Sunday Evening Service

You may have noticed that David's voice was nearly giving in this morning.

! My own's not much better, so that's why there's three of us in the pulpit this evening.

If I fail, David will take over. If he fails, we can call on Roddy John.

But we are going to share out the load this evening, so I'll be doing the first part, just introducing the singings,

and then David will take over when it comes to the reading and the sermon part.

So we just pray for David as he leads us this evening, as his voice will hold out, and also as we go into the fellowship too.

So we're going to begin our worship, and I just want to think of the words of, we're not going to sing these words,

but the words of Psalm 126. We're going to sing in Psalm 100, but the words of 126 remind us that as we come this evening,

we come just thankful to the Lord's goodness to us. The psalmist says,

When Sion's bondage God turned back, as men that dreamed were we, then filled with laughter was our mouth, our tongue with melody.

As we reflect on this weekend, as we reflect on new members coming in, as we reflect on being under God's word,

we thank God who is the one who is able to turn his people back to himself, to bring his people home, as it were.

And we pray that this evening, as the word of God goes out, the call to come will be heard,

and that there will be much rejoicing in our midst again this evening.

And so we're going to begin by singing in Psalm 100, the Scottish Psalter, the first version.

You find it on page 362.

We'll sing the whole of this psalm, Psalm 100, the first version.

Again, the psalm just reflects the theme of coming to the Lord with praise.

All people that on earth do dwell, sing to the Lord with cheerful voice,

and say with mouth his praise forth tell,

Come ye before him and rejoice.

We'll stand to sing the whole of this psalm to God's praise.

Amen.

All people that on earth do dwell, sing to the Lord with cheerful voice,

and say with mouth his praise forth tell,

Come ye before him and rejoice.

Come ye before him and rejoice.

Show that the Lord is God indeed.

With the giant he in the spring,

We are his hope he doth us see,

And for his sheep he doth us take.

O enter then his gates with praise,

Approach with joy his course and doom,

Praise God and bless his name always,

All of his mercy be upon him and glory his name always,

All of his mercy be upon him and glory his name always,

For why the Lord our God is good,

His mercy is forever sure,

His mercy is forever sure,

His mercy is forever sure,

And shall promise to his mercy endure.

Let's bow our heads in a word of prayer.

Let us pray.

Let us pray.

Lord our gracious God, as we gather in your name this evening, we thank you for these words of praise that we have sung,

That we are reminded of how we enter into your presence,

How we come before you in all our different needs and in all our different circumstances,

Yet able to come,

Because you have prepared a way for us,

That you are the one who has invited us into your very presence,

Indeed who calls us to come.

And we pray that we would have the joy of this psalm even in our hearts this evening,

That we would be able to sing to the Lord with that cheerful voice,

The one who has heard us,

The one who knows us,

That we would come to know that you are the Lord indeed,

That you are God over all,

That without you, Lord, we are nothing,

That you are the one who has made us,

Created us,

Formed us,

The one who has kept us,

The one who has prepared a way for us,

In all your providence towards us as a people, Lord.

So often there are times of joy, but also times of sorrow,

And yet, O Lord, we can look to you as the one who has plans and purposes in them all.

And so we do come leaning upon you.

We come in our own weaknesses, our own frailties.

And yet, Lord, we thank you that the joy of the Lord is our strength.

And we pray to know you with us this evening.

We thank you for every way that you have reminded us that you are God in these days.

That as we have come into this communion season,

We have come praying to know your blessing.

And we thank you that as we come to the close of this season,

That we can look back in these days and truly rejoice and give thanks that you are one who has answered prayer.

That you have given us so many reasons to rejoice.

You have given it in individual situations and homes and families.

You have given it to us as a congregation.

You have given it to us even as a community, a wider community even than our own town here.

For we thank you that in every way, Lord, that we have been encouraged.

That we have been built up and even challenged and convicted by your word.

For your word is truth and your word is powerful.

And, oh Lord, in every way that we have been reminded of that.

From the outset of our services, Lord, even to this evening hour,

We thank you for your word that shall always endure.

That your truth is what stands firm and endures from age to age.

And we thank you that that truth is what we so need this evening.

What we all need is a people.

And we pray that through the ministry of your word and by your power of your spirit,

That you would meet us in all our needs.

We thank you for all who are here this evening.

We thank you for every home and family represented here.

We pray that we would just know your peace, your presence over us again here tonight.

That we would know what it is to be still.

And to know that you are indeed God.

And we just ask that, Lord, for all of us here, from the youngest to the oldest together.

That your voice which we have heard and which we continue to hear would resonate in our hearts.

That it would be a word that leaves us, doesn't leave us unchanged as we go from here this evening.

For we thank you that as we gather in this place tonight, when we know a place of peace,

When we know the stillness of your word ministering to us.

We know that power.

But we know too, as we look to our week ahead, that there will be the many challenges that come our way.

That as we go home this evening, as we go into the week ahead, with all that it might entail to us.

Many of the plans that we have made, Lord, they may come to fruition.

We may go about our daily ways, whether it's school or work or whatever we are doing.

We can do all these things, Lord, thinking that we have plans in place and we know what is ahead of us.

But we know too, Lord, that there are so often reminders that circumstances change.

That things change in our lives or the lives around us, in our communities, even in our nation and the world.

There are so many things that come that we do not see.

And we, at times, Lord, we do not even understand.

And we know that for individuals in this week ahead, there will be maybe many challenges that we have to face up to.

News that will come as a shock to us, whether it's personal or something around us.

And we know that things can leave us, Lord, in that state of looking to try to understand and many questions being asked.

And we just pray for your wisdom and for your help, for your grace to be with us.

We think that even looking back over this last week, as we have prayed so often over these days for the family in Braga.

We continue to remember them this evening, Lord, and especially in these days ahead with the funeral to take place on Tuesday.

We see a community, O Lord, that has been so impacted by that tragedy.

But we especially remember the family, Lord, and we just commit them to you.

That they would know, Lord, that you are near.

That they would know that, as a people, there are many praying for them.

And that they would know the power of your grace and your help towards them.

And we just pray, Lord, that as we see so much happening in our world, that may it leave us with questions.

That we would come to the one who has the answers for us.

Even the ones that are difficult to understand and believe at times.

Even the words that we read so often in Scripture, that all things work together for good.

For those who believe.

We can see, Lord, how difficult these words are at times.

And yet they remind us that you are a Lord and God who is able to bring good out of all things.

And so we do pray, Lord, for your goodness and mercy to be with us.

We pray, Lord, for us all together this evening.

Thankful for the ministry we've enjoyed over this weekend.

Thankful for David and Roddy John who have been with us.

Thankful for their preaching to us.

And for the fellowship we've enjoyed.

And for all that we've heard.

We pray, Lord, that these words that have ministered powerfully to us.

Would be ministering to us even in the days, weeks, months and even years ahead.

That we'd be able to reflect on what we have heard.

And to remember the words that spoke to us.

It may be that in many years time we are able to testify that God was good to us.

Even in these days.

And so we pray, Lord, that you will open hearts.

And ears this evening to hear what you have to say to us.

Bless us together and bless the ministry of your word far and wide.

Even as we think of our town just now as this communion weekend.

We pray for all the congregations of your people gathered together.

And we pray for the communions to come as well in different parts of our island.

That we would see and hear great and wondrous things that the Lord is doing.

And that we would rejoice and say this is the doing of the Lord and wondrous in our eyes.

So may, Lord, you fill us with that hope that you are to your people.

That you would fill us with that prayerful spirit.

To know you leading us as our Lord, as our shepherd.

Hear our prayers. Continue with us.

Pardoning all our sin is all we ask.

We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

We'll sing again to God's praise.

This time we're singing in Psalm 103.

And let's sing Psalm's version.

Psalm 103.

We're going to sing from verse 1 down to verse 11.

Praise God, my soul, with all my heart.

Let me exalt his holy name.

Forget not all his benefits.

His praise, my soul, in song proclaim.

The Lord forgives you all your sins and heals your sickness and distress.

Your life he rescues from the grave and crowns you in his tenderness.

We'll sing from verse 1 to 11.

And then at that point, David will lead us in the rest of the service.

Jesus says.

He satisfies you all your sins and heals your sickness and distress.

Your life he rescues from the grave and crowns you in his tenderness.

Unkind to end his tenderness.

He satisfies your deep desires.

From his unending stores all good.

So not just like the eagle's strength.

Your youthful name of his renewed.

The Lord is known for righteousness.

And justice to them, God and once.

Till Moses he may know his ways.

His mighty deeds to Israel's sons.

His mighty deeds to Israel's sons.

The Lord is merciful and kind.

To anger slow and full of praise.

He will not constantly reprove.

All in his anger hide his grace.

He does not punish our misdeeds.

For give our sins.

For give our sins their just reward.

Our greatest love must hide at heaven.

To watch all those who fear the Lord.

To watch all those who fear the Lord.

To watch all those who fear the Lord.

If I could ask you now please to turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 12.

Matthew 12 · chapter mention

Page 983 of the Bible that I have here.

Matthew chapter 12.

Matthew 12 · chapter mention

And we will read this section from verse 22 to verse 32.

Verse 32.

Then a demon oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus.

And he healed him so that the man spoke and saw.

And all the people were amazed and said,

Can this be the son of David?

But when the Pharisees heard it, they said,

It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.

Knowing their thoughts, he said to them,

Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste.

And no city or house divided against itself will stand.

And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.

How then will his kingdom stand?

And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out?

Therefore they will be your judges.

But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons,

Then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Or 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.

Whoever is not with me is against me.

And whoever does not gather with me scatters.

Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people.

But the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.

And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven.

But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

Either in this age or in the age to come.

Amen.

And may God bless that reading of his word to us.

We'll sing again now from the Scottish altar,

The traditional version of Psalm 119 on page number 407.

Psalm 119.

And we will sing from verses 89 down to the end of verse 94.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

Psalm 139.

when, as my troubles did abound,

thy precepts I will ne'er forget,

thy quickening to me brought.

Lord, I am thine, O save thou me,

thy precepts I have sought.

These verses we stand to sing to God's praise.

The Lord, I am thine, O save thou me,

thy best, and as my mortgings,

on all thy servants be.

Unless in thy most perfect law

my soul delights have found,

I should have perished yet

when, as my troubles did abound,

thy precepts I will ne'er forget,

they quickening to me brought.

Lord, I am thine, O save thou me,

thy precepts I have sought.

If you could turn back with me, please,

to Matthew chapter 12.

Matthew 12 · chapter mention

And as we go there, let's again

unite our hearts in prayer.

Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word.

We thank you that your word is truth.

Your word is reliable.

Your word is enduring.

We thank you that your word is life-giving.

We thank you that eternal life is found only

in turning to your word

and looking to the Lord Jesus.

We thank you that that eternal life is promised

to all who will come

in response to the call of Christ,

to all who will call upon the name of the Lord Jesus.

We thank you that you are the Savior.

We thank you for all that we have remembered today

that he did on our behalf

to make it possible for us to be saved.

We praise you for the fact, Lord Jesus,

that the work of salvation is done.

It is finished.

And we pray that you would enable us to see that,

each one of us,

and enable us to come

with empty hands,

with humble hearts,

asking for the grace

that we can never work to earn,

but you have promised

that you will freely give to all who ask.

So be at work, Lord, amongst us, we pray.

We pray especially for anyone here

who does not yet know Jesus

in that personal, saving way.

We pray for any who may be here

who have heard the message of the gospel many times,

who have heard time after time

the call of Jesus to come,

and who have hesitated,

and who have reflected,

and who have made up excuses,

and who have sometimes been so busy

and distracted

that they have said,

well, maybe another day,

maybe another week.

You have promised, Lord,

that you will not always strive with us.

The Spirit will not always strive with man.

And we see that even in the passage

that's before us this evening.

We pray that you would strive, Holy Spirit,

with each one of us here,

and that tonight,

there may be some

who even for the first time

respond by

asking Christ to be their Savior

and their Lord.

So help us, Lord, we pray,

in preaching,

in listening,

in responding,

that you would speak

into our lives,

and that you would give us the faith

to respond in a way

that brings salvation,

rest, peace,

to our souls,

and glory to your name.

Hear our prayers.

Continue with us,

we ask in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

It's good to see quite a number

of young people

here this evening,

and I'm conscious

with the young people

that this is the time of year

where exams loom large.

I've got teenage girls

in my house back in Harris,

and they've just finished

their prelims,

and now there's the prospect

of other exams coming,

and so there's studying

that's done,

and there is preparations

that are made

because there are questions

that are set,

and students,

in each of the subjects

that they study,

they have to think carefully

about how they answer

these questions that are set

because the way they answer

the questions

determines how they will be judged

by examiners,

and sometimes it can even

determine the direction

that life takes.

So questions are important,

and how we answer questions

are important.

And with Matthew chapter 12 open,

Matthew 12 · chapter mention

I want to zoom in

on a question

that is at the heart

of this chapter,

a question that all the people

were asking about Jesus.

and it's a question

that was being asked

all these years ago,

and yet this is a question

that not just them,

but every one of us

will have to answer.

And the way that we answer

this question

will impact

not just how we live

in this world,

although it will impact

how we live in this world,

but how we answer

this question

will have an impact

that will determine

where we spend

eternity,

whether it's heaven

or hell,

with Jesus

or apart from him.

The question is found

in verse 23.

We hear

the people asking,

can this,

as they look at Jesus,

say, listen to what he's saying,

as they see these signs

and miracles,

they ask the question,

can this be

the son of David?

Or if we were to put it

into modern day language,

they're asking the question,

who is Jesus?

Can this be the saviour?

Can this be

the son of God?

Three points in the time

that we have

this evening.

The first point

is

the blind man.

We're introduced here

to a blind man.

And we learn

in this passage

that the blind man

sees Jesus.

It's the first point.

The blind man

sees Jesus.

The second thing,

the second point

that we come to

is

we once more

encounter

these religious leaders

in this passage

and we can observe

that the seeing men

or the so-called

seeing men,

they're blind to Jesus.

So the blind man

sees Jesus,

but the so-called

theologically educated

seeing men,

they're blind to Jesus.

They can't see Jesus.

And the final point

that we come to

is

it's not the most concise

heading I've got here,

but it's

dealing with the teaching

that Jesus

expounds here

and it's to

say that

blasphemy against

the Holy Spirit

is to refuse

to believe

in Jesus.

So that's the structure.

That's where we're going

in the time

that we have.

So we begin

with this

blind man

who sees Jesus.

Look at verse 22.

Then a demon

oppressed man

who was blind

and mute

was brought to Jesus

and Jesus

healed him

so that the man

spoke

and saw.

So what Matthew

does here

is he shares

with us

a very short

testimony.

He tells us

about a man

who was both

blind

and mute.

He couldn't see

and he couldn't speak.

But Matthew

tells us

not just about

the symptoms

the struggles

that this man

had.

He tells us

also the reason

behind the struggles.

He tells us

in verse 22

that he was

demon oppressed.

That's what was

going on

in this man's

life.

He was under attack.

One of Satan's

agents

had this man

under a

dark oppression

and so he's

suffering.

Who is the man?

Well we don't

know much about

the man.

We're not told

his name.

We're not told

anything much

about him.

But maybe that's

a purposeful

thing.

because as we

look in at

this man

spiritually

speaking

we're looking

into the mirror

and we're

seeing a

reflection

of ourselves.

Spiritually

speaking

we are

this man.

Psalm 51

Psalms 51:6

verse 6

we sang

from Psalm 51

this morning

and that

psalm makes

it clear to

us that

we are

each one

of us

born with

a condition

called

sin.

And sin

makes us

blind.

We can't

see God.

We can't

see our

need of

God.

That's what

sin does.

We can see

everything else.

Our eyes

are distracted

and drawn to

lots of

shiny things

in this

world.

Our eyes

focus in

on ourselves

but sin

is like

scales

that

cluster

around

our eyes

and we

can't

see God

and our

need of

him.

And sin

makes us

mute.

It's sin

that causes

us not

to want to

speak to

God.

It's sin

that causes

us to

be speaking

to everybody

else

whether

it's in

conversation

or these

days it's

in message

form

and yet

never

praying,

never

speaking to

God.

So spiritually

speaking,

as we look

in on this

man, we

are with

this man.

So what

happened

next?

Well, what we

see here is

that this man

was brought

to Jesus

and Jesus

healed him.

We're not

given the

details.

We're not

given much

in terms of

the details

of how that

healing happened.

We're just

told that

Jesus healed

this man.

man.

And the

good news

is that

what Jesus

did for

this man

in the

passage,

he can

do for

us by

his power

and by

his grace.

You

know the

hymn that

is often

sung,

Amazing

Grace,

how sweet

the sound

that saved

a wretch

like me.

I once

was lost

but now

I'm found,

was blind

but now

I see

the testimony

in song

form of

this man.

Jesus

made this

blind man

see and

Jesus can

still make

spiritually blind

people see.

Jesus can

still take

us from

that state

of

darkness

into light.

He can

take us

from

death

into life.

So come

to him

says Matthew

repeatedly.

We've been

in this

all weekend.

There's that

recurring

call,

the gospel

call.

It's

come to

Jesus.

It's

great that

you're

coming to

church

but it's

possible to

come to

church and

never come

to Jesus.

It's

possible to

come to

Sunday

school,

Sunday

after Sunday

and come

to YF

and go to

fellowships

and never

come to

Jesus.

So come to

him,

says Matthew.

Jesus can

take our

sin away.

He can

break the

hold that

Satan has

in us.

He can

make our

hearts

well.

He can

heal our

hearts.

So come

to him,

says Matthew,

as he

tells us

about this

account here

because notice

that's what

happened here.

In verse

22,

we can

see that

the demon

oppressed

man,

he was

brought to

Jesus.

He

himself

couldn't

see Jesus.

And he

couldn't

see his

need of

Jesus,

but he

had friends

who could

see that

he needed

Jesus.

And this

man, he

couldn't

speak to

Jesus,

but his

friends could

speak to

Jesus on

his behalf.

And so

they brought

him.

I don't

know how

he felt.

Maybe he

was reluctant.

Maybe there's

people here

tonight.

You've been

brought to

church.

You

wouldn't have

chosen to

come,

maybe.

You'd

maybe be

rather

watching the

football.

But you've

been brought

to church

by parents

who know

that you

need

Jesus.

And you

know,

that's our

calling,

not just as

parents,

but if we

are Christians,

we are to

bring people

to Jesus.

We're to

tell people

about Jesus,

but then

before we

speak to

people about

Jesus,

we first

have to

speak to

Jesus about

them.

We have

to pray

for them.

We have

to tell

Jesus about

the friends

that we

love,

that we

have concern

for,

and ask

him

to heal

their hearts,

to open

their eyes,

to unblock

their ears,

to loosen

their tongues

that they

would come

to Jesus.

So,

just before

we move

on,

maybe I

could just

pause to

ask those

who are

Christians

here tonight,

a very

practical

question.

Who are

you praying

for?

for?

I want you

to think

about that

for a

moment.

And in

your minds,

in your

hearts,

in the

silence,

bring the

names.

What

friends,

what family

members,

what

colleagues

are you

praying for?

hear the

names,

as you

think

through in

your minds.

We should

all be

praying for

two or

three or

four or

five or

ten people.

Who are

you burdened

for?

Who do

you want

to bring

to Jesus?

Jesus,

Jesus,

let's

ensure

that we

are

specific,

that we

are personal,

that we

are praying

day by

day for

these people

and asking

the Lord

to give

us

opportunities

to tell

them

about

Jesus.

The

blind

man

sees

Jesus,

that's

the first

point.

The

second

point is

the

seeing

men or

the so

called

seeing

men.

They're

blind to

Jesus.

We saw

something of

this on

Friday night.

We see

it again

in verse

23 and

following.

We see

first of

all in

verse 23

we overhear

all the

people.

All the

people were

amazed.

They've

just witnessed

!

This

healing!

And the

people are

amazed and

they said,

can this

be the

son of

David?

So the

people were

the crowds.

The

people were

the ordinary

people.

They're just

like us.

They knew a

bit of the

Bible,

but the

people,

the crowds,

they didn't

have a

theological

education.

And yet

they know

enough of

the Old

Testament to

be starting

to get

excited about

Jesus.

Jesus.

And so

they say,

can this

be the

son of

David?

The

son of

David was

a title

that was

reserved for

the Messiah.

So they're

asking,

could this

Jesus be

the Messiah?

Could he be

the promised

one of

God?

Could he

be the

Savior?

Could he

be the one

that we've

been pointed

forward to,

that we're

looking for?

Could this

be the

Savior?

Isaiah

Isaiah 35:6

chapter 35

verse 6

made clear

that the

Messiah would

open the

eyes of the

blind,

that he

would open

the ears of

the deaf,

that he

would loosen

the tongue

of the

mute,

that he

would heal

those who

were crippled.

And this

is exactly

what Jesus

had been

doing.

So they

joined the

dots.

In their

minds,

they say,

this must

be the

Messiah.

There's

that tangible

excitement that

is moving

through these

crowds.

But then

the so-called

seeing men,

then the

theological

heavyweights

come in,

the Pharisees,

and they

step in.

Verse 24.

But when

the Pharisees

heard it,

they said,

it is only

by Beelzebul,

the prince of

demons,

that this

man casts

out demons.

Now,

stop for a

moment and

think about

this.

These men

who say

that,

they are the

most qualified

people to be

able to see

the Messiah.

These are

the theology

professors.

These are the

Old Testament

experts.

And yet,

here is the

son of

David.

Here is the

Messiah.

Here is the

son of God.

And he's

looking them

in the eye.

And they

can't see him.

Or they

won't see him.

They're

willfully

blind.

They don't

want to see

Jesus.

And there's

a warning

here that we

must take

note of.

And the

application is

straightforward.

You know,

it is possible

for us

to know

the Bible

and to

attend church

week by

week.

and to

be members

of the

Sunday

school and

the YF.

It's

possible for

us to be

active in

the life of

the church.

It's

possible to

be a

minister or

a bishop or

an archbishop

and be

lost.

Actually be

an enemy

of Christ.

Like the

Pharisees

were.

your salvation

and mine

is not

dependent

upon how

much we

know about

Jesus.

Our

salvation

is dependent

on knowing

Jesus

personally.

Trusting

him

as our

saviour.

following

him as

our

lord and

king.

Having a

relationship,

a living

relationship

with him

where we

walk with

him and

we talk

with him.

We spend

time day

by day

in his

presence.

The

Pharisees,

as we see

them here,

they were

resisting

Jesus.

They were

rebels

against

Jesus.

They had

no

relationship

with

Jesus.

So what

about you

and what

about me?

Do we

know

Jesus?

Are we

in relationship

with him?

have we

come to

him?

We've

heard the

call

repeatedly

even over

these days.

Come to

me,

those who

are weary,

those who

are burdened,

those who

are sinners.

Ask

for

forgiveness.

Ask

for

cleansing.

Receive

rest.

Call

upon

my

name.

have we

done it?

Have we

come to

him?

The

seeing men

are blind

to Jesus.

The

blind man

sees

Jesus.

And the

final thing

this evening

is the

whole

teaching

that

Jesus

presses

home

at this

point

that

blasphemy

against

the

Holy

Spirit.

This

term,

this

teaching,

this

sin

that

so

troubles

us.

Blasphemy

against

the

Holy

Spirit.

What is

it?

It's

refusing

to

believe

in

Jesus.

There

are

some

places

that

we

would

just

rather

not

go

because

they

unsettle

us.

I

lived

for a

few

years

over

in

Skye

when

my

dad

was

a

minister

and

we

lived

in

a

place

called

Kensel

Eyre.

There

was a

wee

burn

in the

back

of our

house

just

up

on

the

man's

croft

of

Glebe.

And

apparently

over

the

years,

over

the

decades,

even

over

centuries,

there

was

books

written

and

stories

told

that

people

saw

ghostly

things.

They

saw

disturbing

things

around

this

burn.

And I

used to

walk the

dog

out the

back

of this

croft.

And I

have to

say,

I never

saw any

ghostly

things.

but

when I

was

walking

the

dog

after

dark,

I

tended

to

avoid

the

burn

because

it

just

unsettled

me.

And

this

next

passage,

the

verses,

if you've

got them

open

between

25

and

32,

it's

an

area

that

many

people

tend

to

avoid

because

it's

unsettling.

Jesus

talks

in these

verses

about

an

unforgivable

sin.

And

he calls

that

blasphemy

against

the

Holy

Spirit.

Don't

want to

think about

this for

just a

few

moments,

but

just

before we

consider

what

Jesus

says

specifically

about

this

sin,

let's

just

recap

and

remind

ourselves

of

what

has

just

happened

because

the

context

is always

important

for us

to

understand

the

teaching.

So

what

has

just

happened?

Jesus

goes on,

he teaches

this about

the

unforgivable

sin,

but what

has he

just

encountered?

What has

he just

faced?

What has

just

happened

here?

Well,

he's

just

clashed

with

the

Pharisees.

The

Pharisees

just

watch

Jesus

heal

this

blind

and

mute

man.

They

had

seen

the

supernatural

power

of God

the

Holy

Spirit

working

with

and

working

through

God

the

Son.

They'd

witnessed

a miracle.

They'd

seen

God

at

action.

And

how

do they

respond?

Well,

they respond

in verse

24

by calling

the Holy

Spirit

and

the

work

of

the

Holy

Spirit

they

call

they

attribute

that

work

to

Beelzebul

the

devil.

So we

have here

the most

crass

sinful

case

of

mistaken

identity.

They point

the finger

at Jesus

and talk

about

the devil.

And so

Jesus

just

using

very

basic

reason

he

shows

how

flawed

their

thinking

was.

Verse

25

Knowing

their

thoughts

Jesus

said to

them

every

kingdom

divided

against

itself

is

laid

waste

no

sithier

house

divided

against

itself

will

stand.

If

Satan

casts

out

Satan

he's

divided

against

himself

how

then

will

his

kingdom

stand?

And if

I cast

out

demons

by

Beelzebul

by

whom

do

your

sons

cast

them

out?

Therefore

they

will

be

your

judges.

But

if

it's

by

the

spirit

of

God

that

I

cast

out

demons

then

the

kingdom

of

God

has

come

upon

you.

How

can

someone

enter

a

strong

man's

house

and

plunder

his

goods

unless

he

first

binds

!

So

Jesus

he

just

shows

in

a

very

few

words

how

flawed

and

irrational

their

reasoning

was.

J.C.

Ryle

says it

quicker than

I can

he says

this was

an

absurd

charge.

Our

Lord

shows

that it

was

unreasonable

to suppose

that the

devil

would help

to pull

down

his own

kingdom

and

Satan

cast

out

Satan

but

there

is

nothing

says

Ryle

too

absurd

and

unreasonable

for men

to say

when they

are

thoroughly

set

against

Christ.

And

that was

the position

that the

Pharisees

held.

They

were

thoroughly

set

against

Christ

and

even

though

their

reasoning

as they

attacked

Jesus

even

though

it

was

illogical

and

unreasonable

they

held

it

because

they

were

against

Christ.

And

Jesus

underlines

that and

he shows

them that

they were

against

him.

In

verse

13

Jesus

says

to

them

and

he's

saying

to

us

because

this is

a word

for us

tonight

Jesus

says

whoever

is not

with

me

is

against

me

and

whoever

does

not

gather

with

me

scatters.

It's

very black

and white

isn't

it?

Jesus

says

clearly

that there

is no

middle

ground

when

it

comes

to

him.

We

had

an

illustration

of

that