PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Luke 11:24-26
What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage?
“When an impure spirit comes out of a person…” (Luke 11:24)
What exactly is Jesus talking about here?
At the time, people saw the world as filled with good and bad spirits.
Think of the good and bad spirits sometimes portrayed on peoples’ shoulders.
Impure spirits (bad, evil) never rested, always striving to mess people up.
Jesus is the language of that time, and he is speaking about sin and evil.
Since Genesis 3, we have lived in enmity with evil, always at risk or under attack.
We can try to get our minds or lives in order, but then something worse comes.
Jesus has just been accused of working for the Evil One, of being an impure spirit.
He counters that he is not making peoples’ lives worse, but better.
He is the stronger man attacking and overpowering the strong man (vv.21-22).
We need “someone stronger” to help us in our struggle against evil.
Don’t be sidetracked by pictures of demons and angels, think about your own struggle.
I am constantly under attack by negative thoughts and feelings; they keep coming back.
I need the help of someone stronger; I need Jesus to help me against my demons.
PRAYER
Lord, I can relate to this struggle with bad spirits – thoughts, temptations, feelings. I need cognitive behavioral help… I need you to put my mind and life in order!
Sometimes I think that purging myself of evil or sin is the same as filling myself with “good”. But its not! If it isn’t two intentional actions to cleanse and to fill, then the sin will return, and it will return stronger as it has learned how to overcome my defenses. Lord help us strengthen our defense by filling us with your spirit, helps us not be vacant!
What fills the void? If certain temptations plague me especially in ‘lonely’ situations – what can I do to avoid – in other words fill the void with something else so that ‘my space/house’ will not be empty. This is very real to me – and I can see if I don’t, that yes it will get worse and worse! Without appeals to the Lord for help – I am vulnerable and know that I am. I regret when I act even on the smallest steps – that dabbling that I must avoid. Lord, help me to keep my house clean but not empty – fill my void so that temptations have no place!
When the unclean spirit left, the void needed to be filled by the Spirit of God. Then there would be no room for the evil spirit to return. I need to be Spirit driven, and He needs to reside in me so that my desire is to do His will always. There is no choice because I am His and He is mine. No room in the inn for anyone else but my Master dwells there.
Spirit of the Living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the Living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me.
Spirit of the Living God,
Fall afresh on me.