Matthew 12:29,30 - Whoever is not with me is against me

12:29

Jesus has been talking about the illogicality of the Pharisees’ position. He is now making the positive case. If someone wants to carry off the goods of a strong man, then first the strong man needs to be dealt with. There are a number of things underlying this. One is that Jesus came to make a radical transformation. Another is that the world is under the influence of a “strong man”, in this case Satan. Jesus has come to bring about regime change. So it makes perfect sense that driving out demons is part of what He will do.

12:30

Christianity and Jesus are so often presented as being just about unity. Jesus, and the Bible, does speak about unity, but He also speaks about division. We need to both sides on board. So if we are not with Jesus then we are against Him. If we do not gather with Him, then we are scattering. It is impossible to be neutral about Jesus, and it is impossible to be neutral in our effect on the world. Jesus either is the Son of God or He is not. The world is under the prince of darkness, unless we positively work for the kingdom of God then we are propping up the current regime.