What Great Things God Has Done

The Great Things God Has Done for You. One of the most touching accounts of God’s unconditional love and mercy comes from the Gospel of Luke.

A man, forgotten, abandoned, and left to the mercy of Satan and his demons—a truly lost case—lived in the country of the Gadarenes, a Gentile region on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, not a place frequently visited by holy men.

Yet under heaven, no one is hidden from the eyes of God. Christ goes to great lengths to seek what was lost and to restore, showing us that it is always God’s will to grant salvation—sozo:

saved, healed, delivered, and made whole. Mark 5.1 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. 2And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3 who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, 4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.

And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.

5And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. 6When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 7And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “ What have I to do with You , Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

I implore You by God that You do not torment me .” 8For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit! ” 9Then He asked him, “ What is your name?”

And he answered, saying, “ My name is Legion; for we are many. ”

10 Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.

11Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. 12So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.”

13And at once Jesus gave them permission .

Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea. 14So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that had happened.

15Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.

And they were afraid.

16And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.

17Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region. 18And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.

19However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you .”

20And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.] Making the Unseen Seen Many of us can resonate with this poor man’s story, trapped, vulnerable and in such a terrible state—isolated, with zero hope.

The usual tactic of Satan:

to divide, isolate, and slowly torment.

But thanks be to God, who showed up when no one else would or could , and in His compassion set this man totally free.

The Word of God tells us that at the name of Jesus, every knee will bow in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

This account shows us how true this is.

Without hesitation, the legion of demons obeyed Jesus’ command. The unclean spirits left the man, entered a herd of about two thousand swine, and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, where they drowned.

Christ for our benefit makes the unseen, seen . We witness the true and horrific destructive force of these demons—but also the very real power of Christ working through the Holy Spirit in bringing complete deliverance and restoration.

The Kingdom of God is at hand indeed.

The Crucifixion Christ demonstrated the power of the cross perfectly through His life, death, and resurrection, giving us authority to use His name in our lives .

The ultimate result of that authority is seen in the man who had been demon-possessed with the legion —he was now “sitting, clothed, and in his right mind.”

The Lord wants us to live from the effects of the cross , rather than merely sitting at its foot.

Of course, we should remember His suffering for us, but as Isaiah says:

“He shall see the labour of His soul and be satisfied; by His knowledge my righteous servant shall justify many.”

How much better it is to live from the victory of Christ, walking in freedom and authority rather than only reflecting on the suffering.

What Can We Take Home Christ told the man He set free: “ Go home to your friends , and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.”

And so he departed and began to proclaim in the Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him, and all who heard marveled.

Imagine returning from the brink of death to life, being welcomed back by family and friends, and sharing with excitement the transformation Christ had brought.

This is the life-changing power of meeting Jesus—a new life, a fresh start. This is what we should all desire, to have a fresh understanding and encounter of Christ through His Word and through the power of the Holy Spirit so that our lives will also never be the same again.

That we may live a life that proclaims Jesus Christ everywhere we go.

To Finish What great things has the Lord done for you? So that we don’t forget – it would be good to make a list Freedom for: Demons The Past Addictions Guilt, Shame, Abandonment, Rejection, Trama Provisions New Habits New Homes New Jobs New mindset New life New families New Start