Scripture to Read: Luke 8:34-37
The demons had come out of the man, went into the herd of pigs, and the pigs were all drowned. God had Luke record what happened next in Luke 8:34–37, “When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and out in the country. 35 The people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened. 36 Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well. 37 And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat and returned.” The herdsmen lost all their pigs, the people came out to see, and when they saw the demon-possessed man healed, they did not rejoice but instead were filled with fear. They didn’t ask Jesus to stay but to leave. The people were more afraid of what Jesus might do in their lives than what the demons had done in their midst for a long time. The demons showed their true nature (John 10:10) by killing the pigs. They wanted to kill the man, but that man, like all of us, was made in God’s image. They stole his life for a time and destroyed things around him, but they couldn’t kill him.
Challenge & Application
Why did the people send Jesus away, and why do people continue to turn away from Him today?
The enemy is here to steal, kill, and destroy, so, how are you sharing life so others might live (John 10:10)?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!