“Then they 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. 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 He got into the boat and returned.” Luke 8:35-37
In this story, there is a demon possessed man who was known by his issue. He had suffered with this condition for a long time. He was known to hang around tombs. He was naked. He was not in his right mind. This was how people were accustomed to seeing him. This was what people accepted for him. But then Jesus came and the demons inside the man had to bow to the authority of Jesus. The man was freed and healed and when people saw him again, he was clothed and in his right mind.
Usually when I hear this story, this is what I hear about it. I hear what happened for the man. I hear how Jesus punished the demons and exercised his authority over them. I hear and read about how the man was afflicted for a long time but then in one conversation with Jesus, he was set free. But what I have never done until now is pay attention to the crowd’s response. When the people who knew this man to be demon possessed saw him delivered and in his right mind, the Bible says that they were afraid.
How can you be afraid of a man who is finally behaving the way he’s supposed to behave? The people were so used to his demons that it was normal to them. They learned how to live with it. They learned how to walk around him or look from afar. And when Jesus healed him, they didn’t know how to take his deliverance. It’s almost as if they were more comfortable with him in his affliction than they were with him in his healing.
Now when I read this, I’m shocked. I’m shocked that this was the people’s response. But then I start to think and realize, the same thing is happening today. Because as a society we have become accustomed to going to church, hearing a motivational message, singing some songs and going back home, many don’t expect to see the power of God demonstrated in a tangible way. We read about it. We pray for it. But many of us if we were face to face with a miracle of this magnitude would respond like the masses did in this scripture. Instead of rejoicing that this man was free they were afraid of what happened. They took it a step further and asked Jesus to leave. Today, we are doing the same thing.
We ask Jesus to leave our churches every time we stifle the Spirit of God from demonstrating His power. We ask Jesus to leave our lives every time He shows us a glimpse of Himself and because we’re more comfortable with our mess and our affliction, we push Him away. The same thing is happening today. We pray for the power and presence of God but we’re not really ready for it when it comes. We’re not open enough for it to actually happen. We’re echoing the same cries that the people did in the wilderness to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” (Exodus 20:19).
When Jesus demonstrates His power, it can’t be contained. We can’t control it. We can’t dictate how it comes or how He moves. All we can do is be open for it. Today, I want to encourage you not to be like the people in this scripture who saw God’s power and responded by asking Him to leave. Today, let’s not just pray empty prayers that we don’t actually desire. But instead, let us be open to experience God and His presence. It may overwhelm you, but you can also guarantee that it will change you!
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