Even the demons obey Him // Matthew 8: 26-34

[Music] hey pastor josh here thanks so much for watching our videos if you'd like more information about legacy city church you can go to legacy citychurch.com please don't forget to like subscribe and hit the bell below god bless you we are in matthew chapter 8 in our bibles matthew chapter 8 and we have been working through a series i have titled jesus worldview jesus worldview we dove into this series because there's so many views floating around in our city in our world that are near impossible to dissect and figure out even myself have to have endless discussions with people and with other pastors trying to figure out how to navigate the ideas of the world and all the things coming at us so quickly it's like a fire really trying to drink from a fire hose i mean it's just full blast just new thing after new thing after new thing that we have to argue about and debate and dissect and so i said you know what forget it we're just going to look at jesus world view and what he has to say and lay a foundation of what he thinks and then let the chips fall as they may let his worldview interpret all that is going on around us i want to see through his eyes i want to see through his lens this is sermon number 39 through the book of matthew the title of the sermon is even the demons obey him even the demons obey him heard of a story maybe you heard it too there was peter and satan they were there in heaven having an argument about baseball and they're talking back of our true story true story of course and satan wanted to wanted the game to be played on neutral grounds between a select team from the heavenly hosts and his own hand-picked players from hell and peter said very well very well but you realize i hope that we've got all the best players and smartest coaches on the planet don't you realize this here in heaven satan says i i know i know that's all right because we have all the umpires that's it that's all you get okay welcome to church even the demons obey him when we mention the devil or satan in our society people think of some mythical creature who isn't real no one really believes satan is walking the streets of l.a right now is he walking around here has anyone seen him right now sunday morning 2021 could there be this figure satan or the devil actually walking around the city of l.a we live in a culture and time in which we are far more likely to look to the natural world instead of the spiritual world if you even bring up the spiritual world anymore i mean you never hear it the spiritualism of our day is always about good things and fluffy things and magical things and and sparkly things crystals horoscopes this is as far as we go into spirituality we stay far away from the dark stuff and saying that it might actually be affecting people there might be a dark spiritual world actually affecting people our kent hughes said we are far more prone to look for a scientific often psychological explanation for compulsions obsessions disorders and sin we've gotten so far away from the spiritual we would never ask the question is something spiritual going on here is something spiritual going on inside of this person that they're acting and living this way no no no no it's just got to be a biological thing of course we we literally eliminate the spiritual conversation we don't even have it we don't even talk about when's the last time you had a spiritual conversation in a doctor's office and you sat down with a counselor i don't talk about any of these things they act as if it does not even exist oh come on that's ridiculous there couldn't be something spiritually going on inside of you there couldn't be demons around you sure we joke about the demons pursuing him the demons pursuing her they have a lot of demons we say but we don't really mean that we're nervous to step into that realm we see crazy people on the street running around naked tearing things down beating people up chasing people who ah it's just the drugs that's all it's just the drugs consuming their mind it couldn't possibly be spiritual or is it the book of daniel daniel the prophet talks about demons leading demons who oversee cities ruling rain over those cities making sure that things are going just as planned c.s lewis wrote a book called the screw tape letters if you haven't read it i dare you to read it i triple dog dare you to read it it's incredible it's a story or play about screwtape the leading demon in that time and him talking to his demons his workers about how to deal with the patients who are the patients it's us you get to watch their conversation and how they are to manipulate and keep these people away from the enemy who is god and he starts they start to diagnose people and they talk about these patients and how spiritually they can make them sick keep them deceived it's powerful conversation c.s lewis screwtape letters he writes this one of the greatest lines in the whole book indeed the safest road to hell is the gradual one the gentle slope soft underfoot without sudden turns without milestones without signposts your affectionate uncle screw tape he's training his demons he says the best way you can get these people is to get them on the gradual road the nice and easy laid back road that's the way you get them to hell the whole point of cs lewis book is that after reading it he had hoped that people would take satan seriously and realize that he is walking the earth the bible tells us that he is roaming around like a lion seeking whom he may devour he's sitting in the grass he's he's crouched down waiting could it be that all this going on in our world now is not just a natural random issue on earth but a spiritual one oh pastor you're crazy you you would you wouldn't say that are you are you serious could the devil himself be behind all of this pushing wicked men to deceive the world and turn against each other if so he's doing a pretty good job at it now isn't he he has divided people he's a master deceiver everyone's distracted no one would ever think satan has done this with his demons not in a million years politically no health-wise race no he wouldn't just so happen to pinpoint the exact things that we are the most passionate about on the planet and get us to argue aggressively about them my health my political views my ethnicity my tribe they sound like all very inflaming issues we don't talk about politics in my family we would say we don't talk about religion we'll talk about politics we're going to talk about money right interesting i even as i say this to you i can feel you trying to process this and how difficult it is for it to land in the mind and the heart because satan isn't real demons aren't really out there right um maybe the babies are telling us something today we see demons in our texts real demons possessing men and jesus speaks to them are you ready matthew chapter 8 in our bibles to stand for the reading of god's word we always stand for the reading of god's word to remember whose word we are reading belongs to him not me he speaks he ministers he changes i love these stories take a look at the text matthew chapter 8 take a look at verse 28 it says when he came near to the other side to the country of the gadarenes two demon-possessed men met him coming out of the tombs so fierce that no one could pass that way and behold they cried out what have you to do with us the son of god have you come here to torment us before the time now we heard of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them and the demons begged him saying if you cast us out send us away into the herd of pigs and he said to them go so they came out and went into the pigs and behold the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drown in the waters the herdsmen fled going into this city they told everything especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men and behold all this city came out to meet jesus and when they saw him they begged him to leave their region let's pray father we thank you for your word and we ask god that you would minister to us through this story the jesus the text would come to life and that we would see what you were up to what you are doing that even the demons obey you open our eyes open our ears minister to us we pray in jesus name amen you can be seated jesus has just calmed the storms remember the storm was raging they were on the boat together jesus was sleeping during the storm taking a nap little siesta they came and woke him up and he says why are you afraid oh you have little faith stand back he walks out to the edge of the boat and he rebukes the storm and it calms then they make their way to the other side and the disciples stood back at this and said this phrase who is this that even the wind and the seas obey him who is this guy that even the waves obey him they didn't know who was on the boat with them they forgot they didn't know they hadn't discovered it was jesus the son of god on the boat with them no need to be scared of the storm when jesus is on the boat verse 28 and when he came to the other side to the country of the gatherings two demon-possessed men met him coming out of the tombs so fierce that no one could pass that way jesus steps off the boat and he is in in the place of the gatherings it's a place called cursey today that's on the sea of galilee i camped with some of my buddies not far from this place right on the shores of galilee yeah we off-roaded our little two-door vehicle this little piece of junk into uh right in uh right into the sea of galilee and we found this little bay we found this little off-running place you just drive off the road there and there's just all these little trails that go right up the sea galley well we off-roaded to it and we just parked our car there we built a little fire and we set up our we set up our sleeping bags and we slept on the ground right there well lo and behold in the middle of the night the wind showed up like you would not believe i had a zero degree sleeping bag like a zero degree mummy bag and i'm just like in there i'm like getting so hot like take my socks off take my shirt off i'm like we wake up in the morning my buddies are on the other side of the car they've stacked up their luggage and they're trying to block the wind one guy's in the car you know it's so funny but we woke up on the sea of galilee well right there to our left i can still see it in my mind's eye is kersey or the gatherings and we went up to that place the next day we we parked the car and then hiked up to this place and it's like this white peach looking stone type mountainside and you can see the caves this is the place of the gatherings and this is where these two demon-possessed men were they were hiding there and there's a perfect slope that goes from those tombs down to the sea matthew tells us that two demon-possessed men from the tombs came out and they met jesus i was trying to envision this we were reading the text as we're looking at it notice jesus didn't go to find them they came to find him and these possessed men were dangerous no one would even walk by the path of these tombs because these dudes would come out and wreak havoc both mark and luke's gospel added that they were naked they had not won worn clothes in a very long time they had their own little nudist colony going on in there we're also told that that the communities around there maybe capernaum i don't know who else but the communities around them had actually taken these men and chained them up multiple times they put them in chains chains around their neck their feet and their hands they try to put them in an insane asylum or lock them up but these men were so filled with the demons so overly possessed they would break the chains off and they would wreak havoc on those who chained them so everybody was scared to death of them they just tried to get them to stay there in the caves day and night these guys would cry out and yell in the tombs i wonder if they could hear them from tiberius on the other side of the lake or from capernaum maybe they could hear them screaming because the water would amplify if it was nice and glassy the the sound would come down the hill and hit the water and amplify to the entire sea you could hear them it says in the text yelling in the tombs and here it is cutting themselves they would cut themselves so people were very scared these guys were bloody and naked and vicious nobody knew what to do they were outcasts of the outcasts the lepers would not even hang out with these guys and they run up to jesus when he gets off the boat here comes these crazy dudes hair everywhere beard everywhere they're running out them bloody and naked who knows maybe they're carrying chains with them flying up to meet jesus mark 5 verse 6 says this and when he saw jesus from afar the demon or the demon-possessed man he ran and fell down before him he ran and fell down before the lord the disciples were probably like scared like standing oh get on the boat they're coming after us jesus is standing there and the guy just falls in the dirt boom right before the lord verse 29 behold they cried out it says they cried out they cried out what have you to do with us o son of god have you come here to torment us before the time who's speaking the demons are speaking and what do they refer to themselves as they and us they and us point number one demons are roaming the earth today strap on your seatbelts are you ready bbc.com may 19 2021 demi lovato said this on twitter today is the day i'm so happy to share more of my life with you all i am proud to let you know that i identify as non-binary and will officially be changing my pronouns to they and them moving forward listen how she talks demi said they came to understand their gender identity after spending time doing healing and self-reflection work over the past year using they them as pronouns best represents the fluidity i feel in my gender expression the sorry not sorry singer added the singer said they are still learning and coming into myself and doesn't consider themselves an expert or spokesperson on the subject but then she goes on to say please keep living in your truce and know i am sending so much love your way keep living in your truths wow we got to bring truth into the conversation she now wants to be referred to as they them us who's in there i don't know maybe but what in the world causes a human to do this oh it's biological of course hey you were born this way of course who is the they you are referring to demi multiple sexualities that change and come forth over time thus you identify as we they us how do you explain this spiritually oh we don't it's a natural thing it's something you're born with we don't even go there mark chapter 5 verse 9 the same story but different gospel jesus asked the demon what is your name and he replied and said my name is legion for we are many my name is legion for we are many one person saying we are many we will find out there are much more than two demons here this is why they name themselves legion and refer to the cells as we a legion is referred to in matthew's day as a roman military unit and as we will see these demons will inhabit the number 2 000 pigs they are counted in the text and pointed out in the other gospel two thousand pigs the demons will possess the herd of pigs they are sent into helps us see that there again were hundreds potentially a couple thousand demons in these two men demon possession is real this is the real people this is the reason people do weird bizarre deeply sinful things people say how can a person do something like walk into a school and kill all these people how can a hitler do that kill six million how can these rich greedy men take advantage of the poor how can sex trafficking even exist of women and children why would the most powerful people in the world want to deceive people and hurt them because spiritually they're being led in a different direction in their ears in their minds in their hearts something is going on john 8 44 jesus said for you are the children of your father the devil and you love to do things that are evil that he does he was a murderer from the beginning he has always hated the truth because there is no truth in him when he lies it is consistent with his character for he is a liar and the father of lies he's the father of lies deception you know what deception is it's it's what it's semi what a magician is able to do to deceive you or trick you into thinking something that is not there and do you know that deception takes place all the time in our culture everywhere working people over telling them one thing and doing another thing and this is what i'm always looking for when people talk to me about issues i try to remain in a neutral place i'm looking for truth and i am waiting for truth to come forth and when there is an inconsistency in the truth this is how i know something is wrong pray and ask god all the time please give me wisdom to discern between right and wrong give me wisdom to discern between deception and truth lord let me see when something fishy is going on something is not right this is why i don't trust the non-believer in power spiritually they are dead and being used by the devil whether they realize it or not and this is why i question all those in power or wealth or fame who claim they believe in god or are christians i don't care if they shout it from the rooftops i want to thank god for this or hey god is with me in this political thing or we want to follow christ we're christians i look at their actions not their words i don't care what you say because you can say that all you want and then do something else behind the scenes that's called deception and this is what people do all the time if this is going to get me that i'll say it if this is going to get me that i'll do it and people the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil the bible tells us not money not money money is not the problem it's the love of money it's the greed causes people to do crazy terrible things it's power that causes people to do crazy terrible things the devil is the king of this john 10 10 jesus said the thief comes only to steal kill and destroy he only comes to do this to you and to me this is what he comes to do on the earth he doesn't come to do anything else he only comes to kill still and destroy we have to be aware we have to wake up whether human realizes any of this is going on what how they're being manipulated being worked we have to realize there's a spiritual world going on behind us that is infecting the world satan has come to steal kill and destroy the earth but jesus praise god but i came that they may have life and have it more abundantly jesus has come that we may have life and have it abundantly in the midst of all the darkness in the midst of all the crazy going on we are aware of what's happening spiritually but you know what we are not going to bend the knee to those things we're not going to rebel against god we're going to keep loving god with all our heart we're going to keep loving our neighbor and loving the friends and family and the people around us who need god and we are going to enjoy the earth given to us by god we're going to do it and we're going to keep doing it despite all the chaos going on around us i'm not stopping these demon-possessed men run up to jesus and bow down before him because once again he is the lord they know who he is is this crazy verse 29 what have you to do with us oh son of god this sounds like a servant disciple talking to jesus then he says have you come the demons say have you come here to torment us before the time plural the disciples didn't know who jesus was in the boat huh remember they said who is this that even the wind and the sea obey him the first thing these demons say is what do you want from us son of god the disciples standing right there must have said wow he's the son of god how do these demons know hello the whole spiritual world knows don't you guys get it he is the king of all kings he is the lord of all lords and everything in all of creation has to obey him the demons have to explain to the disciples who jesus is the disciples are standing back like it's the son of god this dawned on me when reading this text it is amazing that jesus lowered himself so much on the earth and covered his deity so much that the average humans couldn't tell by just looking at him who he was they had to experience him then their eyes were open so many just thought he was an average guy on the street think about how much you would have to diminish and lower yourself and hide your glory and be treated like an average person on the earth when you know you are the son of the of the god of all creation you are the king of all the earth and and kings talk back to you you were the creator of humans and you let them crucify you you are the god of the universe and you let your friends stumble and believe in who you are how much did jesus have to diminish who he was so that they could not see can you imagine the disciples or jesus friends or the rabbis he sat under under as he was growing up teaching things about the torah teaching jesus things they saw or were discovering jesus jesus come here look at the text have you ever seen this in the text it says god spoke the world into existence look it says and god said let there be light isn't that amazing jesus just looks at them and smiles it is amazing isn't it when he was the one who did it he is the word of god in flesh he is the one from the beginning all things have been created by him and for him the text tells us jesus hiding this the whole time lord look the bible says this i know isn't that great the lord lowering himself all of these years his mother mary knew who he was she was always trying to push him out of the nest show them who you are he says mom it's not time jesus did all that he did do you know this he's impacted the entire earth he did all that he did in only three years his entire ministry was only three years long and he has impacted the earth more than anybody on the planet three years what'd you do the last three years don't ask me okay one year is gone okay philippians 2 6 says it beautifully though he was god he did not think of equality with god as something to cling to instead he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being when he appeared in human form he humbled himself in obedience to god and died a criminal's death on the cross the king of kings the lord of all lords pilate speaking back to him caesar speaking back to him telling him who he is and what he needs to be doing do you know who this is clearly you do not even tells pilate he says i have another kingdom he has a spiritual kingdom and he is ruling and reigning in it now and all of the spiritual world obeys him point number two if you're taking notes the spiritual world obeys him even if you don't james 2 19 says you say you have faith for you believe that there is one god good for you even the demons believe this and they tremble in terror do you believe you say yes how much if you truly believe he is your lord and savior it will be proven and shown through an obedient life to him not a perfect life we can't do that but a life of obedience my kids can't obey me perfect they can't be perfect they never will but they can be obedient they can try to live a life of obedience and there is a huge difference between a rebellious life and an obedient one not a perfect life there's a huge contrast is jesus truly my lord and savior over my life it's up to you you choose one way produces life and life and that abundantly the other produces death and depression and hatred for others jesus is the one the demons revealed it the son of almighty god and he's come to set free they have said to jesus they said to jesus have you come here to torment us before the time the disciples must have been thinking is this some kind of inside conversation lord what what are you doing talking with the demons what time right the demons just talk up to just walk up and start having a conversation with jesus as if it's been going on for thousands of years it has jesus have you come here to torment us before the time the disciples like what what what time what are you talking about torment they of course are talking about the time the big one the end of time the final judgment it's found in revelation 2010 we are shown the future in the book of revelation then the devil who had deceived them verse 10 revelation 20 10 was thrown into the fiery lake and a burning sulfur joining the beast and the false prophet there they will be tormented day and night forever praise god there's also a final judgment for non-believers and believers verse 11 and i saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it the earth and the sky fled from his presence but they found no place to hide i saw the dead both great and small standing before god's throne and the books were open including the book of life and the dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books the sea gave up the dead and death and the grave gave up their dead and all were judged according their deeds and the death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire this lake of fire is the second death and anyone whose name was not found recorded in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire hell that's exactly what the text is saying this is a great white throne judgment for non-believers though who rebel against god all the days of their life and shout we don't want god then you will have it that way for all of eternity all hell is is the absence of god the one who is light the one who is good the one who has all the blessings and promises the one who is loved the one who has created all things good to remove all of that from life is hell the best description we can give is fire because we know there is torment when anyone touches fire it's far worse than fire fire is easy being alone and away from the one who is love and light and peace and joy for all of eternity no thank you who would want to run from that verse 30 says now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them and the demons begged him saying if you cast us out send us away into the herd of pigs the demons just talking with jesus they begged him saying please don't torment us don't send us to hell let us go into the pigs is is this mercy to the demons or a proper judgment bound to the pigs in the sea forever i don't know but they were scared of jesus and what he would do to them this gives me confidence in the lord family you know why the demons are scared of him and i'm with him the disciples are saying hey i'm with him i'm with him pointing at jesus said yeah you guys go to hell i'm with him okay they're like hiding behind the lord hiding behind jesus it's okay to do that hiding behind the lord hiding in the lord psalm 32 7 you are my hiding place oh god you preserve me from trouble you surround me with songs of deliverance psalm 119 14 you are my hiding place in my shield i will wait for your word amen the demons asked to go into the pigs instead of being judged verse 32 and he said to them go just one word go so they came out and went into the pigs and behold the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters crazy demon-possessed animals in our text the demons leave the two men at the command of jesus and enter the pigs all it took was one word go they were waiting for the command and they fled as fast as they could and as they entered the pigs they kept on running as fast as they could down the steep bank into the sea of galilee i remember standing on the side of that mountainside where the tombs are at and looking down to see where the demon possessed pigs would have fled right down from the tombs right it's a nice smooth easy gradual right into the lake the pigs go right into the water and die how many mark 5 13 says the other gospel says so he gave them permission and the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs and the herd numbering about 2 000 rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drown in the sea legion a legion of pigs drowned in the sea two thousand pretty crazy to think about demon-possessed animals huh feel like i met a couple demon-possessed cats maybe some dogs jess i was just bringing this up remember we lit dad when we lived in paris the trailer park there remember there when we walk home from school i'd get off the bus and walk down the street and there was this little dog that would just that little that little dog you know that one and i would come and the gate would sometimes be open there and i remember having to sprint around to get to our house yeah and we were running from this little dog he was demon-possessed this shows us that there is a place in our bodies a place in our being that is spiritual that can be hijacked by the devil and get us to do crazy things and this explains how much humans do how humans do these wicked things can a believer in god a true christian full of the spirit of god be demon-possessed no why because the holy spirit of god has already possessed us and we are sealed and we are in his hands and no one will snatch us away from him not the devil not a demon not anybody on the planet can we have dark moments oh yeah look at david king david the man after god's own heart has a very dark moment he takes a man's wife kills the guy and ends up having a baby with her this is the man after god's own heart has a very dark time then he repents with all of his heart and god still uses him to do great things we can't have dark moments we can't have great failure moments in our lives and maybe we were influenced by the world or the culture or our own flesh or sin or maybe even demons throwing darts and ideas at us in our minds trying to cause us to stumble and fall and get away from god and rebel it happens yes attacks happen but a true believer can never be possessed by a demon but i want to warn everyone here demon possession is real it's not something to mess around with there is a spiritual side to us that can be filled with darkness that's why you don't open up yourself to the wicked dark things of the world a person who is willingly submitted to satan's ways in running from god wickedness rebellion and sin and evil can and will be possessed by him because they have submitted themselves to his ways thus he possesses them watch this just like the holy spirit of god does with the believer who is fully submitted to them watch this as a christian becomes fully submitted to god makes him lord and savior the holy spirit comes and possesses us look at the opposite as someone fully submits themselves to the ways of the world and the culture and wickedness opens themselves up they are now possessed and filled with darkness can be demon-possessed god the holy spirit of god fills the believer he possesses us he fills our spirit with the fruit of the spirit love joy peace patience kindness gentleness self-control how do we even live out these attributes it's not me trust me my old self would want to run you off the road the grace of god that somehow i could magically wake up in a dark moment of wanting to do something hurt somebody and say you know what i'm going to show him grace i'm going to show him mercy i'm going to keep on loving i'm going to be joyful and walk with the lord i'm going to rest in his ways in his mindset this can only happen but by the holy spirit a human left to themselves is not able to accomplish this instead we end up doing the opposite demon-possessed people they are filled with hatred misery conflict impatience cruelty meanness and chaos which is the opposite of the fruits of the spirit i looked up the exact words so you can have the perfect opposite of love joy peace long suffering goodness faith meekness kindness gentleness here it is the opposite hatred misery conflict and patience cruelty meanness and chaos romans 8 11 paul wrote the spirit of god who raised jesus from the dead lives in you the same spirit who raised jesus from the dead lives in you acts 1 8 when the power of the holy spirit comes upon you you shall be my witnesses in jerusalem judea samaria and to the ends of the earth when the power of the holy spirit comes upon you and lives in you you will then be my witnesses to declare the truth of god's word to the world that's what he possesses us to do we get to we're full of the spirit of god this is why we stay married this is why we keep loving our jerk boss this is why we keep loving the person on the 405 freeway cutting us off it is it is to produce real fruit that is contrary to the way the world lives and that is the proof that the spirit of god lives in us genuine grace genuine grace verse 33 and finally the herdsmen fled going into the city they told everything especially what happened to the demon-possessed men and behold all the city came out to meet jesus and when they saw him they begged him to heal them they begged him to cure the other demon-possessed people the lepers they begged him to bless them no the text says when they saw him they begged him to leave the region what these people are crazy the demon possessed men who were crazy bleeding naked homeless men have just been set free by jesus and healed and you would think the whole town would have come out to see these guys set free but instead they came out looking for the pigs the text says in verse 33 the herdsmen fled the herdsmen the guy's taking care of the pigs they're like standing there like oh gosh what is demon-possessed demon-possessed guys gonna do these guys off the boat we've seen this a hundred times they're like standing back they got their herd of pigs just watching ufc's about to break out over here let's go let's see what happens and all of a sudden they hear yelling and they hear screaming and they see these guys fall down before jesus and boom jesus says go into the pigs and the the herdsmen are just standing there what's going on here all sudden they see the pigs start freaking out and boom two thousand of them run into the sea i heard it's men are like uh oh stakeholders are not going to be happy they run into the city to go tell everybody what happened the herdsmen went and told the people the good news and the bad news you guys want the good news of the bad news first the good news we say the good news is those two crazy guys who are out in the tombs are healed and back from the dead set free from demons really what's the bad news uh yeshua sent the demons into the pigs and our stock price just dropped 2 000 points the pigs drown in the sea the people like what how could jesus do that that's our money that's our livelihood who cares about these men they were crazy we want our pigs back we want our money they were more interested in livestock than people they asked jesus to leave this is crazy many people in cities today asking jesus to leave town they're more interested in success than the truth more interested in money than in people point number three and finally what being set free by jesus looks like kind of a heavy talk huh let's close with something fantastic are you ready my favorite part of the story is found in mark 5. mark 5 verse 14. just listen the herdsmen fled and told it in the city and in the country and people came to see what it was that had happened and they came to jesus and saw the demon-possessed man the one who had the legion sitting there clothed in his right mind clothed jesus got him a suit he's got the latest gear on sitting i can see him reclining in a chair you know he has his legs crossed with his glasses on that word says in his right mind and it says and the crowd was afraid of the guy in his right mind and those who'd seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man to the pigs and they began to beg jesus to depart from their region the demons begged jesus the disciples begged jesus these people begged jesus to leave and as he was getting into the boat jesus like all right i'm out he's getting into the boat the man who had been possessed with the demons begged him again that he might be with him lord let me come with you on the boat and jesus did not permit him but said to him this go same word you hear when the demons left go home to your friends and tell them how much the lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you and he went away and began to proclaim in the decapolis preaches the word he started preaching the decapolis how much jesus had done for him and everyone marveled this guy that they tried to chain up they can see the scars where he's cutting himself he's clothed in his right mind now he's preaching the gospel and declaring to all of his friends and everybody in town how much the lord had done for him i love that the first evangelist in the bible the first one it was a demon-possessed man it's the first one recorded in the gospels the first guy to preach the gospel to the world the crazy guy he went home to his friends and he told them how much the lord had done for him when is the last time you told someone how much the lord has done for you is that a great phrase is that when's the last time you went debated with somebody about the existence of god we can do that too but when's the last time you went and told somebody how much the lord has done for you you know what god's done for me he's blessed me i'm thankful i don't want to do life without him he's brought me joy and peace and rest let me tell you about what the lord has done for me who's going to argue with that no he didn't do that for you can't argue first corinthians 9 16 yet preaching the good news is not something i can boast about i am compelled by god to do this paul says how terrible for me if i didn't preach the good news galatians 2 20 my old self has been crucified with christ it's no longer i who live but christ in me so i live by in this earthly body by trusting the son of god who loved me and gave himself for me psalm 119 46 i will speak of the testimonies of god before kings and will not be ashamed psalm 145 4 o generation one generation shall commend your works to another you shall declare your mighty acts of god on the glorious splendor of your majesty on the wondrous works i will meditate they shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds and i will declare your greatness i will declare your greatness in the gym i will declare your greatness at the bank i will declare your bit your greatness in my neighborhood with my friends with my family i will declare the goodness of god after all hasn't even good to us how could the steam possessed guy not go home be like i gotta go tell everybody and that's what he did let's close in prayer let's ask the lord to seal this in our hearts let's ask the lord to work in us hey maybe you need god maybe you need the holy spirit to come and fill you new and afresh to empower you to start living for him like never before let's pray let's ask the lord to do this in us now father we we come before you now lord we cry out to you we cry out to you and we know that we need you lord we have been healed we have been raised to life we have been filled with your spirit how can we not go on declaring what you have done for us look what the lord has done for me telling everyone what you have accomplished in my life father i pray that you would work in me to accomplish that right here in los angeles right here in southern california would we be a beacon of light and father i pray for those who are still wondering whether or not they know you i pray that you would meet them right where they're they're at lord as they see their sin before you they say god forgive me save me i want you to be the lord and king and savior of my life i turn away from running away from god i turn away from being rebellious i turn to you with all of my life i make you my lord you my god you my savior fill my life with goodness and peace and rest fill it with truth and discernment lord we give you our lives and i pray for those who are believers lord who know know know better we know lord would you empower us with love empower us with truth that as we go as we go our way today lord that we would be ministering to those around declaring the works of our great god fill us new and fresh with your spirit we pray in jesus name amen

Channel: • Legacy •

Views: 154

Rating: 5 out of 5

Keywords: Pastor Josh Thompson. Pastor Josh, Legacy City Church, Church in LA, Church in Los Angles, Church in Studio City, Christian Church Studio City, Christian Church Los Angles, Christian Church LA, Legacy, Legacy City Church

Id: qlZ8DGQnAE8

Length: 54min 4sec (3244 seconds)

Published: Tue Aug 10 2021