It’s Not You, Jesus, It’s Me
Matt. 8:28-9:1
Nov. 6, 2005
FBC, Chester Mike Fogerson, Pastor
Introduction:
A Seinfeld episode where George breaks up with his girlfriend
1 "It’s not you, it’s me." ~George
a Before George can say his line, his girlfriend beats him to the line.
b "If it’s anybody, it’s me."
2 I get this in our text
a They don’t threaten Jesus with His life
b They break up!
B When He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. 29 And they cried out, saying, "What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?" 30 Now there was a herd of many swine feeding at a distance from them. 31 The demons began to entreat Him, saying, "If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine." 32 And He said to them, "Go!" And they came out and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the waters. 33 The herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs. 34 And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region. 1 Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city. Matt 8:28-9:1 (NASB)
1 Setting was right after the calming of the storm
a Came ashore by a cemetery-Satan’s trophy room!
aa "The thief comes not but to steal, kill, & destroy..."
bb Sin brought death to every person in that cemetary
cc The devil/demons were in their element (drunk/tavern; gambler/casino; carouser/juke joint; me/buffet).
b Read text
2 (ETS) The townspeople would rather have their swine than the Savior
a (ESS) Many people value property more than God’s deliverance
b (OBJ) I want my listener to know how easy it is to send Jesus out of your everyday life
c (PQ) What do the warnings mean to you?
C (TS) Let’s look at two warnings we can heed by which Jesus’ presence is assured in our lives.
I The first warning we can heed by which Jesus’ presence is assured in our lives is...the devil is real. When He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. 29 And they cried out, saying, "What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?" 30 Now there was a herd of many swine feeding at a distance from them. 31 The demons began to entreat Him, saying, "If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine." 32 And He said to them, "Go!" And they came out and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the waters.
A The demons/devils were actual demons/devils (no Hollywood special effects).
1 They had ruined/robbed so much from these people at Gadarene.
a Men (family, home, self-control, sanity, peace)
b Town (content with the demons/devils...they just didn’t go to this part of town).
2 The demons recognized Jesus. And they cried out, saying, "What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?" (From Heaven?)
a They acknowledged Jesus as Savior, Lord, Judge...but they were still enemies of God.
b When Jesus cast the demons out they went into a herd of hogs. Jesus gave them permission. And coming out, the unclean spirits entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, about two thousand of them; and they were drowned in the sea. Mark 5:13 (NASB)
aa Why? Hated God’s creation?
bb Probably to get the townspeople upset with Jesus (enemies).
cc "Jesus just killed 2,000 hogs. Lock up your cattle, sheep, crops...there’s no telling what He will do next." That was their plan
B The devil that really hated humankind 2,000 years ago still really hates our guts.
1 The ol’ serpent is still doing anything/everything he can to stop people from seeing Jesus for who He really is.
a The devil’s mission in to get every soul he can to tell Jesus what the Gardenes told him in v. 29, "depart."
aa "If you give your heart to Jesus, you’re in for a rough life, persecution, boring, no fun, no friends. Jesus would do you more harm than good. Send Him away." LIE
bb People still prefer swine over the Savior, pigs over people
cc The herdsmen lost 2,000 hogs, money; but two men got their lives back (good trade-off for Jesus. People over pigs).
b The devil wants us to value pigs (property) over people
2 The good news is that the devil can’t even kill a hog without God’s O.K. The demons began to entreat Him, saying, "If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine."
a The devil is not all-powerful. He’s limited!
aa He hates you, your family, your church
bb He’d kill everyone of us if his malice toward humankind were not limited by God.
b God will (& does) allow the devil to rage against us on occasion.
aa Never for the sole purpose of causing us pain for pain’s sake
bb Always with purpose
C Job’s story of torment at the hands of the devil are known the world over.
1 The devil, with God’s permission, took Job’s family, fortune, health, but not his faith!
2 The devil, in spite of his evil & power, cannot pluck a hair off your head without God’s O.K. Never has...never will!
TS: The devil is not a fairy tale, but rather he is a real being, real angry at real believers.
II The second warning we can heed by which Jesus’ presence is assured in our lives is...Jesus will leave when asked. 33 The herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs. 34 And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region.
A Jesus came to their town to bring them good news
1 The townspeople, upon hearing of the exorcism of the two men, should have received Jesus as a hero.
a Should see a mini-triumphal entry, healing services, revival meetings, but we don’t.
b A crowd more concerned with pigs than people, swine than the Savior.
2 They told Jesus to depart & Jesus did something incredible
a Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city. He left!
b When Jesus showed up, the demons fled, what got rid of Him? Jesus just had to be asked.
B We all struggle with sin in areas of our lives (caramel, Camels, sex, Seagram’s, mouth, motives).
1 Jesus wants to release us, set us free
a "No, thanks, Jesus"
b If you really want to help somebody, go to the person 3 pews up on the right.
2 The devil wants you to send Jesus away!
a Without Jesus...you’re living without power, word
b He can’t steal your salvation, but he can steal...
aa Effectiveness, joy, peace, prayer
bb He’ll get you anyway he can
c "The devil always has a ship ready for anyone who wants to sail away from God."~Billy Graham
C (IL) One night an Arab had settled in for the night and had just fallen asleep when his camel stuck its head in his tent and explained that it was awful cold and asked permission to just stick its legs inside the tent to keep them warm. The Arab granted permission and went back to sleep. A little while later the camel woke him again and asked permission to stick its head in. This continued through the night until the Arab awoke to find the entire camel in the tent with him. When he told the camel there was just not enough room in the tent for both of them, the camel suggested that the Arab may want to leave. That is exactly what Satan does. He slips into our lives a little at a time and one day we wake up and, alarmed, we tell him that there is just not enough room for both he and Jesus in our lives. Then the devil suggests that Jesus might want to leave.
Conclusion:
A (ETS) The townspeople would rather have their swine than the Savior. (ESS) Many people value property more than God’s deliverance
1 We’ve looked at two warnings we can heed by which Jesus’ presence is assured in our lives.
a The devil is real
b Jesus will leave when asked
2 (OBJ) I want my listener to know how easy it is to send Jesus out of your everyday life.
a The devil is real
b Asking Jesus to leave or stay
B What do the warnings mean to you?
1 (IL) There was a certain old recluse who lived deep in the mountains of Colorado. When he died, distant relatives came from the city to collect his valuables. Upon arriving, all they saw was an old shack with an outhouse beside it. Inside the shack, next to the rock fireplace, was an old cooking pot and his mining equipment. A cracked table with a three-legged chair stood guard by the tiny window, and a kerosene lamp served as the centerpiece for the table. In a dark corner of the little room was a dilapidated cot with a threadbare bedroll. They picked up a few of the relics and began to leave. As they were driving away, an old friend of the recluse flagged them down. "Do you mind if I help myself to what’s left in the cabin?" he asked. "Go right ahead." they replied. After all, what inside the shack could be worth anything? The old friend entered the shack and walked directly over to the table. He pulled up a floorboard underneath the table. He then removed all the gold his friend had discovered over 53 years-enough to build a palace. The recluse died with only his friend knowing his true worth. As the friend looked out the window at the cloud of dust behind the relatives’ car disappear he said, "They should have gotten to know him better."
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Respectfully,
Mike Fogerson
