You’d think they would’ve got used to fear by now. After all, they had been living with a man possessed by demons for a long time. Any time they went outside the city, there was a risk that they would run into him—naked, tortured, strong, and out of his right mind. He even lived in a graveyard!
And then came Jesus. In a single hour, He healed the man and freed the city of its nightmare. What a day to celebrate!
And yet—Jesus had brought something else that was frightening. Jesus brought change. They now had to deal with a powerful, unknown teacher—in fact, with the Son of God. They weren’t prepared for that. They were frightened. And they asked Jesus to go away.
It’s hard to blame them. When change comes into my life, even a good change, it can scare us. We are used to the way it was before. And now that life is different—now that a relative is in treatment for alcoholism, or a child has been born, or we are starting a wonderful new job—we are afraid. Who can help us through this? Who will even understand us, when we don’t seem overjoyed?
Only Jesus. Look at how gentle He is with the people of the city. He does not argue. He simply gets back in the boat. And He asks the man that He saved to go home to his city, and tell them how much God had done for him. It sounds odd, but this man would probably be less frightening and more effective an ambassador for the Gospel than Jesus Himself—because they knew him already. As people watched him living his new, healthy life, they might begin to lose their fear—and seek out Jesus.
When we are afraid, we can turn to Jesus for the understanding and gentleness He shows here. He will be patient with us—after all, He gave His very life to set us free from the power of sin and evil. Jesus became a human being so that “through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Hebrews 2:14b-15). And then He rose from the dead to give us joy and trust in the place of fear.
WE PRAY: Dear Lord, when I am afraid, help me to trust Your gentleness and love. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
1. How much do you dread change, on a scale from one to ten?
2. When have you been afraid of a good change?
3. Tell about a time when God helped you through a life change, big or small.