Then they sailed to the country of the
Gerasenes,
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. Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was
demon-possessed had been made well. 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. But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him
that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying, "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.[1]
When they had crossed over, they came to land
at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word
into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick;
and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and
as many as touched it were cured.[2]
I, like many, assumed that the owners of the pigs were
Jewish, and having the huge herd run down into the sea and drown, was suitable
punishment for them farming unclean animals. The classification in scripture is,
“the people of the country
of the Gerasenes.” The city Gadara was a Greek city; it seems to me that
the generalized term meant people native to that area, predominately non-Jewish.
That’s a point, but not the one I want to dwell on.
“...the
man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him (Jesus) that he might accompany Him; but
He sent him away, saying, ‘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.”
Confounded, amazed,
and ecstatic, this might somewhat identify the feelings of a man from whom a
host of demons was exorcized. How very natural it would have been for someone
so relieved of torment to desire to accompany the one who saved him. And,
indeed what an attraction he would be to others seeking to be healed by Jesus.
How well the healed
man would have qualified Jesus command to follow him, to be his disciple, to
leave everything behind and carry a cross. Yet it was not to be. Jesus
instructed him, “Return to
your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” He did that;
considering the fear of the people who asked Jesus to leave, I wonder what
reception was given to him.
The desire to be
with Jesus is itself a great ambition, and one to be cultivated. The restored
man was willing to step into the boat with Jesus and leave his past, and his
people. He had no idea where going with Jesus would take him. At that moment it
didn’t matter, he was filled with gratitude and awe. He wanted hold on to
Jesus, to be with him, and he was willing to give up any connection he had to
family or friends. I wonder why Jesus didn’t allow him to go with him and the
others.
If I think about modern Christianity, and of course the
Church, I need to consider the man’s request, and Jesus’ response, as well as
the outcome. From many years of observation, I recognize how important Church
becomes to the people who attend. Converts become loyal to their Church, they
engage in its programs, and support its goals. Which is good. Over time Church
attendance becomes second nature, members need to go to Church, they are
grateful for what the Church has done for them. I suppose in the same way that
the healed demonic man was grateful to Jesus.
What if, the Church instead of enlarging its membership,
told new converts that they should not devote themselves to Church practices,
but go to their homes, and in that vicinity teach others about the Saviour
Jesus?
The healed man, “went away, proclaiming throughout
the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.” Maybe he could
have done more with the disciples, we don’t know. What we do know is that some
time Jesus and the disciples returned, “when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into
all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick; and they
implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as
touched it were cured.” The man Jesus told to go to his home and
tell people what God had done for him; did that and more. Somehow, the healed
man was able to turn people from being scared of Jesus power, to wanting to be
recipients of his healing power.
To Jesus, it was more important for the healed man to go and
spread the word, than for him to be one of his close disciples. For the man it
would have been a comfortable situation to be in the presence of Jesus
continually. Church supports comfortable Christianity. Believers gather
together, they sing comforting hymns, they are taught the plans and objectives
of the Church, and generally feel good about their membership. That may be too
comfortable; maybe more people should be telling others about what God has done
for them.
Return to your house and describe what great
things God has done for you.
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