PT-3“The Maniac Who Became a Missionary” (Luke 8:26-39)

 SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 9/25/2026 9:38 AM

My Worship Time                                Focus:  PT-3“The Maniac Who Became a Missionary”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                Reference:  Luke 8:26-39

            Message of the verses:  “²⁶ Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. ²⁷ 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. ²⁸ 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." ²⁹ For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. 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. ³⁰ And Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. ³¹ They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss. ³² Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. ³³ And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴ When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and out in the country. ³⁵ The people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened. ³⁶ Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well. ³⁷ And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat and returned. ³⁸ But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying, ³⁹ "Return to your house and describe what great things God has done for you." So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.”

            John MacArthur writes:  The rarity of overt demonic manifestation does not mean that the forces of hell are not always active.  Those ‘deceitful spirits’ (1 Tim. 4:1) prefer to remain anonymous working behind the scenes disguised as angels of light (2 Cor. 11:14-15).”

(1 Tim. 4:1)

“1 ¶  Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,”

(2 Cor. 11:14-15)

“14  And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15  So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.”

“But so great was their terror in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ that they could not help revealing themselves.  Earlier in Luke’s account Jesus entered a synagogue in Capernaum and a demon-possessed man was there.  Unable to control his fear, the demon blurted out, ‘Let us along!  What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?  Have You come to destroy us?  I know who You are—the Holy One of God!’ (Luke 4:34).  Paul stated that the Lord Jesus Christ is ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion [angels]’ (Eph. 1:21).

            As God incarnate, Jesus Christ displayed the power to vanquish Satan that only God possesses.  To the Jewish religious authorities, who blasphemously tried to explain away that power by claiming He was in league with the devil.  Jesus replied

I I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed.  But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. (Luke 11:20-22)

“As the Messiah and Son of God, Jesus defeated Satan and delivered His people from their bondage to him (Eph. 2:1-3; Col. 1:13; 1 John 5:19).”

(Eph. 2:1-3; Col. 1:13; 1 John 5:19)

“1 ¶  And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2  in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3  among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

“13  He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,”

“19  We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.”

“The Lord demonstrated His power over the devil throughout His earthly ministry.  The incident in this passage, presented by all three Synoptic Gospel writers, is the most dramatic and extreme encounter between Jesus and the forces of hell recorded in the Gospels.  It tells the miraculous story of Christ’s deliverance of a demon-plagued manic, who became a most unlikely missionary.  As the account unfolds, three forces are revealed:  the destructive power of demons, the delivering power of Jesus, and the damming power of sin.”

Spiritual Meaning for my life today:  I am thankful for learning about the awesome power of the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that He has power over everything, for He is God incarnate.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trusting that the Lord will continue to see me through the great trials that I am facing since my wife passed away on the 29^th of July.

9/25/2026 9:57 AM