The Man Who Was Demon Possessed Series

10 Amazing Miracles from Scripture (2 of 10)

“The man who was demon possessed was made well”

Luke 8.26-37

October 11, 2015 CFBC, Chester, IL Dr. Mike Fogerson, Speaker

Introduction:

A Luke 8:26-37 (NASB) 26 Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.27 And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs.

28 Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, "What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me."29 For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.

30 And Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. 31 They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.

32 Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. 33 And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and out in the country. 35 The people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened. 36 Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well.

37 And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat and returned.

B There was a flock of pelicans that use to feed outside a fishing company that threw their fish scraps back into the ocean (Pelican Buffet), until the company found a market for the scraps.

1 The pelicans started starving to death because they had forgotten how to fish. (Millions of fish just a few inches under the surface.)

a Sadly, there is a spiritual parallel to this, and it’s just as puzzling. It’s when a child of God forgets who they are and how they are to access the profound blessings teeming just below the surface of their everyday life.

b We suffer from spiritual amnesia when we allow our doubts and fears to rob us of the joy and fruitfulness that would naturally be ours.

c Believe what God says about you and you will thrive.

aa You are His beloved child, fully accepted, and profoundly valued.

bb You have been given great and eternal purposes to fulfill.

cc Those who forget who they are in Christ waste away, and many times wind up in bondage like the man in our text this morning.

2 I want to give you three tips that every child of God needs to know in order not only to be made well, but to stay well.

I What You Can’t See Can Cripple You.

A Last week, we learned about Jesus setting His sights from Capernaum to the other side of lake to the country of the Gerasenes. (These were Gentiles, not followers of YHWY, which explains the presence of the swine, unclean animals.)

1 This land had once belonged to the Hebrews but was conquered by the Syrians, later invaded by the Romans.

a The Synagogues had been replaced with pagan temples, Shabot with Swine.

b The reason there were hogs in Gerasene was that the people were pagan, gentile people.

aa To a practicing Jew, a hog is about as kosher as a beer keg at a Baptist picnic.

bb These were people who had been under demonic influence, attack for a very long time.

2 The unseen, supernatural, spiritual world was capable of breaking into the seen, natural physical world: the demon possessed is proof positive that what you can’t see can cripple you.

a He was living w/o dignity (naked), friends (isolation), and homeless (in a cemetery).

aa The towns people had tried chaining him up so as not to let him harm himself/others.

bb No doctor, pagan priest, counselor/therapist had been able to help the man.