Lucas 8

Lucas 8

Ironside asked him, “Do you realize that you are a sinner?” “Yes,” the man quickly replied, “but you know, I’m not what you would call a bad sinner. In fact, I’d have to say I’m a rather good one.” There are many people like that man. They are in Satan’s domain of darkness, but they’re decent folks. They’ve never committed a felony. They love their mates and their children. They may even go to church and believe in God. But they don’t want Him getting too close for comfort! If a preacher brings up sins like pride, greed, lust, envy, racial prejudice, and the like that step on their toes, they get real nervous and put up their defense. They’re just as much in Satan’s domain as the conspicuous sinner, but outwardly they look more respectable. All people, apart from Christ, are in one category or the other. Paul says, “For He delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:13-14). The “us” included the religious Paul as well as the formerly pagan Gentiles. Every person without Christ is in Satan’s domain and needs Christ’s mighty power to deliver him. None are too difficult for Christ to transform, but camouflaged sinners are often more difficult than the conspicuous. We look at a story like this and say, “Wow! If Legion can be transformed, then there is hope for anybody!” Yes, there’s even hope for the respectable sinners! It takes the same saving power of Christ to transform them as it does to transform the demoniac. But they’re often the more difficult cases because they don’t see their great need. But Christianity is not a matter of dressing up a pig in the tuxedo of good works. It is a matter of God changing the nature of the pig! But in addition to Christ’s saving power, transformation also requires His teaching. B. Christ’s teaching is necessary for transformation. This is an inference on my part. The text does not directly state that Christ taught this man. But I believe that He did. Verse Lu 8:35 reports that the man was sitting at Jesus’ feet when the local folks found him (see Lu 10:39). It took a fair amount of time, perhaps a whole day, for the herdsmen to run off into the surrounding area and report what had happened and for the people to arrive back at the spot. I believe that Jesus was giving this man a cram course in spiritual things. I think that He taught him who God is and who He was as God’s Messiah, and what it means to live a godly life. The point is, salvation must be followed by sound doctrine so that the new convert can be transformed through the renewing of his mind. Legion, quite naturally, wanted to accompany Jesus (Lu 8:38). Who wouldn’t want to? His life dramatically had been transformed by Jesus’ power and through Jesus’ teaching. But Jesus said “No” to the man’s request. That leads to our second main lesson. (Luke 8:26-39 Christ's Transforming Power) P G Matthew - They found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind.—Luke 8:35 What is a sound mind? It is one that believes in God, thinks his thoughts after him, and does that which is pleasing to him. Adam and Eve, prior to their fall, had sound minds with which they communed with their Creator. Now, after the Fall, none of us comes into the world with a right mind. The only way back is through God’s monergistic work of regeneration. The story of the demoniac illustrates what Jesus does for a man with a sinful, depraved mind when he saves him. His story is our story. The Bible teaches us that the entire world is under the control of the evil one. Some are demon-possessed; all are subject to his will. The result is what we see in Luke 8—alienation from self, family, society, and, most importantly, from the Creator God himself. No one could or wanted to help such a man, yet Jesus loved him and traveled across a stormy lake to save him. When Jesus shows up, things happen. The demons trembled and cowered before Deity. They were sent out of the man and into a herd of pigs at Jesus’ word. And the demoniac was gloriously delivered. What does this salvation look like? The first thing we see is that this once-restless, self-destructive man was now sitting quietly at Jesus’ feet. He was at peace, completely taken up with the person of Christ. The second thing we notice is that this once-naked man was now clothed. We are reminded of the clothing provided by God to Adam and Eve to cover their nakedness. And just as their animal skins pointed to the coming Messiah who would lay down his life for the elect, so the demoniac was dressed not only in a robe but also with the very righteousness of Christ. Finally, we are told that this former schizophrenic was “in his right mind.” Hallelujah! He was free from the control of demons and free to worship God with all his heart and mind. What had been disintegrated was fully integrated under the lordship of Christ. The man’s one request was the one that everyone with a sound mind makes: “Lord, I want to follow you the rest of my life. John Butler - Changed by Christ “Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind; and they were afraid.” (Luke 8:35) CHRIST had cast some demons out of a man. The effect upon the man was dramatic. Our verse describes some of the major changes which occurred when Christ cast out the demons. They include resting, respect, robed, and rational. Resting. “Sitting.” This was a new posture for the man. Before Christ cast out the demons, the man was constantly roaming about the tombs and mountains and wilderness day and night. This speaks of the soul rest promised in the Gospel. Christ said, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). One of the characteristics of sin is lack of rest (Isaiah 57:20, 21). But when Christ changes your life, one result is great soul rest. Respect. “Sitting at the feet of Jesus.” Before the man was delivered of the demons, he wanted nothing to do with Christ (Luke 8:28). But after Christ changed his life, the man now greatly respected Christ and sat humbly at Christ’s feet. Animosity towards Christ ends with redemption. Robed. “Clothed.” Before Christ changed this man’s life, he “wore no clothes” (Luke 8:27). This robing of the man not only pictures the righteous robe of salvation (Isaiah 61:10), but it also pictures the improvement in morals (seen in more modest dress) of a person when he gets saved. Even in heathen countries, when people get saved, they start wearing more clothes instead of running around half naked. The immodest clothes at church reveal a spiritual problem. Rational. “In his right mind.” Satan would have folk think that to follow Christ is crazy, unintelligent, and stupid. But the very opposite is true. It is those who follow Satan and are controlled by his demons that act crazy. When this man was possessed by demons, he acted insane. But when Christ changed the man, he acted rational, sane, and sober. Sin, not Christ and righteousness, causes people to act foolishly and irrationally. Kent