Degradation, The Devil, And Deliverance

2. The demons are not mistaken of their power or position vs. the Person of Xst.

a. Does it surprise anyone that the demon called Jesus the “Son of the Most High God”? Did you know that every time Jesus meets with a demon, it knows who Jesus is? James 2:19 says, “You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that. And they tremble!” The demons know who Jesus is, and exactly how powerful He is, yet they are still His enemy. This tells us something very important: Believing the facts about Jesus is not enough to make you right with God. You must put your trust in Him to be saved from your sin and to enter God’s kingdom.

b. I want you to notice an amazing truth from this passage. When Jesus came on the scene this sinner was wonderfully attracted to Jesus. Friend there is a drawing power in Christ! Jesus said that if He be lifted up from the earth that He would draw all men unto Himself! (Jn. 12:32) There is a supernatural, almost magnetic power of Christ to drawn those unto Himself who know their lives are a wreck. Praise God for IRRESISTIBLE GRACE! This man meets Jesus! It’s a wonderful thing when Jesus enters a sinner’s heart because you see the devil cannot abide it and has to move on!

B. Jesus Wonderfully Delivers a man who had been living a life delivered over to Satan.

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a. We may wonder what happened to the demons after the pigs drowned. Evil spirits are just that - spirits - so they are eternal, and are not “killed.” Even when they are thrown into the lake of fire, it will be eternal torment (Rev. 20:10). In Matthew 8:29, Legion asked if Jesus had come to torture them before the “appointed time.” All demons know that there is a time when they will be judged (and the result will be eternal torment), but these demons knew the time had not yet come.

b. What does interest me more than the swine is the response of the pig herders. – v. 17 – Go Away! Like a lot of individuals, more concerned about pigs and possessions than people. When Jesus works mightily there were and still today are two responses: Accept and follow after Him. Reject and bid to flee.

2. Jesus Christ can completely transform the most hostile sinner.

a. Remember, before the demon-possessed man met Jesus, he was totally wild. He had super-human strength, and iron chains could not hold him. He had ripped off his clothes, and cut his own skin with rocks. He was completely out of control. Listen to what the townspeople found when they got to the seashore: Then they came to Jesus. They saw the man who had been controlled by many demons. He was sitting there. He was now dressed and thinking clearly. All this made the people afraid. - Mark 5:15 The man was sitting, fully dressed, and thinking clearly. What a transformation! The people who knew him could not believe their eyes. This wild man was now controlled - not by chains or armed guards - but he was self-controlled. The Bible says that one of the fruits of God’s Spirit is self-control! (Galatians 5:22-23) This man was living proof that “Anyone who believes in Christ is a new creation. The old is gone! The new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).