Luke 8:26 They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee. 27 When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don't torture me!" 29 For Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places.30 Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" "Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him. 31 And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss. 32 A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into them, and he gave them permission. 33 When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. 34 When those tending the pigs saw what had happened, they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, 35 and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 36 Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured. 37 Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left. 38 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 "Return home and tell how much God has done for you." So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.
Is there is anything that you are frightened of? Perhaps you have a phobia about something. Or can you recall a time when you were frightened?
Today's gospel has several frightening features and frightened people.
Fear is a recurring theme in this Chapter. The disciples were fearful in the storm, verses 22-25, and fearful when they witnessed the power of Jesus to command the storm to stop.
The demon possessed man was frightening. The first thing the man did was to run to Jesus, probably a frightening sight, and fall on his knees v28. This is acknowledging the superiority of Jesus, not worshipping him. He shouts to him in an attempt to control Jesus. In that day and culture it was believed that if your knew the precise name or title of someone this gave you mastery over them.
The demons were also trying to avoid the punishment that was due to them. They knew they were already defeated and were just waiting for the time this will be realised so they asked Jesus to swear to God that they will not be tortured.
Jesus was in Gentile, or non-Jewish territory, on the South-East bank of the Sea of Galilee. The people there were not Jews, so they could keep pigs. The demons, knowing that they had to obey Jesus asked to go into the pigs in v32. They clearly needed a new home. Their intention was to destroy what God had created, and perhaps they also wanted to cause trouble for Jesus. Jesus agrees to their request.
Just imagine the thoughts of the swineherds as they ran to tell what had happened. They were fearful of what the owners of the pigs would say. Fearful of Jesus' power. And fearful of being unemployed now there were no pigs to tend.
People were fearful of 'Legion' and fearful when Jesus had expelled the demons from him!
Perhaps the people who heard these stories couldn't believe it. Imagine their surprise and shock at seeing the man sitting there docile and dressed, not naked and jumping around shouting. Jesus had succeeded in doing something they could not. Controlling and taming this man. They were fearful, verse 37. Perhaps afraid of what Jesus might do next. Change them perhaps ? Do something that could have further economic consequences on their way of life ? Fear, ignorance and selfishness may all have played their part.
One commentator wrote "All down the ages the world has been refusing Jesus because it prefers it's pigs." Perhaps this might seem a little harsh, but we cannot fail to acknowledge that Jesus isn't always the most comfortable person to have around. You could argue that the pigs represent the material goods that people rely upon, and everything associated with this.
Jesus honoured the people's wishes and left, verse 37. Our Lord will never force himself on those who do not want him. He respects the choices people make in response to himself and the repercussions of this in eternity. God will honour the choice of those who do not want to be with Jesus.
In this passage we see a contrast between the people and the man who had been delivered. The people didn't want Jesus to be with them. The man wanted to be with Jesus cf. v 38.
Jesus turns down the man's offer and asks him to go back to his family and tell them what God had done for him. Jesus was calling the man to be a witness to his own people for he was probably a Gentile. This was unusual because Jesus often commanded people not to tell what he had done. This was so that the Jews would not realise that he was the Messiah with all the popular, false expectations that they had, for example that the Messiah would defeat the Romans. Jesus doesn't forbid testimony by this Gentile because he would not stir up the false messianic expectations that there were. The man goes and shares his good news all over the town
Jesus had delivered this man from the powers of evil. This shows us of the authority of Jesus. This resulted in God being glorified through the proclamation to the Gentiles.
Jesus can take away our fear when we focus on him and free us to tell others and to live for him.
There was a woman in a village who was well known for her simple faith and great calm in the midst of many trials. Another woman who had never met her but had heard of her came to visit one day. "I must find out the secret of her calm, happy life," she thought to herself.
As she met her she said: "So you are the woman with the great faith I've heard so much about."
"No," came the reply. "I am not the woman with great faith, but I am the woman with the little faith in the great God."
We are called to put our lives under the authority of Jesus who has conquered nature, evil, sickness, fear and even death. This can bring us freedom from evil, security and joy as we seek to follow his ways and example.
PRAY
How has the power of Jesus affected my life?
Where is Jesus calling me to witness about this?
24/6/01 6 p.m. Luke 8:26-39
PRAY
It is a common practice at military academies for the upper classmen to put down the first year students. This is part of the initiation rites. Dwight David Eisenhower, as a second year student at West Point, participated in these activities. One day a plebe, as freshmen were called, bumped into Eisenhower. Such an act was unpardonable, so Eisenhower responded as expected, yelling and screaming at the young cadet. Searching for the most demeaning thing he could utter, Eisenhower said the plebe looked like a barber. With that remark the plebe drew himself up to his full height, squared his shoulders, thrust forth his jaw, and responded that he was a barber. It was as a barber that he had supported his family prior to coming to the Academy.
Devastated, Eisenhower returned to his room. He retold the incident to his roommate, confessing, "I've just done something that was stupid and unforgivable. I just managed to make a man ashamed of the work he did to earn a living." In his autobiography Eisenhower wrote that for him this was a lesson about "the lack of consideration for others." In his room that day, Eisenhower vowed never to demean another individual again. It was a promise he kept through his life, even as Supreme Allied Commander during the Second World War and as the thirty-fourth President of the United States. He became an encourager and it showed in the effectiveness of his leadership.
From this incident we see that authority can be used or abused. Luke is drawing our attention to Jesus' authority and, by implication, who he is :?
8:22-25 Jesus calms the storm. Shows his authority over nature.
8:26-39 see Jesus authority over demons.
8:40-56 we read of Jesus' authority over sickness and death.
Our passage is about "Christ the deliverer/exorcist".
v26 Jesus had decided to cross the Sea of Galilee to escape the crowds. This is made clear in Mth.8:18, although Lk.4:35 could infer this.
vs 27 and 29 describes the plight of the man possessed by demons. He had broken the chains and irons the people had used to restrain him. So they banished him to the tombs. These were caves outside the village and provided some shelter. Today people may think that graveyards are eerie places, and be reluctant to go there at night. There was a popular belief in Jesus' time that tombs were a place where evil spirits liked to live, so it would seem appropriate to the people for the man to dwell there.
Today in the West we may find it difficult to believe in evil spirits. We live in a very scientific, materialistic culture. Yet in Asia and Africa, for example, the spirit world is an accepted part of life. Perhaps that is why Christianity is growing so fast in places such as Africa. Some would say that belief in spirits is primitive, superstitious, and foolish. What should our response be as Bible believing Christians ? When we look at incidents such as this one we must believe in the existence of evil spirits, But we must also believe that Jesus has authority over such beings, even today. Today the name of Jesus still has the same authority over evil spirits that it did 2000 years ago.
Some would say that in Jesus time the people did not have our medical knowledge so they blamed evil spirits for what we would know as diseases today. Such a conclusion is arrogant and ignores the divine knowledge of Jesus who was involved in our creation and should surely, therefore know the difference between a disease and demon possession. He knew whether to heal someone or drive demons from them, just as he knew what people were thinking, as we saw last week. The aim of evil spirits and the devil is to distort and destroy the image of God in mankind and to separate us from God. We see that in this passage and also with Adam & Eve
From verse 30 we read of the encounter between Jesus and the demons. They are speaking, not the man. One commentator lists 7 qualities of demon possession found in this man : 1) disregard for personal dignity (cut with stones - Mark 5:5, & nakedness - Luke 8:27); 2) social isolation; 3) retreat to the simplest kind of shelter; 4) recognition of Jesus' deity; 5) demonic control of speech; 6) shouting ; 7) extraordinary strength.
The first thing the man does is run to Jesus, probably a frightening sight, and fall on his knees v28. This is acknowledging the superiority of Jesus, not worshipping him. He shouts to him in an attempt to control Jesus. In that day and culture it was believed that if your knew the precise name or title of someone this gave you mastery over them.
The demons were also trying to avoid the punishment that was due to them. They knew they were already defeated and were just waiting for the time this will be realised so they asked Jesus to swear to God that they will not be tortured.
If they knew that those who follow the devil are to be tortured, how is it that some Christians do not believe in hell ?
We can also see from this verse that a verbal acknowledgement of belief in Jesus, and who he is does not make someone a Christian. The devils believed Jesus existed. They believed he is the Son of God. They are clearly not Christians. Why ? Because being a Christian is about handing over control of our lives to Jesus. Asking him to be number one in our life. An intellectual assent of Jesus is something even the demons will do.
Jesus asks the man his name v30. He replies "Legion". A legion consisted of over 6,000 men at this time, and this probably suggests that the man was possessed by a number of demons. That they answered, and not the man, shows the extent of the possession.
Jesus was in Gentile, or non-Jewish territory, on the South-East bank of the Sea of Galilee. They were not Jews, so they could keep pigs. The demons, knowing that they had to obey Jesus ask to go into the pigs in v32. They clearly needed a new home. Their intention was to destroy what God had created, and perhaps they also wanted to cause trouble for Jesus. Jesus agrees to their request.
A number of reasons have been given as to why Jesus agreed :-
a) The time had not come for the final judgement, although God's judgement on the world can start to be seen in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
b) Jesus wanted to reveal the purpose of the demons, to kill and destroy.
c) Pigs were unclean animals, and the demons unclean beings.
d) Humans are more important to God than animals. That is not to condone cruelty to animals. Yet we have a different status to animals in the created order as we read in Genesis 1.
e) It provided tangible evidence that the demons had left the man.
f) It exposed the values of the people. We see this from v37.
Fear is a recurring theme in this Chapter. The disciples were fearful in the storm, verses 22-25, and fearful when they witnessed the power of Jesus to command the storm to stop.
Just imagine the thoughts of the swineherds as they ran to tell what had happened. They were fearful of what the owners of the pigs would say. Fearful of Jesus' power. And fearful of being unemployed now there were no pigs to tend.
People were fearful of 'Legion' and fearful when Jesus had expelled the demons.
Perhaps the people who heard these stories couldn't believe it. Imagine their surprise and shock at seeing the man sitting there docile and dressed, not naked and jumping around shouting. Jesus had succeeded in doing something they could not. Controlling and taming this man. They were fearful, verse 37. Perhaps afraid of what Jesus might do next. Change them perhaps ? Do something that could have further economic consequences on their way of life ? Fear, ignorance and selfishness may all have played their part.
One commentator wrote "All down the ages the world has been refusing Jesus because it prefers it's pigs." Perhaps this might seem a little harsh, but we cannot fail to acknowledge that Jesus isn't always the most comfortable person to have around. You could argue that the pigs represent the material goods that people rely upon, and everything associated with this.
We must acknowledge this as we read of the devotion and holiness of life that Jesus demands from his followers. Jesus drew alongside and challenged individuals about what was truly important with varying responses. Contrast Zaccheus and the rich young ruler.
Jesus honoured the people's wishes and left, verse 37. Our Lord will never force himself on those who do not want him. He honours the choices people make in response to himself and the repercussions of this in eternity. God will honour the choice of those who do not want to be with Jesus.
In this passage we see a contrast between the people and the man who had been delivered. The people didn't want Jesus to be with them. The man wanted to be with Jesus cf. v 38.
Jesus turns down the man's offer and asks him to go back to his family and tell them what God had done for him. Jesus was calling the man to be a witness to his own people for he was probably a Gentile. This was unusual because Jesus often commanded people not to tell what he had done. This was so that the Jews would not realise that he was the Messiah with all the popular, false expectations that they had, for example that the Messiah would defeat the Romans. Jesus doesn't forbid testimony by this Gentile because he would not stir up the false messianic expectations that there were. The man goes and shares his good news all over the town
Jesus had delivered this man from the powers of evil. This shows us of the authority of Jesus. This resulted in God being glorified through the proclamation to the Gentiles.
What can we take from this passage today ? A number of things :
1) There are evil spirits in existence, even today.
2) Jesus has authority over them, and his name is powerful enough to drive them out.
3) Believing in the existence of Jesus, and calling him the right name doesn't make someone a Christian.
4) There will be a time when every being, human and spirit will be judged by God. Those who do not follow God will be punished, banished from his presence for eternity.
5) An encounter with Jesus is not always comfortable.
6) As those who have been delivered by God through Jesus death for us on the cross we have a duty and the joy of telling others. Jesus normally calls people to do this in their own situation.
7) Although some people will be amazed at what Jesus has done, others will prefer pigs, or the modern day equivalent.
8) Jesus can take away our fear when we focus on him.
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, in his autobiography TREASURE IN CLAY, recounts a visit he made to a leper colony in Buluba, Africa. He intended to give a silver crucifix to each of the 500 lepers residing in Buluba.
The first person who came forward, however, was a man so disfigured by the ravages of leprosy that Sheen was repulsed by the sight. The man's left arm was eaten off at the elbow by the disease; so he extended his right hand. This hand, too, was deformed by this awful disease. Unable to bear the leper's presence, Sheen held the crucifix above the man's palm and dropped it, where it was immediately swallowed up in the decaying flesh. Instantly, Sheen was aware of his unrighteous act. He had taken the crucifix -- God's sign of identification with humanity - and refused to associate himself with one of God's children. Overcome with remorse, Sheen dug his fingers into the man's leprosy and removed the crucifix. This time, he gently placed the crucifix in the man's hand. Sheen respectfully handed a crucifix to each of the remaining 499 lepers and, in the exchange, learned to love them.