Sunday, June 23rd, 2013
Trinity Anglican Church, Bradford, ON
The Rev. Daniel F. Graves
Text: Luke 8:26-39
If we believe that Christ has set us free, that Christ
brings us new life, and that we have that life in abundance, then what does it
truly mean to be free, and to live in abundance and joy? St. Luke tells us of a man possessed of
demons. The demons that lived within him had robbed him of his freedom and of
his life. We are told that he no longer
lived amongst his community. He did not live in a house, but in the tombs. We are told that he wore no clothing, but
went about naked. We are told that when
he lost control, people would chain him, but the demons within were so strong that
they could not be contained. No one
could do anything for him. He was a man
without a home, without a community, without dignity, without a future – he had
been robbed of his life. He had been a
man of the people, a man of the city, and now he was alone with his demons,
living as if in hell, living and yet not living at all, residing in the tombs
as if he were already dead.
And yet, even as he struggled with the thousand demons that
robbed him of his life, his dignity, and his joy, he was not without hope. Perhaps it was a only a shred of hope that he
clung to, but it was hope, nonetheless, for when Jesus set foot in his country,
he ran to him and fell down before the Lord.
But the man could not even form his own words. It was the demons who spoke, whose words
formed on his lips. These demons feared Jesus. They feared the man to whom
their host had brought them, for they knew that he was more than a man, that he
was the son of the Most High God! And so
they shouted and spewed at Jesus, “what have you to do with me?” and then
begged him, “Do not torment me.”
The demons knew true power when they saw it. For years they had tormented this poor man
who had been their host. For years they had robbed him of his life and
joy. For years they had used and abused him. But when that man struggled against them, and
brought them to Jesus, they cowered as if powerless. They tried to make a deal with Jesus, for
they knew he had the power to bind them and send them into the abyss, whence
they had come. They asked him to free them
and find them another host -- perhaps that heard of swine over yonder. We don’t often think of Jesus as a trickster,
but trick them he did. He allowed the demons to enter the herd, and
immediately, the herd charged over a cliff to their deaths. Now, you may ask, what happened to the
demons? A demon without a host his
robbed of its power, and hurled into the abyss.
What of the man who had been possessed of this legion of
demons?
He was free. Not only
was he free, he was so thankful to Jesus that he wanted to become a disciple
and follow him. Jesus granted rather
that he should be his follower, but not as wandering missionary, but in his
home country. What did people discover
about this man when they saw him afresh? They found him clothed, and returned
to his home. Jesus gave him back all
that he had lost, and more! Not only did
this man regain his dignity, not only did he regain his home, and his
community, but he was given the good news to share with those he loved. Jesus would not restore his freedom only to
enslave him again. Jesus did not demand
that he leave his mother and his brothers and follow him (as he had done with
others), rather, he commanded him to return home and spread the joy of his
freedom, the joy of his liberation, the joy of his salvation with those he
loved dearest and best.
What does it mean for us to find freedom and new life in
Christ? For some it will mean a journey
into an unknown land, for others it will mean a transformed life in their own
country, but for both, it means freedom from the demons that threaten to rob us
of life, liberty, and joy. When Jesus
cast demons from Mary Magdalene, she became part of his retinue, a partner in
his itinerant ministry. When Jesus cast demons from the Gerasene man, he became
a witness in his home town to all Jesus had done. Both had their demons, and each had their own
special calling in the kingdom of God. What
is clear in both cases though, is that they could not rid themselves of their
demons, they needed Jesus. The most they
could do, in their struggle with what possessed them and robbed them of life
was to fall down at the feet of Jesus. And when they took that risk, when they
used their last remaining strength to fall down before the Lord, the demons
cowered before the Most High, and left them.
Whether our demons be of the spiritual kind or of any other
sort, they cower before Jesus. Jesus has
the power to heal us and deliver us from the demons we host within
ourselves. There are the demons of our
broken history, both personal and cultural.
There are the demons of bigotry.
There are the demons of unhealthy desire and lust. There are the demons of avarice and greed. There are the demons of abuse and neglect. There
are the demons of unforgiveness. But these demons all cower before the God of
love and peace. They cower before the
power of the gentleness and tenderness. They cower before the power that
defeats sin on the cross and death amongst the tombs. They cower before Jesus. God’s healing power is there for all, but
there is one other detail in these stories that must never be forgotten, each
of these people comes to Jesus, or when they are too ill to do so themselves, a
loved one brings them to him.
We cannot save ourselves; only Christ saves us. However, we must want to be saved. We must
want the demons cast out. How many of us
have known people who seem happy in their misery, who seem to take joy in the
demons that haunt their lives? How many
of us have even wallowed in the delight of misery from time-to-time. For those who delight in misery, who take pride
in the demons that haunt them … well, I will not venture to guess what will
come of them, but Scripture is clear about those who come to Jesus. Can it be expressed any better than in his
own words, “Come unto me all ye who weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I
shall give you rest”? Everyone who comes
to Jesus, who brings their demons before him, will meet a Lord who gives them
rest. What he gives each of us might be
very different, and to be sure, as the demons are cast out, we may learn we have
certain crosses to bear, but these crosses lead us to new life, not the tombs.
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