Mark 3:20-27 The Parable of the Plunderer

The crowds come on back. What draws them all? What was it about Jesus that pulls the crowds so consistently? Obviously He was still casting out demons and this brought on the next confrontation.

Whatever He was doing, He was so busy He can't eat properly. His worried family want to "lay hold of HIm", to teach Him some sense.

And not just His family, the scribes from headquarters said He is possessed by Satan.

How often have I called the work of God "madness" or "of the devil"? A typical reaction to things that are outside my cultural comfort zone.

I love Jesus' response to these cringing, self-serving accusations...He tells stories.

Can Satan cast out Satan? A house divided against itself... Infighting and division make it impossible for any group to stand against external threats. Even Satan's fractious kingdom couldn't stand such a division for long. Especially with so many people leaving his service.

Would a drug dealer run a rehab centre, or a pub run AA meetings?

But the parable explains exactly why Jesus is doing this. This is not madness but a well thought out strategy of conquest and pillage. Jesus tells about a robbery, not a quiet burglary, but a hold-up, a home invasion, an armed robbery.

His story is about a rich and powerful man, the head of the gang, the mastermind, Mr Big, And one night the tables are turned, he now becomes the victim of violent crime. He is subdued, tied up and his house plundered.

I can see him hog-tied in the corner watching helplessly as his most treasured possessions are stripped from his home. I can hear him shouting pathetic insults and impotent threats, but he is being robbed. He knows what it feels like now!

Jesus is plundering Satan's kingdom. He is the divine Viking, the SAS troops of an invading, colinising army, Francisco Pizarro. He is here for a purpose; to release as many of Satan's hostages as He can.

To do this He must overpower the "strong man", Satan. It is obvious now that the great power we live in fear of, has been beaten and bound. Great news! There is a Saviour, someone more powerful than our greatest enemy, someone able to rescue us.

Now it is my choice, I can rejoice in the rescues or I can be the mouthpiece of Satan, carping about the methods used and the sanity of the people carrying on Christ's conquest today.