.
  5. Demons are behind crime, terrorism, war, pornography, rock music (including rap, etc.), drugs, alcohol, homosexuality, abortion, etc.
  6. People lie and steal and kill because they are following their leader Satan, and his evil spirits (John 8:44; 10:10).
  7. The devil is out to destroy people, and he will use any method available -- drugs, alcohol, homosexuality, promiscuous sex, violence, suicide, etc.
  8. Two of the names for “the angel of the bottomless pit” (Rev. 9:11) are “Abaddon” (Hebrew) and “Apollyon” (Greek), which mean “Destroyer.” Satan and his demons destroy people.
  9. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (I Peter 5:8).
  10. There are many demons, leading sinners astray, deceiving them, tormenting them, and eventually destroying them. The word “Legion” (Mark 5:9) also indicates that they are highly organized.
  11. The Roman Legion was a well-organized group of disciplined soldiers, obedient to the Roman emperor. In like manner, demons are well-organized and obedient to their master, the prince of the power of the air, our adversary Satan (cf. Eph. 6:11-18).

 

III. DEVILS RECOGNIZE JESUS

  1. The demons recognize our Lord’s authority. In Luke 4:34b, the devil addressed Jesus as, "Jesus of Nazareth" and "the Holy One of God."
  2. You may recall that in Acts 19:15, the evil spirit said to the vagabond Jewish exorcists, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?”
  3. Oftentimes I will tell some lost sinner that he needs to get saved, and he will respond by saying, “I believe in God!” But the Bible says, “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble” (James 2:19).
  4. Just saying you believe in God will not get you into heaven. You need to be born again.
  5. People get drawn into the occult and voodoo because these demon-inspired people often acknowledge Jesus. But we need to remember that in the Bible, demons recognized Jesus.
  6. Furthermore, according to II Corinthians 11:4 there is “another Jesus…another spirit…(and) another gospel.”
  7. This demon addressed Jesus as “the Holy One of God” (4:34). But Jesus did not desire a testimony from devils, and so He rebuked him (4:35). You will recall that Paul did the very same thing in Philippi.
  8. A certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination followed Paul and his companions, and cried, saying, "These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation." (Demons are religious!)
  9. Acts 16:18 says, "And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour."
  10. Jesus rebuked the devil and so should we (4:35). I was talking one time to a preacher who told me he had a friend who had a son with a rebellious spirit. This preacher suspected it was a demonic spirit that was causing this boy to rebel against his godly parents, and so he advised the parents to rebuke the devil. They did and within a week the boy made a remarkable change for the better, and now he is living for God.

 

CONCLUSION:


  1. When we consider the fierceness of Satan and his demons, we must recognize that our only hope is to do things God’s way. And that means doing things according to God’s Word.
  2. Luke 4:32 says, “And they were astonished at his doctrine: for His word was with power.”
  3. God’s Word is powerful. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
  4. I will conclude with a quote from Merrill F. Unger, who wrote several books on demonism. "In the measure that we neglect or abandon the Word of God, demonism flourishes. Ignorance of biblical truth breeds gullibility. Deception is easy when the Word of God is not taught accurately. We are ready to believe anything when we cannot evaluate it in the light of biblical truth (I John 4:1-6)" (Demons in the World Today).
  5. Ephesians 6:17 says that as we engage in spiritual warfare, we are to take "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."


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