They arrived at the other side of the lake, at the region of the Gerasenes. 2 As Jesus stepped ashore, a demon-possessed madman came out of the graveyard and confronted him. 3 The man had been living there among the tombs of the dead, and no one was able to restrain him, not even with chains. 4 For every time they attempted to chain his hands and feet with shackles, he would snap the chains and break the shackles in pieces. He was so strong that no one had the power to subdue him. 5 Day and night he could be found lurking in the cemetery or in the vicinity, shrieking and mangling himself with stones!
6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran to him and threw himself down before him, 7 screaming out at the top of his lungs, “Leave me alone, Jesus, Son of the Most High God! Swear in God’s name that you won’t torture me!” 8 (For Jesus had already said to him, “Come out of that man, you demon spirit!”)
9 Jesus said to him, “What is your name?”
“Mob,” he answered. “They call me Mob because there are thousands of us in his body!” 10 He begged Jesus repeatedly not to expel them out of the region.
11 Nearby there was a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside. 12 The demons begged him, “Send us into the pigs. Let us enter them!”
13 So Jesus gave them permission, and the demon horde immediately came out of the man and went into the pigs! This caused the herd to rush madly down the steep slope and fall into the lake, drowning about two thousand pigs!Depending on weight, the cost of two thousand live pigs today could be as much as $250,000. The economic cost to the community over the loss of this herd was significant.
Tori's Comments:
Who do we have to fear? The culture around us instigates a large fear of the unexplainable and supernatural. It wouldn't take much channel surfing to find a show that exemplifies this. But we? We have no fear! Jesus gave us authority over the evil spirits with the Holy Spirit working through us.
Terrie's Comments:
To Jesus the value of one man's life was far greater than the worth of a whole herd of pigs. Jesus came to set the captives free at a great cost to himself. He left heaven and chose to live within the limitations of human flesh. He was mocked, beaten, scorned, spit on, and killed by his own creation. He knew the cost but our lives to him are so valuable it was worth it.
Day 20
- Read Luke 2:41-51
- When hanging Christmas lights, talk about Jesus being the light of the world.
- Cook dinner for someone
- Take a car tour of your city's lights
We have a praise music list that we add to on a regular basis. You can find the link to it in the right hand column of this blog or by scrolling to the bottom of this page. We also have a Christmas list which you will find in the right hand column as well :-)
Take our personal comments or leave them. We would love to hear what stood out to you about today`s passage and how it encouraged you. Tell us in the comments below!
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