Joyfully Proclaiming

At a recent Sunday service, the pastor used as his text, the story in Luke of the Gerasene Demoniac.  If you recall, just prior to crossing the Sea of Galilee, and arriving on the shores of the Gerasene region, Jesus had told his disciples, “…“Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” Luke 8: 22.  Hold on to that snippet of a verse, I’ll come back to it.

During the crossing, a fierce storm blew in, and Jesus, who was napping, had to be awakened.  It was pretty obvious that some force wanted to keep Jesus from arriving at his destination. But, he got up, spoke to the storm, and it immediately calmed down, allowing them to continue safely. “ As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town.” Luke 8:27.  From all accounts, this guy had been off his meds for quite some time.  Chains couldn’t hold him, people were terrified of him, and he did bodily harm to himself.  In other words, he didn’t do much for the property values in the area.  This man, was completely under the control of not one, but many demons.  Interestingly, the demons knew who Jesus was right away, and begged him to leave them alone.  Of course, that was not God’s plan for this poor, captive fellow, so the demons asked to be sent into a huge herd of pigs.

 Long story short, into the swine they went, and ran of a steep hill, drowning in the lake below. The herdsman ran into town spreading the word of what had just happened.  Instead of being amazed at the miraculous change in the man, who was now fully clothed and in his right mind, they told Jesus to get outta Dodge, fast.  The man himself begged to follow Jesus, but Jesus sent him home, saying, “No, go back to your family, and tell them everything God has done for you.” So he went all through the town proclaiming the great things Jesus had done for him.” Luke 8:38-39.  Nothing more is written of how the ex-Demoniac’s testimony effected the townspeople, but he was changed and spiritually on-fire,  telling everyone about his salvation story. This is the same command that Jesus gives to all of us, to tell our story of how his love has set us free from the shackles of sin.  No one is going to be won over by reciting dusty doctrine and spouting religious rules, instead people want to see how Jesus has made a difference in your life.

 Do you have a story?  If not, have you truly come into relationship with Jesus?  Your story is “His”tory.  Pull out that small verse I told you to remember.  “…“Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” It seems that Jesus went to all that work, just to free one sin-possessed individual, because they left the area right afterwards.  Keep in mind, that you, and your personal salvation is so important, that Jesus would have gone to the cross for you alone. So, get out there and joyfully proclaim the great things God has done, and is doing for you!!