East Valley International Church sees the digital realm not as a lesser substitute, but as a new kind of wilderness—a vast, scrolling expanse of the human heart. And just as the Spirit once moved over the face of the primordial deep, He moves now through fiber-optic cables and Wi-Fi signals, speaking light into the chaos of our feeds and timelines.
Our culture is performance-driven, obsessed with authenticity but terrified of being truly seen. We filter our faces and edit our stories. Into this exhausting charade, Jesus shows up—unfiltered. God, with dirt under his nails and the smell of the sea on his clothes. He doesn’t send an invitation to a cleaned-up version of you; He pulls up a chair to the mess you’re in right now.
His authority is a key, not a lock. His truth is a diagnosis that leads to a cure, not a sentence. His presence isn’t a spotlight for your flaws, but a darkroom where your true self can finally develop. This is the Jesus we’re about: real enough to call you out, powerful enough to pull you up, and present enough to sit with you in the silence after you’ve closed all the tabs.
We’ve stepped boldly into the digital frontier, using tools like Anthropic’s ClaudeAI, not as substitutes for genuine ministry, but as extensions of it. Tradition should never become a barrier between Jesus and the searching soul. Every screen, every app, every line of code exists for one purpose: that when someone whispers a midnight prayer into their phone, they encounter not a program, but the living presence of God—a God who’s been waiting for that moment all along.
The gospel has never played by the rules of comfort or convention. Jesus turned water into wine without apology, healed when others said He shouldn’t, and spoke life where there had only been chains. The same Spirit who set fire to bushes and stirred prophets now moves through technology—AI, social platforms, and beyond. The medium has shifted, but the message hasn’t: God is pursuing you with unstoppable love.
This Sunday, Pastor Joey Sampaga led us through Luke 8:26–39—The Man Who Met Jesus—a story of total, breathtaking transformation. Through digital discipleship, that same power continues to reach beyond church walls, across timelines and touchscreens, inviting people everywhere to meet the Savior who still sets captives free. Geography and technology don’t decide who hears the gospel anymore. Jesus does—and He’s already closer than you think.
Approximate reading time: 30-40 minutes.
Let’s be pragmatic. The true value of a sermon isn’t found in a fleeting moment of “anointed preaching,” but in its long-term, actionable utility. The traditional, singular sermon event—complete with its reliance on emotional appeals and unpredictable “Spirit-breathed delivery”—is inherently inefficient for the modern learner. It forces a one-time consumption of data, leaving the burden of organization, cross-referencing, and long-term retention solely on the listener.
This is where the AI-enhanced tools step in.
These digital reflections are not “diving boards” or “field guides”; they are a critical upgrade to the delivery system. They function as a powerful post-processing engine for Pastor Joey Sampaga’s content. We take the raw audio—often dense, sometimes meandering, and universally linear—and transform it into a highly searchable, thematically organized, and hyperlinked knowledge base.
So here’s your challenge: engage with both the sermon and these study materials expectantly. Don’t just collect information—position yourself for transformation. Our technology doesn’t aim to replicate the sermon; it aims to optimize the truth within it.
Download the PDF to print at home (21 pages): The Man Who Met Jesus
[Click here] to read the full transcript of Pastor Joey’s sermon [Click again to close]
Good morning. Morning. Turn this on. Test. Testing, one, two, three, test. Test, one, two, three, okay. Let’s try it again, good morning. How’s everyone doing? Doing all right? Sister Ivy, that was a good solo. Next time, let me sing solo. Solo, you can’t hear me. Yeah, that’s right. Solo, you can’t hear me. I really enjoy that Mashup song. I was kind of chuckling over there. And I know this is probably bad to say, but I’m going to say it anyway. So you know how we’re doing the whole massive thing? The guys have like really simple lines, simple verses. You know, we go slow too. And then the women, why are there so many words there? God wrote that for a reason in that manner. Yes. Yeah, we only have 200 versus 600. Yes. I was trying to hold in my laugh over there. Lord.
Let’s pray for John. Keep him in your prayers if you’re not feeling well. So pray that he is there. And those who aren’t here, pray for them as well. I don’t know if there’s anyone traveling. So let’s keep them in prayer. Also, we are going to have a baptism here soon, as well as a new membership class. Now, I know most of you are members here, but if you’re not… We’re going to do one soon, and I’m thinking sometime in November or December. I’m just going to verify that with a leadership meeting today with the leaders to find out what day would work out best. We need to get Rita Donnie and so far Ace, so we have two baptisms for sure. So we’re going to do a baptism class for them as well as a baptism. Now, I think Gateway may even… allow us to borrow their baptismal, if we decide to do it that way. So we’ll see what comes about on that. And then do pray for the leadership of the church that’s going to happen afterward. And then, of course, happy birthday to Tuya Sam. It’s his birthday today.
All right, so last week, we saw Jesus calm the storm in Luke chapter 8, verses 22 to 25. And he rebuked the wind and the waves, and the disciples asked, remember when he said, be still, because the storm was going crazy, Jesus was asleep in the boat, and they were wondering, Lord, where are you? Where are you? Wake up. We’re about to pass away. And by the way, this was two weeks ago, not last week. It was Brother Zenji who preached for us about heaven, which was an amazing sermon, by the way. Makes me look forward to heaven. So anyway, going back to Luke chapter 8, in that passage he says, Who then is this that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him? That question, who is this, is answered, well, it was answered two weeks ago about who it was. It’s Jesus, the Messiah, the God, the God-man who can control even the weather and the flames and the seas and the storms, right? So who is this? It’s also going to be answered in today’s passage.
Now, Jesus crosses the Sea of Galilee into Gentile territory. And the region of the Gerasenes is a place filled with tombs, pigs, and pagan worship. So he’s leaving Jewish soil and he’s stepping into, I guess you can call it, enemy territory. Right? Literally Satan’s grounds. So just as he calmed the chaos of the sea, now we’re going to see him calm the chaos of a specific man’s soul. Alright, so let’s go ahead and open Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for your word that reveals both your authority and your mercy. And Lord, as we open the scriptures today, help us see the power of Jesus Christ, the one who delivers the oppressed, restores the broken, and commissions the redeemed. Lord, may your spirit guide us into truth, and may your May our hearts respond in obedience and worship. And Lord, for all those who are here, I pray that you open their eyes and ears and minds and souls and their hearts to receive your word. Reveal to us what you want us to know. And then encourage us to then act it out in our own lives. And Father, I ask that you fill me with your spirit, allow your words to speak through me. Move me out of the way and allow your words to shine. Father, we thank you, we love you, we praise you in Jesus’ name. Amen.
All right, so we’re in Luke chapter 8, verse 26 to 30. That’s where we’re going to start. Luke chapter 8, verse 26 to 30 says, Then they sailed to the country of the garrison. which is opposite the Galilee. When Jesus had stepped out on the land, there met him a man from a city who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, what have you done to me? What have you to do with me, Jesus? Son of the Most High God, I beg you, do not torment me. For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For many a time had seized him. He had kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles. But he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the devil. Jesus then asked him, What is your name? And he said, Egypt. I’m going to change it. I’m just going to turn it off. Okay. Test. Testing. 1, 2, 3, test. Test. 1, 2, 3. Hello. 1, 2, 3. 1, 2, 3. Test. 1, 2, 3.
All right. He said, Legion, for many demons have entered the So this man is a perfect picture of sin’s destruction. He’s naked. Shame exposed him. He’s living among the tombs. He’s basically living in a cemetery. Surrounded by death. He’s isolated. No family, no friends, no hope. He’s violent. He’s out of control. And I just said what I said. When I think about that, I don’t know, well, you all ought to believe in demons, because demons are real. So we live in downtown Phoenix. And there are quite a few homeless encampments over there. And there are some homeless people walking around. Now, I have nothing against them, of course. I feel bad for them being homeless. But some of them have demons in them. And you can hear them just talking to themselves, cursing, like they’re talking to someone. They’re yelling at someone. Right? And they’re walking around with no shoes, no shirt on. Sometimes they even have no pants on and they’re walking around and they’re just screaming at the top of their lungs. And when people are like that, it’s because they don’t have, they don’t have God, right? And this man that we’re talking about here He’s demon-possessed.
That’s what sin and demonic bondage do. They isolate, they enslave, and they dehumanize as well. Demons make people that they indwell act unhuman. So the Gerasenes… is a place where it refers to a region on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee in the Decapolis. It’s modern-day Jordan today. It was Gentile, it was unclean and spiritually dark, making it the perfect setting for Jesus to demonstrate his power over both evil spirits and cultural barriers. So the word legion is a military term It’s a Roman legion that had 5,000 to 6,000 soldiers. So the demon’s name was Legion. Can you imagine how many demons were in this one man? The man isn’t just oppressed, he was possessed by a massive force of evil. Even so, notice that when he meets Jesus, the demons immediately recognize his authority. They immediately know who he is, right? And when I say they, I’m talking about the demons in that one man, because it’s possible to do that.
Now, a question is, can demons possess Christians? No. Why? Because we’re involved with the Holy Spirit, and there is no way those demons are going to be in the presence of God in one location, and that location being the temple of the Holy Spirit. My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. If you’re a Christian, your body is also the temple of the Holy Spirit. The demon says, what have you to do with me? Jesus, Son of the Most High God. So this is one of the clearest confessions of Christ’s deity in the Gospels. And it comes from whom? The demons. Because the demons know. How do they know? You know what demons are? Where they were previously? Angels. They were actually in heaven, right? Yep. What we call fallen angels. Right? Because they decided to follow Lucifer, and God casted them all out. A third of the angels out of heaven. Right? So… demons. They know exactly who Jesus is, even when people still doubt. James 2.19 even says, you believe that God is one, you do well. Even the demons believe and shudder.
Right? There are a lot of people here, when you’re speaking to them or evangelizing to them, oh, I believe in Jesus. I believe in God. Well, just believing in them is not enough. I believe in the Holy Spirit. Again, just believing in them is not enough. Because James 2-19 says, Even the demons believe, and they shudder. So hell knows Jesus’ name, but hell doesn’t obey him in love. They don’t obey him, they don’t see him as Lord and Savior. I mean, they probably do, but they don’t want to. When the Bible talks about gnashing of teeth, they’re gnashing their teeth in anger. They hate God so much that they gnash their teeth. They know that God is God, but they don’t want to admit it. They’re going to hate him even more. Now, hell knows Jesus. Do we, do you, do I?
Let’s look at verse 31. And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss. Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. And they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs. And the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and drowned. Well, that was weird. They said, please, don’t send us to the abyss yet. Right? They already know what their destination is. They already know what their destiny is. They begged Jesus. They begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss. They already knew that that’s where they’re going to be sent. And they asked… Those pigs over there just sent us over there. And Jesus, having mercy on them, he went ahead and did that.
We see Jesus’ absolute power and sovereignty. They knew who he was, and he can just say the word, and whatever he says will happen. Demons, they beg, and that word appears repeatedly. They’re terrified, they’re powerless, and fully subject to his commands. He just needs to say the word and it will happen. Even fallen angels can’t act apart from Christ’s permission. Right? Jesus just speaks it. You know, sometimes we think, oh, there’s going to be one last battle in Armageddon. And we think of how there’s going to be a battle between the angels and the demons and Jesus and Satan. And they’re battling each other. And it seems like the battle is going to be like a hard fought one. you know, this side winning and then this side winning. It’s not really going to be that way. Even though you may think it, the battle is going to be fast and quick. Maybe Jesus will allow, maybe God will say, okay, go ahead and fight it out a little bit. But in the end there, I’m just going to say, done. And all these demons and, you know, Satan and the unbelievers will just be thrown into hell. Right? It’s not difficult for God to defeat Satan. Because remember, Satan is a created being. And if there’s a created being, that means there’s a creator. And that creator is whom? God.
Alright, so when Jesus says, go, the demons go. Colossians 2.15, he disarms the rulers and authorities and puts them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. So when Jesus says go, the demons go. When he says stop, be still, creation stops, doesn’t it? Remember the crazy waves, the storm? When he says peace, be still, everything just goes quiet. It’s like all of a sudden, you know, in the movies when you hear an explosion and then they play that sound, a really loud tone. That’s kind of what it was probably. When you’ve got all this chaos happening on the Sea of Galilee while they were in the boat and he just says peace and all of a sudden just light.
Now the pigs, the pig’s destruction might seem strange, but it served a purpose. It showed that, first, the demons truly left the man, and that this was no illusion, right? So you had this one man with thousands of demons inside him that possessed him. Jesus said, go, and then all of a sudden, they’re now in these thousands of 2,000 pigs. And then secondly, the destructive nature of evil was revealed. whether Satan goes or where Satan goes, death follows. Right? So the lake that once swallowed a storm now swallows 2,000 pigs. Can you imagine 2,000 pigs jumping off a cliff into the water, drowning themselves? You know, if we were there, we’d probably jump in and grab them and have some lychee on that day at night. But both events show that Christ rules over the physical and the spiritual world of life. So when we saw Jesus calm the storm and see Jesus take the demons out or cast the demons out of that man into those pigs, that’s showing Jesus’ power as a creator. He has power over his creation.
Verse 34 says, When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. The people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to your home and declare how much God has done for you. And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole
So this is one of the most dramatic transformations in the entire Bible. The man who had been in terror is now a living testimony. He’s now clothed before he was naked. He was erratic. He was crazy. Now he’s calm. And he was just all over the place. Now he’s sitting at the feet of Jesus. which is a posture of a disciple. He was sitting, listening. Can you imagine what those people were thinking who knew this once known to be crazy man who walked around naked, who no one could shackle because he broke all the shackles. He literally broke them. And now they see this man who looks normal is now clothed and he’s calm and he’s sitting there listening to Jesus. People were wondering. They were amazed. They were in awe. They were in shock.
That’s what salvation does. It restores what sin destroys. If you look at your own life. Now, it may be harder if you were saved as a child, but if you’re saved when you were an adult, or an older teenager maybe, you can look back at your life and say, yeah, I was not living a good life. But when you were saved, when you became born again a Christian, God started to transform you and change what sin was destroying. Right? He started to change your life so that you would look more calm. That you would look, you would be clothed. You would not act crazy. You would not sin as much. You started to hate sin. You loved what God loved. That’s what salvation does. That’s what the Holy Spirit does in us. 2 Corinthians 5.17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. The old and new has come. So when we are born again, we are a new creation. Our old being, I’m sorry, our old person has passed away. Our old sinful nature has passed away. And a new one
Now, notice the tragic contrast here. While the man rejoices, the townspeople, they reject Jesus. They’re more comfortable with demons than with deliverance. They prefer their pigs over the presence of God. They’re like, Jesus, leave. Who are you? When Jesus transforms life, it disrupts the status quo, doesn’t it? Some people would rather keep their comfort than confront their need for grace. And I’ve noticed that when I’m training, I’m doing a clinical pastoral education in a hospital, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Dignity Health, and I’m taking classes with some other people who say they’re Christians, but they’re progressive Christians, to put it that way. where one who’s becoming a priest says that he doesn’t believe that the Bible is invalid. There’s another student. She is outwardly saying that I’m a queer Christian. And there’s another one who’s just kind of complacent. And when I think about that, I’m like, wow. And then when I would mention something that’s very biblical, They’re almost like really upset with it. And for me, it’s really difficult to be in that class. However, I know that I’m meant to be in that class. Right? I know that I’m not allowed to proselytize, be an evangelist in the hospital because it’s so diverse. However, I still know who I am and I can still present the spirit of the true God.
And see, when God is in a place like where Jesus was, and he did what he did, where he cast out the demons into the pigs and they jumped and drowned themselves, the people, they saw this gentleman or this man who was once possessed is no longer possessed, and they’re like, Jesus, you need to get out of here. Because what you just did is not normal. They were freaking out. It’s because he was demonstrating who he was, and that’s God. And whenever God is involved, there are going to be a lot of people who hate, a lot of people who are going to be upset. You know, if you’re a Christian at work, and you demonstrate Christian qualities, and you even, you know, the words of God’s love is coming out of your mouth, and your actions and your thoughts, and your words, People may be upset with you. But you still need to say, don’t. You still need to demonstrate God’s love. And just understand that God, when you’re speaking God and you’re speaking Jesus, because they hated Jesus first, what did Jesus say? They’re also going to hate you. So we need to expect.
So the man… Also, he wanted to follow Jesus physically. But Jesus commissions him instead. He says, return to your home and declare how much God has done for you. So ultimately, he becomes the first missionary to the Gentiles, if you think about it. He’s preaching the gospel throughout the coppice, or the garrisons. And most likely, he was. Jesus then, he crossed the sea for one tormented man. Think about that for a second. He went and sailed all the way to the Gerasenes just to attend to that one man. But that one man is now commissioned to go and share the gospel with the other Gentiles. And that one man will become a messenger to many.
So this story is, we can see it as a living picture of the gospel. Where that man, okay I’m going. So that man that was there is, we are like that man. We’re like that man among the tombs. Dead in sin, bound by shame, enslaved by darkness. That was all of us before being born again. But Jesus crossed another sea. Not the Sea of Galilee, right? But the gulf between heaven and earth to rescue us. We talked about this in the Fundamentals of Faith class. Jesus came here as a man, as a man and fully God to save us. Because it’s only a man, he had to come here as a man to live a perfect life to save us while he was still fully God at the same time. Because only he could be that perfect sacrifice. Because it was perfection. He came here to rescue us.
Now at the cross, Jesus faced the full power of evil and conquered it. He took on our uncleanness, our sins, our shame, and our guilt upon ourselves so that we could be clothed in his righteousness. John 8, 36 says, So if the Son sets you free, You will be free indeed. So Jesus has come here to set us free. Now the question is, do we want to be set free? Do we want to be set free? And if you’re born again, you’ve already been set free. And if you have not, you’re still enslaved. And I pray, I pray for Jesus’ safety. Because through his death and resurrection, Jesus brings us from the tombs to new life. From chaos to peace. From bondage to mission. We can follow that same path of this man who was once demon possessed. He was saved by Christ. He was thankful. He wanted to be with Jesus. Jesus says, no, I want you to go, and I want you to share the gospel with others. And that’s what God is commissioning all of us to do.
You know, and I encourage you, go with Brother Alex and Sister Cheryl out on the streets of Gilbert, downtown Phoenix. Share the gospel with others. If you don’t go with them, do it at work. If you don’t do it at work, do it at school. Do it in your neighborhood. Share Jesus with others. Share what Jesus has done in your life. How he’s changed your life. There is no such thing as a, well I guess there are such things as secret Christians, secret agent Christians. Don’t be a secret agent Christian. You want to go out there and you want to walk the talk Or talk the walk, walk the talk. Everything that comes out of your mouth.
You know, one of the things, so we have to write a paper, it’s called a case study, or encounter with a patient. And the patient that I encountered, he liked to curse a lot, but we have to write, almost write everything verbatim of what they’re saying. And so what I did was, you know, like the word S-H-I-T, I did a dollar sign, a letter H, a Exclamation and then a T. And the person reading it, she was also a true believer. They had to read it out loud. And she wouldn’t say the word. But then the instructor says, so Joey, why didn’t you just spell it out correctly? And Madonna, why didn’t you just say it? We were all in agreement that we’re all okay to curse and to cuss in this class. He says, do we need to all talk again and make an agreement whether it’s okay to cuss or not? I said, well, I don’t know. If you guys want to cuss, it’s on you. I mean, it bothers me, but it doesn’t bother me if you do, but I won’t. Right? And they’re like, oh. say it. I don’t need to say it.
You know, not that cursing doesn’t make you a Christian. Because there are some times when I accidentally hit, or when I’m working on the Jeep, and when you’re underneath and having a hard time taking a part off and you scratch your knuckles or straighten your knuckles, sometimes it accidentally comes out. Shoot! Or fudge! Or I would just try to use different words. But sometimes it comes out the other way. And then after I say it, I try and change my tune. And I ask the Lord, Lord, please forgive me. So just because a person curses doesn’t mean they’re a Christian. Maybe they just are going through this vocation process, right?
All right, so just like the man in the tomb, Every believer is called to go home and tell others how much Jesus has done for you. Right? That’s our story. Once enslaved, now sent. And that’s what we all ought to be doing. That’s what we ought to be doing. Sharon Gonski. Any questions? All right, good.
Let’s pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you that you’re stronger than every chain and greater than every what you have done for us. Father, you gave us each a very unique testimony. Lord, I ask that you craft that in our souls so that we can share that testimony of how you saved us through your son, Jesus, and how you Continue to make us more like your son, Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit that’s now involved in us. Lord, I pray that each and every one of us here know how to explain the gospel. The gospel, which is the only thing that has the power to save. Because Lord, we know that without sharing the gospel, one can’t be saved. allow us to be able to tell our testimonies and ultimately get to the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is good news.
I once asked a person, have you been saved yet? And she asked me, Pastor Joe, you’re saved from what? What are we saved from? And I answered her, I said, you’re saved from your sins. You’re saved from God’s wrath. And you’re saved from damnation and eternal hell. And the way you must be saved and be born again is you must have faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Know that he came here to die for your sins on that cross and he took that punishment that you deserve, that you and I deserve. When he died on that cross, They buried him in a tomb. And then on the third day, God raised him from the dead. That’s the good news. And that’s what we ought to believe. You must repent from your sins, meaning to turn away from the world and turn to God. And if you have not done that yet, sincerely done that, or if you’re just wondering if you’ve done it before, I pray that you do that today. And Lord, I beg you, if there’s someone here that has not put your faith and trust in your son Jesus, that you put such a big conviction on them that they want to turn to you and ask, what trust do I have in you to be saved? God, I’m thanking you. I’m giving all this up to you. I lift everyone up here to you. Lord, bless them, be with them, and keep them. Lord, we do all this in your glory.
The Man Who Met Jesus
Comprehensive Bible Study and Sermon on Luke 8:26-39
INTRODUCTION
Imagine a man so tormented, so violent, so far gone that society had given up on him. Chained like an animal, living naked among the tombs, screaming through the night, cutting himself with stones—this was a man beyond hope, beyond help, beyond rescue. The community had tried everything: chains, shackles, guards. Nothing worked. He was a lost cause, a tragedy, a terror.
And then one day, Jesus stepped off a boat.
What happened next is one of the most dramatic transformations in all of Scripture. In Luke 8:26-39, we meet a man who encountered Jesus Christ, and nothing was ever the same. This isn’t just an ancient story—it’s a picture of what Jesus does for every person who truly meets Him. It’s a story of hopeless bondage, divine power, complete transformation, and a new mission.
Let’s walk through this remarkable narrative together.
PART ONE: BEFORE JESUS – A LIFE IN CHAINS (Luke 8:26-29)
The Setting: Enemy Territory
The story begins with Jesus and His disciples arriving at an unlikely destination.
Verse 26: “Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.”
This wasn’t Jewish territory. The Gerasenes were Gentiles—pagans who raised pigs, animals considered unclean by Jewish law. For Jesus to deliberately travel here shows His mission wasn’t limited to Israel. He came to seek and save ALL who are lost, regardless of background, nationality, or how far they’ve fallen.
The disciples had just witnessed Jesus calm a violent storm on the Sea of Galilee (Luke 8:22-25). They had asked, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?” Now they were about to see Jesus command something even more terrifying than a storm—demons.
The Man: A Walking Tragedy
As soon as Jesus stepped onto shore, He was confronted with human devastation.
Verse 27: “When Jesus had stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs.”
Let’s pause and really see this man. This wasn’t always his condition. The text says he was “from the city”—he once had a home, a family, a community, a life. But somewhere along the way, demons had taken over, and everything fell apart.
His Condition Was Desperate:
Demon-possessed: Not just one demon, but many. Later, we’ll learn there were so many they called themselves “Legion”—thousands. This man was under complete demonic control, his personality submerged beneath a horde of evil spirits.
Naked: He had lost all sense of shame and human dignity. No clothes, no covering, completely exposed to the elements and to public humiliation. Imagine the degradation, the loss of humanity.
Living among the tombs: Not in a house, but in the graveyard among the dead. He was isolated, cut off from all human contact and community. The tombs were caves where bodies were laid—cold, dark, desolate places. This was his home now.
Crying out day and night: Mark 5:5 adds that he was “crying out and cutting himself with stones.” Constant torment, constant pain, no peace, no rest. His screams echoed through the tombs and across the hills.
Supernaturally strong: Verse 29 reveals that many times people had tried to bind him with chains and shackles, but “he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.” No restraint could hold him. Human solutions had completely failed.
Driven into desolate places: The demons drove him away from people, away from help, into the wilderness and isolation. This is always the demonic strategy—isolate, devastate, destroy.
Society’s Failed Solutions
Verse 29: “For he had often been bound with chains and shackles, but he broke the chains, and no one had the strength to subdue him.”
Think about what this community had tried:
- Chains—he broke them
- Shackles—he snapped them
- Guards—he overpowered them
- Distance—he returned
Every human solution failed. The chains couldn’t hold him. The community couldn’t contain him. The problem was too big, too powerful, too entrenched. This man was beyond human help.
And that’s exactly where Jesus loves to work—in the impossible cases, the hopeless situations, the people everyone else has given up on.
A Picture of Spiritual Bondage
This man’s condition is an extreme but accurate picture of what sin and Satan do to every person apart from Christ:
Controlled by evil: Sin and Satan dominate the unregenerate heart. We think we’re free, but we’re actually enslaved to our sinful nature and the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:1-3).
Stripped of dignity: Sin robs us of the image of God, reducing us to something less than human, driven by base impulses and destructive behaviors.
Separated from community: Sin isolates. It cuts us off from healthy relationships, from God, from true fellowship. We end up alone among the “tombs” of our own making.
Living among death: Apart from Christ, we’re spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1), dwelling in the realm of death, heading toward eternal death.
Unable to break free: Just as this man couldn’t break his own chains, we cannot save ourselves. Human religion, willpower, self-help, and good intentions all fail. We need a Savior.
Tormented and miserable: Sin promises pleasure but delivers misery. The devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). Life without Christ is ultimately torment.
This man was a picture of what we all are without Jesus—bound, broken, helpless, and hopeless.
PART TWO: MEETING JESUS – THE ENCOUNTER (Luke 8:28-33)
The Demons Recognize Jesus
The moment Jesus stepped ashore, something remarkable happened.
Verse 28: “When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.'”
Notice several crucial truths here:
The demons knew exactly who Jesus was:
They called Him by His full title: “Jesus, Son of the Most High God.” They had no confusion about His identity. They knew He was the divine Son of God, the Messiah, the one with absolute authority over them.
This is both instructive and sobering. James 2:19 says, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” Mere intellectual belief in Jesus’s identity isn’t enough. The demons had perfect theology about who Jesus was, but they hated Him. Saving faith is more than knowledge—it’s trust, surrender, and love.
The demons were terrified:
They “cried out,” and the man “fell down before him.” They knew they were in the presence of superior power. They begged Jesus not to torment them.
Think about that. These demons had tormented this man for years, driving him to cut himself, isolating him, destroying his life. They showed him no mercy. But the moment they faced Jesus, they begged for mercy. The tormentors became the tormented in the presence of Christ.
The demons acknowledged Jesus’s authority:
By begging, they admitted Jesus had complete power over them. They couldn’t resist Him, couldn’t fight Him, couldn’t escape Him. One word from Jesus and they were finished. They knew it, and they were terrified.
Jesus Commands the Demons
Verse 29: “For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.”
Notice Jesus didn’t negotiate. He didn’t dialogue. He didn’t bargain. He simply commanded. His word has absolute authority over the demonic realm. Where human chains failed, Jesus’s word succeeded instantly.
This is the same Jesus who commanded the wind and waves, “Peace! Be still!” and they obeyed (Mark 4:39). This is the same Jesus who spoke the universe into existence. His word carries power. When He speaks, things happen.
The Strange Request and Jesus’s Permission
What follows next is unusual and has puzzled many readers.
Verse 30-32: “Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ And he said, ‘Legion,’ for many demons had entered him. And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss. Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them permission.”
“Legion”
A Roman legion consisted of up to 6,000 soldiers. Whether this is literal or symbolic, the point is clear: this man was inhabited by a massive number of demons—thousands. No wonder he had such supernatural strength. No wonder human chains couldn’t hold him. He wasn’t fighting one demon; he was fighting an army.
This reveals the extent of demonic oppression possible. This man was thoroughly dominated, his personality completely overwhelmed by this demonic horde.
The Abyss
The demons begged not to be sent to “the abyss”—the place of confinement for evil spirits awaiting final judgment (Revelation 20:1-3). They knew their ultimate fate but wanted to delay it. There’s coming a day when all demons will be cast into the lake of fire forever (Matthew 25:41). They know it, dread it, and try to postpone it.
The Pigs
There was a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside—about 2,000 of them according to Mark 5:13. The demons asked permission to enter the pigs rather than be sent to the abyss. Jesus gave them permission.
Why would Jesus do this? Several reasons:
To demonstrate the demons were truly gone: The visible evidence of 2,000 pigs rushing into the sea proved the deliverance was real, not imaginary.
To reveal the destructive nature of demons: Demons destroy everything they inhabit. They drove the man to self-destruction; they drove the pigs to immediate destruction. This is what evil does—it destroys.
To show the value of one human soul: The pigs were valuable economically—a significant financial loss. Yet Jesus valued one man’s freedom above thousands of pigs. Human beings made in God’s image are infinitely more valuable than animals or money.
To expose the community’s values: Their response to the miracle reveals what they treasured most—their pigs or this man’s deliverance. Sadly, they chose economics over a soul.
The Destruction of the Pigs
Verse 33: “Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and drowned.”
Two thousand demon-possessed pigs stampeding into the sea and drowning—what a scene! This was dramatic, undeniable proof that something supernatural had occurred. The demons were gone, the man was free, and the evidence was floating in the lake.
Think about what this reveals about demons:
- They desire embodiment (they wanted bodies to inhabit)
- They are destructive by nature (they killed the pigs immediately)
- They ultimately serve God’s purposes even when they don’t intend to (this miracle glorified Jesus)
- They are subject to Jesus’s authority (they could only act with His permission)
PART THREE: AFTER JESUS – A LIFE TRANSFORMED (Luke 8:34-37)
The Report Spreads
Verse 34: “When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.”
The pig herders ran to spread the news. Imagine trying to explain what they’d just witnessed: “You know that crazy demon-possessed man who lives in the tombs? Well, a Jewish rabbi showed up, and now he’s completely normal. Oh, and all 2,000 pigs just drowned themselves in the lake.”
This was the talk of the town. Everyone came out to see for themselves.
The People Come to Investigate
Verse 35: “Then people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid.”
What a contrast! Let’s compare before and after:
BEFORE Meeting Jesus:
- Naked → NOW clothed
- Living among tombs → NOW sitting at Jesus’s feet
- Driven by demons → NOW in his right mind
- Screaming and violent → NOW peaceful and calm
- Cutting himself → NOW whole and healed
- Isolated from people → NOW in community with the disciples
- Controlled by Legion → NOW sitting with the Lord
This is a complete transformation. This is total deliverance. This is the power of an encounter with Jesus Christ.
Sitting at Jesus’s Feet
Notice where the man was: “sitting at the feet of Jesus.” This is the position of a disciple, a learner, a follower. This is where Mary sat when she chose the “good portion” (Luke 10:39). This is the position of worship, submission, and learning.
The man who had been driven into the wilderness by demons was now drawn to Jesus’s presence. The man who lived among the dead was now seated among the living, learning from the Author of Life. The man who wore no clothes now wore garments—both literally and symbolically clothed in dignity and restoration.
Clothed and in his right mind: These two details are profoundly significant. The nakedness represented shame and loss of humanity. The clothing represented restored dignity and wholeness. The madness represented demonic control and torment. The “right mind” represented freedom, clarity, peace, and restoration of personality.
This is what Jesus does. He restores what sin and Satan destroy. He brings order out of chaos, sanity out of madness, wholeness out of brokenness, dignity out of shame.
The People’s Shocking Response
You would expect the crowd to rejoice, to celebrate, to worship Jesus for this incredible miracle. But instead:
Verse 35b-37: “And they were afraid. And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned.”
They were afraid. Not grateful—afraid. Not worshipful—afraid. They asked Jesus to leave.
Why? Several possible reasons:
Fear of the supernatural:
This was power beyond their understanding. They had lived with the demon-possessed man for years, and nothing had changed him. Now suddenly, he was completely transformed. This level of supernatural power frightened them.
Economic loss:
Two thousand pigs represented enormous wealth—gone in an instant. Jesus had just cost them a fortune. They valued their economy more than this man’s soul.
Fear of change:
If Jesus could transform this man so completely, what else might He change? What would it cost them? They preferred the familiar (even with a demon-possessed man terrorizing the area) to the unknown implications of Jesus’s presence.
Conviction of sin:
His holiness and power exposed their own spiritual poverty. Rather than embrace Him, they rejected Him to avoid facing their own need.
Lack of spiritual hunger:
They had no desire for what Jesus offered. They were content with their lives as they were. The presence of Christ made them uncomfortable, so they asked Him to leave.
This is one of the saddest moments in Scripture. Jesus performed an undeniable miracle of mercy, freeing a man from years of torment, and the people’s response was, “Please leave.” They chose pigs over the Savior, money over the Messiah, comfort over Christ.
And Jesus honored their request. He got in the boat and left. He doesn’t force Himself on anyone. If people ask Him to depart, He will. But what a tragedy—to have Jesus right there and ask Him to go away.
PART FOUR: THE MAN’S NEW MISSION (Luke 8:38-39)
The Man’s Request
Verse 38: “The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying…”
What a contrast! The people begged Jesus to leave. The delivered man begged Jesus to let him stay. The crowd rejected Jesus. The transformed man clung to Jesus.
This man wanted to join the disciples, to follow Jesus wherever He went. He had just experienced complete transformation—how could he not want to stay with his Deliverer? Everything in him wanted to be with Jesus.
This is the natural response of someone truly saved: “I want to be with Jesus! I want to follow Him! I want to stay in His presence!” If someone claims to know Christ but has no desire for His presence, His Word, His people, or His purposes, we must question whether they’ve truly been transformed.
Jesus’s Different Plan
But Jesus had a different mission for this man.
Verse 39: “‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’ And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.”
Jesus sent him back—back to the city he came from, back to the people who knew him when he was demon-possessed, back to his former community. Why?
To be a witness in his homeland:
The Gerasenes had rejected Jesus. They didn’t want Him there. But they couldn’t reject this man—he was one of their own. He could reach people Jesus couldn’t reach because they had refused Him. This delivered man became Jesus’s representative in territory where Jesus Himself wasn’t welcome.
To give undeniable testimony:
Everyone knew this man’s former condition. His transformation was irrefutable evidence of Jesus’s power. No one could deny what had happened. His very presence preached the gospel.
To demonstrate that deliverance produces mission:
Jesus saves us not just FROM something (sin, death, bondage) but FOR something (witness, service, mission). Salvation isn’t just about being rescued; it’s about being sent. This man couldn’t stay comfortable at Jesus’s feet while his community lived in darkness. He had to go tell.
To show that not everyone follows Jesus the same way:
Some are called to leave everything and travel with Jesus (like the Twelve). Others are called to stay where they are and be witnesses there. Both are valid callings. Both are important. God has a unique purpose for each person He saves.
The Man’s Obedience
Notice the man’s response: “And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.”
He obeyed immediately. Jesus said, “Go and tell,” and he went and told. He didn’t argue. He didn’t sulk. He didn’t insist on his own preference. He trusted Jesus’s plan and followed His instructions.
And notice what he proclaimed: “how much Jesus had done for him.” This is the essence of Christian testimony—telling what Jesus has done for YOU. Not theories, not arguments, not second-hand stories, but personal experience: “This is what Jesus did for me. I was bound; He freed me. I was tormented; He gave me peace. I was insane; He made me sane. I was lost; He found me. I was dead; He made me alive.”
That’s the most powerful evangelism—personal testimony of transformation.
The Impact
Mark 5:20 gives us more detail: “And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.”
The Decapolis was a region of ten Gentile cities. This man became an evangelist to his entire region. People marveled—they were amazed at his story and at the Jesus who transformed him.
And get this—when Jesus returned to this region later (Mark 7:31-8:10), huge crowds came to Him, bringing their sick and needy. They welcomed Him this time. Why the change? Because of this man’s testimony. His witness prepared the way for Jesus’s return.
One transformed life can change a whole community. One faithful witness can open a region to the gospel. This man’s obedience multiplied Jesus’s impact far beyond what would have happened if he’d just stayed with Jesus in the boat.
THEOLOGICAL THEMES AND APPLICATIONS
The Power of Jesus Over Demons
This passage demonstrates conclusively that Jesus has absolute authority over the demonic realm:
Complete authority:
- Demons recognized Him immediately
- They couldn’t resist His commands
- They had to beg permission even to enter pigs
- One word from Jesus and they were gone
No contest:
- What chains couldn’t do, Jesus’s word did instantly
- Where human strength failed completely, Jesus succeeded effortlessly
- The demons’ fear revealed Jesus’s superiority
Practical implications for believers:
- We don’t need to fear demons when we’re in Christ
- Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4)
- Jesus defeated Satan at the cross (Colossians 2:15)
- We have authority over demons in Jesus’s name (Luke 10:17-19)
- Our battle is won; we fight from victory, not for victory
The Nature of Demonic Bondage
This passage reveals several truths about Satan’s work:
Demons seek to:
- Control and dominate human personality
- Strip away dignity and humanity
- Isolate people from community and help
- Drive people toward self-destruction
- Keep people in spiritual death and darkness
Demonic influence is characterized by:
- Bondage and compulsion (the man couldn’t break free)
- Violence and chaos (screaming, cutting, breaking chains)
- Degradation and shame (nakedness, living in tombs)
- Supernatural manifestations (extraordinary strength)
- Resistance to spiritual things (though demons do recognize Jesus)
Important clarifications:
- Not all problems are demonic (most mental illness, sin, and suffering aren’t demon possession)
- But demonic influence is real and shouldn’t be dismissed
- All sin ultimately comes from Satan as the originator
- Even without possession, we can be oppressed by demonic influence
- The solution is always Jesus—His power, His authority, His deliverance
The Nature of Salvation
This man’s transformation perfectly illustrates what happens when someone is genuinely saved:
From Bondage to Freedom:
- Demons bound him → Jesus set him free
- We are bound by sin → Jesus sets us free
- “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36)
From Shame to Dignity:
- He was naked and degraded → Jesus clothed him and restored dignity
- We are spiritually naked in our sin → Jesus clothes us in His righteousness
- “He has clothed me with garments of salvation” (Isaiah 61:10)
From Insanity to Soundness:
- He was out of his mind → Jesus gave him a right mind
- We are darkened in understanding → Jesus enlightens us
- “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7)
From Death to Life:
- He lived among the dead → Jesus brought him to life
- We are dead in trespasses → Jesus makes us alive
- “You were dead…but God…made us alive” (Ephesians 2:1-5)
From Isolation to Community:
- He was cut off from people → Jesus brought him into fellowship
- We are alienated from God → Jesus reconciles us
- “You are fellow citizens with the saints” (Ephesians 2:19)
From Purposelessness to Mission:
- He had no purpose but destruction → Jesus gave him a mission
- We were created for good works (Ephesians 2:10)
- Every believer is given a ministry (2 Corinthians 5:18)
The Cost of Following Jesus
This passage honestly presents that following Jesus can be costly:
For the community:
- Economic loss (2,000 pigs)
- Disruption of the status quo
- Challenge to comfortable lives
- Confrontation with supernatural power
For the delivered man:
- Couldn’t stay with Jesus (sent back home)
- Had to face people who knew his past
- Had to live with the mission of witness
- Had to trust Jesus’s plan over his own preference
For us today:
- Following Jesus may cost us financially, socially, and relationally
- We’re called to deny ourselves and take up our cross
- Discipleship isn’t easy or comfortable
- But the cost of NOT following Jesus is infinitely greater
Two Responses to Jesus
This passage presents two contrasting responses to encountering Jesus:
The People – Rejection:
- Saw the miracle but focused on their loss
- Were afraid but not worshipful
- Valued economics over souls
- Asked Jesus to leave
Modern parallels:
- People reject Jesus because He threatens their lifestyle
- They fear what following Him might cost
- They prefer comfort to commitment
- They choose temporary things over eternal things
The Delivered Man – Devotion:
- Wanted to stay with Jesus
- Obeyed Jesus’s instructions
- Became a witness to Jesus’s power
- Lived out his transformation publicly
Modern parallels:
- True believers want Jesus’s presence
- They obey His commands even when difficult
- They tell others about what Jesus has done
- Their transformed lives testify to His power
The question for us: Which response characterizes YOUR life?
The Great Commission in Action
This passage is a mini-Great Commission:
Jesus said: “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.”
The man obeyed: “He went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.”
The commission includes:
- GO – “Return to your home” (we’re sent, not just saved)
- TELL – “Declare” (evangelism is proclamation)
- TESTIFY – “How much God has done for you” (personal testimony)
- REACH YOUR SPHERE – “Your home…the city” (start where you are)
For us:
- We’re all called to witness (Acts 1:8)
- Personal testimony is powerful evangelism
- We start with those who know us
- Our changed lives give credibility to our message
- Obedience to Jesus’s sending is essential
CONCLUSION: HAVE YOU MET JESUS?
This passage forces us to ask ourselves one crucial question: Have I truly met Jesus?
Not “Do I know ABOUT Jesus?” The demons knew about Jesus. They had perfect theology. They knew He was the Son of the Most High God. But they weren’t saved. They were terrified.
Not “Am I religious?” This man lived in a religious region. There were synagogues and temples around. But religion couldn’t free him. Only Jesus could.
The question is: Have you personally encountered Jesus Christ? Has He transformed your life?
The Evidence of a Real Encounter With Jesus:
If you’ve truly met Jesus, there will be evidence:
1. Transformation
- Your life is different
- Old things have passed away; new things have come
- You’re not who you used to be
- The change is visible to others
2. Love for Jesus
- You want to be with Him
- You desire His presence
- You long for His Word
- You treasure time in prayer
3. Obedience
- You follow His commands
- You trust His plan over your preferences
- You submit to His will
- You do what He says even when it’s hard
4. Mission
- You tell others about Him
- You can’t keep quiet about what He’s done
- You want others to meet Him too
- Your life testifies to His power
Ask yourself honestly:
- Am I different since meeting Jesus?
- Do I love being with Him?
- Am I obeying what He’s told me to do?
- Am I telling others about Him?
Three Groups of People:
Looking at this passage, we see three groups of people, and everyone falls into one of these categories:
1. The Bound (Like the man BEFORE deliverance)
Characteristics:
- Living in spiritual bondage
- Controlled by sin and darkness
- Unable to break free on your own
- Isolated, ashamed, heading toward death
- Trying human solutions that fail
If this is you:
- Cry out to Jesus like this man did
- He has power to break every chain
- No sin is too great, no bondage too strong
- He specializes in impossible cases
- Today can be your day of deliverance
The invitation: Come to Jesus. Call on His name. Confess your need. Trust His power. He will save you.
2. The Rejecters (Like the people who sent Jesus away)
Characteristics:
- You’ve seen or heard about Jesus
- You know His power is real
- But you’re afraid of what it might cost you
- You value other things more than Him
- You ask Him to stay away from certain areas
If this is you:
- Understand what you’re choosing
- You’re trading eternal treasure for temporary comfort
- You’re choosing pigs over the Savior
- You’re missing the greatest opportunity of your life
- Jesus will honor your rejection—but at what cost?
The warning: Don’t send Jesus away. The cost of following Him is nothing compared to the cost of rejecting Him. What you’re holding onto isn’t worth losing your soul over.
3. The Delivered (Like the man AFTER meeting Jesus)
Characteristics:
- Jesus has freed you
- Your life is transformed
- You want to be with Him and follow Him
- You have a story to tell
- You’re living out your mission
If this is you:
- Keep sitting at Jesus’s feet
- Keep growing in His Word
- Obey His commission to GO and TELL
- Don’t hide your testimony
- Let your transformed life point others to Jesus
The challenge: Are you telling your story? Are you obeying His mission? Are you a living testimony to His transforming power?
PERSONAL RESPONSE AND APPLICATION
Questions for Reflection:
Take time to honestly examine your heart with these questions:
About Your Spiritual Condition:
- What “chains” bind you that you can’t break on your own?
- Have you tried human solutions that have failed?
- Are you living in spiritual death, isolated from God and true community?
- Do you recognize your desperate need for Jesus?
About Your Encounter With Jesus: 5. Have you truly met Jesus, or just heard about Him? 6. Can you point to a time when He transformed your life? 7. Is there visible evidence that you’ve been with Jesus? 8. Would others say you’re different since meeting Him?
About Your Response: 9. Are you running TO Jesus or asking Him to leave? 10. What are you holding onto that keeps you from full surrender? 11. Are you willing to let Jesus have complete control? 12. What areas of your life are you still managing yourself?
About Your Mission: 13. Are you telling others what Jesus has done for you? 14. Do people who know your past see your transformation? 15. Are you obeying Jesus’s command to “Go and tell”? 16. Who needs to hear your story this week?
Action Steps:
Based on this passage, here are concrete steps to take:
If You’ve Never Truly Met Jesus:
- Recognize your bondage
- Admit you’re spiritually dead and bound
- Acknowledge you can’t save yourself
- Confess your need for a Savior
- Cry out to Jesus
- Call on His name in faith
- Ask Him to save you and free you
- Trust His power and His promise
- Surrender your life to Him
- Believe and receive
- Trust that Jesus died for your sins
- Believe He rose from the dead
- Receive His forgiveness and new life
- Commit to follow Him as Lord
If You’ve Been Rejecting Jesus:
- Stop sending Him away
- Identify what you value more than Him
- Count the cost of continued rejection
- Recognize what you’re trading for what
- Invite Him in completely
- Stop compartmentalizing your life
- Give Him access to every area
- Surrender what you’ve been holding back
- Trust Him with everything
- Act on His Word
- Don’t just hear—obey
- Take the step He’s asking you to take
- Trust His plan over your preferences
- Follow Him even when it costs something
If You’ve Been Delivered:
- Stay close to Jesus
- Keep “sitting at His feet”
- Maintain daily time in His Word and prayer
- Pursue intimacy with Him
- Don’t drift from His presence
- Obey His mission
- Tell your story this week
- Write out your testimony and share it
- Look for opportunities to witness
- Be bold about what Jesus has done for you
- Live your transformation
- Let your changed life speak
- Be different in visible ways
- Point others to Jesus through your example
- Don’t hide your light under a bushel
PASTORAL APPLICATIONS
For Those Struggling With Mental Illness:
This passage can be difficult for those battling mental illness. Important pastoral considerations:
Not all mental illness is demonic:
- This was a clear case of demon possession
- Most mental illness is biological, not demonic
- Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, etc., are medical conditions
- Don’t assume spiritual causes for medical problems
But Jesus cares about mental suffering:
- He restored this man’s “right mind”
- He has compassion for those who suffer
- He can work through medicine, therapy, and prayer
- Seeking medical help isn’ta lack of faith
Hope for the suffering:
- Jesus can bring clarity to confused minds
- He offers peace to anxious hearts
- He gives hope to the depressed
- He’s present in the darkness
Church’s responsibility:
- Love and support those struggling mentally
- Don’t stigmatize or spiritualize away real suffering
- Encourage appropriate professional help
- Pray for and with those who suffer
- Create safe spaces for honest struggles
For Those Ministering to the “Impossible Cases”:
This passage offers tremendous encouragement for those working with people society has given up on:
Jesus specializes in impossible cases:
- The people everyone has written off
- Those “too far gone” to save
- The addicted, the violent, the broken
- Those who’ve failed repeatedly
Don’t give up:
- Where human solutions fail, Jesus succeeds
- Keep praying, keep loving, keep hoping
- Trust Jesus’s power, not human potential
- One encounter with Jesus changes everything
Your role:
- Point people to Jesus (you can’t save them)
- Love them when they’re unlovable
- Be patient with the process
- Trust God’s timing
- Pray persistently
The transformation may be dramatic:
- Sudden deliverance happens
- Instant transformation is possible
- Don’t limit God’s power
- Be ready for miracles
Or the transformation may be gradual:
- Progressive sanctification is normal
- Growth takes time
- Setbacks don’t mean failure
- Keep walking with them
For Church Leaders:
This passage challenges church leadership in several ways:
Are we reaching the “Gerasenes”?
- Those outside our comfortable circles
- People from different backgrounds
- The marginalized and rejected
- That society has given up on
Are we creating space for transformed lives?
- Do former addicts feel welcome?
- Can people with messy pasts find acceptance?
- Is our church a hospital or a museum?
- Do we celebrate transformation stories?
Are we sending people on a mission?
- Like Jesus sent this man back home
- Equipping people to witness where they live
- Not just asking everyone to “come to church”
- But sending them to “go and tell”
Are we valuing souls over comfort?
- The people valued their economy over this man
- Do we value our programs over people?
- Do we prioritize our preferences over mission?
- Are we willing to be disrupted for the gospel?
CONCLUSION: THE INVITATION
This passage ends with the man proclaiming throughout the whole city what Jesus had done for him. That’s where your story should lead too—to telling others about Jesus.
But first, you must meet Him yourself.
The Gospel Invitation:
If you’ve never truly encountered Jesus Christ, today can be your day of deliverance. Like this man, you’re bound—maybe not by demons, but by sin, by guilt, by shame, by fear, by addiction, by emptiness. You’ve tried to break free, but you can’t. Human solutions have failed.
But Jesus has the power to break every chain. He came to “proclaim liberty to the captives” (Luke 4:18). He died on the cross to pay for your sins. He rose from the dead to give you new life. And He offers you complete forgiveness, total transformation, and eternal life—free, as a gift, if you’ll come to Him.
How to come to Jesus:
- Admit your need: “I’m spiritually dead and bound. I can’t save myself. I need You, Jesus.”
- Believe in Jesus: “I believe You died for my sins and rose again. I trust You as my Savior.”
- Commit to follow Him: “I surrender my life to You. Be my Lord. I’ll follow You wherever You lead.”
- Receive His gift: “Thank You for forgiving me and giving me new life. I receive Your salvation by faith.”
If you prayed that in sincere faith, you’ve just met Jesus. You’re saved. You’re forgiven. You’re transformed. You’re His.
For Those Who Already Know Jesus:
You have a mission. Like this man, you can’t keep quiet about what Jesus has done for you. This week, obey Jesus’s command: “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.”
Your assignment:
- Tell at least one person this week what Jesus has done for you
- Write out your testimony and be ready to share it
- Pray for opportunities to witness
- Be bold about your faith
- Let your transformed life point others to Jesus
You met Jesus. He changed everything. Now go tell the world.
The Final Question:
So let me ask you one more time: Have you met Jesus?
Not “Do you know about Him?” Not “Are you religious?” But have you personally encountered Him? Has He transformed your life? Is there evidence?
If yes, are you living it out? Are you sitting at His feet? Are you obeying His mission? Are you telling your story?
If not yet, what are you waiting for? He’s here. He has the power to save. He wants to deliver you. Will you come to Him today?
The man who met Jesus was never the same. Neither will you be.
FOR FURTHER STUDY
Related Passages:
- Mark 5:1-20 – Parallel account with additional details
- Matthew 8:28-34 – Matthew’s version (mentions two men)
- Luke 4:31-37 – Another demon deliverance by Jesus
- Acts 16:16-18 – Paul casting out demons
- Ephesians 2:1-10 – Spiritual transformation described theologically
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 – New creation in Christ
Recommended Resources:
- Books:
- The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis (on spiritual warfare)
- Pierced for Our Transgressions (on substitutionary atonement)
- The Cross of Christ by John Stott (on Jesus’s sacrifice)
- The Gospel According to Jesus by John MacArthur (on true conversion)
- Sermons:
- Search for “Gerasene Demoniac” sermons by trusted pastors
- Look for messages on spiritual transformation
- Study sermons on spiritual warfare and Jesus’s authority
- Study Helps:
- Cross-reference other Gospel accounts
- Study parallel passages in Mark and Matthew
- Examine other demon-deliverance stories in Scripture
- Research first-century context of Decapolis region
Questions for Deeper Study:
- Compare the three Gospel accounts (Matthew, Mark, Luke). What unique details does each provide?
- Research the Decapolis region. Why was this significant territory for Jesus to minister in?
- Study other instances of Jesus casting out demons. What patterns do you notice?
- Examine Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah defeating evil. How does this story fulfill them?
- Investigate the theology of substitutionary atonement. How does Jesus’s defeat of demons relate to His victory on the cross?
May this study of the man who met Jesus lead you to a deeper encounter with Christ yourself, and may your transformed life point many others to the Savior who has the power to break every chain and give new life to all who come to Him.
Pastor Joey notes:
Jesus calms the chaos of one man’s soul.
PROMPT: Write a description in no more than 200 words of how this man is the perfect picture of man’s destruction.
CLAUDE: The Perfect Picture of Man’s Destruction
The Gerasene demoniac perfectly illustrates humanity’s condition apart from Christ. He was controlled by evil—just as all people are slaves to sin and under Satan’s dominion (Ephesians 2:1-3). He was stripped of dignity, living naked and ashamed, having lost the image of God that once defined him. He dwelt among the dead in the tombs, symbolizing spiritual death and separation from the living God.
This man was isolated from the community, cut off from relationships and fellowship—exactly what sin does, separating us from God and others. He was tormented day and night with no peace or rest, reflecting the inner turmoil of a soul apart from Christ. Most tragically, he was unable to break free. The chains couldn’t hold him, yet he couldn’t save himself. Human solutions utterly failed.
He represents every person before salvation: bound by forces we cannot overcome, degraded by sin’s power, living in spiritual death, isolated from God, tormented by guilt and shame, and absolutely helpless to change our condition. Like him, we need a Savior from outside ourselves—someone with power to break chains we cannot break and deliver us from bondage we cannot escape.
At this point, I ran out of available “FREE” prompts from Claude AI and had to switch to my Pro Subscription to Perplexity AI. Perplexity is an AI-powered search engine that transforms how you discover information by providing clear, conversational answers to your questions. It combines real-time web searching with advanced language models to deliver precise, verifiable responses, including citations to reputable sources, making research fast and reliable. You’ll note that this AI provides exhaustive content with links to related sources. Although I favor Claude, I thought this was an interesting addition to the responses from Perplexity.
PROMPT: As mentioned in Luke 8, write a brief description of the origin of demons in no more than 200 words.
Perplexity: According to Luke 8, demons are spiritual beings opposed to God, often portrayed as possessing and tormenting humans. They are not described as newly created forces but connected to a broader biblical understanding of fallen angels—spiritual entities that rebelled against God alongside Satan and were cast out of heaven, becoming hostile to divine order. In Jewish tradition of the New Testament period, demons were also thought to be spirits of the wicked—sometimes associated with the cursed offspring of angels and humans from early writings like *Jubilees* and *1 Enoch*.[8][11]
In Luke 8:26–39, Jesus confronts a man possessed by many demons calling themselves “Legion.” The demons recognize Jesus as the Son of God and beg Him not to send them to “the Abyss,” showing awareness of divine judgment and their ultimate defeat. Luke’s narrative underscores that their presence reflects opposition to God’s kingdom, while Jesus’s authority over them demonstrates the arrival of God’s reign and ultimate victory over evil.[1][9][13]
Sources
[1] Demons Into Pigs?! Demonic Activity in Luke’s Gospel – Holy Joys https://holyjoys.org/demonic-
[2] Commentary on Luke 8:26-39 – Working Preacher https://www.workingpreacher.
[3] Spirits and Demons – Luke 8:26-39 https://www.stmatthewavon.org/
[4] Why are there two demon-possessed men in the Gerasene tombs in … https://www.gotquestions.org/
[5] Enduring Word Bible Commentary Luke Chapter 8 https://enduringword.com/
[6] Jesus delivers the Gerasene demoniac in Luke 8 | Psephizo https://www.psephizo.com/
[7] Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac in Luke 8 – Psephizo https://www.psephizo.com/
[8] Demonic Origins and Magdalene | Bible & Beyond Discussions https://earlychristiantexts.
[9] Commentary on Luke 8:26-39 – Working Preacher https://www.workingpreacher.
[10] The Man Jesus Renamed – First Presbyterian Church https://fpcjackson.org/
[11] 11. The Demons And The Pigs (Matthew 8:28-34) | Bible.org https://bible.org/seriespage/
[12] Luke Chapter 8 – The Testimony of Luke – BYU Studies https://byustudies.byu.edu/
[13] 31. The Demonized Man of the Garasenes (Luke 8:26-39) https://www.jesuswalk.com/
PROMPT: Write a brief description of Jesus’ power from Luke 8:31-33.
Sources
PROMPT: In Luke 8:34-39 write a short description about the amazing power that resulted in the man’s transformation.
Sources
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17