Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you

 

 Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time.  And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.  For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.  Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?"  And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.  

 

Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain.  So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them.  And He permitted them.  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.  

 

When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear.  And He got into the boat and returned.  Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him.  But Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

 

- Luke 8:26–39 

 

On Saturday, we read that Jesus taught, "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."  Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."  Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"

 

  Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time.  And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.  For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.  Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?"  And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.  My study Bible comments that these demons recognize Jesus as the Son of the Most High God.  Notice that the demons speak through the man, saying, "I beg You, do not torment me!" when clearly this man, occupied by a legion of demons, is tormented by them himself.  A Roman legion consisted of over 5,000 men divided into ten cohorts, so we can imagine what this name "Legion" meant at the time the Gospels were written -- at a time when the Roman Empire had expanded to its largest extent.  The text describes the man's torment under this legion of demons:  it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.   His life is in such a miserable isolated state that he wore no clothes and lived among the dead in the tombs.  

Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain.  So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them.  And He permitted them.  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.  My study Bible comments that, although the malice of these demons is great, they can do nothing against the will of God.  Therefore, they can only enter the herd of many swine if Christ permitted them.  The immediate destruction of these swine, my study Bible says, shows that the man had been protected by God's care.  Otherwise, he would have perished under the demonic influence.  Additionally, it reinforces that swineherding was not lawful for the Jews -- plus it shows the incomparable vale of human beings, whose salvation is worth every sacrifice.  There are those who say that the presence of the swine indicates a Gentile population.  But, my study Bible comments, since our Lord forbade His disciples to go to the Gentiles (Matthew 10:5) and was Himself reluctant to seek out the Gentiles (Matthew 15:24), it's likely that these were Jews engaged in a sinful occupation.  

 

When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear.  And He got into the boat and returned.  Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him.  But Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.    My study Bible comments that the magnitude of the economic loss of the herd of swine would remain as a sign for the hard-hearted people who fled the region.  Their response is simply to treat Jesus with great fear, clearly caring more for their economic loss rather than the marvelous healing of this man who had suffered so extremely.  Note that although this man has no community among these people who simply want to banish Jesus, Christ Himself appoints a place for him, and a good mission:  "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And so he did.

Lately I have been reading a lot and pondering quite a bit over the idea of giving thanks.  How important is gratitude in our lives?  Some say that the whole of our well-being depends upon how able we are to give thanks, or not.  How do we experience gratitude, and what are we grateful for?  Is it possible that without his horrible "occupation" by a legion of demons, this man never would have known Christ?  It's very strange indeed how Christ comes straight across the Sea of Galilee, and through a very frightening storm of wind and waves in which the disciples thought they were perishing, to come to this one man.  What loneliness it must have been, living among the tombs, unable even to wear clothes, and tormented night and day by a legion of demons!  It is almost a metaphorical image of a child subject to terrible abuse, the isolation and torment that he would have survived.  Certainly the "hard-hearted" (as my study Bible describes them) people around him cared little that he was cured, finding the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.   They had no use for him, but the swine were their livelihood (likely Jews selling to a Gentile market in this region of mixed populations), and that's what they cared about.   So this man is saved, but wants to go on with Jesus, because there is seemingly no tie for him here where people do not care for his life and salvation.  It seems they were happier when he lived among the dead and with the daily terrible punishment and torment of the demons.  But Jesus finds a place for him, an honored place -- he becomes a kind of evangelist under Christ's direction.  This is the saving nature of Christ's command, which brings this man beyond the lack of mercy of such people, and under Christ's authority,  "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  So he does:  and he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.   A good mission, a good identity, under the saving yoke of Christ, who is gentle and lowly in heart.  Indeed, we may presume that sooner or later, he will come under the care of the Church to come, and remain a disciple.  Surely we can imagine the gratitude this man feels to Christ, who singled him out enough to come across the sea to save him.  But what of his early life experiences?  Perhaps to find this singular place in the Gospels, a man who had demons for a long time, and who survived to tell of the great things Jesus had done for him, the first from his region to proclaim this good news, experienced a tragic beginning.  For some of us who have survived harmful things, this may be the best story of all, and with the best outcome -- the truth of Christ's saving redemption from the callous to a life of dedication and mission and belonging, to the unique identity only He can give.