Set Free

Genesis 20; Genesis 21; Genesis 22; Luke 8
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Scripture

Luke 8

26 So they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee. 27 As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town.

28 As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell down in front of him. Then he screamed, “Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, I beg you, don’t torture me!” 29 For Jesus had already commanded the evil spirit to come out of him. This spirit had often taken control of the man. Even when he was placed under guard and put in chains and shackles, he simply broke them and rushed out into the wilderness, completely under the demon’s power.

30 Jesus demanded, “What is your name?”
“Legion,” he replied, for he was filled with many demons. 31 The demons kept begging Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit.
32 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside nearby, and the demons begged him to let them enter into the pigs.
So Jesus gave them permission. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the entire herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned.

34 When the herdsmen saw it, they fled to the nearby town and the surrounding countryside, spreading the news as they ran.

35 People rushed out to see what had happened. A crowd soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the man who had been freed from the demons. He was sitting at Jesus’ feet, fully clothed and perfectly sane, and they were all afraid. 36 Then those who had seen what happened told the others how the demon-possessed man had been healed. 37 And all the people in the region of the Gerasenes begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone, for a great wave of fear swept over them.

Observation

Just because a man was homeless, naked, and living in a cemetery didn’t stop Jesus from taking the time to clothe him, save him, and send him back home as an evangelist. It is exactly what Jesus wants to do for us today. You may not be homeless, you may not be naked, but you very well might not be in your right mind today.

Jesus wants to set us free from the insanity of selfish-living.

Because of his kindness, you have been saved through trusting Christ. And even trusting is not of your selves; it too is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good we have done, so none of us can take any credit for it. It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others. Ephes. 2:8-10

We were created to serve others. We will not be happy with ourselves if we spend all of our time on ourselves because we were created to serve not be served. The more focused we are on ourselves the more miserable we are to be around.

Application

I will look for where God wants me to serve Him today.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help me not be self-centered today. Help me serve today with my whole heart and not half-heartedly. Show me what I need to do today. What I need to focus on that will help other people. It is so easy to be selfish. It requires no effort. I default back to being selfish so easily. Help me not to do that today.

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