Demons Are Cast Out

Welcome to No Compromise Radio Ministry. That's the first 12 to 14 seconds of the show.

Long time ago, we had Mirror in the Bathroom, English Beat to start. I thought about using

New Order's Ceremony Song. Just never got around to it. So now it's just this song that I have the rights to.

Bown. It's kind of growing on me. Duplex Grazia Radio.

Well, by the time this is aired, I probably will have been back from Nebraska.

2025 Pactom Conference. That was a great conference. It was fun hanging out with Michael Beck, Harrison Perkins.

We almost convinced Harrison to become a Baptist. Okay, well, maybe not. One day he'll be truly unreformed.

You can write me, Mike, at NoCompromiseRadio .com. You know, lots of people, probably—I don't know how many people, but— they respond on Twitter, and maybe it's a

John MacArthur tribute or a lesson about, you know, something with Charlie Kirk or something like that.

I don't have any problem with that, and I admire what Charlie Kirk did, and the

Lord used John MacArthur in, I mean, so many different ways in my life.

Positive, wonderful ways. But I just don't think

I need to comment on everything. I try to comment on some things.

It's mainly theological things, law gospel, Christ -centered stuff. But I just—I don't know.

I guess when I see everyone else saying things, then I just think, nobody cares what

Mike Ebendroth thinks about that stuff. Okay, well, Christian Harris does. So maybe in the future,

I'll have some reminiscences. Reminiscences. I will reminisce about John and Charlie and those kind of things.

But for now, we're back to talking about the Lord Jesus, the one who never compromised.

I love songs. I love hymns. I love spiritual songs. I love psalms.

And I was studying the other day, and the song, I've got that joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, came up.

And when we did family Bible time, we would often go around the room and just sing a stanza or two or lots of songs, and I would let everybody pick a song.

So maybe it was a shorter Scripture reading that night, and I'd think, oh, let's just sing. Or sometimes we would memorize

Scripture. Sometimes I'd have the kids give little speeches or describe things, because I was petrified to speak in public for so many years, and so I didn't want my kids to have that same petrification.

Anyway, we would sing, and I'd go around the table. The older kids might pick Immortal, Invisible, that type of thing.

And the little kids would, you know, this little light of mind type of thing, Jesus loves me, the

B -I -B -L -E, something they could like, you know, emphatically say.

And we would sing, joy, joy, joy. I found out that it was written 100 years ago by George William Cook.

Lots of hymns were written by Methodists. He was

British, moved to North America, and it says, as you know, I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart.

And then, you know, the kind of antiphonal where, you know, down in my heart. Four stanzas that I found.

The first three, you probably know. I've got that joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart.

I've got that peace that passeth understanding down in my heart. Where? That's the second line.

The third one is, I've got the love of Jesus, love of Jesus down in my heart. Where? But do you know the fourth one?

For there is therefore now no condemnation down in my heart. That's just kind of hard to say, hard to sing, too.

For there is therefore now no condemnation. For there is therefore now no condemnation. How many syllables is in there?

I've got the love of Jesus, love of Jesus.

That's 11 syllables. This one is, for there is therefore now no condemnation.

Same. Well, I would have never guessed. It's just harder to say. For there is therefore now no condemnation down in my heart.

Where? Down in my heart. Down in my heart. For there is therefore now no condemnation. I've got that joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.

The question for the show today and the show for the next show is, do you have joy down in your heart?

Do you want to have joy down in your heart? I could ask this question, and I think

I will. It's my show. What gives you joy? What gives you joy? Maybe we could ask this question as well.

I think I will. It's my show. Don't forget you can get the YouTube station,

YouTube channel, No Compromise Radio. We had 5 ,000 subscribers or something like that. Lost the entire channel.

We're starting back up again. Mario's doing a great job. You can pull that up. It's a Wednesday show.

For some reason, if you want to watch, hit like, hit subscribe. And I just finished a show with Chris Gordon about In Grace radio video.

I was in his studio. That was fun. Great guy, Chris Gordon. You want to listen to him. And I just did a pack -in today with Pat Abenroth.

I think the fourth or fifth time I was on the show. And we talked about the book King, how the sovereignty of God changes everything.

It's difficult, back to the question, it's difficult to have joy in such a crazy world, such a sinful world, such a world that seems like it's kind of spiraling out of control.

Who'd ever think of people in the media talking about a potential civil war or this elongated war with Russia and Ukraine?

I mean, there's all kinds of things that are happening. If I had to pick the most joyous moments in my life, probably birth of children.

Not probably, certainly. Marriage, that was exciting, had to get married to Kim.

Becoming a grandpa. Luke's wife is, is she pregnant?

I want her to be. Anyway, it's, you know, maybe times of joy are hard to come by, but if we go back to our past, we could all probably find times reminiscing about,

I don't know, some of the greatest things I delighted in my life, playing Batman or Tarzan or something, crew cut boys running around in Nebraska.

Delighting in those things, having great joy. I read in Ligon Duncan's sermon how

John Newton just had so much joy with his wife, so much delight, how he was just crazy about her.

And he wrote a bunch of letters to her, and he finally put those in a book. And his friend said,

Mr. Newton's release of this book is going to make Christian husbands look bad because he loves his wife so gallantly.

All of our wives are going to expect us to love them like he loves his wife, and this is going to be a bad thing for Christian husbands in Britain.

Don't let him read that book. Today I want to give you some reasons that you can rejoice even though the world is crazy, even though we are tainted by sin, even though we have a long way to go with our holy living and obedience to the

Lord, even though we can still have joy. As you would probably teach and understand, happiness is based on circumstances, and so if there are bad circumstances, there isn't much happiness.

Good circumstances, easy to be happy, it's fleeting, it comes and goes, it kind of affects you, but the fruit of the

Spirit is love. What's the second one? Joy. So much so that you can even command people.

God can command you to rejoice always again. I say rejoice, Paul said, speaking for God.

Speaking the God -breathed words, right? That's God speaking. So, today, joy.

I'd like to have more joy, how about you? Yeah, of course. It's a show applicable to everyone.

That's kind of one of the issues floating around evangelicalism, probably even here at the church. Well, I just want more practical application.

I just need to have more hands -on, just kind of tell me what to do.

And there are practical things in Scripture, of course. You can learn a lot of practical application kind of, you know, in the book, from the book of nature, how to do things, or watching, learning, grandparents teaching, parents teaching.

But today we're going to look at Luke 10, no surprise, because I'm in the book of Luke, and this is kind of what

I've been thinking about lately. So for a while, the Tuesday -Thursday shows will probably be me talking about sermon stuff, which you're used to if you've been a long -time listener.

How many years have you been doing this? 16, 17, 18, something like that. Reasons that you can have joy no matter what.

Reasons to have joy in spite of. Number one. By the way, this is for Christians.

If you're not a Christian, then you've never experienced the ultimate joy, being reconciled to God.

You could probably still have lots of moments of happiness, probably a joy too.

Maybe it's a different kind of joy. It's not a Spirit -given joy like the fruit of the Spirit, love joy.

But I'm sure you can have joyous people that aren't believers, experiencing God's goodness and common grace.

But these are reasons that Christians can have joy. So far so good? Mike, you're talking a lot, but you're not saying anything.

You're 11 minutes in, and nothing's happened. Well, you've heard me say a few things, right? Everybody wants to know what

Mike Abendroth is thinking about. Topic, topic, topic. Oh, matter of fact, I have the

Message Bible in front of me, and I haven't done this for a long time. I was thinking about that passage in Philippians 4, about rejoice always, and again

I say rejoice. And I'm wondering what Eugene Peterson said about this topic.

How would he phrase it? Okay. Celebrate God all day, every day.

I mean, revel in Him. Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them.

Help them see that the Master's about to arrive. He could show up any minute. Celebrate God all day, every day.

I mean, revel in Him. You want answers?

I think I'm entitled. I don't know what that guy's writing, but crazy.

It's a crazy world. Reason number one you can have joy today, dear Christian, is you can have joy knowing the

Lord can and is using you for gospel ministry. To be used by the Lord for anything is pretty wonderful, isn't it?

That the Lord would use us, that the Lord could use us.

We are sinful and, of course, justified.

We are creatures. We are finite. We are weak.

And that the Lord could use us? That's pretty amazing. So, from the passage today,

I want you to see that the Lord did use. We don't have

Spencer to critique these anymore and then edit them and then polish them up.

So, whatever. Maybe I could run this through AI and say, please clean up my faux pas, my transgressions verbally.

Luke 10, 17. The 72 returned with joy, saying,

Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. Chapter 10, verse 1 and following.

Jesus sends out the 72, or the 70, depending on what manuscript you want to look at. The point is, he's sending out lots of people now.

It's the B team. It's the advanced team, going out ahead of Jesus and preparing the way, kind of like John the

Baptist. The 12 were sent out in Luke 9 and now the 70 are sent out.

Most likely the 12 sent out. Think of 12 tribes of Israel. Think about ministry to the

Israelites, to those living in Israel, rather, the Israelites. And then here we have an expansion, probably focused on Israel and the

Gentiles, here in the 70, broadcasting a larger net. Harvest is ripe and we need workers.

And they have done what Jesus has said. If you go out, here's what you say, here's how you should be careful.

Your lambs to the wolves, so watch out. If you're at somebody's house and they accept you, great.

Stay there, use that as a little home base while you're evangelizing in the city. And proclaim, the kingdom of God is near, because Jesus is going to show up, the

King is close. And if they don't accept you, then there's judgment. And there's some woes there at the end.

And so they did it, and now they're returning. The 72 returned with joy, saying,

Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. They are so excited. The Lord has used them and is using them for gospel ministry.

And they have finished their mission. They're seeing what the Lord is doing through them as they heal, as they proclaim the truth.

Remember they were told to heal, preach, and here it even talks about the demons are subject to us in your name.

And so they are able to cast demons out in your name.

So it's all about the Lord Jesus. I don't think they were really thinking they were hot stuff.

Maybe, but I think the passage is, you know, we did this in your name. And Lord, you told us to do this, you're the boss, you're the sovereign.

We went out and now we're coming back. And I'm sure they could cast out demons, even though earlier in Luke chapter 10 didn't say anything.

I mean, we have an abbreviated account of the message that was given. We have an abbreviated account of the marching orders probably as well.

They are, by the power of Jesus, casting out demons, just like their

Lord and Savior would. And remember, there's a problem in Luke 9 where some of the disciples couldn't cast out a particular demon.

In this case, they, as lambs going in the midst of wolves, have come back.

And they were not devoured by the wolves. There could have been hardships, but they proclaimed, they healed, they cast out demons.

And mission's over, now we go back to Jesus. I know, if it was me,

I would really look forward to telling Jesus what I did by His power and for Him.

I don't mean what I did. I don't think that's the point of this at all. J .C. Ryle kind of alludes to that a little bit, that maybe they think they were hot stuff.

I don't think so. But what I think doesn't matter because not everybody cares what Mike Havendra thinks about every subject in the world.

Correct? That's why I don't write often about the Nebraska Cornhuskers. But if something funny strikes me, it strikes me as funny, then

I probably will reclick it. And then I wake up in the morning going, when

I was tired in the night, did I do something bad? Ain't that something?

Ain't that a sump pump? Last week, three things went wrong in the house.

One, the water pump that pumps the water out of the downstairs shower that sits on the slab went bad.

Now that's fixed. Then the toilet started to leak a little bit.

That fixed. Gasket fixed. Then there was a small propane leak in the fireplace.

We have a regular fireplace, you burn wood, and we have kind of a decorative one with propane that's kind of nice just to turn on,

I don't have to bring up the wood, etc. I got a little tester, $17 propane tester from Amazon, and I found the leak, got it fixed.

So three things. Hopefully that teaches me a good lesson about how evolution is true, that things just fix themselves and get better, more complicated, more wonderful, more fantastic as time goes on.

If I just have enough time, they just keep getting better and better and better. Right, right.

Hey Jesus, we did this for you, we did that for you, we did the other thing by your power, this is amazing.

Casting out demons, I mean, what their faces must have looked like, how enthusiastic.

There's either 35 or 36 teams of two. One after another after another, the teams are coming back telling

Jesus. I don't think they all arrived at the same time, so that's wonderful. And they're celebrating who

God is, what He's done, and how they could be used. They were used.

Jesus is proclaimed. Jesus' gospel is proclaimed.

Jesus' healing is shown in compassion. And I can imagine if I had to just try to have a visual for this, they were skipping, right?

They had sandals on and their robes, and they're skipping back to tell Jesus. The demons even were under their power.

Spurgeon said, not one of the 70 lambs had been eaten by wolves. No wonder,

I think they were singing, I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy. God is saving,

God is equipping, God is using these sinners. Remember, we asked the question before, how could anyone of their own accord say no to their life, no to their parents, hate mother, brother, sister by comparison, loving them less than Jesus, denying self, pick up cross, follow

Jesus, knowing they're going to be killed, persecuted, etc. Nobody can save themselves, nobody can make themselves want to do that, nobody can give a different desire and an appetite and reordering of affections except God.

And so God did that with the 70 and sent them out, and they were used. I often think that some folks in the church could serve a lot more if they could get past,

I mean, some is laziness, some is disobedience, but I don't think there are many, at least here at this church, for that.

But what I see more of is, people think, well, you know what, I could never give marriage advice,

I could never counsel another couple, because we, in our marriage, have a long way to go.

I mean, if you have to have a perfect marriage to give marriage counsel, then

I should probably cancel all my pre -marital classes. And then some days I think we have a great marriage, and then

I say something dumb. Then I think, well, we have a pretty good marriage,

I have a great wife. I have an average husband. And then my self -righteousness starts kicking in, saying,

I provide for her, I protect her, I don't look at pornography, I pay the bills,

I say what good husbands say, that everything in this home I'm responsible for. That doesn't mean

I do everything, that doesn't mean I'm always at fault, but I am responsible, because I'm the leader under God's headship.

And I can't say that's not my problem. Everything is my problem. I heard,

I don't know who it was, I think it's It's Good to be a Man guy, what was that?

He had a podcast, I listened to quite a few, Foster, maybe? And if it's not him, it's somebody else, like it's always wrong for a husband to do dishes or laundry or something like that, and that's the wife's job, and don't stoop so low.

I think it was, I don't know if they said that or not. But one of those type of guys.

I'm just thinking, you know what? In a different realm, I'm glad I was a janitor at church, because it's good for me to think, you know what,

I'm not too big to be a janitor, no job is below me, ministering to the

Lord, and for him, I think, you know, a lot of pastors have been janitors at churches, so I think that's a good thing.

But everything in the home, I'm responsible for, so why would I say, that's your job? Now, we can delegate finances to our wives or whatever, but I don't know why

I can't help and why I can't contribute and why I couldn't say, well, my wife needs to break, and therefore

I'll help her do some of those things. Anyway, this is a side note. Do you have to be perfect to be used by God?

Here's the 70, the 72, and they're being used. And so I just thought, big picture for practical application.

Did I get your attention on that? That I would say, remember, God uses us for ministry, and that should give us joy.

Joy. I mean, do you have to be perfect to be used of God? Noah, he was used, got drunk.

Abraham, he was used, lied about his wife being his sister twice. Sarah, laughing at God's promise.

Jacob, the deceiver. Moses, kills an Egyptian, strikes the rock.

Aaron, hmm, I think I'll make a golden calf. Rahab, prostitute.

Gideon, doubtful. Samson, crazy way he spoke to his parents, lustful.

David, adultery, murder, et cetera. Solomon, idolatry with foreign wives.

Jonah runs away. Peter denies Jesus three times. Does God use us?

I think the answer is yes. Aren't you glad? Joy in ministry. By the way, if you're not serving in your local church, you should.

For the Lord, for others, and even for yourself when it comes to joy. I'm not saying there are three great commandments.

Love God, love your neighbor, love yourself. Love God, love yourself, so you know how to love your neighbor. I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying, you know,

I have to parse your words, but there's a fruit to it.

There's a benefit to it. There's a blessing to it, that when you go serve others, you yourself get blessed.

Right? You should go serve others because God said so, and you should love your neighbor. That's true.

But then it gives you joy, too, knowing that you're used to the Lord. I can tell you in my life,

I can tell you a lot of my problems, a lot of the things I do wrongly, sinfully, self -righteously, unrighteously, but the

Lord has used me, and he's used me to help other people. I get joy from that because then it's not this, you know, morbid, navel -gazing introspection.

You know what? I know. I'm bad, bad to the bone. One time we went to go see

Keith Richards, Kim and I. I think in 1989, we were newlyweds. She didn't really—she doesn't like the

Rolling Stones. She said, Mike, you know, the theme of all the music that you like is the lead singers can't sing.

Anyway, she went with me because she loves me. And we sat down, and there was two seats open right next to us, and in walks

George Thorogood and sits down right next to Kim. So, that tells you we were pretty close to the front, and to George Thorogood, for that matter.

You get to be used, and God can use you. I'm thrilled that the Lord would use me.

Some have even come to me and said, the Lord has used you, Mike, to preach the gospel, and I got saved.

Wow! Wow! Isn't that amazing? That's amazing through me.

You know, I know how to put on deodorant. I know how to comb my hair, or used to. I know how to look nice and sharp.

But on the inside, oh, I'm a saint, that's true. But there's a sinful hangover there still.

There's still—I'm not glorified yet. Let's put it that way. I hope that's true, because if this is what glory is like,

I've got to live in this body the rest of my life. I'm 65 years old. Finally, you know, prostate cancer's over, leukemia's over.

I just have this aortic aneurysm now looming like it could burst any day. It's been good knowing you.

But you won't ever hear this if I die today, because people won't know it's on the podcast pro.

It's not uploaded to the internet yet. Serving the Lord.

And I think you could testify, if you're listening today, how wonderful it is to be used by the Lord. And, of course, different seasons, right?

You're not out having some time -consuming ministry when you've got four little children at home. But there's things you could do.

There's ways you could reach out to other ladies and encourage them, pray for them, be around them, serve them, babysit for them.

I think every Christian has been given a spiritual gift, and every Christian should use it. But there are times,

I mean, Kim spent a lot of time at home, but she still did some ministry, and then now the kids are out of the house, and she has a lot of time for ministry.

So I'm not trying to make moms feel bad. I'm not trying to do that at all. But that the

Lord would use us. And when I see good things happening in my kids' lives, my adult children's lives,

I think, you know, that I could be a part of that. It's typically, you know, I think it's the sovereignty of God and my wife's influence.

But I know the Lord, you know, not trying to have some false humility. I know the Lord used me to train up my children.

And they are Christian people. They love the local church. They serve. And that gives me joy, right?

It's not only the joy that I have, but then also the joy that the Lord could use in my life to help others, and then the joy that I have watching those others.

So it is all joy, joy, joy. 2 ,000 years ago,

Jesus, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, despised the shame.

Aren't you glad for risen Savior? My name is Mike Abendroth. This is No Compromise Radio Ministry. Don't forget, you can go to Amazon and order the new book called