In this series, we have been talking about the church. Many people distance themselves from the church and think that church matters are not their matters. But we must realize that we, the believers, are the church and we must hold onto the church. The church is a body of those saved by God’s grace. A thriving church is the most wonderful thing on earth.

That being said, there is no such thing as a perfect church. Each church has its negative aspects and consists of imperfect members. This is reality, no church is perfect. While there is still sin in this world, sin will also be found in the church. But there are churches that are thriving. They are united in their kingdom work and they are growing in both faith and numbers. They faithfully follow the Apostles and the Lord Jesus Christ(1 Thessalonians 2:5-6).

Last week, we learned that the thriving church is bold and striving. They are not ashamed of the gospel but firmly proclaim Jesus as the only way to be saved (Romans 1:16). A true church sincerely believes there is nothing more precious and wonderful than the gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore, they labor hard to be used by God. We cannot change men’s hearts but we can be God’s tools which he uses to minister to the world. Even being thrown into prison did not deter the early church from working together to share the gospel (Acts 4:23).

The gospel is holy. In 1 Thessalonians 2:3, Paul explains that his gospel did not come from error, impurity, or deceit. Their teaching was not false or heretical. Even though he was not part of the original 12 disciples and had a past of persecuting the church, he still preached the true gospel under the commission of Jesus (Acts 9:15). Apostle Paul taught with pure motives, only desiring the salvation of all sinners everywhere (Romans 9:2-3). His laboring and proclaiming was a genuine love for the Lord and the lost. Paul never worked for money or any earthly gain (1 Timothy 6:10, Philippians 3:8).

The point is that Apostle Paul was a holy man because of the gospel. The gospel causes a man to be holy in the first place but is also continually sanctifying a man in practical holiness. Holiness is different from morality. Holiness comes from God. It is the conformity of one’s heart, mind, and actions to God’s word. God is holy, without sin or defect, completely apart from all created things. The church too is called out of the world to be holy. Holiness is not merely being a nice and good person. It is a practice of what God desires and neglect of what he hates.

How can we be holy? It begins with being washed by the blood of Jesus. Practical holiness begins with the complete justification of Jesus Christ.

Why does the church need to be holy? Because it is the will of God (1 Thessalonians 4:3). We’re always wondering what the will of God is. The will of God could not be more clear to the believer. It is to be holy. If you are not pursuing holiness, then you are resisting the will of God. If you are not holy and have no interest in holiness, if you have been a slave to sin for a long time, then you should question your salvation. Before you were a Christian, you were dead in your sins, but now you have the life of Jesus. Jesus’ holy life is transferred to you. Does it make sense that this wonderful new eternal life gifted to you in Jesus Christ would not be holy? A dark and sinful life is the very thing Jesus rescued us from by dying on the cross as a blameless sacrifice. A holy life is what we are given and what we are saved to.

The thriving church is holy because God and His people are holy. The Old Testament can be summarized as “God is holy”. The New Testament can be summarized as “So are we”. The church is so wonderfully blessed. We are called the children of God. There is nothing quite like the church. It is a heavenly family where the holy God is our Father and we are His most precious children. At the foundation of this purest and good relationship is holiness.

We must not only be holy because God is holy, but also because impurity ruins the reputation of both God and the church (1 Corinthians 5:1,5). This is a really tragic problem in churches today. Especially the immorality happening in many churches today. Sin and a lack of holiness rob the church of its power. The strength of the church and its power to influence the world around it is rooted in holiness. A holy church can face persecution and even death because it knows that holiness is worth more than the comforts of this world. Remember Jesus resisting Satan’s temptations in the wilderness and Apostle Paul who claimed to “To live is Christ, and to die is gain”. (Philippians 1:21).

Holiness must be our first priority. We must be in our Bibles every day to learn and obey. We must follow Christ. We are called to be the salt and light of the world. It is of utmost importance that we diligently pursue holiness in this world. The church has failed miserably in epic proportions. Satan has succeeded in tempting so many Christians. Without being holy we are not pleasing God nor are we following His will. It doesn’t matter how big your church is and what it has accomplished. The church must be holy.

When going through suffering, if we do not wish to perish, we must follow the Word of God (Psalm 119:92). A holy person delights in the word of God. With a sincere interest in God’s word, we know who God is. We are convinced and convicted by God’s word that His word is the truth, that Jesus is more important and more valuable than anything, and to follow Him is the right and only thing to do. Only Jesus saves us and can lead us in this dark world. How can you survive in this foolish and corrupt society? Only by trusting in God’s word. A holy church that rests in God’s word can fight and overcome this evil world.

So ask yourself every day, am I following Jesus? Is my life conforming to His likeness? Remember a thriving church is a holy church. Our God is above all and is the true and living God. He is the holy God and we are his church.

The Thessalonian church was an exemplary thriving church. This passage from Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians teaches us the characteristics of a faithful church. 

The thriving church is a fearless church.

Although Paul and Silas endured severe persecution because of the gospel, they were bold to continue sharing the gospel with the Thessalonians. Paul’s boldness came from his union with Christ (Eph 3:12) and the Thessalonians imitated him in his bravery to speak out the gospel.

We need to be reminded of the gospel every day. The gospel achieved for us what we could never do ourselves- it made us right with God. To be bold is to be willing to speak out the gospel despite any opposition or persecution. This kind of boldness comes from Jesus. Is your union with Christ operating in your life every day to be bold with the gospel?

The thriving church is a striving church. 

The Thessalonian church imitated Paul and Silas by laboring relentlessly. They strived by being fervent in prayer. Prayer cultivates your spirit amid any physical hardships. If you desire to be a faithful church member, you must pray earnestly every day. Paul, Silas, and the Thessalonians also strived by being deeply devoted to Christ. They put aside all spiritual encumbrances and prioritized Jesus over all things. Faithful churches today- especially those that face harsh persecution- thrive because they are willing to lose everything for the sake of Christ. 

Like the Thessalonians, we have been saved by the same gospel and have received the same commission to boldly make disciples of all nations. Let us strive to be fearless and faithful to deliver the life-giving gospel message to the lost. 

Death is a reality and happens every day. In the case of the death of Jairus’ daughter, she died like any other person in history. But Jesus raised her up and she became alive immediately at his command. In the same manner, there is spiritual death all around. Everyone is born a sinner, separated from God, and spiritually dead. Jesus is the only person that can deliver the spiritually dead by raising them up to spiritual life. This makes Jesus the indisputable deliverer as demonstrated in raising up Jairus’ daughter.

Every person is born in sin and cannot separate themselves from it and its power. The power of sin prevents most people from believing in Jesus Christ. But Christ redeems us from the power of sin and became the curse for us as our substitute (Gal. 3:13). For this reason, Jesus is our guarantee to the Father as the indisputable Savior.

After Jesus raised Jairus’ daughter from death, he also shows himself as Lord of all things as he provides food to eat. Jesus commands something to be given to her to eat (v 55). By doing this, Jesus demonstrates himself to be the indisputable Shepherd who puts his children under his care. All must seek the care of the Lord Jesus Christ for both their spiritual and physical needs. The Lord provides abundantly to those he gives life (Jn. 10:10b; Ps. 23:1). The Lord Jesus sees all sinners as living without a Shepherd and is compassionate (Matt. 9:36). Without the Shepherd, people live in darkness and in constant danger.

Jesus is not only a Shepherd to those that believe in him, but he is the faithful Shepherd. Before the foundation of the world, the Lord knew his sheep and came down from heaven to die for them (Rom. 5:8).

Jesus is also the knowledgeable Shepherd. The Lord knows the needs of his sheep and gives according to his perfect will. In the end, not only does he provide everything believers need, but he also knows what is best for them. Even though sometimes it is hard to understand what God may be doing in a believer’s life, Christians must trust him because he is the omniscient Shepherd.

Moreover, Jesus is the diligent Shepherd. Even earthly parents are unable to care for their children 24/7 and know all their thoughts and needs. But the Lord is diligent to seek out his sheep by protecting and providing for them.

The Lord instructs the girl’s parents not to tell anyone what had happened (v 56). What is the reason here? Jesus raised the dead and he did not want anyone to seek him solely as a faith healer. This kind of seeking prevents people from seeking a Savior to save them from their sins, but only desire physical healing. Jesus did not want to be misunderstood as he witnessed many withdrawing and not walking with him after a while (Jn. 6:66).

God desires all to know Jesus exactly for who he is – Savior and Lord. Throughout history, many attempted to paint Jesus as something else. Some religions claim that Jesus is not enough to save (I.e., Jesus plus works). Jesus alone indisputably shows he alone is enough to save as the Deliverer, Shepherd, and only Savior.

A messenger came to deliver the tragic news that Jairus’ daughter had just died. Imagine how Jairus must have felt. It was too late now. If only Jesus had not stopped to restore the sick woman. In this moment of deep sorrow and despair, Jesus speaks to Jairus. He comforts this grieving father, telling Jairus not to fear but believe. 

They arrive at Jairus’ home and there are mourners weeping. This means they are preparing for the daughter’s burial.  There is no hope in this situation where death has already come. No matter how sick, as long as she was alive, there might have been hope for healing. But death is understood as final. Yet Jesus is the indisputable Deliver and He will prove He is the Lord of Lords and King of kings. That not even death can withstand Jesus’ saving power.

Like the mourners, many doubt Jesus is the Son of God and the Bible as Word of God. They test and challenge the Scriptures for the sake of philosophy and science. They might acknowledge a historical Jesus who was a good teacher but they deny the Biblical Jesus. Yet the Bible is true and God’s Word will never be broken. It is only through the Bible we know who Jesus is, the indisputable Deliverer who has conquered sin and death.

Only Jesus has overcome death. He has raised people from the dead and He raised from death Himself. Jairus’ situation is similar to what happened with Lazarus. Lazarus was very sick yet Jesus didn’t rush to his side to heal him. Only after Lazarus died, did Jesus go. Martha said if only Jesus had come sooner, her brother might not have died. However, Jesus’ intention was, ‘This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it’ (John 11:4).

The girl died after being very sick. We must realize, sickness and the frailty of life is ultimately the result of sin. Sin brought sickness and death to all the world. We all share in our depravity which is also why we will all die one day. However Jesus is the sinless one (Hebrews 4:15). Being without sin, Jesus can deal with sickness and death. Jairus most likely had spent a lot of money to try to heal his daughter but none of them worked. Money cannot overcome sin and depravity. Nothing in this world can stop sin’s ruin and destruction. 

Jesus took her by the hand.(Luke 8:54) He acts with love and power by taking her by the hand. (Exodus 6:6) Jesus then spoke ‘Child, arise’. The dead cannot hear or do anything. Yet by His word, Jesus creates the life of this little girl. Jesus is God in the flesh, equal in power and authority (Colossians 1:16). By taking her lifeless hand and speaking to her, Jesus resurrects Jairus’ back to life. 

In Luke 8:55, it says her spirit returned. This means she’s alive again! A person cannot live without their spirit. No spirit means no life. (Luke 23:46) When Jesus spoke, the spirit returned immediately. (Mark 5:41,42) Every time Jesus raised the dead, they were made alive immediately. The same is for our conversion.  Whoever is touched by Jesus is made alive immediately. Our dead spirits are made alive (Ephesians 2:1). Can you imagine how joyful Jairus was to see his daughter alive again? That is our joy as well when we are saved. 

Why don’t we appreciate God’s salvation fully?

• We take salvation for granted. God makes salvation seem so easy. It is a free gift, so people don’t think it is precious. But salvation comes from an unsearchable and infinite God who gives wonderful and incomprehensible salvation. The truth is, we are all sinners who continually hated God yet God saves us. Even angels are not offered the gospel, yet it is given to us (1 Peter 1:12). The saving work of Jesus is worth more than anything in this world. Nothing can satisfy except for the gospel (Philippians 3:7-8). It is truly the most precious and amazing gift. I pray our appreciation for the gospel grows every day.
• We misunderstand success. Do not be confused as to what true success is. Success is to know God, to have our souls saved and receive eternal life (John 17:3, Matthew 16:26). To put it another way, failure is God’s judgment and eternal punishment in hell. Yet, foolishly, many receive the gospel and then put it aside to pursue earthly success. It is foolish to pursue money or fame to satisfy God’s judgment and our own desires. Only Jesus can fulfill both. That is why the primary blessing of salvation is the full forgiveness of our sins. Every single sin is completely justified through Jesus’ death from the beginning and forever. Since we are now made righteous, we also enjoy a restored relationship with God. God is with us. What more do we need? We must realize this great blessing as we live our lives. 
• We don’t conquer our sins. We are still plagued by the sins we had from our former lives. Once we are saved, we have Jesus and we are able to conquer sin through Him. We cannot be perfect but we have the promise of sanctification. Through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit, we can mortify our sins. 
• We forget our past. We were dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1-3). Our past was not a pleasant past. We act like the Israelites who thought it was better as slaves in Egypt than free in the wilderness heading towards the promised land. Do not yearn for your past. There is nothing good in our hearts there. It was our salvation that gave us hope and a new life. Why would we want to die again?

Therefore, live your life by faith. By faith, we taste the goodness of Jesus’ salvation. Jesus defeated death, conquered sin and rescued us. Abide in Him and your joy will be complete.

Jairus was a ruler of the synagogue, and his predicament was one that no parent would ever want to experience. His young daughter- his only daughter- was dying. He sought Jesus as his only hope to have his daughter healed, but as Jesus delayed due to other encounters amongst the crowd, a messenger came to tell Jairus his daughter had died. Luke’s account of Jesus healing Jairus’ daughter indisputably proves that Jesus is the only Savior. By His faithfulness, spiritual care, and message, we know He alone has the power to save. 

Jesus is faithful.

After receiving news of the death of Jairus’ daughter, Jesus continued making His way through the immense crowd toward Jairus’ home as He had promised. No distractions from the throng of people who desperately desired to see Him kept Him from doing what He had set out to do for Jairus. He was faithful. 

God can never act against His nature and character. Whatever we face, He is with us because He is faithful. The problem is, we often doubt Jesus’ faithfulness. When God seems silent as our life goes awry, we begin to think Jesus overlooks us in our struggles. We have mistakenly determined what is good based on our own severely limited understanding, forgetting that God works all things for good according to His own will and ways. Furthermore, we misunderstand God’s faithfulness by comparing ourselves to others. God has no degrees of faithfulness. He delays with good purpose. We must see this proven in Jairus’ experience and trust God’s faithfulness.

Jesus cares for us.

What utter hopelessness and devastation Jairus must’ve felt when he received news that his daughter was dead. But Jesus immediately reassured him to not be afraid, but only believe. He promised Jairus that his daughter would be well. At that moment, there couldn’t have been a message more caring and timely for Jairus. 

Jesus cares for us. God speaks to our anxious souls through His Word, often giving us the exact message we need to hear. Just as Jesus urged Jairus to only believe in the physical healing of his daughter, what is spiritual becomes material as God’s Word gives us exactly what we need in our lives.

Jesus wants us to experience His message. 

When Jesus arrived at Jairus’ house, He allowed Peter, John, and James to witness the healing of the young girl. Jesus wanted them to see that the heart of healing is salvation, coming by the power of the gospel. In this situation- as with any others- it was not the physical healing that was most significant, but that the healing was a manifestation of salvation. 

Jesus wants us to experience the power of the gospel. If the gospel has not transformed and empowered you, you have not recognized Jesus as the indisputable Savior. The gospel is good news. Jesus satisfied the law by dying on the cross and rising again. All that the law requires, the gospel has been fulfilled. Like Jairus’ daughter, God wants us all to experience the gospel and be healed of our spiritual deadness to rise again by His power. 

In this week’s text, Jesus demonstrates his power to heal in healing “a woman who had suffered a chronic flow of blood for twelve years and could not be healed by anyone” (v 43).  This woman, because of her disease, was a pariah to society. She was considered ceremonially unclean and needed to be cleansed to go to the temple or synagogue. But through her faith, she was healed by the Lord Jesus. Even through everything she has experienced over the past twelve years, she did not lose faith. It was her faith that led her to go into the midst of the crowd to find Jesus and become healed by him. Jesus recognizes what happened and brings attention to this woman whom he honors for her faith.

Jesus honors living, active, and practicing faith; faith that is not dead. Despite the woman’s chronic condition and unable to find healing, her faith led her to find Jesus, and believed she would be healed by touching the fringe of his cloak (v 43b). The word “touch” used here refers to “clutching” or “clinging”. She held on until she would be healed fully believing Jesus was able. Jesus, with the crowd pressing in on him, shows his unlimited availability to heal anyone with this kind of faith.

Even though all Christians are given the gift of faith from God when they are saved, some do not practice their faith always. The main reason why some Christians stop practicing their faith is holding onto idols that compete in their commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. Holiness and sin cannot dwell harmoniously. As all sins have been repented of at conversion, believers must not welcome any idols into their hearts. Holding onto idols is a lack of trust in Christ. Therefore, exercising faith is putting one’s trust in the Lord.

The faith that Jesus honors only comes from the Lord. The result of true saving faith ends up in a saving and ongoing personal relationship with the Lord. When Jesus honors faith in a believer, the result is love and obedience to God’s word. False faith cannot produce obedience. Two common types of false faiths are the Sunday Christian who rarely practices faith in daily life and the active churchgoer who practices lawlessness. Is our life dictated by the self, resulting in unbelief and lawlessness, or the will of God, resulting in righteousness and salvation? This woman is an example of what true saving faith looks like. She entered the narrow gate and continued walking on the narrow path. Jesus affirms her faith and that is what made her well (v 48).

Moreover, Jesus calls the woman his daughter having been adopted into God’s family. The Lord not only confirms her physical healing but also her spiritual healing. Only with the Lord Jesus Christ’s affirmation can one have the assurance of salvation on this side of glory. Today, the Christian’s public water baptism is how the Lord declares one’s faith and salvation.

And as the woman was told to go in peace by the Lord, the Christian also has peace with God and is given strength as they live with the peace of God on this side of glory. This kind of peace is only found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Those that possess this peace unceasingly pray and are known as peacemakers.

There is certain etiquette required while in the presence of the Queen of England. Even when other world leaders visited Queen Elizabeth, they abided by the rules of royalty and kept their manners. Our God is greater and mightier than any king or queen on earth (Rev 4:8, 5:13-14). He also deserves to be treated reverently. When our church gathers we come to worship Him. Sunday church service should not just be the tired old pattern but it is worship to the Almighty God who loves us. Hebrews 10:24 encourages everyone to not just come to church with little expectation but to build up and stimulate one another to love and good deeds. How can we gather in a way that fulfills this purpose? The answer is with joy, humility, and faith.

The first thing we bring to stimulate one another is joy. We are joyful because Christ is risen from the dead. Our Lord is alive and He is with us! He saves us from sin and death! Praise the Lord for the wonderful gift of salvation and eternal life. We are also joyful because Jesus speaks to us through His word. Also, it is the time we meet our brothers and sisters to have blessed fellowship (Psalm 100:2).

In Luke 8:40, the people were waiting for Jesus and welcomed Him. They were joyful to wait and hoped to meet Him. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is listed between love and peace.  Christian joy is not some emotional passion but a mixture of love and peace that is not influenced by outside circumstances. It is different from a worldly joy which is based on circumstances and can never satisfy. The joy of Christ is true and lasting joy. In fact, every Christian is chosen by God to be joyful. He saves us for the purpose of joy, not sorrow. Without Jesus, it is impossible to have joy but as a Christian, it is guaranteed. Every Christian has the Holy Spirit and his fruit is joy. 

Even in suffering, we can still be joyful because we know the outcome of our circumstances is holiness. When our joy is little, we can restore our joy through faith. Through faith we can see God is real and what He is like (Phil 4:8). Joy can be restored by looking at all of God’s past blessings. We have received countless blessings every day. The one supreme blessing that God has given us is Jesus Himself (Romans 8:32). The grace and fullness of Jesus are with us. His promises, His presence, and His life is ours. If we have Jesus, we must be joyful for there is no greater blessing in heaven or on earth. He is the source of joy.

Next, we meet Jairus (Luke 8:41). Jairus is a rich man who was an official of the synagogue. Therefore he has wealth, status, and influence. Yet Jairus falls at Jesus’ feet. Jairus is completely humble before Jesus. Without humility our worship is false (Isaiah 66:2-3, Romans 12:1). To worship God rightly, we must be like Jairus who fell at his feet. It is complete and absolute surrender. Worship is not a negotiation but a surrender. Take heed from what Jesus told the rich young ruler, “One thing you lack” (Mark 10:21). Do not hold onto your pride or things no matter how large or small. From the beginning, you must completely surrender to follow Jesus (Matthew 16:21). Jesus was the first to surrender to God, and He did so for our salvation (Phi 2:7-8). His perfect surrender and righteousness is also ours when we surrender to Him. Remember God is good therefore it is good to surrender to Him.

Lastly we bring faith to worship. Jairus came to Jesus for help by faith. His daughter is dying but Jairus came to Jesus, the only one who could save his daughter. He was waiting for Jesus and welcomed Him by faith. Faith loves Christ. Faith obeys Christ. You cannot worship God without faith. Sacrifices do not mean anything if they lack faith (Isaiah 1:11-13, Romans 14:23). Only by faith can we worship God in a pleasing manner (Hebrews 11:4,6). Faith knows God and believes in all of God’s attributes. Faith will strive and seek God until it receives God’s blessing because it knows who God is (Genesis 32:36).

But we cannot place our faith in the wrong thing. Faith must be in the true gospel. Only by the gospel of Jesus Christ is true faith born. You can understand all the other truths of the Bible or know all the facts about the Bible but without the true gospel, there is no true faith. Even though the eunuch didn’t know much, the eunuch had true faith and went on his way rejoicing because he had received the true gospel (Acts 8:39).

We don’t need other skills, we don’t need things, we don’t need works, we don’t need the help of others. With joy, humility, and faith, we can worship the Lord (1 John 2:27).

The demon-possessed man in the country of the Gerasenes lived in utter hopelessness, devastation, and isolation due to his state. Then he met Jesus, and everything changed. The man became a new creation in Christ. 

What characterizes someone who is in Christ? 

The man from whom the demons had gone showed these three marks as a new creation in Jesus-

Love for Jesus.

Anyone who is in Christ loves Him and prioritizes Him above all else. Love for Jesus is the mainspring of spiritual life. Contrastingly, the absence of love for Jesus is evidence that you are not truly saved. The demon-possessed man knew the difference between being in and out of Christ. His love for Christ revealed a genuine salvation that was born of God, wrought by the Holy Spirit, and it compelled him to desire to be with Jesus. 

What causes love for Jesus?

It is only by the gospel that we could love Jesus because it is only in the gospel that we experience the love of God. In the gospel, Jesus satisfied the wrath of God and overcame death for us. The gospel is essential to remember every day. Our love for Jesus will be directly correlated to our comprehension of the gospel. 

Love for others.

The demon-possessed man loved Christ, and therefore loved others. As a new creation, he was commissioned by Jesus to share the gospel with the lost. Beware- any motivation to share the gospel apart from love for Christ is an act of legalism and self-righteousness. Only those who love Christ and are in Him understand and fulfill their purpose in life to make disciples.

What hinders us from sharing the gospel?

Without prayer, we will have no desire to share the gospel. With more prayer, you would have eyes to see the lost and passion for their souls and for God’s glory. 

Submission to Christ.

If you love Jesus, you love to obey Him. Anyone who is in Christ can obey because they have a new nature that is made in the likeness of Jesus. 

Before we met Christ, we were just like the demon-possessed man. We were in the bondage of sin.  But in Christ, we became a new creation. This is the gospel.  By the gospel, we can maximize our love for Jesus, love for our fellow man, and submission to Jesus. 

The worst sin the Bible speaks of is unbelief. Unbelief is the sin of sins and able to be practiced by anyone. It is a heinous offense to God. Unbelief denies God’s goodness, which is essential to God’s very being, and makes him out to be a liar. Moreover, it is the gateway to all other sins that ultimately lead to destruction.

In today’s passage, unbelief is in full display in the form of pragmatism. After the demons entered the pigs and drowned in the lake, the people from the city and country’s focus were not on Jesus as Lord and Savior. Rather, they became fearful of Christ and still hung onto their unbelief and love for the things of this world. In other words, their eyes could not see Christ’s lordship and their need for repentance and forgiveness as the highest priority. In the same manner, the demon-possessed was set free, they failed to realize their need to be set free from sin; most importantly, their sin of unbelief.

In Christ, our minds are set free as the demon-possessed man came to be in his right mind. Every Christian has been saved from their unbelief and made into a new creation in Christ through salvation, which includes the renewed spirit of their minds. But in the case of the people there, they did not respond in repentance and faith, but rather great fear. In their fear, they asked Jesus to leave (v 37). Even though Jesus brought safety to the region by setting the demon-possessed free, they see Jesus as a greater threat than the man.

What caused this great fear in the people of the territory of the Gerasenes and the surrounding region? They did not want to be near Jesus’ holiness. They would rather be in the presence of Satan than Christ; darkness rather than light. Their sins were exposed, and did they want deliverance? No, they wanted a reason to be as far away as possible from God’s holiness.

Scripture is clear that non-Christians live in unbelief. However, Christians must also be on the alert when they’re not growing in personal holiness. Christians can also practice unbelief in this manner. The only difference between Christians are unbelievers is they have a second chance because they are under grace. Other aspects of unbelief remain the same. Even though Christians possess the Spirit, and have the Word of God, they are still susceptible to taking advantage of the Lord’s grace by love sin rather than holiness. What secures the Christian is the love of Christ that is eternal and perfect.  

Loving Jesus is important in the face of unbelief because without it we distance ourselves from him. Do you love Jesus? If so, you are practicing saving faith. If not, you are living a life of unbelief resulting in unrighteousness.

How can unbelievers kill off unbelief? The only way to be saved from unbelief is to see the Bible as the actual word of God. Continuing to fight to see Jesus in the Word is the path that leads to salvation. Jesus is the Word (Jn. 1:1). As Christians, we must draw near and abide by God’s word to grow in our love for Christ as we wrestle with it. Christ will help us win over unbelief as well as all other fights as the omnipotent and omniscient Lord.

This is a wonderful portion of Scripture where Jesus shows not only His power over demons but also His loving heart for the chosen. 

Even in this modern and technological age, demons are real. Simply put, demons are fallen, angels. Satan, the first demon is very mighty and temporarily the king of this world (Rev 12:4,9). Demons are spirits, meaning they don’t have a material body. They are also personal with emotions, will and understanding. For example, they were able to converse with Jesus Christ and display various emotions and thoughts. In short, demons are powerful evil spirits with nothing good in them. 

Although demons are powerful and supernatural, they are limited in power. They cannot go against Jesus. In Luke 8:26-32 We see a person was possessed and imprisoned by these demons. We see the terrible and tragic effect they had on this man’s life. 

One question we might ask is: Can a Christian be demon possessed? The answer is ‘No’. But there have been many missionary reports of demon-possessed Christians. There is a debate in the Christian community about evidence of Christian demon-possessed. Biblically speaking, 2 Corinthians 6:14-16 says we are the temple of the living God. If the Holy Spirit dwells within the believer, then how can it also be a place for demons?

While Christians cannot be demon possessed but they could be demon oppressed. There are many Christians that hold sinful worldviews. For example, if they are pro-choice or pro-gay marriage. They could be a genuine Christian but woefully wrong. This could be an indication that they are demon oppressed. The Israelites sinned and worshipped demons which were the idols (Deut 32:17) This is why John warns the believers to be on guard from idols because idols are a means of inviting demons (1 John 5:21). 

Christians can also invite demons when they wallow in sin without confessing, hold onto sin and grudges, or cling to emotions of bitterness, regret, or anger. This unconsciously makes the believer susceptible to demon influence. We must resist by repenting daily for our sins. This is why Christians must diligently meet the Lord in prayer and the word every day. 

The world is filled with heinous and perverse sins and immorality. Especially sexual sins are rampant everywhere and encouraged from the media to our schools. Sex before marriage, extramarital, homosexuality, and transgender are all horrible signs of sins and demonic oppression or possession. Occultism is also a sign of demon possession (Acts 16:16). There is a strong connection between sorcery, spiritual mediums, and demon possession. 

How does the demon-possessed behave?

It has been popular to diagnose the mentally ill as being demon-possessed. The demon possessed are not bipolar or schizophrenic. However, there are two persons in one body. In Biblical accounts, demons are able to communicate and have sense in their words and actions. They aren’t spouting gibberish. Their goal is simply death and destruction. Demons also have supernatural knowledge, such as being able to identify Jesus and godly Christians (Acts 16:17). There is a distinction between demon possession and mental illness.

In Luke 8:26 we see the solution to both demon-oppressed and demon-possessed. Jesus has a loving and sovereign plan for this demon-possessed man. First, Jesus went across the lake into a foreign land just to meet this man. It was not an accidental encounter. God is seeking to meet those oppressed and possessed. We all need Jesus because we all face demons who seek our downfall and ruin (1 John 1:18, 1 Peter 5:8, Ephesians 6:11, 2 Peter 2:11). Thankfully Jesus came to destroy the devil’s work (1 John 3:8). We must have Jesus if we wish to overcome the enemy. 

There is no hope unless one is converted (Luke 8:28-29). No one was able to subdue these demons. Chains could not hold the demons, but The demons could not rebel against Jesus the Son of the Most High God. Jesus rescues us from darkness and bondage (Romans 10:9, Colossians 1:13-14). True conversion is a new life in which the old is gone and the new has come. (John 5:24, 2 Corinthians 5:17). The converted is a new creation that belongs to Christ and not the power of sin.

To avoid being demon oppressed you must then live a Christ-centered life, denying yourself, taking up your cross, and following Jesus (Matthew 16:24). A Christ-centered life relies on the work of Jesus, yearning for holiness and desiring fellowship with Jesus when we stray.

Avoiding demon oppression is not everything. We must fight on. In Luke 8:30-32 Jesus demands the demon’s name. The name ‘Legion’ shows how dark and deceitful a man’s heart can be. It was a whole army of demons in this man. Jesus commands the legion to leave and they obeyed. He has ultimate power and complete victory over the demons. We too can have victory over the dangerous demons that constantly attack us through the armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-19). Everything we need and more is in the inerrant and infallible Word of God. By a simple command, the demons were cast out and conquered, and it is still by His Word that we fight against the devil. In addition to the Bible, we pray (Ephesians 6:18). Your prayer life reflects your knowledge of God. The devil is not afraid of the prayerless but trembles at those who pray. Prayer is for God and your fellowship with Him. Do not resist the need for prayer but enjoy the richness of God in prayer. 

There are two dangers concerning the doctrine of demons. Disbelief and being too obsessed. Understand that demons are real and dangerous but instead of fearing them, we trust and fear Christ who is truly the mighty Savior and King (Ephesians 5:21).