The Strong Man is Bound — Now What? | Matthew 12:22–30

Hi Everyone,

This week’s passage pulls back the curtain on what Jesus is really doing when He walks into a broken world: He’s not just healing — He’s plundering the enemy.

Matthew doesn’t just want us to witness a miracle. He wants us to hear Jesus explain it in spiritual terms — to understand that the Kingdom of God isn’t simply comfort, it’s confrontation. And it’s here.

Let’s walk through it.

📺 Want to watch the full teaching? [Click here to view the January 18th, 2025 Lesson.]

Where We Left Off (Matthew 12:1–21)

Last week, Jesus confronted the Pharisees’ legalism — exposing how they used Sabbath law to condemn the very One the Sabbath pointed to.

We reflected on:

• How spiritual authority can be weaponized in the wrong hands
  

• That mercy is greater than sacrifice
  

• And that Jesus is the Lord of rest, not just the rule-keeper
  

Now, we shift from a debate over law… to a battle over power.

📜 2. Scripture Reading – 

Matthew 12:22–30 (ESV)

Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, 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.

Let’s Lay Some Context Down

📍 Where Are We? — Mid-Ministry Conflict and Clarity

Jesus has just healed a man tormented by spiritual oppression — a man who could neither see nor speak. The crowd wonders aloud: “Could this be the Son of David?”

But the Pharisees reject that possibility and instead claim that Jesus is using demonic power to cast out demons. Jesus doesn’t just deny it — He exposes how illogical, divisive, and dangerous their accusation is.

But then He shifts the conversation. He moves from explaining why their accusation is wrong… to what’s really happening:

“If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

And then this powerful image:

“How can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?”

This isn’t just a clever metaphor. It’s a full-on spiritual proclamation:

Satan has been bound. And Jesus is raiding his house.

1. Jesus Didn’t Come Just to Heal — He Came to Take Back What Was Stolen

The healing of the demon-oppressed man isn’t just a display of compassion — it’s a declaration of war.

Jesus is signaling something cosmic:

“I’m not just here to relieve suffering — I’m here to reclaim territory.”

The man who was blind and mute represents humanity under demonic oppression — silenced, disabled, and spiritually locked up. And Jesus says that casting out the demon wasn’t just about that man — it was about plundering Satan’s house.

He doesn’t wait for permission.

He walks right in.

He binds the strong man, and He starts pulling people out.

And the irony is this:

The Pharisees accuse Jesus of being demonic while watching Him undo the devil’s work. They’re so stuck in fear and religious rigidity that they miss what’s right in front of them: freedom is happening in real time.

2. The Strong Man Is Bound — So Why Are We Still Sitting in the Chair?

Let me paint a picture.

Imagine you’re in a warehouse — dim, cold, quiet. You’re tied to a chair.

Your wrists are bound.

A gag is in your mouth.

A blindfold covers your eyes.

You don’t remember how long you’ve been there — only that this is all you’ve ever known. Oppression isn’t a concept to you — it’s your environment. It’s shaped your posture, your breath, your thoughts.

Then, suddenly —

A door kicks open.

You hear shouting.

Light rushes in.

Someone moves toward you with urgency.

Your ropes are cut.

The gag drops from your mouth.

The blindfold falls from your face.

You inhale. You blink. You can see.

And the Rescuer — Jesus — says something you weren’t expecting:

“You’re free. Now come help Me free the others.”

That’s what Jesus is saying when He talks about binding the strong man:

He’s not just saving you — He’s enlisting you.

But here’s the hard part…

So many of us are untied, unchained — and still sitting in the chair.

We’ve mistaken release for retirement.

We’ve confused freedom with passivity.

We’ve spiritualized stillness and called it peace — when Jesus is saying, “Let’s go.”

The strong man is bound.

The house is open.

The time is now.

This isn’t a call to hype. It’s a call to move — to remember that salvation always comes with a summons. And the Kingdom doesn’t need more people admiring the open door — it needs people walking through it for the sake of someone still bound.

3. Neutrality Isn’t an Option

Jesus leaves no gray area:

“Whoever is not with Me is against Me. And whoever does not gather with Me scatters.”

This is more than a line — it’s a spiritual line in the sand.

• You’re either joining the rescue mission… or blocking it.
  

• You’re either helping people get free… or standing in their way.
  

Jesus isn’t calling out rebellion here — He’s calling out indifference.

Some of the most dangerous people in the Kingdom aren’t the ones doing damage — they’re the ones doing nothing.

Sitting is scattering.

Silence is siding.

Delay is denial.

The Kingdom doesn’t run on spiritual spectatorship — it runs on sacrifice.

Challenge for the Week

Here are three questions to carry into the week:

1. Where in your life are you still acting like a hostage… when the door is already open?
   

2. Who around you is still chained up — waiting for someone with keys to show up?
   

3. Are you standing beside Jesus, or sitting in the chair He already untied?
   

Here’s the truth:

The strong man is already bound.

The house isn’t locked anymore.

And freedom isn’t the finish line — it’s the starting line.

Jesus didn’t break in to give us peace and quiet. He broke in to hand us the bolt cutters.

So this week, don’t just sit there marveling at the light.

Get up. Move toward the next chair. And help someone else see.

Grace and courage to you this week,

— Michael