They were fearful and amazed

Luke 8:22-39 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out. ²³ But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger. ²⁴ They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. ²⁵ And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”

²⁶ Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. ²⁷ And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. ²⁸ Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.” ²⁹ For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. ³⁰ And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. ³¹ They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.

³² Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. ³³ And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴ 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. ³⁸ But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying, ³⁹ “Return to your house and describe what great things God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

I am often surprised at one of the primary responses people had to Jesus. In today’s text when Jesus rebuked the wind and the waves, it says of the disciples: They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?” Again after Jesus had driven the legion of evil spirits from the demon possessed man, the text tells us of the towns people: 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;    What is it about the demonstration of Jesus miraculous power that made people fearful?

One of the primary reasons both the disciples and many people today fear the miraculous is that it is beyond human comprehension. We tend to fear what we don’t understand. In Luke 5, when Jesus tells the disciples to let down their nets the magnitude of the catch causes Peter to say: “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!” ⁹ For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken     Along with the fear of what we don’t understand, there is also a recognition that when we experience the miraculous we are experiencing something that is greater than we are. For many people having to acknowledge that someone or something is greater than they are is a very uncomfortable thing. In the case of God, to acknowledge His power and authority means that we are then subject to Him. Many people today deny Jesus for this same reason, they realize to acknowledge who He is, is to acknowledge that He is Lord.  

In the case of the people of Gerasenes it seems that what they really feared was the change that would come with receiving Jesus. It would seem that the demon possessed man offered plenty of reason for them to fear. The text says: a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. … it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. The text paints a pretty fearful image of this man, so out of control, he had to be bound and guarded, yet  so powerful that he would break the chains and shackles. Certainly this man was a problem, not someone you wanted to be around.  As fearful as the demon opossessed man was, the people were more afraid of the change that might happen in their own lives through Jesus presence than they were of the man and the demons.

Fear of change is one of the greatest hindrances to receiving Christ for many people. Regardless of how bad things may be, often people are more comfortable remaining where they are than changing. People who have spent significant time in prison are one of the greatest examples of that. Very often if they are given their freedom they will intentionally do something to return to what is familiar, even when that is prison. In the same way the fear of change, the fear of having to leave what is familiar will hold people in the bondage of addiction and sin. It will cause a person to return to or remain in an abusive situation.

When the people of Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave, the text says: and He got into a boat and returned. Jesus did not force Himself on them and He will not force Himself on anyone today.  The beginning of Jesus ministry is recorded in Luke 4:14-21. It says:     Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. ¹⁵ He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. ¹⁶ He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, ¹⁷ and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free, ¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”²⁰ Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. ²¹ He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”         Jesus came to set people free from prisons and oppression. Love was the reason Jesus came.  For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.(John 3:16) There is no reason to fear Jesus, He came not to be oppressive and take away freedom as some people fear, but rather He came for freedom, He came because of the perfect love of God. 1 John 4:18 says: There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.

Revelation 21:8 says: the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which  burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.     Fear and unbelief cause people to remain where they are, bound to all the sin of human nature. That’s why they are at the top of this list. Jesus is not to be feared. He says: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.(John 10:10) In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says: "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

 Proverbs 9:10 says: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.    It is normal and natural that we would initially fear the Lord. He is beyond human comprehension, far above what we can imagine. But, that fear should not separate us from God, we should not ask Him to leave us. Rather, as we get to know Him, as we understand His love, His compassion, His gentleness and grace, we come to know that He is not to be feared. Jeremiah 31:3 says: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit thank You for Your everlasting love, Your perfect love. Thank You for loving me so much that Christ died to set me free. I freely choose to yoke myself to You, through submission to the Holy Spirit, so I might live the abundant life, the free life You have given. Amen.