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Commentaries
English
Luke
  
26Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.27And He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.28When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!"29For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.30Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him,31and they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.32Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. And they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them.33Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.34When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.35Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.36They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed. 37Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned.38Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying,39"Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you." And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.


Jesus was the incarnate Spirit of God in whom the fullness of the power of the Creator dwelt. The holiness of the Holy Spirit appeared in him, and the love of the Holy Trinity moved him.
When Jesus arrived at the eastern shore of Lake Tiberias, a pagan region, wishing to find rest and pray there with his disciples, away from the overcrowded multitudes, a man possessed with unclean spirits hurried to him, and was attracted to Christ as a piece of iron is attracted to a magnet. The man who had devils had bothered all the country, and was causing endless troubles to himself. He had found refuge not in a house, but among the tombs with the dead, running without clothes in the fields, and cutting all the chains with which people bound him. The evil spirits in that tormented man knew Jesus immediately, and cried fearfully, "Woe to us! You have come before the due time. You are the Son of God. Begotten, not created. Filled with the holiness of God. You are Power of the Highest. We are perished. You have the power and the right to torment us."
Would that the scales of blindness fall from the eyes of foolish men, the locks fly away from the ears of the deaf, and the stony hearts explode, that they may realize that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God, and not a mere prophet. The devil has vaccinated millions with his antichrist spirit, and filled their minds and subconscious with repudiation of Jesus’ divinity, that they became rigid in their hatred and refusal. Though this deceitful spirit, the father of all liars knows exactly that his doctrine is lying, he purposely deceives the multitudes. Jesus called him the ruler of this world. Yet where Christ comes in person, and when the apostles of his Holy Spirit pray in loving lowliness, and preach willingly with fasting, there the devil’s authority fades away, and his power is defeated, for Christ is the Savior of the world, and his name drives out all demons without delay. Come to the divine Victor and you will be secure forever.
Thousands of hosts of wickedness resided in that poor man, calling themselves "Legion", which signifies in the language of the ancient Roman army a division of 3,000-6,000 soldiers. These unclean spirits cried sharply and explosively like dogs, for fear that the eternal Judge might drive them out immediately into the deep chasm, having heard the gnashing of hell, and known the place of everlasting punishment. Dear brother, in these satanic confessions, you may see the future of the reprobates. So repent, as long as there is time, unless you are cast together with the followers of Satan into the lake of fire prepared for the enemy of God and his angels. Christ loves you, and is willing to save you. Believe in your Lord, and abide in the gospel of salvation that you may become sanctified, flee from the spirit of Satan, and stand safe under the sprinkling of the blood of Christ.
Disturbed unclean spirits seek shelter in human bodies, but they destroy their shelter automatically, for they are, by all means, destructive. Christ cast them out of the patient, and allowed them to enter into a herd of swine. The falling of the herd into the abyss and the lake is a token of the final judgment. Do you belong to those who behave like pigs, or do you sit at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in your right mind?
What a beautiful depiction of the event: He, out of whom the devils were departed, sat at the feet of Jesus all peaceful, calm, and rational, as a consequence of Christ’s triumph. Today, you can see groups of disordered, restless, furious, and wicked young people. You know that those are driven by unclean spirits. On the other hand, you can see others neat, pleasing, favored with Jesus’ blessing, in their right minds, and enjoying great divine joyfulness. Those are driven by the Holy Spirit, and are made secure in Christ’s expanses. Do you belong to them?
Then Jesus sends you, as a token and witness of his salvational work, to testify to all the people of your country that Christ drove all unclean spirits out of your breast with his holy word. You should be a witness of the Savior even if all the people of your country rejected Christ. The Lord goes wherever the people reject him. Yet, he loves those who reject him, in spite of their ignorance, and sends his witnesses to them. Are you a witness of the great God into your low surroundings?

Prayer
O Lord, you are my Savior. Thank you for saving me from the power of all evil spirits, for your Holy Spirit resides in me. Forgive me my sins, and help me to become properly clothed for you, neat and clean in all my behavior, a faithful witness of your word, and light in my idolatrous neighborhood.
Question
How did the demon-possessed live before and after meeting Christ?