And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him. And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.” Luke 8:24-26
Last week we discussed the power of Christ as being:
Delivered by God – John 17:1-2
Derived from the Holy Spirit – Luke 4:14
Delegated to others – Luke 9:1
Determined by Himself – John 10:18
The central theme of our previous discussion revolved around our Lord’s incredible power, one manifestation of which was demonstrated by His control over the Devil. So often in this life we find ourselves engaged in struggles which bring despair, sorrow, regret, depression and defeat. These struggles are often spiritual in nature (either at their inception or in their results), instigated by the powers of darkness and the connivance of devils. As believers, we recognize the absolute power of Christ over all things, including the Devil and all of his minions (devils, demons, and unclean spirits). “And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee. And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not. (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.) And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him. And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.” (Luke 8:26-31). Here we have Legion, named as such due to the multitude of devils that had possessed this poor man, torturing him to the point of insanity. The size of a Roman legion varied over the years and initially would have consisted of as many as 36,000 soldiers until they were later separated into ten groups of approximately one hundred and called Centuries. At this time in history, however, most Legions consisted of 3,000 to 6,000 men. The name “Legion” was given in reference to how many devils had entered the man of Gadara, infecting him with a spiritual rot and controlling him bodily with writhing spasms. We should not forget that this man was someone’s family member. He most definitely had parents and may have had brothers or sisters. He might have even been a father himself with children of his own. The Devil and his devils have no regard for anyone’s position, stature, situation or prominence. All humanity are viewed as potential victims.
They ravage the lives of men, women and children with malevolence and morbid delight, “because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (I Peter 5:8).
In Luke 8:32-33, we read of the Power of Christ and the power of His spoken Word which exorcise these demons, casting them all into a herd of pigs which then stampeded down a steep hill, crazed, plunging to watery deaths drowned in a lake. In verses 34 and 35, the confrontation had ended and the devils, having been commanded to withdraw, are now gone. Those that had witnessed these events recognized the power of Christ and ran to tell others, while the man who had been possessed sat fully clothed and “in his right mind” at the feet of Jesus.
Praise the Lord that Christ has absolute Power over the Devil, devils and, as we will see, disease also. “And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.” (Luke 8:43-44).
This woman had hemorrhaged blood for 12 years, but by the Power of Christ, she was healed after simply touching the hem of His garment which demonstrated His power over disease and illness. As the struggles of life seem to escalate during the holidays, the power of Christ is able to overcome anything this world imposes upon us.
I am here to tell you that Christ has the Power over physical, emotional, mental and spiritual disease and illness. We may be physically beaten, emotionally battered or spiritually backslidden, but Christ has the Power! He and only He has the power to heal us of all manner of disease and illness in our lives! He can do what we can not. In your heart, you may be saying today that:
“I’ll get back into the game…”
“I’ll make up my time…”
“I’ll become more faithful…”
“I know where I need to be…”
Friend, we can do nothing on our own, but with our Lord we can and will be made whole. “And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.” (Luke 8:48). Only in Christ can we place our lives, trusting and depending completely on Him and Him alone for the power needed to overcome the devils and diseases that constantly attack us.
It is this power that Christ projects into our hearts, minds and souls that enables us in storms or struggles to possess the faith to know that we are able to “go in peace.”
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