[0:00] I met this man about 10 years ago. I knew that I'd never look at the story of Luke chapter number 8 the same way. Again, I don't know the man's name. He never gave me his name. I doubt that he knows his name anymore.
[0:14] A few weeks ago, I showed you a story of a lady whose life had been changed. Manoushi, her life had been changed by the gospel. And then I met this man a few days later, and as I sat across from him, and recognizing that the white paint on him was not paint at all, but it was from the bones that had been burned and then put upon him, the smell that came from him.
[0:38] And then when he made that statement to say that he no longer lives, but he is already dead, my heart really changed about the story in Luke chapter number 8, because the man who sat inside of the tomb was somebody's son, was somebody that was loved, somebody that others had cared for.
[0:56] And now he was in this position, and even though he was living, he lived as if he was dead. In a parallel account, Matthew 8, 28, it says, And when he was come to the other side of the country of the Gagasarians, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.
[1:18] We see what that looks like. Now, this is a very vivid example that I was given in India that trip of a man who no longer knew his name, no longer knew his identity, who had given himself completely over to a sin, who had given himself completely over to believing that there was nothing that really mattered in life.
[1:38] If I could get the Resendez brothers to come up here real quick. You know, in one account in Matthew, come ahead, guys. In one account in Matthew, it says that there was two men in the tomb. And the others, it only mentions one of them.
[1:50] They didn't know they were coming up here. That's why they look so scared, all right? And in one account, it says there was two of them. And in another account, there's only one of them that's speaking. They obviously don't contradict each other.
[2:00] But in one, we learned that there was two of them. And this picture here that says, that it says, And coming by the tomb, exceeding fiercest, so that no man could pass that way. So if this is the tomb that these guys are right outside, it was that nobody wanted to go this way.
[2:15] They couldn't pass. They're like, we don't want to deal with these two guys. We don't want to go this direction. There's just too many problems that are going on. And so they would find a way to go a different way.
[2:26] Or maybe people had come before them, and they wanted to get to the tombs and maybe see the visit. But they couldn't get through these guys. I thought about trying to run past both of you, but it's too early in the morning to try that, all right?
[2:40] I don't think I fill up for that. Do you all fill up for this? Okay, I'm not. The fact that you do means I don't, all right? And so as they can't get, they can't pass by the wave because they don't want to.
[2:51] Because we all know those areas and lives, and we all know those family members, and we all know those friends, and we just can't pass by that way anymore. We just can't deal with that anymore. And so they don't want to pass by that way.
[3:03] And then I just imagine, what was the guy's background story? The man in the video, what's his background story? He has a mom most certainly that loves him. But was it that, you guys can be seated, was it that one day the kid got into a little bit of trouble at school, and he begins hanging out with the wrong people, and then he starts experimenting with drugs, and then as he gets into drugs, some of his friends are kind of playing with the cult, and he gets into that.
[3:30] It changes his lifestyle. Is his name on a prayer list down the road? Are people praying for him? Did he know any of the songs that were being sung?
[3:41] Had people tried to help him? People apparently had tried to pass by. They had tried to make a difference in his life, but nobody could. Nobody could go that way.
[3:52] Nobody could do anything. Brett Broderick and I made a website years ago, it's still up, called findmysanctuary.com, and one of the things that motivated us was this idea that there's little grandmas who are sitting at home, and they have a grandson who is so overtaken in the sin of addiction and has so many strongholds in their lives, and I've seen this many times.
[4:13] I've seen it in my own family and other people's, and then they just have numbers that are just scribbled out. They just have legal pad after legal pad where they're saying, I know I need to do something, but nobody wants to do anything about this.
[4:24] Nobody will help him anymore. Nobody wants to, when he gets pulled over, nobody does anything about it. We call upon everybody to help, but we just can't help, and we can't just go that way anymore.
[4:38] And so there's this man, and he's stuck in a tomb, and he's been bound, and nobody can do anything about it until Jesus comes by, and that's the message that we have.
[4:48] All of the world knows that there's people stuck in a tomb, and there's no earthly hope. People know that they've made calls, and they found that their insurance is going to work, or they found that there's no openings for them, or nobody can make a difference, or it isn't going to make a difference.
[5:02] And they have legal pads with plenty of answers that are not going to work, and they just mark through them. People could not constrain him because of what he desperately needed as the Lord was a Lord to come and free him.
[5:15] Mark 5, 3, and 4. Who had his dwelling among the tombs, and no man could bind him? No, not with chains, because he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces.
[5:28] Neither could any man tame him. Nobody could do anything about it because the man did not need to be tamed, but the man needed to be set free.
[5:40] And everybody was trying to control the outcomes. Everybody was trying to make it so he didn't embarrass the family. Everybody was trying to make it so that maybe he lived a little bit better. Maybe they tried to go to the tomb, and they just wanted to clean things up a little bit, but they couldn't buy him.
[5:53] Everybody was trying to help him manage his outcomes, and they were trying to tame the man, but the man did not need to be tamed. The man needs to be set free by Jesus. And anything less than that will make no difference.
[6:06] One of the saddest things that I've ever experienced, and maybe you have as well, is you go to the funeral where a person loses their life because of addiction and strongholds, and they play this song, Free Bird, and it says that, because I am free as a bird now, and this bird cannot change.
[6:24] That message is, I just can't change. That there's just nothing in this world that is going to be able to change me. That no matter what I do, there is no changing. And it's true that no man is going to change themselves, but Jesus can.
[6:39] When you realize that you are helpless in this situation, Acts 19 tells us of a story of a certain vagabond of Jews, an exorcist took upon them the call over them, which had an evil spirit in the name of the Lord.
[6:52] Jesus saying, We will adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preached. And there were seven sons, a Sceva, a Jew, and a chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit in the man answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are ye?
[7:08] Who are you? How are you going to make any difference in that person's life? Who are you? They're not afraid of you. You can't make a difference. That person that is bound, that has that stronghold in their life, who are you to make any difference in this world?
[7:25] And now the challenge of this passage here is because the picture that's so vivid of that man in Indium, and the picture of this man in this tomb, you say it's a great story, but that's not who I am.
[7:36] You think that you're Jesus in the boat coming across to see the man. Or maybe you recognize that you're the disciples that are along with Jesus. But if you're possessed by what you want or by what we have, if what we want or what we have is not God in the gospel or his dear son Jesus Christ, then we're no less in the thralls of sin than this man.
[7:58] People are bound. They are living among the tombs. They are captive to it. They are living among the dead, just as true the day, just as true around us as it would be in any other place in this world.
[8:12] So what is the, I want to remind you, what is the purpose of Satan in this world? But it's to still kill and destroy. We find that in the opening pages of scripture when he comes to Adam and Eve.
[8:23] And how destructive is it? The story tells us that when the demons leave the man and they go into those pigs there, those pigs immediately run and they jump off the cliff and they die.
[8:34] Mark 9.22 tells the story of a child possessed who was throwing himself in water, cast himself in the fire to destroy himself.
[8:45] Satan desires to destroy us. He wants to take our life. The devil is the enemy of life and truth. By a lie, he brought spiritual and physical death to mankind.
[8:56] How did that man end up in that tomb? How did that man that I met in India who didn't seem to know his name that was covered in ash, how did it all start? A lie was introduced to him and he accepted it.
[9:08] And more lies were accepted because he is, John 8.44 says, you are the father of the devil and the lust of your father and you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning.
[9:20] Satan doesn't even want to stop after you become a believer. He would love to have you live your days in this tomb of despair. Simon, Simon, Luke 22.31, Satan has desired to have you that he may sift you as wheat.
[9:34] See, no man could constrain him until he met Jesus. Luke 8.28, it says, what have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou son of God most high? The disciples were on the boat that day and they said, who is this man?
[9:49] Who can do these things? They get out of the boat, they walk upon the tomb and the demons in this man, they say, Jesus, thou son of most high, I beseech thee, torment me not.
[10:01] Because when Jesus is enthroned, Satan will be dethroned. That's the choice that's being made. In times past, it tells us Ephesians 2.3, we were the children of disobedience, we had our conversations and the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
[10:23] See, there's this battle that's taking place in this world and it's not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of darkness. As one author says, that we make a mistake in the modern world in which we live in and where we either do not give enough credence to the fact that there is a demonic and spiritual war that we're in or we become so obsessed about it, it's all we think about.
[10:45] He is glad for you to go in one or another, to be obsessed with the supernatural and the cult and the fall into that or to act like it doesn't exist at all. And we know Satan's strategy.
[10:57] We know that he is the father of lies, John 8.44. We know that he blinds the mind of unbelievers, 2 Corinthians 4.4. He disguises himself as a messenger of light so that we give him access and influence in our lives.
[11:11] I'm sure that right now somewhere up in North Georgia that Satan is pleased with some kind of occult practice that's happening in the woods, but he's also very much pleased with people that are dressing up and walking in the nice buildings and they are hearing truth that is equally damning because the battleground is over truth.
[11:32] The way that he puts people in bondage is by causing them to believe a lie and that nobody could ever set this man free until truth walked to the tomb, which was Jesus.
[11:43] Because the man had followed a progress of lies. And we learned in Luke chapter number 8 at the beginning of the part of this chapter that Satan wants to remove the word of God from people's heart.
[11:54] As soon as it lands, he wants to take it up like a bird because the word of God is going to make war in your heart with the lies that you are believing. So this battle has been won by Jesus who has disharmed Satan at the cross.
[12:10] Colossians 2.14 blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to the cross and having spooled principalities and powers he made a show of them openly and triumphing over them in this.
[12:28] Here in a little bit we've got to wait until Thanksgiving but then we will start playing Christmas music. How many of you have already begun playing Christmas music in your home? Wow, that's a lot of people. I would not encourage you not to celebrate the fact that Jesus came to earth to die for us so it ought to happen year round if you want to.
[12:49] I'm a traditionalist. We need to wait at least until the weekend after Thanksgiving. First, thank you Sherry. We don't agree on much but there's that. 1 John 3.8 He that committeth sin is of the devil for the devil sinneth from the beginning.
[13:03] This is the business card that Jesus would have offered you. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil. That's what showed up that day. I don't mean to be irreverent here and add to the scriptures but everybody says don't go that way Jesus.
[13:18] Nobody can pass by that way and he takes out his business card and says I'm able to pass by that way because I came to destroy the works of the devil because he will bring truth to the story.
[13:29] Because this man sure he was bound by chains. Yes he was captive in geography by a tomb. Yes he hung out in one place and in the darkness but what he was really bound by was lies that Satan had told him because Satan came to seek him and to destroy him and to steal him and to take what was made in the image of God and he took his name away from him.
[13:52] He doesn't even say his name. His name was taken from him. We sung it today kind of mighty fortress is our God and he said did we in our strength confide our striving would be losing were not the man on our side the man of God's own choosing does ask who this may be Christ Jesus it is he the Lord of hosts his name from age to age the same and he must win the battle and though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us and he would not fear for God has willed his truth to triumph through us the prince of darkness grim we tremble not for him his rage can endure for lo this doom is sure one little word should fail him what is that word that word is a name and it is what is it it's a Jesus at that name it is clearly that's what happens this man that nobody could pass by this man that nobody could help that many people would win and they could not bind him they could not constrain him that when Jesus came the man falls upon his face the man recognizes the most high because it's in the name of Jesus but it's clearly not the mere sound of two syllables that command Satan but the authority from God that lies behind them it isn't just saying a mantra saying Jesus
[15:16] Jesus Jesus and saying it all the time in Luke 8 28 when he saw Jesus he cried and fell down before him with a loud voice he said what have I to do with thee Jesus the son of God most high I beseech thee to torment me not the demons were not troubled in hearing the name but in the fact that the man would be recognizing and submitting to the son of God most high I've had a t-shirt before maybe you have before and it says God loves me that's a wonderful truth it's a life altering truth you know what is also a life altering truth Satan hates me it doesn't make for near as nice needle work on a pillow or a quilt or a t-shirt right God hates me alright nice shirt alright that would be odd wouldn't it and so the contrary truth that God that Satan hates me is the fact that Jesus is Lord you see Satan hates me and the world tells me that God loves me and so this battle would just be between two truths that are both equally true but there's something so much greater that day that man did not come with the message that God loves you but Jesus came and he says
[16:28] I am Lord that I can free you from this bondage this man realizes he was believing lies it doesn't really matter what took him to the tomb but believing the truth of God's word is what's going to set him free a good friend of mine this week told me if you say something that you really want people to remember you need to say it and you need to pause a little bit so brother Frick I'm going to say that again and I'm going to pause for a moment because I want all of my brothers and sisters in here to know this it doesn't really matter what took you to the tomb but believing the truth of God's word is what's going to set you free so in some research I find that Luther didn't mean Jesus when he said this one word would change everything in that song where it says one little word shall fail him the one word that Luther was thinking about was this word it's liar is that calling
[17:29] Satan a liar is something that he cannot deny he is Revelation 12 10 he is the accuser of the brother we need people that would walk into the tomb of despair and say what you're believing is a lie what you're believing that is holding you back is not the truth of God's word so what have I to do with you is the question and he says this man has believed a lie I'll show you here it says son of God most high I beseech thee torment me not that was what the man said when Jesus showed up he says God of most high which is true recognizing his position as Lord but he says don't torment me what do you mean torment me what has Jesus done in my life I'm justified in Christ Romans 5 1 he came and he made me clean 1 Corinthians 6 11 he's made me holy and blameless Ephesians 1 and I am loved of God Colossians 3 12 Jesus didn't come into my life to torment me but he's to help those in bondage we must help liberate them by showing them the truth of God's word
[18:37] God's word does not torment you it does not put you in bondage but it sets you free the truth of God's word and so if you want to resist then you have to submit to him James 4 7 submitting yourself therefore to God resist the devil and he will flee from you see there's many articles about resisting and how to tame ourselves but no man could tame you but none of them will have any lasting change without a submission to Jesus as Lord and when we submit to the Lord more than Satan will flee we see a lot of fleeing that happens in this people don't want to be around people are going to leave this they're going to ask Jesus to leave what a power of a changed life this demon possessed in a tomb chained hand and foot no man could tame him crying cutting himself no clothes now demons have gone out at the feet of Jesus sitting in his right mind he had begged and now he had begged to be with the Lord told to go home to his family and he was dressed
[19:45] Mark 8 Matthew 8 33 and it says and they that kept him fled and went their ways into the city and told everything that was befallen to the possessed of the devils what a fun thing to do that these men that had seen the story that had seen this man everybody knew about you don't go that way you don't go towards those tombs there's a man there and nobody can deal with them he's just out of control nobody can tame him I don't know how he got there but nobody can do anything with this man but you're not going to believe what I saw you see Jesus came by and this man now is clothed in his right mind and the demons were cast out and they were put into the pigs and they ran off and it says that the people came and they told everything that had happened what a wonderful thing to get to tell right what a wonderful story to get to share see this was no small incident the man was saved for more than they could ever imagine if you're picturing the amount of pigs before as I did and I'm picturing this man and he cast them into the pigs
[20:52] I'm picturing five or six or ten different pigs do you know how many pigs that it says and mark how many pigs were there two thousand pigs ran down this steep place and they ran a livelihood hundreds of thousands of dollars ran off that cliff that day as those demons went into the pig see the man was ready to follow Jesus anywhere you see it changed everything don't you love this there's Jesus in the boat and he's sitting there and the man flops down and says hey where are we going can I go with you and Jesus says no buddy that's not what I have for you alright and he says you're going to go back to your family and you're all of them and what could be some of the excuses the excuses I would have made I would say but Jesus they know me they know my past they know that I had a good upbringing but then I gave myself over to the sin I can't go back to them Jesus I want to go with you I can't go back to these people they know me and Jesus could have responded with exactly they know you they know your story they know that you have been changed and he goes back to the capitalist ten cities first missionary among the
[22:03] Gentiles and he shares the message of what Jesus had done in his life and people had seen a person that was once in bondage now being made free the man was ready to follow Jesus anywhere but he told him to go home and even though it wasn't rewarding even though it wouldn't have been easy it had to be rewarding to do that you see the commission that Jesus sends people on regardless of geography is simple and the man went and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him what would he have done if he would have went on that boat that day and went across to the other side of the water he would have got out of that boat and he would have published the great things that Jesus had done he was sent by Jesus he was commissioned as the son was sent of the father we have been sent in the same way and this man was sent back to his father he was sent back to his family to declare the great things that Jesus had done unto him what a wonderful story and I love this the man's going to get his name back it's one of the many things we all have what are we going to do when we get to heaven
[23:12] I want to go talk to so and so about this I'm going to ask him about this the first thing you're going to do is run to the feet of Jesus that's who we want to see but one of the conversations that would be nice is I'd like to ask this man not the man free I want to say what was your name you see he had lost that he lost his humanity he lost his identity he just become his problem everybody just knew him as his problem he just knew himself as that problem and when he spoke he said I am a thousand different problems he didn't have any self-respect he had no name and only Jesus through the truth of his word can do this but he is willing and able have you ever had a person in your life and you would just say man I wish so and so was themselves again they're just not who they are you know every time I try to think of a fake name I always come up with Fred or George and there aren't many Fred's or George the Mises call everybody George right in their family alright
[24:13] I wish George was just George again I wish just Sally was just Sally again because they lost who it is they were made in the image of God and Satan wants to rob and he wants to steal he wants to take their life he wants to steal away everything from them but you know not everyone is going to celebrate a changed life Matthew 8 34 and behold the whole city came out to meet Jesus and when they saw him they besought him that he would depart out of their coast there had to be some family that were celebrating I got my son back he knows who he is he's in his right mind he's clothed he's talking about Jesus isn't that wonderful and the people show up and they say no we love our pigs more than we love your son we love our livelihood more than we love the changed story we love our comfort more than we love the gospel message Jesus we want you to leave we can't have you disrupting our life anymore I know this kind of borders I'm making another announcement again and I said I was going to be done for the day but can
[25:15] I tell you why I would love to see us have a halo ministry have a ministry where we could help people whose family members are dealing with addiction because when the gospel changes somebody's life we're the only people in this community which is believers and other believers that would celebrate that because nobody else really cares there's a man in Dawsonville that was recently found guilty of murder and he took a woman's life because she might tell that he robbed the store and he might go to jail that woman's life was of less value to him than him potentially going to jail the unbelieving world does not care about you they do not love you they will not rejoice with you when you overcome sin they will not rejoice with you when your son or daughter are set free by the gospel so this community needs a place that would rejoice with people when people are being let go of those strongholds in their lives and introduce them to
[26:18] Jesus see demons wanted more time to cause damage when they showed up they said no not now don't send us out into the darkness don't send us out into the abyss they knew their time was coming they knew that their time was limited they knew that they don't fear the one that can kill the body but fear the one who can kill the soul rather fear him which was both body and soul in hell they knew that their time was coming and because of this they wanted a little more time and what do they do but when they're put into those pigs they immediately run off that cliff and they die because they knew the people of that city would dismiss the deliverer because it was going to cost them something the name of demons in modern society is the cure disfavor when you go after the demons of this world modern society will not be pleased with it it is not uncommon to experience a backlash from ministry that opposes the economic gain of sin demons knew these pigs were of value and the enemy knows where to attack so that not only this is our craft is in danger to be said it not but also that the temple of the great goddess
[27:35] Diana should be despised and her magnificence should be destroyed whom all of Asia and the world worshipped every redeemed person is a lost customer for this world every redeemed person is a lost customer for this world and so they're not going to help us see people redeemed by the gospel they may help tame people they may take them from one product to another product but the world wants to claim them for themselves so we should never expect them to understand or celebrate a life changed by the gospel nor should we expect them to see Jesus as the answer for taming a man we know that Jesus is the answer to all of life's problems and so I'd like to ask you would you join me in praying for those who might not know this yet they have lost their name and we will teach them by starting it doesn't even matter what my name is it's been so long since this man was probably called by his name it was so long since anybody cared for this man he was just somebody to be avoided because the world had no answers for him but
[28:53] Jesus shows up and he says I came into this world to destroy the works of Satan and it appears that you are suffering from the lies free and so our fight here is a spiritual fight and it is a fight over what is truth you can help people when you introduce them to the truth of God's word you can make an eternal difference in somebody's life when you introduce them to the truth of God's word maybe the day in here you forgot who you are for a moment but in the presence of God you will as well you were bound you were among the dead we had lost out our way and we did not know our identity and we were without hope we lost our identity because we forgot we were made in the image of God and we were made to worship him with all of our days we had forgotten that but then
[29:53] Jesus came in who was the only one who was able to go there is no tomb of despair there is no tomb where somebody lives in bondage of sin that Jesus Christ could not enter in and set them free but there's nothing outside of Jesus that is going to do that for this man and so as the piano player comes I want to ask you a few questions and I would like for you to take this very seriously I like you speak to so and so knew who they were again I just wish so and so did not live in this despair and so maybe you pray for somebody as I'm going to I'm going to pray for somebody by name and I'm going to ask God and say God I can't tame this person and
[30:54] I miss this person and this person forgot who they were and they're living lies and Satan has told them some lies and so I am praying that they will find freedom from this bondage and sin and I'm going to pray for that person by name and I would ask that you would come and you would pray for some people by name or maybe you would come and say I don't know but if I walk by that way I'm no longer going to be afraid to go down that road I'm not going to be afraid of that family member I'm going to take them the truth of Jesus Christ or maybe it's you in here that has forgotten your name you have forgotten that you were made in the image of God and that you found yourself in bondage and it's only through Jesus Christ that you're going to find the freedom that you so desperately need today lies Lord I pray that they would find freedom in Jesus Christ and
[32:01] Lord there are so many people in this community that we don't know and that there's grandmothers with legal pads Lord that feel like they're out of answers because nobody's been able to give them any hope Lord would you use this church to introduce people to hope in your son Jesus Christ would you use us Lord would church in name only Lord would we not be a group of people that only meet here to worship Jesus but would our worship overflow and make a real difference in the lives of some people with every head bowed and every eye closed I just want to ask you in here maybe you're in here and you have forgotten your name you have got so caught up in believing the lives of Satan and you need Jesus to set you free and I would like to talk to you today in a counseling room I'd like to go into another room and show you how you can set aside this bondage without your story in here today would you raise your hand so I would you give us hope recognizing that you can make a difference