Luke 8:26-39
26 They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes,[a] which is across the lake from Galilee. 27 When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don't torture me!" 29 For Jesus had commanded the evil[b] spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places.
30 Jesus asked him, "What is your name?"
"Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him. 31 And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.
32A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into them, and he gave them permission. 33 When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
34 When those tending the pigs saw what had happened, they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, 35 and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 36 Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured. 37 Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left.
38 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 "Return home and tell how much God has done for you." So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.
As you struggle with the meaning of these words for today, I would share with you these words from Richard P. Carlson, who writes in the New Proclamation series.
“Preaching on demon possession and exorcisms in a postmodern era is never an easy task. Yet powers of evil are still in existence (be they political, social, or economic in nature) that seek to dominate, isolate, and alienate their victims. At times such powers can even try to negotiate with the church, to strike a deal so that if the church does not name them and their tyranny of oppression, then the powers will leave the church alone.
This story, however, announces anew that the mission of the gospel includes liberation, wholeness, and restoration. In naming the powers of evil that hold others in captivity. The gospel seeks to bestow status, peace, and belonging to community. Perhaps the greatest challenge in proclaiming this text is not in demythologizing its demonic elements but in having the courage to name the powers that seek to enslave people for their own ends and in announcing anew the liberation that Jesus' mission of wholeness and restoration brings to the captives of today's world.”
Richard P. Carlson
Another quote from New Proclamation, Year C, 2010, p. 111
“The man (demon possessed) is completely separated - culturally, socially, and geographically- from his own people. Thus, once again we find Jesus reaching out to one on the margins, and here we encounter marginalization to the extreme. The man is not only a social outcast, but a spiritual pariah. He is a Gentile, and one controlled by a legion ofd Satan’s forces. Yet even to one such as this, God’s gift of salvation is freely given.” Karl Allen Kuhn
No comments:
Post a Comment