Luke 8:26-39

Luke 8:26-39

“Jesus Son of the most high God” is the confession of the demons. If there's a moral scale from perfection to the worst in the universe, demons are very near the worst end. But these demons have a better understanding than a great many people about who Jesus is, including those who are called progressive Christians. The forces of Hell cannot deny that Jesus is the Son of the most high God.

The reality of eternal punishment is the second place where the demon has a superior understanding to the liberal progressives of our day. The very presence of Jesus and the knowledge they will one day face a judgment and eternal reward prompts them to cry out. Here again we have demons with a more orthodox faith than liberal Christianity. The fad of Universalism that seems to sweep the church from time to time has less to do with Scripture than our own sentimental, wishful thinking. We want a sort of fuzzy universalism and so we feel that is what God should say. We need to recall the prayer that includes, “Imprint upon our hearts such a dread of Thy judgments as may make us afraid to offend Thee.” We often offend because we do not fear Him.

Rather than fearing God, we often are afraid to offend the powers of Darkness. The Lord appears, then evil manifests itself, the Lord expels evil and a holy situation is established. What reactions do we see? The locals were gripped with fear. We might expect the eradication of evil would result in joy and celebration. Having become accustomed to the presence and predictability of evil the people are afraid when it is defeated. Those who are not possessed by the demon often want evil around so they can dabble in it if they like. A man may be horrified at the idea of human trafficking, but still wants to occasionally indulge in pornography. A business owner may have a high standard for gross corruption, but enjoy taking advantage of a sharp deal occasionally. When we are confronted with the Holiness that gives no quarter to evil that Holiness frightens us because there are certain evils we want to keep and enjoy.

“Lord, help me not to harbor even the least tiny evil in my heart. AMEN”