Luke’s Gospel

The man of the Gerasenes had been wrecked by the power of demons, yet Jesus restored him.  Demons are still wrecking the lives of countless people.  And Jesus is still defeating them and restoring broken damaged human beings to the image of God.

Jesus was confronted by a man who had demons.  What had the demons done to that man’s personality and life?  What are demons doing to people in our society today?  It is not just a tiny number of people who “have demons”.  Every fallen human being follows the dictates of Satan, “the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience”.

Caught in the storm, the disciples woke Jesus and begged for his help.  Jesus calmed the storm – and then rebuked them for their lack of faith.  What  had they done wrong?   What had they done right?  What lessons did they learn?

Jesus declares that his true family is made up of those who listen to him and put what he says into practice.  But when his disciples did listen to his commands and obeyed them, they immediately found a storm breaking around them.  Believers may often find themselves encountering sudden and terrifying storms.  But should they assume that that’s a sign that they’re outside God’s will?  No, rather the contrary!

Jesus urged his disciples to be careful how they listened.  Too often we listen but never put what we hear into practice.  Jesus’s mother and brothers saw no need to listen and obey his words – they thought that their relationship with him gave them a special status.  But Jesus made clear that the only people who can claim a genuine relationship with him are those who listen to his words and act on them.