When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured. Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left. Luke 8:35b-27 NIV
Before Jesus arrived, they had tried to keep the demon possessed man chained, but to no avail. They realized just how powerless they were in the realm of the supernatural. When the people were confronted with the power of Jesus to cast out demons, they were so gripped with fear that they asked Jesus to leave. Unfortunately, the terror they experienced took away their ability to discern good vs. evil so they simply pushed both away.
The God of the all creation was standing among them and they missed it! They asked Him to leave because all their experiences with the supernatural up to that point had been bad experiences. Satan loves to keep us blinded to our need for God and His love for us by trapping us in one bad experience after another. Sometimes it’s a bad experience with a church or a hypocritical Christian who let us down. Christians should be living representations of the Lord, but sadly, they often fall short. Or maybe you’ve experienced a time when it seemed that God was absent or indifferent. Maybe you prayed and felt like your prayer was never answered because the outcome was not what you were hoping for.
Some people miss it because they fear God. They fear they’ve gone too far and will be met with judgement rather than forgiveness. Nothing could be farther from the truth. You cannot chain the power of darkness any more than the people of the Gerasenes could chain the demon possessed man. But God has the authority to free you from the power of darkness. To release your chains and end your torment. Or perhaps you simply fear the change he will bring into your life. You’re not happy, but at least you know what to expect. Don’t let fear keep you from finding freedom and fulfillment in Jesus!
Whatever your experiences up to this point, if you’ve not yet entered into a personal relationship with Jesus, don’t push Him away. Invite Him into your life. It’s not until you’re walking in relationship with Him that you’ll have the perspective you need to recognize good vs. evil in every situation. And even then, you’ll miss it from time to time. Jesus had everything the demon possessed man needed and wanted in his life and he was glad Jesus came and set him free. But the people of the region missed their opportunity to receive all that Jesus had for them. They let fear and misunderstanding get in the way. How about you, what stands in your way? Don’t allow anything to keep you from receiving all that Jesus has for your life!