Gedara was located southeast of Lake Gennasaret, in modern-day Jordan. In Jesus' time, it was part of the Decapolis (10 cities), which was a region noted for its Greek and Roman culture. Jesus visited the Decapolis on several occasions, but on the day described by Luke (8:26-39) he had just gotten out of their boat... when a naked man ran up to him, screaming, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God, what do you want with me?" The man was out of his mind. He was beside himself. He was in the hands of demons who had driven him crazy. His community couldn't handle him and nothing could contain him- including the chains and shackles that tied him down. He had lived among the tombstones for some time, and sometimes, when he had broken his chains, he would run through the hills like a madman. Something was terribly wrong and he showed that right away by rushing up to Jesus and screaming, "What do you want with me, Jesus?" Well, Jesus drove a legion of demons out of the man and into a herd of pigs who were nearby. The pigs, in turn, rushed into an abyss where they drowned ... which prompted their attendants to run and tell the others what had happened. It didn't take long for the entire town to come running to see what had happened, and when they arrived they found 1) dead pigs and 2) a calm, well-dressed man, sitting at Jesus' feet. There they were- a man restored and pigs destroyed. The town folk didn't have much to say about the man, but they were quite upset about the pigs- so much so that they pleaded with Jesus to get out of the area.
"Jesus, what do you want with me?" Why are you knocking at my door? I'm living like royalty and I don't want to change. I'm getting by and I don't need your help. My life is complicated and I don't have time right now. I'm in love with alcohol, drugs, money, my favorite sin, and I don't want to give it (or them) up. I own a herd of pigs and I don't want to lose them. I like to sleep in on Sundays, read the paper, relax... and I don't want to get involved with a church. The good people of Gadara didn't want Jesus to disturb them anymore than the demoniac did. And neither do we! We don't mind hearing about Jesus on Sundays, but we don't want him to mess with our lives! We suspect that. if we give Jesus an inch, he will take a mile. Jesus, I'm afraid to trust you because you will disrupt my life. If that's what you suspect, you are right... because there's no end to the changes that Jesus will make if you invite him in. He wants to show you the way to abundant life. He wants to free you from self and sin and he won't give up easily.
Jesus started poking me shortly after I became a Christian and he was particularly persistent when I was on the job. When I fired our Store Manager in Topeka, I wondered if I'd done the right thing. The company President told me that I had done Keith a favor because people who were "in over their heads" were unhappy. I wanted to believe that I was a liberator, but I couldn't shake the feeling that firing a good man without notice was unchristian. There were times when my faith gave me the strength to do the right thing. For instance, I hired a one-armed man as a stock clerk in Memphis, and when my boss saw him, he told me to fire him. "No," I said, "He's doing a fine job and I will not fire him." In addition, I came to believe that Jesus was serious when he said that I should give to those who beg- so I gave money to every street person who asked, even though it amused and irritated some of my friends. They said I was being "taken advantage of." I already know that, but I also knew that I was a beggar too. The real Jesus is disruptive. If you let him into your life, he will push you to live as a Christian- to the point where sometimes, some part of you may cry out, "Jesus, what do you want with me?" If this happens to you, praise God and celebrate because you are growing in Christ, As a dashboard figure, Jesus is harmless, but if you're chained to a tombstone, running naked in some graveyard, or just living an empty life, you need more than a plastic Jesus!
If you're in an honest relationship with Jesus, you already know that Jesus can be a tormenter! It's not just demoniacs, fat cats, drunks, and self-righteous people who resist Jesus. We all do. None of us wants to be changed. No one likes to play lead guitar behind Jesus. It's not easy to walk behind a man who is carrying a cross and it's not easy to let go. Like the people of Gedara, we want Jesus to leave us alone... so that we can go our own way, run our businesses, fatten our pigs, and struggle with our demons. But Jesus loves us too much to accept that... and he will poke and torment us until we've had enough. In my life, Jesus has been an Inviter and something of a Nagger, who kept tormenting me with life-changing questions. He would not let me go and that's exactly what I needed. But as the demoniac discovered, Jesus is also a liberator who can set us free from bondage. Jesus wants us to live a life based on love, service, and trust! He wants us to live in ways that feed our souls and serve our neighbors! He wants us to run to him so that we won't have to run from anything or anyone else ever again. Jesus wants to save us and set us free!
I'm still sorry I fired Keith, still glad that I give to bums, and now and then, when one-armed stock clerks cross my mind. I smile at how God tormented me and refused to let me go. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment