They pleaded with him to leave

They pleaded with him to leave

Scripture:

When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”

He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region. Matthew 8:28-34

Observation:

Right after the incident of the storm, Matthew now focuses our attention on the Lord’s encounter with two demon-possessed men in the region of the Gadarenes. Curiously, this incident is also narrated in the gospels of Mark and Luke, but both the other gospels only mention one demon-possessed man while Matthew mentions too. Bible scholars are of the opinion, that of the two demon-possessed man, one more vocal and prominent and thus, Mark and Luke focused only on him, disregarding the less prominent demon-possessed man. However, Matthew, who was probably there when it happened, saw fit to mention two for his particular audience, namely the Jews, who would have noted the significance of the number 2, as in their culture, the authenticity of important matters are to be established by the presence of 2 or 3 witnesses.

The demons in the men recognized Jesus as the Son of God, and feared that He had come to torture them before the appointed time. It is interesting to note that the demons know there is an appointed time when they will be subject to judgment. Knowing that Jesus would drive them out, they begged Him to allow them to go into a herd of pigs. Jesus consented, and to the disciple’s amazement, the legion of demons in the men ran out and entered the pigs, proceeding to drown them. The pig-tenders quickly ran off to the town and told them what had happened.

The townspeople, greatly alarmed, quickly went to Jesus to ask Him to leave. No doubt, foremost in their minds was the possibility of further economic loss as the pigs would have cost the owners a fair sum. Some of them too, were perhaps too frightened to contemplate the supernatural, that a man could have the authority to cast out demons at will. These townspeople were too preoccupied with materiality or fear that they failed to recognize the moment of God’s visitation to them.

Application:

Are we too bonded by fear or by materiality to the point that we miss God’s calling for us. There are times when the Lord may call us to overcome our fear and step out into the deep water. There are times when the Lord may call us to set aside preoccupation with material things, but instead trust God. May we not be like the townspeople who failed to realize the moment of God’s visitation to them.

Prayer:

Praise thee, Heavenly Father, for You hold all things in Your hands. You set seasons and times in place, all that happens does so according to Your will. Free me O Lord from fear and from the love of money and possessions. Give me instead a fresh new vision that seeks You, that desires to follow Your will. In Jesus name, Amen.