From our Pastor

I Want to Go with Jesus!

Luke 8:26-39, Galatians 3:23-4:7, Isaiah 65:1-9                           June 23/24, 2007

           Wednesday was a long day, but a very good day.  I was in bed and heading toward a good night’s sleep.  All of a sudden I heard a blood curdling scream.  There was great fear in our house.  An intruder had entered our house.  A little four legged rodent type creature had entered the house.  This little creature caused such fear in our house, that before anyone could go to sleep, mousetraps had to be set. 

          What causes you great fear?  Is there a fear of money problems?  Is there a fear of health problems?  Is there a fear of relationship issues?  Is there a fear your dark secret might be found out?  Is there a fear of God? 

          Should we fear God?  Certainly we are to fear God in the sense of having awe and respect of God.  But should we be afraid when we think about God?  Jesus said, “Don’t fear him who kills the body but can’t kill the soul.  Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.” (Mt. 10:28)  Should we fear God?

          Listen to a little bit of today’s Old Testament lesson, Isaiah 65:5b-7:  God’s says “Such people are smoke in my nostrils, a fire that keeps burning all day.  See it stands written before me:  I will not keep silent but will pay back in full; I will pay it back into their laps - both your sins and the sins of your fathers, says the LORD.  Because they burned sacrifices on the mountains and defied me on the hills, I will measure into their laps the full payment for their former deeds.”  That sounds to me like someone to fear! 

          But then listen to God’s word in Galatians.  Here God doesn’t sound like someone to fear.  “If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.” (Gal 3:29)  Heirs according to the promise does not sound like a scary thing.  It sounds like a wonderful thing.  Not something to be feared at all.  Then a few verses later, this from God’s word:  “When the fullness of time came, God sent out his Son, being of a woman, being under the law, so that he might buy out those under the law so that we might receive the sonship.  Since you are sons, God sent out the Spirit of his Son into our hearts crying out Abba, Father.” (Gal 4:4-6)  This sounds like the very opposite of being afraid.  The image is of God as our loving Father.  Not someone we fear, but rather someone we go to when we are afraid, someone we go to for protection, for comfort.  He is our dear father.  We are his children.  The Bible uses the word “sons” here, not to leave the ladies out.  But to include us all as heirs, for it was only sons in those days who could inherit.  And the point being made here is that we inherit the kingdom of God, we inherit heaven itself.  God is not to be feared.  God sent his own Son for us so that he could buy us out of our debt of sin, and so that we could be his heirs, God’s heirs.  We don’t need to be afraid of God!

          Yet look at the reaction to Jesus when he heals the man who had been in such a terrible condition.  The man had been infested with not just a demon, but many demons.  His life had been a wreck.  The demons had bruised him, he lived amongst the tombs, not in a normal home... it must have been awful.  The man was not in his right mind.  Then Jesus tells the demons to come out of him.  The demons are afraid of Jesus, and rightly so.  He has the power to throw them into hell.  And the demons beg Jesus not to do that.  “Send us into the herd of pigs.”  Jesus allows it.  They go, and the man is healed!

          The people from the vicinity when they hear what Jesus has done do not celebrate.  They don’t rejoice that this man is healed.  They don’t ask Jesus to stay with them and bless them.  They don’t ask for healings.  They ask Jesus to leave the premises, get out of town, be gone!  We don’t want you around here.  You’re not welcome in these parts.  The people were afraid of Jesus.  That kind of power is scary.  He’s stirring up the demons. We don’t need that around here.  Look what happened to those pigs!  What might happen to us?  They were afraid.

          On the other hand the man who had been healed was not afraid.  Quite the contrary.  He had been healed.  He had experienced Jesus’ power.  He had been greatly blessed.  He didn’t want Jesus to go away.  But if Jesus was leaving, he wanted to go with him.  Afraid of Jesus?  The man who was healed would have laughed at the idea!  He was not afraid as long as he was with Jesus!  “Let me go with you, Lord,” the man begs. 

          Jesus doesn’t allow him to come along.  Rather Jesus sends the man who was not afraid of him, to go tell the story of what happened.  He’s to go to the people who are afraid of Jesus, and tell them what Jesus did in his life.  When the people learn that Jesus is not to be feared, but rather loved; when they learn that Jesus did not come to destroy, but to heal, to buy us out of our slavery to sin, to make us heirs of heaven; then they won’t need to be afraid of Jesus any longer. 

          The story is told of a woman came to her pastor upset.  She had been a faithful member of the church, but had a haunting sense of her sin.  Why is it, she asked, that my girlfriends who freely admit they have never taken religion seriously are not at all bothered by sin?  The pastor asked the woman, “If I were to lay a hundred pounds of steel on a corpse, would it feel the load?”  “No, I’m sure not,” she replied.  “Why not?” he asked.  The corpse is dead.  It can’t feel anything.  Exactly, said the pastor.  That’s why a person indifferent to spiritual things does not feel the weight of sin.  She’s dead spiritually. 

          That a Christian would be more bothered by sin makes sense.  We ought not to think of sin lightly.  God does condemn the sinner who will not turn away from his sin.  God destroys both body and soul of the person who refuses God’s grace. 

          But we are heirs of God.  We are the ones who will inherit everlasting life.  We are the ones for whom God sent forth his son, so that he might buy us back from sin and death.  We are God’s children.  He is our father.  Don’t be afraid of God.  Don’t be like the townspeople who didn’t know Jesus, were afraid of him and told him to get out of town.  Be like the man Jesus healed.  Ask to go with Jesus.  Wherever Jesus allows you to go, He’ll be with you.  Tell people the story of what Jesus has done in your life.  Love people to Jesus. 

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