Are you lost or just don't know where you are?

Luke 15

⁴ “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? ⁵ And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders.     

 In my opinion there is a difference between not knowing where you are and being lost. When I think of not knowing where you are, I think of eventually finding my way back on my own. But when I think of being lost I think of being helpless and never getting back without the help. Over the past week I have realized that I didn’t know where I was at. Not because I was on vacation in Los Angeles but because I got away from spending time with Christ. I was not lost per say I just didn’t know where I was at. While in LA we relied solely on our GPS to get us where we needed to be, without it we would have been lost. Christ is the same way without him we would be lost. That is why verse 5 is so very important here. The lost sheep was so helpless that it had to be carried home on the shepherd’s shoulders. So if you’re lost let Jesus put you on His shoulders and carry you home and if you just don’t know where you are, turn back to Him and focus on Him to find your way back.  

Interesting places we ate

Here some of the most interesting places we ate at in LA.

                                                              In-n-Out

fast food joint that lived up to the hype. They put scripture verses on their containers.

Nickle Diner

The Nickle diner was on Diners Drive in's and dives. The day we were there they had kitchen problems and did a bake sale outside. Very friendly staff and had the best two things I ate on the trip. The one place I would really like to go back to.

The Oinkster

 Another DDD place. The french fries and homemade ketchup were amazing.

Philippes

Home of the original French Dip. You can order it dipped once in the au jus, twice, or wet. I got mine wet.

Pinks

This place basically only serves hot dogs and is open from 9:30 am to 4:00 am. Anyone who is anyone in Hollywood has been there.

Roscoe's House of Chicken n Waffles

Chicken and waffles a strange combination that works.

El Carmen

Told the bartender I was going all out and asked her to make me something frozen without alcohol, with raspberries. When she served it she said here you go wild man and dubbed the drink The Wild man.

The best things I ate in LA

Here are the five favorite things that I ate in California

1. Homemade pop tarts at the Nickle Diner. Cherry, mixed berry and peach. I tried them all.

2. Maple Bacon donut from the Nickel Diner. The one I had was still warm.

3. A Bacon panini at Pordo's. Bacon, eggs, tomatoes, and shoe string potatoes. 

4. Pinkberry. Salty caramel yogurt with Heath bits, mixed nuts, granola, coconut and caramel sauce.

5. Chicken Chimichangas at El Cholo's. This place was so good even the re fried beans were good. It was so good I even ate the salsa and I don't like salsa.

Thoughts from LA trip

 Some random thoughts from our trip to Los Angles that do not include food.
 I forget how beautiful the Iowa is from the air in the summer time.

Was not aware how barren it was between the Rockies and California.

Have always heard about the weather in that area how is basically stays the same all of the time, being from Iowa I found that hard to believe. But everyday was mid to upper 70’s.

Was never once bothered by a bug of any kind. People must have migrated to sunny California and all of the bugs to Iowa.

Realized that there are more miles of fence and barbed wire in L.A. than the entire state of Iowa.

I saw what would have probably been a priest signing autographs as people were leaving a Beverley Hills church service. That was kind of weird.

On Sunday we started out in downtown L.A., went to Hollywood and ended up in Beverley Hills saw every kind of person imaginable. I heard more different kinds of languages in 5 days than I have heard in my life time’s 5.

The entire L.A. area is all about the car. When in Iowa if you see a corvette you go wow look at that. There a corvette does not get a second look. Audi’s, Mercedes Benz’s and BWM’s were as common there as Toyota’s, Ford’s and Chevy’s here. Then there were the Porches, Ferrari’s, Bentley’s, Rolls Royce’s, Lamborghini's. Notice I made all of these plural, because we saw more than one of each. Then there was this car.

 A Maybach, I had never heard of one so I looked it up they are German made and list from $372,000 to $478,000, Wow! Didn't take a picture of it because I didn't know what it was.

 I was really looking forward to going to the beaches and seeing the Pacific Ocean. Once I got there I was so disappointed. But my daughter summed it up very well when she said that only knowing the beaches in the panhandle of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico, when compared to the beaches of southern California was like going from the Hilton to the Super 8.

 We made a trip to Venice Beach, just one of those places that I had always heard of and wanted to see. I expected to see some strange people, I was not disappointed. However, this was the one and only place that I felt uncomfortable. We walked downtown L.A. surrounded by homeless people, Rodeo drive, with all the rich people but it was a Venice Beach that for I think in the first time in my life I sensed evil.

Did I mention the weather? Has to be the only reason so many people move there.

I
f there is another trip to California it will be Malibu and north. Made it to Malibu one day and wished we could have spent more time there and in the mountains. Much more scenic.

 Overall, the best part of the trip was being with my entire family. We always go into it knowing it could be the last time and cherish every minute of it.

 Lastly, I came away again amazed by the grace, mercy, the sovereignty of God and the beauty creation. And with the vast variety of people we saw from the guy digging a coffee cup out of a trash can and drinking it, to the guy driving the Maybach that could have cost him a half a million dollars. That in the end no matter who you are here on this earth we all end up in one of two places.  

Haterade anyone?

Luke 14:26

“If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

 Hate your family, hate yourself, or else? Sounds like Jesus is serving up some ice cold haterade. This does not sound like anything Jesus would say does it? Well if you really know Jesus it does. What he is ultimately talking about here is putting Christ first before everything else and we all have a very hard time doing this. Our sinful nature urges us to put all kinds of things before Christ even good things like family. But in the end it has to be Christ that comes first and when you take the time to reflect on the glory of Christ, who he is and what he has done it becomes easier and easier to place Him first. The trick is to get yourself to do these things. So go ahead and start icing down your own jug of haterade and put Christ where he belongs, first.

Nose bleed section now, upgrade later.

Luke 14:8-11

 ⁸ “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited? ⁹ The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table! ¹⁰ “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests. ¹¹ For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Of course this parable is about humility and it makes me think about going to a wedding reception and sitting at the head table when you are not part of the wedding party. How embarrassing would it be when you are told to move. Or perhaps going to an event with tickets in hand and setting in the wrong  then just after saying how great the seats are being told you are in the wrong section, then finding out your tickets are in the nose bleed section. Then on the other hand finding out just the opposite would be awesome, getting to move up to the good seats. Just before reading this parable I had read this story in the news.

A DESERT sheikh has carved out a big name for himself —by having his moniker etched in capital letters visible from space.

 Workmen scoured "HAMAD" into the sand on the orders of Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan. The name is two miles across — with letters a kilometre high. It is so huge that the "H", the first "A" and part of the "M" have been made into waterways. The mega-rich sheikh, 63 — a member of the ruling family of Abu Dhabi — in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates — boasts a £14billion fortune that is second only to the Saudi king's. 

Not what I would call humility, thinking that much of yourself that you need to have your name seen from space. But as the parable Jesus told and the story about seeing your name from space indicates pride has been a problem since the beginning of time and will always be a problem until Jesus returns again. The bottom line is at judgment day you may be surprised at the people that are asked to move up or down. Spend the time you have on this earth now understanding your place at the table. If you place Jesus and others ahead of yourself now is how you will be asked to move up in the end when it counts.  

What do you mean the doors are locked?

The Bible tells us over and over again that there is a Heaven and there is a Hell and contrary to popular belief one place will be more crowded than the other. Jesus says this again in Luke 13: 24-27

²² Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he went, always pressing on toward Jerusalem. ²³ Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” He replied, ²⁴ “Work hard to enter the narrow door to God’s Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail. ²⁵ When the master of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. You will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Lord, open the door for us!’ But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ ²⁶ Then you will say, ‘But we ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ ²⁷ And he will reply, ‘I tell you, I don’t know you or where you come from. Get away from me, all you who do evil.’

 Jesus says here many will try to get in and will fail, then goes on to give the analogy of a house with a locked door. Can you just imagine someone desperately pounding on the doors of Heaven trying to get in? Makes me think of Black Friday with all those people lined up waiting to get in, they just assume that at a certain time the doors will open and they will get in. But what if after all that time, waiting for hours to get that flat screen for $5, that the doors never open. Imagine if the doors remain locked and they were never going to get in. Can you imagine the riot that would break out all for the $5 flat screen? They would say but we shop here all the time, I know the Sally the checker. My kids go to the same school as the store manager’s kids. Still the doors remain locked and no matter who or what you think you know, you’re still not getting in. These people after all don’t want the flat screen TV, they want the $5 flat screen. If they really truly, needed the TV they would have bought in on Thursday when the store was open. Entrance to Heaven is not free, it cost Jesus his life. If you don’t want to be locked out you had better develop a relationship with him now, ask for forgiveness and repent of your sins now before the doors are locked and it’s too late. Because some time, and no one knows when, the doors will close and there will be many locked out never to get in. Many who always thought that just because they went to church sometimes, or because they gave money to the poor, or because that they were “good” people that they were in. They will all be shocked when at Heaven’s gates or judgment day Jesus says I never knew you go away.

The "R" Word

Luke 13:5 No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will perish, too.”

Repent is a word that I fear really needs to be addressed in our society today. Here is a story I found that I’m afraid all to well represents the R word today.

Jimmy had trouble pronouncing the letter “R” so his teacher gave him a sentence to practice at home: “Robert gave Richard a rap in the rib for roasting the rabbit so rare.”

Some days later the teacher asked him to say the sentence for her. Jimmy rattled it off like this: “Bob gave Dick a poke in the side for not cooking the bunny enough.”
He had evaded the letter “R.”

There are a lot of people today—including Christians—who go to great lengths to avoid the “R” word of “Repentance.”

I have long went with the definition of repentance as turning from sin and going in the other direction. I now believe that I need to add to that definition: having a hate for that sin. Many will turn from sin for fear of being caught, or fear of punishment it’s not that they hate or even dislike what they are doing. It’s kind of like paying all my taxes, I pay my all of my taxes out of a fear of going to prison. I don’t do it for the sheer joy of it. Repentance is not remorse or feeling sorry for what you did. It’s much more than that. Many ask for forgiveness and keep right on doing whatever it was they had just asked forgiveness for. That’s not going to fly because besides trusting in Jesus and asking for forgiveness, true repentance is also required to enter Heaven. So stop and think about the sin in your life. Have you stopped doing it? If so have you asked for forgiveness for it? And lastly have you turned from it and hate it

If an unregenerate man should leave off sin under fear of death or hell, it would not be out of hatred to sin, but out of the fear of the punishment, as the bird is kept from the bait by the scarecrow. ~ Thomas Manton

If your sorrow is because of certain consequences that have come on your family because of your sin, this is remorse, not true repentance. If, on the other hand, you are grieved because you also sinned against God and his holy laws, then you are on the right road. ~ Billy Graham

Don't sleep in the nude

If I had one thing that I could get everyone to understand it would be that when it comes to Heaven and Hell and where you will spend eternity it would be that there is no getting ready, that when the time comes you will not have time to get things in order. It will be too late. There are two common mistakes when it comes to Christianity one you can’t become a Christian until you get your life cleaned up. The other is that you want to have your “fun” now and you will consider it later when the time is right.  When you die it’s over there are not second chances or do over’s. Likewise when Jesus returns and the trumpet sounds it would be like sleeping in the nude there will be no time to get dressed you will be exposed. You may have had your clothes laid out by the bed thinking that in an emergency you would have time to slip them on real quick without anyone noticing. It does not work that way so make sure you sleep with your clothes on and stay ready and not take your chances on having to get ready.

Luke 12: 35-40

³⁵ “Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. ³⁷ The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! ³⁸ He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn.^[d] But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready. ³⁹ “Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.”

Seek and destroy your idols

Are you an idol worshiper? Most likely you are and don’t even realize it. You may say I don’t have a golden statue in the middle of my living room that everyone spends hours staring at. But you may have a 47” flat screen that has the same effect. You may say I don’t have any little gods that I worship however you may end up worshiping your kids. You may say I am not a slave to anything, but you may be addicted to your lifestyle and money or your job becomes your idol. Walk into certain man caves and just look at all of sports stuff laid out on display. That’s not worship? Humans are walking idol factories making up idol after idol, each of our idols may be different. An idol is anything that place before God. It is extremely important to identify what you idol is and it’s really not that hard. All you have to do is objectively follow two things, your money and your time. If you honestly look and where you spend your money and your time that is your idol. You know don’t you that God tends to frown on idol worship in fact it this topic made the top two of the Ten Commandments.

1.      1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2.      2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the   earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

I think that means we had better find and destroy the idols in our lives.

Luke 12:34 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Don't be a fool

 What good is a snowmobile in the tropics? What good is a jet ski in the desert? What good is money when you’re dead? Luke 12 21 says that “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.” It is that rich relationship with God that matters when the chips are down. If you are storing up anything other than that, well you are a fool and I pity you. Take the time and the effort to build that relationship with Christ. It will be worth it not just in the end but today as well.

Don't burn this bridge

Bridges are funny things, they are hard to build, and they are sometimes the only way to a particular location. Battles have been fought where the bridge was the objective and if one side felt the tide turning they would try and destroy the bridge so the opposition could not use it. Then there is the phrase burnt bridges that is where you do something that makes it impossible to go back and make it all better. Perhaps maybe you have burnt a few in your life. I thought about going into some of the famous bridges in the world but for brevity let’s just focus on the most important bridge in the history of the world. The cross, the cross is the bridge that God built to provide a way to Him. Without the cross no one could get to Heaven, it’s a bridge that is worth fighting for and one you had better not burn. Luke 12:9 talks about those who burn that important bridge it says.

But anyone who denies me here on earth will be denied before God’s angels.

What are you afraid of?

Fear is not necessarily are bad thing, fear can keep you safe. However fear can also paralyze you and that is not really a good thing. What is it that you are afraid of? Are you afraid of the wrong things or the right THING? Are you afraid of what can kill you or what can send you to Hell? Once you realize that death is the only the beginning of the rest of your life you should only fear the one thing that has the power to send you to Hell and that is God. Again fear is not necessarily a bad thing and can keep you safe.  Like Luke 12:4-5 says.

⁴ “Dear friends, don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot do any more to you after that. ⁵ But I’ll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and then throw you into hell. Yes, he’s the one to fear.

God knows what's in there.

^{Luke 12: 2-3}

² The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. ³ Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!
 For me this is one of the scary verses in the Bible. The time is coming when everything you have ever done, didn’t do, said, didn’t say or even thought will be made know to all. No matter how big a secret you may have kept for possibly many years it will be out. Have you ever stopped to think about the all of the bad things you have done or said over the years that you have forgotten about? Those will be brought back, not to mention every not so nice thought that you have had since you were born. I can’t even imagine what that will be like. Can you even imagine how guilty you will be? There is only one way out and that it is to repent of your sin, ask for forgiveness and trust in Jesus. Because God knows what’s in your mind after all he made it.

How dirty are you?

^{I don’t really know a lot of dirty people, however there may be many people that I do know that appear clean on the outside, but very dirty on the inside. Of course I’m not talking about physical dirt. So many people appear to be good. They do good things, they give to charity, they are nice, friendly, and fun to be around. But on the inside they are filthy because they don’t trust in Jesus. This list can even include people within the church and officials in churches. God does not look at the outside of a person again not talking looks, I’m talking about the things people do. He looks on the inside at the heart. I’d rather be dirty on the outside and clean on the inside anytime. So we must all take a look at ourselves and ask am I dirty? On the inside that is? If you do find dirt in your heart there is only one way to clean up and that is to ask Jesus to do it. You are incapable of cleaning your heart only Jesus can tackle that project. But for him to clean it you have to ask him in.}

^{Luke 11: 37-39}

³⁷ As Jesus was speaking, one of the Pharisees invited him home for a meal. So he went in and took his place at the table.^{[l] 38} His host was amazed to see that he sat down to eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony required by Jewish custom. ³⁹ Then the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness!

Got your keys?

Have you ever thought that you had your keys with you and didn’t and realized that you were locked out of your house? You had no worries and just assumed that when the time came you could just grab your keys, unlock the door and enter your house. Then it hits, you don’t have your keys and you’re locked out that’s when you start to wonder how will you ever get in. The same thing can be said for where you will spend eternity. Don’t just assume you have the keys or the right keys. Unlike being locked out of your house, there is not open window to crawl in. There is no spare key hidden under the mat. If you are locked out there is no getting in, ever! You need to be sure now, you never know when the door will be shut.

Luke 11:35 Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness.

The agony of defeat

Today is just one of those days where I will pretty much keep my mouth shut and let Jesus do the talking in Luke 11:23 Jesus says:
 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.
I don’t know about you but I know what team I want to be on. Why would anyone bet their life on anything other than the winning side? Especially when you read the book you know who wins. Hell is the ultimate example of the agony of defeat.

The true hide & seek champion

 One time I was asked when I found the Lord. My response was I didn’t because I was never looking for Him. He was always there but at the time I had no true interest in Him. I knew who He was, I had heard all of the Bible stories, I knew a lot about Him but I didn’t trust Him, I trusted myself and the things that I knew and did. It was not until He chose me that my life changed. Luke 10:22 says this very well.

“My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

From the human perspective the three most important words in this verse, and the hardest thing for some to understand is that (the Son chooses) Christianity is not about what we do, it is about what Jesus has already done. It’s not about religion it is about relationship. Trust me Jesus is the all-time hide and seek champ not Bigfoot. No one has ever found Jesus on their own and never will. Plus never mind the fact that Jesus is real. Jesus knows who His children are and He will choose to reveal Himself in the proper way at the proper time. Just remember you did not, and cannot do it on your own,and when he reveals Himself to you, be prepared and don’t resist. Bigfoot was never the champ. Jesus is Lord!

Do you have a but?

No, I didn't mispell the title of today's blog however I do want you to  check out the big buts in these four verses of Luke 9. They are huge and it is very important that you see them.




⁵⁹ He said to another person, “Come, follow me.”
The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.”
⁶⁰ But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”
⁶¹ Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.”
⁶² But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

 Jesus said to a person “come follow me.” The man agreed, however the first word out of his mouth was but. But let me do this. Then there was another who said Yes, I will follow you but. He still had other things that were more important than following Jesus, which of course is the most important thing. The things these two people were asking were not bad things, the point is they were these peoples first things. Once a person sees and understands the glory of Christ Jesus becomes and stays first. So take a good long look at yourself and see if you have a but. If you discover that you have one see about getting rid of it.

Take off the bag

It was not that many years ago the New Orleans Saints every year were one of, if not the worst team in the NFL. I remember watching games on tv and they would show supposed fans in the stadium wearing paper bags over their heads, they were ashamed of the team. I always wondered if  they were so ashamed why were they even there? As you may know in the past few years the Saints have become a good team even winning the Super Bowl in 2010 and now they are the darlings of Louisiana. But what about the people with the bags over their heads? What do you do with those people? I wouldn’t let them anywhere near the stadium now. I’m sure the people who run the team have forgiven them and will gladly sell them a ticket but what does the Bible say about being ashamed. LUKE 9:26 says:

If anyone is ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in his glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels.

Jesus too will forgive you if you repent of your sins and trust in him but, if you still have a bag over your head when you die, or when he comes back again, it then will be too late to try and remove bag off from your head. The problem is no only Jesus knows when eiter will be. If you are still wearing the bag on either date Jesus will be ashamed of you. So consider Jesus now and take the bag off of your head.

Don't tug on Superman's cape

(Luke 8:49-55 ESV)
[49] While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher anymore.” [50] But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” [51] And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. [52] And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.” [53] And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. [54] But taking her by the hand he called, saying, “Child, arise.” [55] And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat.

As you could tell by the title of today's blog that reading these verses made me think of an old song that goes:

You don’t tug on Superman’s cape. You don’t spit into the wind. You don’t pull the mask of the old Lone Ranger and you don’t mess around with Jesus. What this song is trying to say is that there are some things in life you just don’t do, and if you choose to do so there will be consequences. Knowing who Jesus is and what he is capable of is no different. In these verses the people put limits on his abilities again one of those things you just don't do. Earlier in this account it was said that the young girl was dying and Jesus was on his way to heal her but once the girl was dead they said too late, sorry to bother you, tell the teacher to go on home. Then to top it off when Jesus said something they didn’t believe they laughed at him. I’m sure you have heard the phrase don’t put God in a box. Don’t put Jesus in a box either, those that put Jesus in a box, have put the real God of the Bible in a box as well and in turn may spend eternity in Hell. Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God and not trusting in Him will have grave consequences.  I’d much rather take my chances tugging on Superman’s cape, spitting into the wind, or pulling the mask of the Lone Ranger than not trusting in Jesus and you have to know Him to trust Him. Get to know Jesus better and take him out of that little tiny box you have put him in He is much, much bigger than that.

Pigs don't fly they fall

I usually stay away from long sections of scripture however today I could not focus on just one or two verses in the Luke’s account in chapter 8 of how Jesus healed a man with many demons. Please take a couple of minutes and read this account. In turn my thoughts at the end will be brief.

[27] When Jesus had stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs. [28] When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.” [29] For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many a time it had seized him. He was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.) [30] Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” for many demons had entered him. [31] And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss. [32] Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. [33] Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and drowned. [34] When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. [35] Then people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. [36] And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. [37] Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. [38] The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, [39] “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout

First and foremost this account is about Jesus and not demons

Jesus has authority over demons. We know this because pigs don't fly they fall.

Demons know who Jesus is better than some humans.

Demons know that they are eventually headed for Hell

Jesus can dramatically change a person’s life

People who don’t know Jesus are afraid of him. They are afraid of the things they may have to give up, the fear of where Jesus might lead them. They are in fact afraid of his power and authority.

Then finally at the end of this account Jesus commands the man (which is also a command for us) to go out tell others what God has done for us so others won't be afraid.

How's your hearing?

It’s funny sometimes when you read the Bible how certain words will jump out at you, simple words that should not really affect the entire meaning of a passage but they do and today was one of those times for me. It was in Luke 8:18 that says:

¹⁸ “So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they understand will be taken away from them.”

It was that fifth word for me today the word (how). I even checked a couple of different translations and they both said how. If a person  were to read through this quickly they may read what you hear, but it definitely says how you hear. This evidently must mean something and be important. Do you remember the Sunday School song that little kids sing  or perhaps even yourself have sung where it says "be careful little hears what you hear?" That makes sense to me, not to be listening to the wrong things. But what about being careful how you hear? What does that mean? I think it means the attitude that you listen to God’s word with. Are you really listening with an awe and reverence? Are you listening with the intent that God’s word will transform you to be more like Christ? Are you listening, craving to know more about Christ? Or are you listening because you have to? Because you have been told it’s the right thing to do, or because someone else wants you to? If you don’t listen for the right reasons this says you are not listening at all and even what you think you have heard or what you think you know will in the end all be taken away. So ask yourself, how's your hearing?