Reflection on Luke 8:26-39

The friend asked him if he could pick him up a couple of things while he was at the Lowe's. That was all. It was a simple request. He would even provide the money in advanced. But, the guy went off anyway. Like the click of a door knob in a house filled with leaking natural gas, the guy just went off on his friend; accusing of taking advantage, accusing of intruding on his life, accusing of simply existing.

“Dude chill. I just asked you to pick up a lighting switch and some bulbs at Lowe's for me. What’s up?” the friend asked.

And that is when the guy broke down. Where to start? With the finances becoming impossible? With the constant calls of the bill collectors like a constant mantra that says, “You are a loser.” With the kids? With the parents always wanting you over more? With the wife wondering when you will be home sometime when she knows full well that you are trying to keep everyone afloat? With the fact that you are so depressed that you can not even move from the television? And, that is not the end. That is just the introduction to the class “My Sucky Life 101.”

His problems are legion. One thing he can handle. Just set your mind to it and you can fix it. Maybe two things could be handled without too much difficulty. But, 96 different crisis for one life is just too much. He is going crazy…literally being driven mad by stress. He knows things are bad. People treat him specially now. Like someone with a mental illness, they are short and polite with their conversations with him, and they make sure to walk at least five feet from where he is standing. They do not want to be hit by some random piece of sucky life orbiting around his body. He is quarantined away from the world.

Now, there was a man in the country of the Gerasenes who was also quarantined away by the community because he was beleaguered by demons. Now, I do not know exactly what the ancients meant when they said a person was overwhelmed by a whole legion of demons, but I imagine that having multiple internal voices telling you that “you should do this,” “you should get that done,” “you suck because you forgot that,” “don’t forget this” is at least a low grade version of being possessed by a legion of demons. I mean, is not the definition of being possessed by a legion of demons: “having little control over your life because outside forces have invaded and are now dictating your actions.” Become a day late with one payment to a credit card and you are well on your way to demon possession.  You know what it means to have your actions dictated by the outside world.

“Just chain us up now because we are likely to blow at any time.”

“Wait, did I just refer to myself in the plural? Symptom number two!”

The problem with demon possession, in both the literal and the non literal senses is that it not only stresses out the brain and the body, but it focuses life on just one person…"myself." This is not a moral judgment; just the reality. It affects everyone one around. They must adapt their lives to either aid you or stay clear of you. People start to depend on your legion of problems to either build a fulfilling life of helping you, or depend on you as a person upon whom all blame can safely rest so that they do not have to deal with their own demons. It is very debilitating. When I look around at many people today, I see debilitated people. I see people who are tied to a legion of demons either by direct possession or in a supporting role of some sort.

Into this world of debilitation, Jesus comes along.  He sees the man who is driven mad by his legion of demons.  Rather than staying clear of the orbiting bits of suckiness, Jesus steps right into the man's life, stretches out his hands and “heals” the man from his legion of problems. More than heals, Jesus saves the man from his legion of problems. Jesus casts the demons into a group of swine who then immediately drown themselves, and the man is free.  He is free from the burdens and stress that a legion creates.  He is free to simply sit at Jesus' feet and listen.  Free.

And, you thought that having a hog farm built right next door to your property was problematic! You cannot possibly want to get rid of it; that stinky place just may be your future salvation!

Now, when people see that the man has been healed and is now sitting at Jesus' feet (in his right mind), one would assume that people would be amazed at what had happened.  Of course, one would be wrong to assume that.

Instead, people responded to Jesus' healing of the legion of demons with fear and anger. They drive Jesus out of town, asking that he never come again and heal. It is strange, but the truth of the matter is, healing has a tendency to upset everything. What if everyone was given a break on their loans by being given 0% or even 3% or 5%?  The nation's economy would collapse! Or, at least people fear it would! It would be as if a preacher came and drove your town’s entire herd of swine into the sea.  Healing comes at a cost.

We should have guessed this.  Since a person's illness affects everyone else around, it would be stupid of us to assume that healing and salvation would not affect everyone equally as hard.  When a person with alcohol addiction goes off for treatment and then comes back, they very often find that their problems have not gotten better, instead they have just begun.  There were people who needed him or her to be sick so that they could be the responsible people and help him or her.  There are the people who needed him or her to be sick so that they could lay the blame of all of their own problems on him or her.  Healing disrupts people's lives and sometimes causes many new problems.  Healing comes at a cost.

But, just as illness starts a domino effect of more illness, healing...tough as it may be...can also start a domino effect of more healing.  Those who depended on him or her to be sick, can learn to help others who truly need the assistance.  Those who depended on him or her to be sick, can start looking at their own problems and find true healing for their own legion of problems.

Healing may come at a cost, but healing is healing, and wholeness is wholeness. There is no need to fear Jesus' presence. There is no need to fear Jesus' healing. Trust the healing and then allow the dominoes to fall where they will. Share what Jesus has done for you. Go and share that Jesus has brought healing.

 
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.