Strong Man? (Mark 3:23-27)

23 So he summoned them and spoke to them in parables:
“How can Satan drive out Satan?
24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand
but is finished.
27 But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his possessions
unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house.”

Ask:

• Why would it not make sense for a player to score baskets for the opposing team?

Compare:

Emphasize that for a team to be effective, the players must work together.
Point out that just as helping the opposing team would harm your team,
fighting within the team will cause problems.

Discuss the similarities of Jesus’s discussion to working together on any type of team, especially a sports team.

Ask:

• How is giving in to temptation similar to working for the opposing team?
• In what ways do people live in a divided kingdom when they allow Satan to develop strongholds in their lives?
• How does Jesus break those strongholds?

Transition:

In this last section,
Jesus explained what it looks like for someone to work for the opposing team in His kingdom.
He tackled a difficult subject, so let’s look at what He means by opposing the Holy Spirit.