What Is Jesus Doing About All the Evil in Our World?

2nd Sunday after Pentecost, 6/19/22 Luke 8:26-39 What Is Jesus Doing About All the Evil in Our World? If you haven’t stated the following question out loud, you’ve probably thought it. Are these the most evil days ever? I suppose you could make a case for it. It’s largely agreed that we live in a post-Christian society here in the United States. As such, we’re living in a world that the countries of Europe have been living in for decades already. Murderous violence seems to be a daily occurrence in our country. The sharp rise in inflation has made it more difficult for many Americans to make ends meet. Dishonesty and corruption abound in business, politics, and even in the church. Looking past our borders, we’re all too aware that the war in Ukraine is nearing the end of its third month, and, while it’s difficult at times for us to know exactly how the war is going, it doesn’t seem to be getting any better. The destruction, atrocities, and deaths continue to mount. I could cite examples of evil in other places of the world, but you get the point. Are these the most evil days ever? Perhaps. I say, “perhaps,” because you wouldn’t have to look too hard or too far to find evil abounding at other times in the past. Read through the book of Judges in the Old Testament. You’ll be shocked at the evil recounted in chapter after chapter among God’s own people. And when you’re finished reading Judges, read through 1 & 2 Kings and then Daniel. Page after page of evil days. And evil abounded even during the days when Jesus walked this earth. His own people of Nazareth tried to murder him. The people of Jerusalem succeeded in doing so. Jesus later ascended into heaven and evil still abounded. The people murdered his apostles, with the exception of John. But if you were to conclude that the coming of Jesus to this world did nothing about the evil in our world, you’d be wrong. How do I know that? It’s right here in this account before us this morning from Luke 8. But evil still abounds. If you’re a little confused and bewildered, then keep this question before you, “What is Jesus doing about all the evil in our world?” Let’s walk through this account together and see Jesus battling evil and winning. Our text begins with the words, “They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee.” Jesus had been spending time in the towns and villages on the west shore of the Sea of Galilee, places such as Nazareth and Cana and Capernaum. These places were filled with Jewish people who heard Jesus preach and teach and witnessed him perform many miracles. But now he sets sail for the east shore of the Sea of Galilee, the region of the Gerasenes. The towns and villages here were filled with Gentile people. Recall that Jesus had once stated that he was sent to the lost sheep of Israel. The focus of his ministry was on his fellow Jewish people. Evil abounded there. But it was even more prevalent among the Gentiles. And he didn’t have to look long before he found it. “When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town.” We find out soon enough that his demon-possession is beyond imagination. The demons tell Jesus that their name is “Legion.” A legion in the Roman army consisted of about 6,000 men. This man had been possessed by countless demons for a long time, causing him not to wear clothes or live in a house; instead he lived in the tombs, likely small caves cut out of the rock on the cliffs above the Sea of Galilee. Luke doesn’t state it exactly, but he certainly gives us the impression that this man was one of the marginalized members of society. The people living near him had tried to bind him, but their chains were no match for the demons. The demons drove him to live in solitary places and the townspeople were fine with that. They couldn’t help him, but he lived out of sight, out of mind. They lived their lives; he lived his with his demons. And those demons immediately know who Jesus is and declare that they’re no match for Jesus. They refer to him as the Son of the Most High God. They know that hell is their predetermined eternal destination but they beg Jesus not to send them there yet. What these demons say and know leaves us with a lot of questions without any answers. But Jesus is there for one purpose—to display his power over Satan and evil. “A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into the pigs, and he gave them permission. When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.” And the result? “The man from whom the demons had gone out, [was] sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind.” The difference couldn’t have been more dramatic. Can you picture it in your mind? Jesus had completely removed the evil from his life and there he sat, presumably listening to Jesus, no doubt telling him who he was and what work he had come to do. The reaction of the people of the town couldn’t have been more different. Luke informs us that were afraid of Jesus. In fact, they were overcome with fear and asked Jesus to leave. Afraid of Jesus? Why? TLuke doesn’t tell us, but it’s safe to assume that they had just lost a tremendous amount of income and their livelihoods. That’s what the presence of Jesus for a short while cost them. If he stayed among them any longer, what more would they lose? So, they wanted him to leave…now. I’m sure Jesus was disappointed. He loves the whole world. He loved these people just as much as he loved the former demoniac. He had made the trip across the Sea of Galilee to drive the evil out of the lives of these people, but they wanted nothing to do with him. In effect, they pointed him to his boat and told him to get in it and go back where he came from. “So, he got into the boat and left.” But Jesus wasn’t done with them. “The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return home and tell how much God has done for you.’ So, the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.” How did that go? Were the man’s efforts to bring these people into the kingdom of God successful? It would appear so. Later in Jesus’ ministry, he returned to this area and Mark informs us (8:31-32) that the people brought a deaf man who could hardly talk to Jesus and Jesus healed him. At the very least, their attitude about Jesus had changed from demanding that he leave them, to inviting him to stay. They realized his power over evil. Jesus’ response to the evil in their lives was to use his gospel to bring them into his kingdom. He’s done the same for you and me. But we tend to forget it. We’re so dismayed by the evil in our world that we fail to recall that Jesus has cast the evil out of us. In many of our cases, he used the power of his gospel attached to the water of our baptisms to drive the devil out and bring the Savior in. He washed our sins away, brought us to faith in him as our Savior, and ushered us into his kingdom where no evil exists, only a blessed life with him. And now, like the man in this text, we sit dressed and in our right minds. What do I mean? We have the opportunity to sit daily at the feet of our Savior, hearing his life-changing, evil-destroying word, a word which shows his love for us on Calvary’s cross where he sacrificed himself for us. We have the opportunity to receive his body and blood in the Lord’s Supper to increase his kingdom-hold on our hearts and lives. We sit dressed and in our right minds. We know that Satan battles ceaselessly to bring down the kingdom of God and we’re dismayed by the evil that he perpetrates in our world. But we’re dressed and in our right minds. We know what these demons knew—that they’re no match for Jesus and that, in the end, Jesus wins and we win with him. His resurrection from the dead assures us of it. Fellow members of God’s kingdom, even if we succeed in getting all people to live decently and peacefully, even if we elect good and decent government officials, we won’t do anything to drive the evil out of our world. Sadly, people without faith in Jesus will continue to invent new forms of evil until the day that Jesus returns. But here’s what we can do. “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” Start with the people you know. Share with them the love of Jesus. Talk with your friends, co-workers, and acquaintances. See what opportunities they give you for sharing God’s truth with them, perhaps just a sentence or two at first. Then look to the fringes of your life. Where are the marginalized people in your life—people like this former demoniac? Is it that young man who looks weirdly different? Is it that woman wearing a hijab? Is it that person who obviously is suffering from some emotional or psychological issue? First, love them as Jesus loves them. People don’t care what you know about Jesus until they know you care about them. Love people! And then share the love of Jesus with them as you have opportunity. That’s what Jesus is doing about all the evil in our world. And he wants to use you to do it. He promises to be with us and bless us as we do. Amen.