June 20, 2010. Luke 8. During the summer when catechumens aren't taking notes,
the format of the sermon varies. Today's sermon is in more a "Bible study
style".
Last week, you heard St. Paul remind us in Galatians 3:10, "Cursed is
everyone who does not abide by ALL things written in the Book of the Law, and
DO them." Of course, no person is able to do that, so we should be cursed to
hell. In verse 13, Paul gives us Gospel. "Christ redeemed us from the curse
of the Law, having become a curse for us." by hanging on the tree of the cross.
Any and every blessing we have comes from God's love. We haven't done
anything to earn it, nor will we ever be able to earn God's love in Christ.
That idea (namely, only God can remove the curse of hell from us) is essential
to today's Gospel.
Jesus had gotten into a boat with His disciples; and fell asleep. While
He was asleep, a storm arose and the disciples feared for their lives. Jesus
scolded the storm, and it quit. (Luke 8:22-24).
Jesus then asked, "Where is your faith?" Given the number of miracles the
disciples had experienced, they still did not know Who Jesus is. Do you?
(26-27) "Then they sailed to the country of Gadarenes, which is opposite
Galilee." They finished crossing the lake and demons give the disciples the
answer. "For when Jesus stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man
from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did
he live in a house but in the tombs." He was literally and figuratively living
among the dead, and unclean spiritually and physically in more ways than most
Jews would want to hear. The Legion was waiting for Jesus.
(29a) Jesus commands the unclean spirit to leave. Notice Jesus did not
call on God for help, Jesus did it under His own authority. (29b) For demons
had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and
shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demons into the
wilderness. Everyone knew this poor man and what he could do. They were
afraid of him.
28 When (the demons) saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and
with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most
High God? I beg You, do not torment me!" Here was a man living among the dead
in a foreign land. He could not humanly identify Jesus. But the demons inside
knew Him, and shuddered. (James 2:19).
There was a common belief that knowing the name of a local god or demon
would give some control over that god. Not Jesus. Sadly, what the twelve
disciples did NOT know is well known to all demons even to this day. Jesus is
God in the flesh for us.
30 Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion,"
because many demons had entered him. A legion is 4-6,000 soldiers. An army of
evil had conquered this man. There was nothing he could do to free himself
from their power. But Jesus could AND would free him.
31 And (the demon legion) begged Jesus that He would not command them to
go out into the abyss. Christ could have cast them into hell in an instant.
In what seems to be very odd, they beg God for more mercy than they showed.
32 Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So the
demons begged Christ that He would permit them to enter the pigs. And Jesus
permitted them. 33 So the demons went out of the man and entered the swine,
and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and they all
drowned. Tombs were unclean to Jews. Pigs were unclean to Jews. This seems a
fitting end. But the story goes on.
34 When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it
in the city and in the country. 35 Then others went out to see what had
happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had
departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they
were afraid. 36 They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had
been demon-possessed was healed.
The demon-possessed man was not alone. Others knew him. They saw Jesus
do this miracle to save the man. They also lost their herd of pigs. We don't
know how many hogs that was, but since there were several herdsmen and 4-6,000
demons, it was more than a few pigs. Each one of these men had just lost all
of their owners' pigs; AND likely their own jobs. One wonders if they were
more afraid from the economic loss, OR, the divine power of Jesus.
37 Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes
asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And Jesus
got into the boat and returned (to the Galilee side of the lake).
Did they only see Jesus as a dangerous Jewish magician? It seems so. But
Jesus did not come to earth to do miracles, protect animals & economics, or set
up an earthly kingdom.
38 Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Jesus that he
might remain with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, (39) "Return to your
own house, and tell what great things GOD has done for you." And he went his
way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things JESUS had done
for him. End of text.
In this mostly non-Jewish area, people ONLY saw a very powerful man.
Christ wanted them to see the only true God Himself was at work, doing things
only God can do. He urges His new disciple to spread that Gospel. Man doesn't
have power over demons. But God does. He also wanted His 12 Disciples to
know, so they would repent and believe the Good News.
Our churches don't teach demon possession is possible OR impossible (at
least on the LCMS.org website). People refuse to see Satan in God's Word as 1
Peter 5 describes: "a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." People today
are also afraid of Christ's power. He has far more economic reach than a few
thousand hogs. But the value of our Christian faith is far greater than gold
or any other thing on earth. And our LORD God does not want to leave us for
the demons, nor let us value things of this world more than Him. (Matt 16:26;
I Sam 12:24)
Consider this: This man was not a Jew. The disciples would have wondered
why Jesus was bothering with a non-chosen person, much like last Sunday's
dealings with the unnamed sinful woman. If this were a Bible study, I know at
least one of you would ask "why does God do good things to people like this?"
But you know the answer. All of us have failed to believe and act as we
should, none of us deserves good, and we should all be cursed. God, in His
grace, "rains on the just and unjust." God applies the Gospel as He wills.
Although this is Law, this is another application. Christ does not ask us
to follow as one of the Twelve. But He does send you into this community like
the man who was rescued from demons and hell. He gives you the message of
forgiveness, life, and salvation: Christ Jesus took God's curse against all
your sin and hung on the cross. Because He is risen, we can be sure thru the
gift of faith that we also rise to life. That is a message the people around
us need to hear. God has changed our lives in the power of His Word and Holy
Baptism. He gives us power to live those new lives of faith, and tell the Good
News of Jesus to the world nearby as well as far away. In all times and
circumstances, may we as God's people rejoice in His salvation.
Pastor Michael Harman,
St. Peter LCMS - Newell, IA
vacancies at ...
Immanuel, Pomeroy
First Evangelical, Fonda
