 Tonight we're in Luke chapter 11. We're gonna look at verses 14 through 26 as we continue our verse by verse study here in the book of Luke. And so let's begin reading together at verse 14. And I'll read verses 14 through 23 and then I'll pick up at verse 24 and conclude at verse 26. So beginning at verse 14, Luke writes he was casting out a demon and it was mute. So it was when the demon had gone out that the mute spoke and the multitudes marveled. But some of them said he cast out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. Others, testing him, sought from him a sign from heaven. But he knowing their thoughts said to them every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation and a house divided against a house falls. If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub. And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his own palace his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoils. He who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters. Now this particular work that we see here recorded in Luke is also recorded in two other gospels. It's recorded in Matthew chapter 12 as well as Mark's gospel chapter three. And in both Matthew and Mark, the writers there make it very clear that Jesus is speaking here concerning something that has been called the unpardonable sin. The sin is referred to in Mark as well as Matthew as blasphemy of the spirit. We're gonna be looking at blasphemy of the spirit in this study today. The unpardonable or the unforgivable sin. You see in Mark's account of this particular occurrence here in Mark chapter three versus 28 and 29, Mark says that Jesus said, assuredly I say to you all sins will be forgiven the sons of men and whatever blasphemies they may utter. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness but is subject to eternal condemnation. And so the context of what we're looking at tonight really relates to a sin that has been referred to as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. In order to develop this study, I need to remind you of a few things. I need to remind you of a consistent message that we find throughout the Bible. And the message is very simply put, man is by nature sinful. You see that from the Old to the New Testament. You see that in Psalm 51 verse five where the Psalmist said, surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. You see that in Ecclesiastes chapter seven verse 20 where the writer says there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin. You see it in the book of Romans in the New Testament chapter three verse 10 where Paul simply says there's none righteous, no not one. As well as first John chapter one verse eight, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. And so one, the Bible makes it very clear that we by nature are sinful. Sinful as the Psalmist said at birth. Secondly, the Bible reveals that sin has consequences. Sin results in separation from God and ultimately leads to death and judgment. Ezekiel 18 20 says the soul that sins it shall die. And in Romans chapter five verse 12, Paul said sin entered the world through one man and death through sin. And in this way, death came to all men because all sinned. And so with death comes the final judgment because all stand ultimately before God who is the righteous judge. Again in Ecclesiastes chapter three verse 17, God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked. Hebrews nine 27, it is appointed unto men to die once and after this the judgment. Revelation 20 verse 15, anyone not found written in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire. And so you see man is sinful by nature as sinned against the righteous God and ultimately is gonna stand before that God in final judgment. With all of that said, there's a message that is also consistently repeated as a theme of scripture and that is God is a just judge. God also is a loving and forgiving God. And so his justice is also tempered by his love. And so we can see throughout scripture that the Lord, though he is just, also makes a way for us. In Psalm 86 verse five, the Psalmist said you Lord are good and ready to forgive, plentiful in mercy to all those who call upon you. And so no matter how terrible the sin is, God will forgive it. What could be worse than killing God's son? And yet the Bible tells us that Jesus when he was on the cross praying said in Luke 23 verse 34, Father forgive them for they know not what they do. So God will forgive us no matter how terrible the sin is, no matter how long a person has sinned, God is able and willing to forgive even a lifetime that has been filled with an ear mic by sin can be forgiven in a moment when we come to the Lord and ask for his forgiveness. All we need to do is think of the thief on the cross and we can see that he there dying on a cross next to Jesus still receives pardon from him. And so we know that no matter how long somebody has sinned God is willing to forgive. No matter how terrible the sin is, God is willing to forgive. No matter what kind of sin is, God is able and willing to forgive. No matter what the sin is, God can and will forgive it. You can see this throughout scripture but 1 Corinthians chapter six verses nine through 11 says do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? He goes on to say do not be deceived and gives a list of sins. Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexual offenders, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were, but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the spirit of our God. That's what you were, but that's not what you are. When you're born again, you're washed and justified, you're regenerated, you have a brand new life. If anyone is in Christ Jesus, there are new creation. All things are passed away, behold all things are become new. So no matter what kind of sin, no matter how long I have sinned, God is still willing and able to forgive me. In 1 John 1-7, if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another in the blood of Jesus Christ, his son cleanses us from all sin. And so God is capable and willing to forgive us of all of our sins. Now our sins are forgiven through faith in Jesus Christ. Our sins are not forgiven through our determined self-efforts and our good works. Our sins are cleansed by receiving by faith Jesus' gift of life. That's why we read in John 3-16, God so loved the world that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. I am justified, I am blessed by God through my faith in him. I hear his message, I receive Jesus Christ as Lord and savior and I am cleansed from all sin. God forgives, I wanna emphasize that. God forgives every sin imaginable. And yet the Bible makes it clear that there is one sin that is not forgiven. And that is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Now isn't that interesting? And we'll see that in just a moment. In order to get to that point though, we need to look at this passage before us. And in this case what we have here is a man who has been demon possessed that Jesus has delivered. This man who was possessed by a demon also had an inability to speak. And the Bible makes it clear that Jesus instantly delivered and healed this man. And in doing so he is now revealing his heavenly authority. It says in verse 14 he was casting out a demon, it was a mute and so it was when the demon had gone out that the mute spoke and the multitudes marveled. And so Jesus Christ has authority and he's now evidencing his authority. Now he has authority over all things because he's the creator of all things. Demons were originally created as part of the initial creation. In Colossians chapter one verse 16, Paul said by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they're thrones or dominions, principalities or powers, all things were created by him and for him. Initially demons were created not as demons. Demons are actually what are called fallen angels and they were unfallen when Jesus Christ first created them. They did fall, but Jesus because he is the creator of all things still retains authority over them. That's why Jesus could go and exercise this authority and that's why he instantly delivered and healed this man because he was revealing his heavenly authority and that's what's taking place. Now as he has cast the demon out and healed this man and the Bible tells us that the mute man spoke, the response of that multitude is that they marveled. Notice that in verse 14, they were amazed. They were astounded. They were completely amazed at what happened. And Matthew tells us in chapter 12 verse 23 that they began wondering if Jesus could possibly be the son of David. Now when they begin to say that they're amazed and they begin to say amongst themselves, can this possibly be the son of David? The term son of David is another term for our Messiah. And so what they're asking is, is this the Messiah? You see in Psalm 89 verses three and four, God said, I have made a covenant with my chosen. I've sworn to David, my servant, your seed will I establish forever and build up your throne to all generations. And so he was reminding the reader of the promise that God had made to King David that he would have a son who would reign on his throne forever. Jesus Christ is the son of David and they recognize that as a messianic title. And so they're beginning to ask amongst themselves, is this Jesus, the Messiah? Is this the one who was spoken of by the prophets of old and all? So as this is taking place, notice verse 15, that some of them said he cast out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of demons. Now Matthew tells us who this is at saying this. It's the Pharisees, according to Matthew 12, 24. The religious sect of those who are basically the leaders over the religious life of Israel. And so these are the Pharisees. And so what they're doing is they're saying, well, yeah, they're not denying that something's happening but they're saying his authority doesn't come from heaven. They're saying his authority is coming from Satan himself. And that's one of the names of Satan that you find in the New Testament, Beelzebub. Beelzebub is also Beelzebub. You find Beelzebub mentioned in the Old Testament in the book of 2 Kings chapter one and other places. He's mentioned there and he was actually literally translated the Lord of the Flies. He's also referred to as the Lord of the Dung Hill. His name is actually associated with ancient Philistine worship. And the Philistines actually worshiped him some 700 years before Christ. Ultimately, during the time of Christ, the name Beelzebub was a synonym for Satan. And so what they're saying here is they're saying that he's casting out demons, yes, but he's doing it under Satanic authority, not heavenly authority. He's doing it because he's empowered by Satan to do these kinds of things. And so they say he casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. Now, as this is taking place, they're actually encouraging the people to doubt who Jesus is, not what he's doing. You see, they couldn't tolerate the thought that Jesus might actually be the Messiah as well as their Messiah. Notice that they didn't say he wasn't doing works, they simply credited his works to Satan. Now that's a common tactic, by the way, what you cannot disprove, try to discredit. And that's how that works. Their tactic is to impugn his character. Because if they can impugn his character and his authority, then they also undermine his credibility. And so in undermining his credibility, they place themselves in a position of stricter judgment. Because in undermining the ministry of Jesus, who is the true Messiah, they're placing themselves in a position of great danger. They're trying to undermine the faith of those who begin to ask the question, is this our Messiah? You see, anytime somebody tries to undermine your professional faith and your walk with God, it's a very dangerous place for them to be. There are people who have come to this fellowship. I've seen it happen. I can still remember a young lady and it came to me after the church service a few years ago now. A young lady who was here and we gave an invitation, I gave an invitation at the conclusion of the message. And it was told to me by some people who were seated behind her, that she turned to her boyfriend that she had come with and said to him, I'm gonna go forward, I wanna receive Christ. And the boyfriend who was seated next to her got angry in church, in this church service, in a church service like this, and got angry with her and began to make a scene in the back of the church there. And all of that, that sometimes people can do. And she didn't come forward, she didn't open her heart up, she just closed it up. And I think that's a very dangerous thing. As a matter of fact, I know it is because Jesus made it very clear that that is dangerous. In Mark 942, he said, whoever causes one of these little ones to believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, he were thrown into the sea. To cause somebody to resist coming to Christ is a very great sin. And that's what these religious leaders were doing. And to me, it's an amazing thing and it's a tragic thing because they're not denying that Jesus Christ did an incredible work. He cast out a demon and he gave somebody who had an inability to speak, the ability to once again communicate what an incredible thing that you would think these people would rejoice over. But no, they immediately look at it as it's taking place and they say, well yeah, I'm not gonna deny that something happened, but it's another source. It's not from God, it's from Satan himself. And that's what these religious leaders are doing. They're undermining the work of God. As that's taking place, notice verse 16, there are others. There are others testing him and what they're doing is they're seeking from him a sign from heaven. Now they're not saying he's satanic, but what they want is instant proof of his being Messiah. When it says that they were testing him, that word testing speaks of testing maliciously. It speaks of doing something craftily, putting somebody's feelings to the proof. They're trying to see if they might be able to actually cause others once again to not believe. You see, during this time, and I want you to see this, notice how it says they're seeking from him a sign from heaven. There was a common belief that demons perform earthly signs, but true prophets perform heavenly signs. And so what they're asking for is proof from above. Now in John chapter six, verses 30 through 33, they said to him, what sign will you perform then that we may see it and believe you? What work will you do? Our fathers ate the man in the desert as it is written, he gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus said to them, most assuredly I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my father gives you the true bread from heaven for the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. See, this wasn't the first time they ever said, show us a heavenly sign, and they had done it before, they do it later on, and what they're trying to do is they're trying to once again trap him. But verse 17, he knowing their thoughts said to them, every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation and a house divided against a house falls. If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Because you say, I cast out demons by Beelzebub. And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. And so Jesus knows their thoughts, notice that. And so he speaks to them and he deals with their accusation. And what he does is he actually reveals the absurdity of it. His point is very simple, government and families cannot survive division. Division undermines its whole purpose. We know that if you have a government divided against itself, if you break off into the deal, like here in the United States, the Democrats and our Republicans are constantly battling, nothing good's gonna take place. That's just the truth, we know that. Same is true in a home. If you always have strife and division in the home, nothing can be accomplished. That's why we have to be very careful. The same is true in churches. When you have division and strife, a church can't be effective. Because division has a way of undermining effectiveness. And that's the point that Jesus is making. A kingdom cannot be divided and hope to stand. A house can't be divided and hope to stand. And the point he's making is unity of purpose is necessary of Satan's to continue to oppose God. So if Satan is casting out Satan, he actually is dividing against himself. So in verse 19, if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? So what he does is he appeals to the fact that they recognize the validity of deliverance from demons and he speaks of their disciples. That's who he's referring to when he says your sons. Your sons are your disciples. The ones whom you approve of. They're also casting out demons. Where do they get the authority to do that? And then he clinches his argument in verse 20 by saying the kingdom of God has come upon you if I cast out demons with the finger of God. In other words, if I do my work by the Spirit, then my miracles are of God. And that points to me being Messiah. And the only remaining possibility is that he is anointed and cast out demons by God's Spirit. And that's why he says the kingdom of God has come upon you. This is clearly revealed by his plundering of Satan's domain and setting the captives free. That's what Jesus Christ does. Jesus made it very clear to us that if a man is caught by sin that he is in bondage to it. And just this recent Sunday morning, we were looking at 2 Timothy chapter two and Paul speaks concerning the fact that Jesus Christ is able to set those people who have been enslaved by Satan free. That's what Jesus does. And so Jesus is busy setting captives free. That's what he had just done. He cast out a demon who had held a man in bondage and set his tongue free so that it might praise God. And you guys are busy arguing amongst yourselves whether my authority comes from God or whether I am actually operating under Satanic authority. He goes on and I want you to see this in verses 21 and 22 and says, when a strong man fully armed guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoils. The truth is one must be stronger than Satan to enter his domain to bind him in free people. And Jesus is saying only I have that kind of authority because Satan surely doesn't set captives free. One of the things I'd like you to go home with remembering always is that Satan hates you. The Bible says that God loves you, but you need to remember Satan hates you. And when you committed your heart to Jesus Christ, you became an enemy of his. Before you were basically his captive. He used you and abused you. And for some reason we just kept running back to him. But when we opened our hearts to Christ and received forgiveness of sin and were set free from the captivity and bondage of it, you became an enemy of his. And he hates you. He wants to destroy you. He wants to do everything he can to undermine the work of grace in your life. And so Jesus Christ is here to set the captive free, but Satan will do everything he can to destroy. And so Jesus is simply pointing out that he is capable of setting the captive free. Now it's interesting how he points out that these people had been, if you will, Satan's home. They had been his dwelling place. That's a picture of when they were being demon possessed. And they voluntarily somehow had become his dwelling place. It would have been through sin. So it's through Jesus and him alone that people can be delivered from the power of the bondage. And so when Satan is cast out, Jesus purifies and dwells in the heart. Now, I wanna develop something with you and take you a little bit further now. They rejected Jesus. This is true, but not on evidence, but simple refusal. That makes it a greater sin because they are intentionally and willfully resisting the spirit of God. Now if you would turn with me to Mark chapter three, I wanna develop something with you on what is called the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Mark chapter three. Again, this is taking place and Mark records this for us. I'll read this again to you. Mark chapter three, verses 20 through 30. Assuredly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven. The sons of men, whatever blasphemies they may utter. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation because they said he has an unclean spirit, the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Every sin committed by man can be forgiven. If a man blasphemes God, that sin can be forgiven, Jesus tells us in Matthew. If a man utters a blasphemy against Jesus Christ, that sin can be forgiven. But if a man blasphemes against the spirit of God, that sin is not forgiven. Now, how does that work? Every sin is forgivable when taken to God. If I confess my sin, he is faithful and just to forgive him my sin and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. That applies to the believer, that applies to the Christian, that applies to the individual who has received the Lord Jesus Christ and goes on to live in and stumbles false sins and takes that sin to the Lord and says, God forgive me, have mercy on me. But what's taking place in the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is something different. This is the intentional rejection of conviction of the spirit of God in the way that these people are rejecting Jesus Christ's works and attributing them to Satan himself. A person who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit is an individual who rejects the conviction of the spirit. Turn with me to John 16 and I'll show you that. I'm gonna develop this with you and get you moving through your Bible. John chapter 16. In John chapter 16, beginning at verse seven, Jesus said, nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away for if I do not go away, the helper will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send him to you. And when he has come, he will convict the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. Of sin because they do not believe in me, of righteousness because I go to my father and you see me no more, of judgment because the ruler of this world is judged. What is it the Holy Spirit does? The Holy Spirit brings conviction. The word conviction speaks of him appealing to your heart and awakening you to your lost condition. He awakens you, he convinces you that you are in sin. The conviction of the spirit comes through hearing the word of God. When God's word is proclaimed, the spirit of God begins to minister to the heart of the individual listening and as they're listening, he brings a sense of conviction. And as he's bringing this sense of conviction to the heart, that person has an opportunity there to respond. Now some people, when they hear the word of God, they reject it. Some people, when they hear it, they say, oh, I'll hear you some other time. Or are you almost persuade me to be a Christian? Well, that may be true, it sounds real. But they reject it. And what is happening is they're rejecting the conviction of the spirit of God. And though they may hear it and may even mentally agree that it could be true, there's a determination to reject what God is revealing to them. And they begin to deliberately reject the conviction of the spirit and in doing so, they're lost. To continually state that Jesus is not the savior is to reject the salvation that's been offered through him. That's why Jonah 2.8 says, those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. When the Holy Spirit begins to work in a person and begins to say, this is true, and they say, well, you know what? Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. Jesus Christ is God's son. Jesus Christ died on the cross, but we willfully reject that. Well, that's called blaspheming. The word blasphemy speaks about counting something to be worthless or having no value. So when I blaspheme the Holy Spirit, in essence I'm saying his work that is intended to bring me to faith in Christ is worthless. I don't believe it. I'm not gonna come to him. I want nothing to do with him. Now see, before I got saved, I blasphemed the Holy Spirit. Rather, I blasphemed God. I would use his name in vain. You know, if I got upset about something, I would take the name of the Lord in vain. And the Bible tells us we are not to take the name of the Lord in vain and that he will not hold him guiltless who take my name in vain. And yet as a non-believer, if I got upset about something, I easily could use the name of God in vain and didn't even think about it. There were times when I could use the name Jesus Christ in an irreverent way. You know, or devalue him. Just think, well, you know, yeah, whatever, if you want, if that's what you want to believe. And I am counting him worthless. So I blasphemed God. I'd even use his name in vain. Jesus was of no value to me. But when I was there at the Hollywood Palladium, December 27th, 1970, Arthur blessed his preaching and he gives a gospel message and the Holy Spirit convicts me of sin, righteousness, and judgment. And then he gives an invitation and says, if you know that God is speaking to you and you desire your sins to be forgiven, a relationship with God, if you need the peace that comes through him, if you need to be washed and cleansed and born again, then stand to your feet. When I stood to my feet, that blasphemy of God, when I blasphemed Jesus, that was forgiven completely. All my sins were washed away because I received Christ as my Lord and my Savior. But if I were to reject it and continued in rejection, that conviction to the day I died, I am blaspheming against the Holy Spirit and there is no forgiveness for me. Why? Because it's the Holy Spirit who awakens me to sin, righteousness, and judgment. And if I don't want anything to do with him, I will die in my sins. If I try to work my way to heaven, if I try to be good, if I try to keep the commandments, if I try to demonstrate by good works that I'm a righteous individual, I will die in my sins. Perhaps some of you read on Saturday, I mentioned this on Sunday, but perhaps you read in the local Daily Bulletin, local newspaper how a Mormon individual had written an editorial kind of a, it's a column that they have for religious leaders in the community and everybody who has a church or attends a church or whatever has opportunity if they want to write and a Mormon fellow did. And his entire definition of Christianity was works righteousness. All works righteousness, speaking about a variety of things, but none of them were the grace of God. He didn't speak about the grace of God because Mormons don't trust in the Lord the way Christians do. They don't have the sense that it's all him and the only thing I add to my salvation is the sins that he washes me clean from. And I come to him as a beggar. I have nothing to give to him other than a cry of God forgive me a sinner. I'm the one who stands there next to the righteous person, the Pharisee. And I'm the one who is pounding on my own chest saying God be merciful to me a sinner. And Jesus says that one who's pounding on his chest walks away justified and the other one doesn't. Why? Because the other one is saying I'm not like other men. I fast and I give and I do all of these things. He was self-righteous and he was trusting in his own righteousness, his own works, whereas the other person just couldn't even look up to heaven, Jesus said, but just continued to pound on his chest saying God be merciful to me a sinner. That's an individual who understands the grace of God. And that's what we are when we come to Christ. But that comes guys through conviction. It comes through the conviction of the Holy Spirit. And so these Pharisees that are saying that he's doing these works through the power of Satan are blaspheming the spirit of God because it's a work of God setting captives free that Jesus is doing that draws people the signs that he did were intended to draw people's attention to him so his message could reach them so that they could have a relationship with God. But these Pharisees instead of receiving Christ reject him willfully even to the point where they're not saying, and you can turn on back to Luke, they're not saying he's not casting demons out. They're saying he does, but he does it through the power of Satan. And so what they're doing is attributing heavenly works to satanic origin and in doing so they are blaspheming the Holy Spirit. So what does Jesus say? Well he says in verse 23, he who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters. That's an interesting thing. You know what he's basically saying? Whose side are you on? We all know Greg Laurie and Pastor Greg when he gives his testimony will state that on one occasion he was at his high school and a minister came onto the campus and was given the gospel message. He was 17 years old and he says he was there kind of listening, one of those kids who were on the fringe of the crowd listening intently but trying to pretend that he was just kind of hanging around. And he says that the guy's message was okay, but what caught him, what grabbed hold of Greg Laurie was when he said if you're not with me you are against me. And when he heard that and that's what we just read, he who is not with me is against me, he who does not gather with me scatters. When he heard that it was a black and white thing for this pastor Greg Laurie. He said at that time I realized that I was not with him therefore according to Jesus in not being with him I am actually against him. And when he finally realized that that's when he committed his heart to Jesus Christ and that's how he came to the Lord. All of us need to ask ourselves that question. Am I for him? Am I with him? Or am I against him? In this case here Jesus is making it very clear seeing that you are not trying to gather with me your efforts are actually scattering people abroad. You are actually pushing them away by saying that you wanna see a sign from heaven or by saying that my power comes from Satan himself. You have to make a decision and he's telling the people there you've heard what they have to say. What are you gonna do? Are you gonna follow me or are you gonna reject me? Now as this has taken place he continues in verse 24 when an unclean spirit goes out of a man he goes through dry places seeking rest and finding none he says I will return to my house from which I came and when he comes he finds it swept and put in order then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself and they enter and dwell there and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Now that's an interesting way to put it. There's a picture here of this demon it goes through what he says is dry places seeking rest and he finds none. So dry places is a picture of barrenness and discomfort it desires habitation and finds none. You know it appears in scripture when you see this that demons actually desire a place to call their own if you will that's why when Jesus is there and the Gadarenes and that legion request permission to enter into the body of the swine they want some place to dwell and so he speaks of it as being dry places a place of barrenness but it makes a decision it says to itself after it's been cast out I'll return to my house from which I came and in verse 25 it says and he returns and finds it swept in order. So what are we looking at? Well let me close by touching just a couple of things here. One and I want you to see this verse 25 he finds it swept and put in order. What's this talking about? This is talking about reformation. Reformation has occurred. Apparently somebody had been demonized he is delivered Jesus will say delivered him but he doesn't fill that emptiness with Christ himself. Reformation has come his life is put in order but if he remains unregenerate if he doesn't pursue Christ then he can be possessed once again because the space there needs to be filled with the spirit of God. This demon notices that not only that but notice in verse 26 he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself and they enter in dwell there the last date of that man is worse than the first. And so what happens is they now settle down he brings a host of others more wicked than himself and that last date is worse than the first. So here's your point. Reformation without regeneration is destructive. Reformation without regeneration is destructive. A self-restored person is in danger because he becomes satisfied with his condition the condition that he produced for himself. And because he no longer considers himself to be a bondage to this particular sin he thinks he is now safe and he thinks that he is now good. It's been said it's easier to reach someone who's overwhelmed with a true sense of sin than someone filled with a false sense of goodness and that's true because I have seen people who have reformed. They used to be alcoholics they used to be druggies they used to be whatever wild crazy and they're reformed they think of themselves to be good now because they don't do the things that they used to do and that makes it even more dangerous because I can speak to a guy who's got drug problems I can speak to a guy who's got alcohol problems somebody who's aware of it cognizant of it and I can say you need some help and in one of their sober moments they'll say you're right I do I need some help but you know the ones who are difficult to speak to are the ones who have done their best to pull themselves up out of the dung hill and they're doing fine now and they'll say look I was that way at one time but I grew up I put that all behind me I'm an okay person now I really don't need any help I'm doing fine those people are very difficult to deal with why because they don't see they're evil anymore they think they're better because you know when you compare what they were they are and they always have friends that they can point to and say look I used to be like that I'm not like that anymore I'm this way now I'm a lot better you know this gospel message of yours talking about sinners and all yeah I used to be pretty bad but I've never been that bad and I'm all right so a self restored person's in danger because he becomes satisfied with his condition he thinks he's all right and that makes it very difficult what happens is there's a false security true story tragic true story of a child that was in a bedroom and the house caught fire and the smoke began to come underneath the door there and this little guy was in his bed and could see the fire beginning to lick into the door he climbed underneath his blankets thinking he'd be safe by climbing into the blankets but he wasn't safe he had a false security and he perished true story found him they found him in his room he thought he was safe because he climbed under those blankets we can do the same kind of things spiritually guys we can we can hide into something that gives us security and we can think that we're okay because we're not like we used to be but we're still in danger we just don't realize it we just don't realize it because we've hidden ourselves under a blanket of our efforts but if the Holy Spirit is speaking and says you need my help the wisest thing to do is to say and Lord help me because no matter how I try to make myself good I always fail that's where I was when I gave my heart to Christ that's where most of us probably were I hadn't prayed for a long time but my last year just before coming to Christ I started going crazy started doing crazy things and in the midst of all of that I began to pray again and one night I've told you this before but one night I went out with some friends and we had a half gallon of wine and we had some reds, depressants I dropped five reds and killed most of that half gallon of wine myself and I took that bottle and I threw it across the street into a field said goodbye to my friends climbed into my station wagon that I had there that was parked on the side of my parents house and climbed under those covers and I remember laying down I was 19 years old and I fell asleep, I actually passed out and I remember waking up and I was lying on my back my face looking straight up paralyzed I had been poisoned by alcohol and barbiturates I knew that I was dying I had a guy I knew named Freddie Reyes who had died of drug overdose I knew that Hendricks had died in a similar way I was familiar with this and I began to want to vomit and I know that, well I couldn't move if I did vomit I would drown in my own vomit and I knew that and I remember at that age crying out and I still remember some of the prayer where I said something like God help me, I'm too young to die I do remember saying that and I passed out the next morning I awakened and I went and found the empty bottle and remembered what had happened the night before and that's when I began to start saying my life is going down the tubes I'm gonna end up dead something has to happen I remember that I was driving my Volkswagen I had been drinking I had pulled the stick shift right out of the transmission some guys were giving me a push to try and get me rolling because I was in fourth gear and they ended up pushing me into a signal and on the corner of Pioneer Boulevard and Imperial Highway and I smashed right into a light pulled over to the side of the road got arrested taken to Los Angeles my dad came and got me in the next day he was so concerned for me that he sent me to a psychiatrist I started going to a psych and he'd asked me about how I was raised and what I was feeling and I was feeling bored and I wanted to be out of there I didn't want to talk to some stranger about my problems and what good can you do me anyway so I just would talk to him none of that was working my dad was beyond him so he didn't know what to do my mom and dad were so worried but the Holy Spirit was working the Holy Spirit was working my friends started going to Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa invited me to go and I drank some beer and I smoked some pot and I went to church barefooted, long haired, ripped up jeans and I was surprised I was surprised by the feeling of that place I was surprised I had felt something that I hadn't felt before in any church service I'd ever gone to and I didn't know what it was turns out it was the Holy Spirit they gave an invitation and I didn't want to receive the Lord I said you know this is good for you but I'm already religious, I'm a Catholic I don't need this Protestant version of Christianity I went down the tubes even further and then three months or so later four months later I got invited to a concert in Hollywood at the Palladium December 27th and Arthur Blessed gave that message gave that invitation and I stopped I stopped resisting the Holy Spirit and here I am today almost 37 years later telling you you can stop too and God can do tremendous works in you because he loves you and he'll forgive you and he'll wash you and he'll cleanse you and he'll empower you and he'll bless you don't seek out security from anything other than Jesus Christ