HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1299
L UKE 8
page 929
storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger.
24 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!”
When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind
and the raging waves. Suddenly the storm
stopped and all was calm. 25 Then he asked
them, “Where is your faith?”
The disciples were terrified and amazed.
“Who is this man?” they asked each other.
“When he gives a command, even the wind and
waves obey him!”
Jesus Heals a Demon-Possessed Man
26 So they arrived in the region of the Ger asenes,* across the lake from Galilee. 27 As Jesus
was climbing out of the boat, a man who was
possessed by demons came out to meet him. For
a long time he had been homeless and naked,
living in the tombs outside the town.
28 As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and
fell down in front of him. Then he screamed,
“Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son
of the Most High God? Please, I beg you, don’t
torture me!” 29 For Jesus had already commanded the evil* spirit to come out of him.
This spirit had often taken control of the man.
Even when he was placed under guard and put
in chains and shackles, he simply broke them
and rushed out into the wilderness, completely
under the demon’s power.
30 Jesus demanded, “What is your name?”
“Legion,” he replied, for he was filled with
many demons. 31 The demons kept begging
Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit.*
32 There happened to be a large herd of pigs
feeding on the hillside nearby, and the demons
begged him to let them enter into the pigs.
So Jesus gave them permission. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs,
and the entire herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned.
34 When the herdsmen saw it, they fled to
the nearby town and the surrounding countryside, spreading the news as they ran. 35 People
rushed out to see what had happened. A crowd
soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the
man who had been freed from the demons.
He was sitting at Jesus’ feet, fully clothed and
perfectly sane, and they were all afraid. 36 Then
those who had seen what happened told the
others how the demon-possessed man had
been healed. 37 And all the people in the region
of the Gerasenes begged Jesus to go away and
leave them alone, for a great wave of fear swept
over them.
So Jesus returned to the boat and left,
8:26 Other manuscripts read Gadarenes; still others read
Gergesenes; also in 8:37. See Matt 8:28; Mark 5:1. 8:29 Greek
unclean. 8:31 Or the abyss, or the underworld. 8:42 Or His
only child, a daughter. 8:43 Some manuscripts add having
spent everything she had on doctors.
crossing back to the other side of the lake.
man who had been freed from the demons begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him
home, saying, 39 “No, go back to your family, and
tell them everything God has done for you.” So
he went all through the town proclaiming the
great things Jesus had done for him.
38 The
Jesus Heals in Response to Faith
40 On the other side of the lake the crowds welcomed Jesus, because they had been waiting
for him. 41 Then a man named Jairus, a leader
of the local synagogue, came and fell at Jesus’
feet, pleading with him to come home with him.
42 His only daughter,* who was about twelve
years old, was dying.
As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded
by the crowds. 43 A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding,*
and she could find no cure. 44 Coming up behind
Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped.
45 “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.
Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master,
this whole crowd is pressing up against you.”
46 But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately
touched me, for I felt healing power go out from
me.” 47 When the woman realized that she could
not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell
to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd
heard her explain why she had touched him
and that she had been immediately healed.
48 “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has
made you well. Go in peace.”
49 While he was still speaking to her, a messenger arrived from the home of Jairus, the
• Witnessing
LU K E 8:4-15
A farmer in Jesus’ day scattered seed
over all types of terrain, not to be wasteful, but because he wanted the seed to
take root wherever it could. For maximum
growth, he distributed seed not only on
good dirt but on rocky, thorny, and hardened soil as well. This story is Jesus’ way
of encouraging his disciples in their witnessing. Not every heart responds. Not
every heart is ready for the gospel to take
root and grow deep. Sometimes our most
important work is to remove a few stones
or thorn bushes so that the soil of a person’s heart may become more receptive.
When your efforts at spreading the Good
News seem to be rejected, don’t be discouraged! Keep scattering the seed, and
trust God to bring the growth!