What did Jesus mean when He said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matthew 12:30)?

Response

Matthew 12 is a crucial chapter in the story of Jesus’ time on earth, which includes His significant declaration that “whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me scatters abroad” «He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. », (Matthew 12:30, NKJV).

Before Jesus makes the statement, “He who is not with Me is against Me,” He had been sharing the good news about the kingdom He was offering. However, in Matthew 12, He and His kingdom face rejection—especially from the leaders of the nation. The situation intensifies when Jesus heals a man who was blind and mute «Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. », (Matthew 12:22). The crowds were amazed and questioned whether He could be the Son of David, the Messiah «And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? », (Matthew 12:23). In contrast, the Pharisees promptly dismissed Jesus’ healing as being from the Messiah and instead claimed that He used demonic power to perform miracles «But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. », (Matthew 12:24). Jesus refuted this accusation and pointed out the inconsistency of a divided kingdom and Satan fighting against himself (Matthew 12:26-29). He then presented them with a dilemma, asking iIn whose power their sons cast out demons «And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges. », (Matthew 12:27). The point Jesus was making was that if Jesus was casting out demons in the power of God, as He was claiming to do, then indeed the kingdom He was presenting had come because the King had come «But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. », (Matthew 12:28).

Jesus then took it one step further by saying that “he who is not with Me is against Me.” The people had to make a choice. Their Messiah had come, offering to them the prophesied and covenanted kingdom of the heavens (which was ultimately God’s kingdom in the heavens come to earth in fulfillment of God’s covenant to David, with the Messiah ruling on David’s throne in Jerusalem). Jesus was the Messiah, and He was presenting His kingdom to the people. They had to choose—if they were for Him, they would have to change their mind (repent) about how they could gain entrance into the kingdom «From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. », (Matthew 4:17). They would have to recognize that they could only enter the kingdom by the internal spiritual righteousness Jesus described, and not by their external obedience to the Law of Moses (Matthew 5—7). The Pharisees and other leaders were deeply opposed to changing their minds about these things; they could not accept that He was the Messiah, lest they have to submit to what He was telling them. Their rebellion illustrated Jesus’ statement that “he who is not with Me is against Me” «He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scatt

Ereth abroad. «, (Matthew 12:30).

Like the Pharisees of that era, we also have a choice to make about Jesus. Jesus famously asked the question of His disciples, “But who do you say that I am?” «He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? », (Matthew 16:15). Each one of us has to answer that question for ourselves. Either we acknowledge that He is who He said He is—the Messiah—or we reject that and attribute His words and works to something other than the true ministry of our Creator, Messiah, Savior, and King. With this choice, there is no third option. Jesus did not give His listeners the option of avoiding the choice. “He who is not with Me is against Me,” He said. And if we claim to be for Him, then we must come to Him as He prescribes and not as we might prefer. The Pharisees were open to God’s involvement in their lives and the lives of the nation of Israel, but only on their terms. As creations of the Creator, we don’t get to make the rules; we simply have to decide whether we are for Him or against Him.