Trusting Jesus Through the Storms

Amen, this is God's Word.

So right at the outset, we are reminded here that the real Jesus, while on earth, confronted

!

And often individual lives are affected by evil and by sin.

And it needs explanation.

You know, when we see on our news coverage week after week of the Epstein files, Epstein

Island, and the horrendous abuse and exploitation, or when we think of empires old and new, we

think of the atrocities, the ugliness of modern war and conflicts.

We need to reckon with evil.

There was that great hope at the start of the 20th century that science and technology would

lead us onwards and upwards into some kind of utopia.

But what we discover is that all our technology without God is not getting rid of evil and

in many ways is just creating new forms of evil that previous generations didn't grapple

with.

But then not only do we see externally the reality of evil in the world, the consequences

of sin and the fall, we often see it in our own hearts as well.

It was Solzhenitsyn in the Gulag Archipelago who caught it so well when he said the line separating

good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties

either, but right through every human heart and through all human hearts.

He could sit there in a prison camp in Russia and acknowledge that while he was being in prison,

still the problem of evil was within himself and within us all.

And so the real Jesus believed in the reality of evil.

He believed in the devil and demons and the forces of evil.

In the first century, the worldview for Jewish people and indeed pagan people was that there

were forces in the world that were beyond our ability to see that we're good.

There was angels, those who were bad, evil, there were demons.

Jewish understanding, it was such that they said these forces are not equal and opposite,

that God is sovereign, that God is in control, but the forces of evil are real, but they are limited.

And that was the worldview that Jesus inhabited.

That's what Jesus believed, by conviction.

It can be very tempting for us to kind of write these passages off.

It was a product of its time.

We have better explanations.

We have better understanding of mental health or medical issues.

We can minimize evil.

Perhaps we're just not sure what to do with it,

but Jesus believed by conviction in the reality of dark forces.

He knew the devil's work.

Jesus himself has already faced temptation in the wilderness and passed the test.

Jesus has come into the world profoundly aware of the spreading disease of sin.

Remember, he is God's agent of creation.

He made it in the beginning and it was very good and free of sin.

And we know from the New Testament that Jesus came on a mission to destroy the works of the evil one.

And so it's important that we don't miss this because if we miss this, we miss who the real Jesus is.

And we miss vital truths for our life.

Because what we learn from this passage is that because the real Jesus does have power over evil

and can bring the healing of evil, we can and we should run to him for mercy.

So we're going to think about a couple of things together.

First of all, we're going to think about the power and the horror of evil that we see in this story.

So as I said, Matthew has a stripped back presentation.

You can go to Mark 5 or Luke 8 and you can see more of the awful details filled in.

But even here in this basic presentation, we have a portrait of a demon-possessed man

as if he's being eaten alive from the inside out by evil.

Matthew shows us in a few short verses that evil is destructive.

The picture that we get of these men in verse 28 is that of people experiencing a living death.

Two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him.

They were so violent that no one could pass that way.

What do you want with us, son of God, they shouted.

Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?

They've been robbed of their identity.

The demons are shouting at Jesus, what do you want with us?

They've been overwhelmed by a force greater than themselves.

And again, it's important that we understand evil can't be understood merely in human terms

and it can't be met with by merely human resources.

And again, our societies have been trying and trying really hard.

But I think we can see no amount of education or moral improvement or modern medicine or chemistry

can address the depths of evil.

And rather, what's happening, I suppose, as the modern world, it still looks to deal with evil,

but it's cut away realities of the supernatural.

On the one hand, it's not given us a better world.

The news is still as sad and desperate as ever.

But in cutting out God from the picture, it doesn't give us the resources that we need

to understand what we see and to have hope beyond what we see.

Because this portrait of these men remind us that here is a real force that is above and beyond human explanation.

And we should never underestimate it.

And when we find ourselves crying out against evil and longing for the end of evil,

and who doesn't do that and who doesn't want that,

we are recognizing there is a real problem.

A real problem that we haven't been able to fix.

And it reminds us, as God's people, that we have and we need a real savior.

That part of that, an essential part of the good news of the coming of Jesus

is that he comes to confront and to defeat sin and evil in the world and in our hearts.

But this story reminds us that evil is destructive.

It also reminds us that evil is dehumanizing.

It makes us less than we were made to be.

How do we see it in this story?

Well, perhaps before that, we go back to Genesis.

Remember Genesis, we've been in chapter one.

You and I and every person, we've been made in the image of God.

We have been made to know God, to express loving obedience to God,

freedom to enjoy God, to enjoy all the goodness of creation.

And mankind originally was created free of sin and free of shame.

And so we get this beautiful picture of humanity by God's design in Genesis 1.

But once that fall into sin comes, that beautiful, perfect image is defaced.

It's the masterpiece upon which graffiti has been scrawled as evil makes us less than we were made to be.

Now, how do we see that in these men?

Think about the impact on their lives physically.

Here are two men so violent that no one could pass that way.

Their lives are out of control.

Spiritually, they're living in the tombs.

That is an unclean place.

It is the place of death.

When we're told that they came out to meet Jesus,

this isn't the warm welcome and kind hospitality.

This is confrontation.

This is lining up on the battlefield against God's king.

And socially, we see the impact.

No one could pass that way.

No one would dare to come near.

Their uncleanness, their violence,

has left them isolated from the community.

So in these two men, we get a devastating portrait of the horrendous power of evil and sin

as it works on a person's life.

And truly, the parallels can be drawn with our own experience of sin.

We will likely not find ourselves as far down the road as these men,

but I imagine we can recognize something of their experience in our own stories.

Do we know the feeling at times of being out of control?

Perhaps our anger is out of control.

Perhaps we have habits and patterns that we would love to change,

but they seem to master us.

There is a writer called Becky Pippert

who makes the point that what we love the most,

we lose ourselves to.

That might be work, that might be money, that might be hobbies,

but all of those things, if we give ourselves to them wholeheartedly,

they pull away at our freedom.

We lose control to other things.

Maybe we know the feeling of being unclean.

Maybe we resonate with Adam and Eve in the garden

as they're aware of their sin and they feel shame

and they want to hide.

Dark memories and actions.

The shame of our sin or being sinned against.

Evil in many forms that presses upon us

that can leave us feeling dirty and unclean and worthless.

And then there's the isolating power of evil.

We recognize that sin brings with it

a fracturing effect in the universe.

Go back to the Garden of Eden.

We'll get there in a few weeks.

We'll see the damage done to every relationship.

As soon as sin comes in,

there is a breakdown in the marriage relationship

between Adam and Eve.

There's now the thorns and thistles and toil.

The relationship with the creation is spoiled

and they are hiding from their God

because they have sinned against him.

Do we know something of our own sin

causing problems and fractures

in our human relationships?

Can we look back with regret

at breakdowns and losses

because of it?

That's why we can feel far from God.

And so this picture of the dehumanizing effect

of sin and evil,

I think when we look in the mirror

we can see its effect in our own life at times too.

Sin is also presented here

as deceitful and deceptive.

The Bible tells us the devil is the father of lies.

And we see something of that lies and deception

in verse 29.

Listen again to the demons.

What do you want with us, son of God?

They shouted.

Have you come here to torture us

before the appointed time?

What we are seeing in Matthew chapter 8,

Matthew 8 · chapter mention

what we see in Jesus' mission

is that he is God's Messiah King.

He has been appointed for a work of deliverance.

He comes on this mission of mercy and grace

that runs wider and deeper than any sin,

than any evil.

But what do the demons do?

The demons would have a focus

for these men in their grip

only on the holiness of Jesus.

And so their lies and deception is

don't come near to Jesus

because he will condemn you.

He is holy and you are not.

And so you need to keep your distance.

Coming near to Jesus will be destructive.

The demons know the true identity of Jesus.

They know that he is the son of God.

They understand that he has authority over them.

But they hate Jesus.

And they hate the work of Jesus.

And they don't want the restoring ministry of Jesus

to take place.

And evil lies about Jesus.

People are deceived and blinded.

Jesus is ultimate and true good

and freedom and joy.

But how many of us know people

who would say that Jesus is the exact opposite?

The truth we discover in the gospel is,

yes, Jesus is the holy God.

Yes, Jesus is our ultimate judge.

But he came not to condemn the world,

but to save the world.

And he is full of mercy.

And in running to Jesus,

well, that's the way to hear the word of mercy and healing.

So as Matthew records this little story,

this confrontation with the forces of evil,

as we look real evil in the eye,

as we reckon with its power,

its destructive power,

it makes us actually ready to appreciate

and to value more of the wonder of Jesus

and his deliverance.

B.B. Warfield,

in, I don't know if it was an essay,

called Jesus Only,

it wrote that it belongs to the glory of Christ,

that his salvation enters into every region

of human need

and proclaims in all alike

complete deliverance.

John chapter 3, verse 16,

John 3:16

the most famous verse in the Bible,

for God so loved the world

that he gave his one and only son

that whoever believes in him

should not perish,

but have eternal life.

God loved the world.

And the world there

is that idea of the world system

lost in sin and evil

and rebellion against its creator.

God loved the world.

God loved the world.

God loved the world.

We see in that verse

and we see in this story

something of the staggering nature

of God's love in Jesus,

that the perfectly holy one

loves the world.

Rebellious and sin sick

as it is and as we are.

There's nothing in the world,

nothing in these men,

nothing in us to attract

or to deserve God's love

and yet God's love comes.

And the love of God

is a love so intense

that no sinfulness,

no evil,

no brokenness

can ever deter

or stop God's saving plan.

And so when we come

to a little passage

like this one in Matthew 8,

we're seeing that John 3, 16,

love in action

as Jesus loves the unlovely,

as the Son of God

demonstrates the intensity

of God's redeeming love,

as we see the power of love

to overcome sin and evil

and bring renewal

and restoration.

restoration.

So that as we find ourselves

longing

for an end to evil,

for an end to suffering,

and the lives of the people

around us

or in our world,

the story is teaching us

once again

to run to Jesus.

So we thought of the power

and horror of evil.

Now we need to think about

the powerful healing of evil

by Jesus.

We are probably aware

of some powerful freedom scenes.

You've maybe seen

at the end of the Second World War,

maybe you've seen images

of the liberation

of concentration camps.

Maybe you've watched on TV

as hostages have been released

who were in captivity

for days or months or years.

Perhaps we remember

famous rescues,

like if you remember

the youth football team

that was trapped

in those underwater caves

that were flooding

and the attention of the world

turned to that great

liberation moment.

We recognize in those images

that when a rescuer comes,

everything changes.

What was darkness

becomes light.

What was a situation of death

death becomes life.

And Matthew 8

is one of those great stories.

Matthew presents Jesus

as the great and ultimate liberator.

It's showing us both why

and how Jesus both confronts evil

and brings the healing of evil

for these two men

and in so doing

and gives us hope

for our lives.

Because again,

what we see in Jesus

in this moment

is a salvation

that is broad enough

to cover every evil,

every sin,

every breakdown

that ever afflicts a person.

We see the love

of a holy God

that overcomes

sin.

And these men,

we don't hear it

in Matthew's gospel,

but in Luke's gospel,

they have this wonderful testimony

that they are told

to go and share

how God has had mercy

on them.

And if we were to poll

this room this evening,

to poll any sort

of Christian gathering,

we would find

Christian testimonies

of Jesus rescuing us

in different ways,

from different depths

and darknesses.

For some,

it would be physical.

For some,

it would be emotional.

For some,

it would be rescue

in a relationship.

It would be

a spiritual restoration.

And the Jesus

that worked

in the first century

and the Jesus

that has worked

in our own lives

is the Jesus

that is still working.

And so we have hope

as we think about a world

that desperately needs him.

Let's notice together

the absolute authority

of Jesus.

He is the one

who can heal.

It's interesting,

isn't it?

The demons know it.

They know he is

the son of God.

They know that he is

their appointed judge.

Have you come here

to torture us

before the appointed time?

They know they are

in Jesus' hands.

They know there is a day

when they will stand

before Jesus

and they will be

condemned forever.

Jesus is God's

appointed judge

to utterly defeat

and to destroy

evil and all dark forces.

And they recognize

the authority of Jesus.

We see it again

as the demons

are begging Jesus.

If you drive us out,

send us into the herd

of pigs,

what does this say to us?

It says those demons

understand absolutely

who is in control here,

whose power is ultimate.

Yes, their power is real,

but it is limited.

Jesus is in charge.

We see that profoundly

in verse 32.

He said to them,

go,

so they came out.

That powerful word

of Jesus,

the evening before

it stopped the storm

and now it stops the storm

in these men's hearts

and lives.

In verse 28,

we're told where this happens.

It happens in the region

of the Gadarenes.

That's important

because it's Gentile territory.

The other great clue

for that, of course,

is that this community

is keeping pigs,

which would be unclean

for a Jew to do.

And so again,

here we are being presented

with a Jesus

who has an authority

so great

that it doesn't matter

which region he moves into,

doesn't matter

what race he is operating in,

no one and nothing

can limit his saving power.

And that's why

we can say to anyone,

anywhere,

that Jesus is good news

for them.

Jesus is good news

for each of us,

whoever we are,

wherever we're from.

So we see

and we notice

the absolute authority

of Jesus.

It's important, too,

to recognize

the priority of Jesus.

Jesus.

Whenever

we come to this story,

there is always,

in a sense,

the elephant in the room.

The elephant in the room

is the pigs.

It's always that thing.

Where do the pigs fit?

What's happening

with the pigs?

And I remember

speaking about this

at a camp

and spending most

of a bus journey

answering questions

about pigs

hurtling off cliffs

and it gets the mind

and the imagination

going.

So what is the place

of the pigs

in this story?

Well, one place

that they have

is to make it

really clear

for us to see

Jesus' priority.

We also see

that's a priority

that's not shared

by the town.

With the command

from Jesus,

go,

we are seeing

that Jesus exercises

almighty power

and we are seeing

that human beings

are more valuable

than pigs.

And we are discovering

that Jesus puts

spiritual need,

human need,

before all other

considerations.

What matters most

to Jesus

in this situation,

in any situation,

is spiritual

deliverance.

That Jesus

is most concerned

with restoring

to health

and to relationship

with God

image bearers.

People made

in God's image

with dignity

and worth

and value.

Those forces

of evil

were trying

to strip

that away

and Jesus

in a moment

restores it.

Jesus' priority

is to rescue

those in desperate

need

of his mercy

and deliverance.

Jesus' priority

is spiritual

and eternal

because as evil

is removed,

as God's mercy

floods in,

salvation comes

to these men

and that's

Jesus' priority.

Sadly,

as we see,

it's not the priority

shared

by the town.

Again,

to think about

those herd of pigs,

what does it represent?

It probably represents

a significant amount

of that community's

wealth

flying off a cliff.

And as

the people

are told,

verse 33,

those tending

the pigs

ran off,

went into the town

and reported

all this

including

what happened

to the demon-possessed men,

then the whole town

went out

to meet Jesus

and when they saw him,

they pleaded with him

to leave

their region.

For them,

they prefer

those pigs

to the people

who were saved.

Our story began

with a meeting,

it began

with a hostile

confrontation

of Jesus,

what do you want

with us?

The story concludes

with another hostile

confrontation,

the town goes out

to plead with Jesus,

and we don't want

you coming near.

The tragedy

is

that they put

their own

financial position

over

the call

to put their faith

in the Lord Jesus.

While other towns

and villages

around them

were experiencing

God's grace

as people were being healed,

as people were hearing

good news,

confronted with

the real Jesus,

as this town

said,

no, thank you,

we don't want you

coming near.

Perhaps one way

this story

can help us

practically

is to give us

a moment

to reflect

on our own

priorities,

maybe not as

starkly presented

as the priorities

of this town,

but to think about

where we devote

our own thoughts

and energies.

If we were to look

at our spending,

our calendar,

our plans,

those are good

indicators of

what we value.

Do they reflect

the priorities

of Jesus?

Does it reflect

that most important

to us

is that we are

known and loved

and saved

by our God

through Jesus?

And again,

to recognize

that right now,

as God speaks

through his word,

God and his grace

are coming near

once again.

and there is

a warning

of this town,

don't be so

embedded

in the world

that you don't

let Jesus in

and find mercy.

We also need

to notice,

don't we,

the deliverance

of Jesus.

Another point

of the pigs

at the end

of the day

actually is that

they are not

the point.

the point

is the power

of Jesus.

The point

is the healing

of the demon

possessed men.

The point

is that

with this one

word of command,

go,

those demons

hell-bent

on destroying

image bearers

are driven out.

What we see

is the reality

that Jesus,

the light of the world,

drives out darkness.

We see that love

conquers hate.

we see a dramatic

picture of the

freedom that

Jesus brings

as he undoes

the curse of

evil and sin

and so there is

physical deliverance.

Maybe we see it

especially in the

other writers.

We will see them

clothed and in

their right mind.

There is a social

deliverance.

Now that their

violence is gone,

now they're not

out of control,

they can move

back into the

community.

community and

they can move

into the community

with good news

to share.

And there is a

spiritual deliverance

that is so clear

to see.

No more are

these men

unclean.

No more are

they experiencing

a living death.

God in Jesus

has come near

to show mercy.

mercy.

We find ourselves

groaning and

longing to be

free and for a

world free of sin

and evil.

And that's a good

longing, isn't it?

It's a good longing

when it makes us

run to Jesus.

As we recognize

he has the power

to confront,

to defeat,

and to bring

healing from evil.

But the question

remains, how does

that deliverance

come to us?

And for that we

need to move on

in Jesus' story.

It comes as

Jesus confronts

those dark forces

of sin and evil

at the cross.

And there at the

cross it is Jesus,

the son of God,

who suffers

physically as his

body is torn and

beaten as the

Lord of life

dies.

There at the

cross Jesus

suffers socially,

he's been betrayed

by Jesus,

abandoned by the

disciples,

he walks the

road of suffering,

alone he is

despised and

rejected.

And he suffers

spiritually as he

bears upon himself

the full weight of

the sin of the

world and the

wrath of God

that sin deserves.

As he feels in

that moment that

sense of being

forsaken by the

father, he

becomes as it

were an unclean

thing in our

place for our

sin and for our

salvation.

But we know that

three days later

Jesus will leave

the place of death,

Jesus will leave

the tomb in

victory and

triumph, his

triumph over the

spiritual forces

complete.

And in Jesus'

powerful victory

of evil over evil

there is the

promise of healing

for each one of

us.

If like these

men we will run

to Jesus to find

mercy.

And we have the

promise of an

ultimate healing

from Jesus.

What will that be

like?

It's wonderful,

isn't it, to come

towards the end of

the Bible, to come

to the closing

chapters of the

book of Revelation

and we see the

future hope of the

Christian life, of a

new heavens and a

new earth, of life

returned to the

garden, now a

city, to a world

free of sickness and

suffering and death

and sin and evil, a

world forever set free

from groaning to

rejoice in God's

goodness and love

forever.

forever.

So when we see and

sense sin and evil,

when we experience the

sorrow and the

suffering of life in a

fallen world, let it

lead us to the Lord

Jesus, our great

Redeemer, to find hope

and healing in him.

Let's pray together.