EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 9/25/2026
10:57 PM
My Worship
Time Focus:
PT-1 “The
Destructive Power of Demons”
Bible
Reading & Meditation Reference: Luke
8:26-28, 20b
Message of the verses: “Then they sailed to the country of
the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.
And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city
who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long
time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before
Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other,
Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg
You, do not torment me.”…For it had seized him many times; and he was bound
with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds
and be driven by the demon into the desert.”
This evening we begin a kind of long section looking
at the verses above. This amazing
demonstration of Jesus’ divine power immediately follows another astonishing
miracle. As the Lord and His disciples sailed
across the northern part of the Sea of Galilee, a massive storm had
arisen. They were fearing for their
lives, (not Jesus, but the disciples), and so they awakened Jesus, who had
instantly calmed the wind and also the waves (this can be seen on what was
written from Luke 8:22-25 which is in the last section or chapter from
MacArthur’s commentary on Luke. Now the
powerful storm had undoubtedly blown them off course, and as a result it was
probably daybreak by the time they made it to shore. Luke (along with Mark [5:1]) calls their
destination the country of the Gerasenes, which was opposite Galilee on
the eastern shore, while Matthew refers to it as “the country of the Gadarenes”
(Matt. 8:28). MacArthur writes Mark and Luke evidently referred to a small
village (Gerasa; modern Kersa) near the shore of the Sea of Galilee, while
Matthew referred to the larger town, Gadara, which gave its name to the region
(and may have been it capital).
“After Jesus and the disciples came
out of the boats onto the land, they were met ty the shocking
sight of a man from the city who was possessed with demons. Matthew noted that there were two
demon-possessed men (Matt. 8:28), while Luke and Mark, focused on the one whom
Jesus delivered. What happened to the
other man is not recorded (although the use of the plural ‘demoniacs’ in Matt.
8:33 suggests that he too was delivered).
The demon-possessed man in Luke’s account was literally a maniac,
exhibiting extreme symptoms of wild, uncontrollable behavior.
“As I wrote in the first volume of
this commentary on Luke, Scripture uses four terms or phrases to describe demon
possession:
“First,
sixteen times such people are said to have a demon or evil spirit (4:33; 7:33;
[8:27]; 13:11; Matt. 11:18; Mark 3:22, 30; 9:17; John 7:20; 8:48, 49, 52;
10:20; Acts 8:7; 16:16), indicating that a demon-possessed individual was
indwelt, controlled, and tormented by the demon.”
(4:33; 7:33; [8:27]; 13:11; Matt.
11:18; Mark 3:22, 30; 9:17; John 7:20; 8:48, 49, 52; 10:20; Acts 8:7; 16:16)
“33 And in the synagogue there was a man who had
the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice,”
“33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread
and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’”
“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.’
“11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a
disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully
straighten herself.”
“18 For John came neither eating nor drinking,
and they say, ‘He has a demon.’”
“22 ¶ And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem
were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he
casts out the demons.”
“30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean
spirit.”
“17 And someone from the crowd answered him,
"Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him
mute.”
“20 The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is
seeking to kill you?”
“48 The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in
saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?”
“49 Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon,
but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.”
“52 The Jews said to him, "Now we know that
you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone
keeps my word, he will never taste death.’”
“20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is
insane; why listen to him?”
“7 For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud
voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were
healed.”
“16 ¶ As we were going to the place of prayer, we
were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners
much gain by fortune-telling.”
“The
repeated phrase ‘entered him’ ([8:30]), ‘cast out’ (Matt. 8:16; 9:33; 12:24;
28; Mark 1:34), ‘came out’ (Matt. 8:32), ‘come out’ (Mark 5:8), and ‘coming out’
(Mark 5:13) also indicate that demons indwell their victims.”
‘entered him’ ([8:30]),
“30 Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?”
And he said, “Legion,” for many demons had entered him.”
‘cast out’ (Matt. 8:16; 9:33; 12:24;
28; Mark 1:34)
“16 That evening they brought to him many who were
oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who
were sick.”
“33 And when the demon had been cast out, the
mute man spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying,, “Never was anything like this
seen in Israel.”
“24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said,
“It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out
demons.”
“28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast
out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
“34 And he healed many who were sick with various
diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to
speak, because they knew him.”
‘came out’ (Matt. 8:32)
“32 And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out
and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank
into the sea and drowned in the waters.”
‘come out’ (Mark 5:8)
“8 For he was saying to him, “Come out of the
man, you unclean spirit!”
coming out’ (Mark 5:13)
13 So he gave them permission. And the unclean
spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two
thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.”
As you may see, this is going to
take a long time because of all of the verses that I want to quote.
9/25/2026
11:43 PM
No comments:
Post a Comment