EDIT: Substack is having some trouble today. No image and we’ll be lucky if this post gets out.
Day 26 Lent 2023
Let’s try a different tact today. Luke chapter 8 is a very long chapter. This one might take a while. Let’s get started.
1Soon afterwards, He began going around from one city and village to another, proclaiming and preaching the kingdom of God. The twelve were with Him,
2and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and sicknesses: Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
3and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who were contributing to their support out of their private means.
4When a large crowd was coming together, and those from the various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable:
Luke 8:1–4 (NASB95)
The public ministry is in earnest now. Jesus has His twelve disciples with him, but they are not alone. Women Jesus healed, like Mary, Joanna, and Chuza (Herod’s wife), are following Jesus now. Not only that, they are supporting Jesus’ work out of their wealth, according to verse three. In verse four, we have people coming to where Jesus is from “…various cities…” meaning the large population centers in the area all know where Jesus can be found.
5“The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up.
6“Other seed fell on rocky soil, and as soon as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture.
7“Other seed fell among the thorns; and the thorns grew up with it and choked it out.
8“Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great.” As He said these things, He would call out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Luke 8:5–8 (NASB95)
I think everyone knows the parable of the sower. Jesus is the sower, and God’s Word is the seed. This can also be brought forward to those things heard in church, either as a sermon or Sunday school. That’s a huge responsibility on those of us who do things like this. We won’t always get it right, but by and large, we all try to do the best we can.
There’s a second aspect to the parable of the sower, though: the ground upon which the seed falls. This ground is the listener. The type of ground determines how fruitful the seed is, not how effective the sower is. That type of ground indicates the condition of the listener’s heart. It is not the sower's responsibility as it pertains to the condition of that heart.
One of the best things about this parable in Luke is that we get an explanation from the mouth of the Master. Here is Jesus explaining in His own words what that parable means.
9His disciples began questioning Him as to what this parable meant.
10And He said, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.
11“Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God.
12“Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved.
13“Those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away.
14“The seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity.
15“But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.
Luke 8:9–15 (NASB95)
You should immediately notice that Jesus is again quoting Old Testament scripture. In this case, it is Isaiah 6:9. Let’s look at that before we go too far into Jesus’ explanation.
8Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
9He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.’
10“Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.”
Isaiah 6:8–10 (NASB95)
This is Isaiah explaining what God sent him as a prediction that He would do. It is a solid explanation that you or I cannot change a heart. Only God and the Holy Spirit can change a heart. We can deliver the message, yes. We can be the sowers, but it is up to God to let that seed take root, and some people just won’t hear us. It was the same in Jesus’ time. Some didn’t hear Him either. Other than that, I will leave Jesus’ explanation to stand on its own.
That leads directly into this passage of scripture. Remember, only God can change a heart through His Holy Spirit.
16“Now no one after lighting a lamp covers it over with a container, or puts it under a bed; but he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.
17“For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
18“So take care how you listen; for whoever has, to him more shall be given; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away from him.”
Luke 8:16–18 (NASB95)
Here is what I want you to consider in light of two things. First, the idea from above is that only God can change a heart through His Holy Spirit. Second, contemplate whether or not you think God changed your heart. If you answered yes to both of those things, then God is with you, and the Holy Spirit does guide you. Take that in. God is with you, aware of you, and interested in you. The Holy Spirit is leading you, guiding you, and communicating with you. Jesus is your Lord, the Holy Spirit accompanies you, and God lit your lamp. Why is that important? Because it is the seed of hope that we can nurture in the midst of the storm. That idea of hope in the storm will become relevant in a second. However, first, we have to cover something else.
19And His mother and brothers came to Him, and they were unable to get to Him because of the crowd.
20And it was reported to Him, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wishing to see You.”
21But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”
Luke 8:19–21 (NASB95)
On the surface, this seems crass. It is not. It makes a point. Jesus revealed Himself to the world as the Messiah. That put demands on Him outside simple familial bonds. It opened Him up to responsibility for the entire world. Thus, anyone who claimed to be His follower became His family. There is a deeper implication in that. That familial bond with Jesus for His followers extends to us today. We are all his brothers and sisters, and we are all brothers and sisters of each other.
14For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
15For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”
16The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.
Romans 8:14–17 (NASB95)
We are all the adopted sons and daughters of the Most High through the sacrifice of Jesus. It is in Christ we find entry into this family. This is a somewhat personal and intimate statement. Where it becomes far more weighty and public is that, by definition, because all the world who proclaims Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, we are all brothers and sisters one to another. Everyone you meet today who has a fish on the back of their car, wears a cross around their neck, or has that nifty fishhook on the bill of their ballcap is a brother or sister. Family. Consider that as you go about your day.
Keep those two points in mind as you read this next passage. First, the idea that God is with us and leading us with His Holy Spirit. Second, we are all in this together, bonded by the familial bond of brother and sisterhood.
22Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out.
23But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger.
24They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm.
25And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”
Luke 8:22–25 (NASB95)
Where is God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit in the midst of my personal crisis? They are sound asleep because they aren’t worried about it. They already know it will be handled, whatever “it” is. However, they can be awakened to calm things down but understand Jesus has the same question for us when we run around frantically concerning our difficulties, “where is your faith?”
“But I prayed for God to solve my problem, and He didn’t, so He isn’t really there.” That’s not how this works. Yes, that’s how it worked for the disciples when Jesus was in the boat with them, but that was Christ building up their faith and understanding of who He was and is. Today, Jesus might have a different lesson for you or me to learn from whatever we are going through. Or, He might be letting our light shine for someone else as they watch us go through what we’re going through. There are a lot of moving parts and a lot of permutations to that that are far more complex than simply calming the storm. The point is that we should trust in Him.
This is a long passage. It is also one of the most interesting encounters to me. As a creative writer, I keep returning to Legion as an idea for writing fiction. A demon or devil that is at once a single entity embodied in thousands of separate bodies. There are a lot of stories tied up in that. However, Jesus drives them out here, but the interesting thing is that these supernatural entities immediately recognized who Jesus was without Him having to do anything. Let’s read it.
26Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.
27And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs.
28Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.”
29For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.
30And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him.
31They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.
32Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission.
33And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
34When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and out in the country.
35The people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened.
36Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well.
37And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat and returned.
38But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying,
39“Return to your house and describe what great things God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.
Luke 8:26–39 (NASB95)
A herd of swine. So, this audience of herdsmen were likely, not Jewish. Nor was the man. Eating pork is ritualistically unclean and forbidden to the Jews. We don’t know for sure where this occurred, but there are very likely good candidates that fit the story indicating this. Thus, we have Jesus once again demonstrating His god-given power openly. When the demoniac, now cured, asked Jesus to let him follow Him, Christ instructed the man to go home and proclaim all that God had done for him. Note Jesus didn’t tell the man to proclaim Jesus but God as the author of his healing.
40And as Jesus returned, the people welcomed Him, for they had all been waiting for Him.
41And there came a man named Jairus, and he was an official of the synagogue; and he fell at Jesus’ feet, and began to implore Him to come to his house;
42for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying. But as He went, the crowds were pressing against Him.
43And a woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and could not be healed by anyone,
44came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped.
45And Jesus said, “Who is the one who touched Me?” And while they were all denying it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.”
46But Jesus said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.”
47When the woman saw that she had not escaped notice, she came trembling and fell down before Him, and declared in the presence of all the people the reason why she had touched Him, and how she had been immediately healed.
48And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”
Luke 8:40–48 (NASB95)
The interesting thing here is that just touching Jesus wasn’t enough. Note that when Jesus asked, "who is the one who touched me?” His disciples are puzzled because “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.” Meaning everyone is touching you, Sir. We can’t tell which one You mean. Jesus clarifies that He means the person who touched Him and took power from Him. The King James has a different reading of verse forty-six.
46And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.
Luke 8:46 (KJV 1900)
The King James Version uses “virtue,” whereas the NASB uses “power.” What does the Greek word behind that say?
Greek Strong’s Number: 1411
Greek Word: δύναμις
Transliteration: dynamis
Phonetic Pronunciation: doo’-nam-is
Root: from <G1410>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 2:284,186
Part of Speech: n f
Vine’s Words: Ability, Able, Meaning, Might (Noun), Mighty, Mightily, Mightier, Miracle, Power, Strength, Strengthen
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
power 77
mighty work 11
strength 7
miracle 7
might 4
virtue 3
mighty 2
miscellaneous translations 9
[Total Count: 120]
from <G1410> (dunamai); force (literal or figurative); specially miraculous power (usually by implication a miracle itself):- ability, abundance, meaning, might (-ily, -y, -y deed), (worker of) miracle (-s), power, strength, violence, might (wonderful) work.
James Strong, “Δύναμις,” Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
The only time the King James translates that word as “virtue” is about this parable in Mark 5:30, Luke 6:19, which is not this event but another just like it, and this event in Luke 8:46. In the four other cases where virtue is used, a different Greek word is used. I’m not sure what significance that has, but I was called to note and pull it out, so I have done so.
The point is that the woman was healed by simply touching Jesus AND having faith that He could heal her. That’s exactly what happened. The other people failed to get healed when they touched Him. There is far more contained in that one passage than we will get into here just comparing those healed to those not. Faith is the central concept and an empowering one as it concerns the healing Jesus commands.
Finally, Jesus performs another miracle centered around bringing someone back to life. However, whereas He did the first we looked at publicly, this one was not. Further, He commanded that they not talk about it. Let’s look at that now.
49While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master.
50But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.
51And when he came into the house, he suffered no man to go in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of the maiden.
52And all wept, and bewailed her: but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth.
53And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.
54And he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise.
55And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway: and he commanded to give her meat.
56And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.
Luke 8:49–56 (KJV 1900)
Jesus first limits who can go in to see the girl. Then He tosses them all out as they laugh at Him for suggesting she isn’t dead. He heals her alone and then presents her to her family. Jesus tells them to tell no one about what happened, but how are they supposed to do that? The father came to Jesus publicly and told Him his daughter was dying. Then a servant came to report the fact that she had died. Everyone publicly heard that. So, why did Jesus tell them not to say anything? Because everyone already knew. For the father to rush about telling everyone would be to become the center of attention about the event. Instead, the news spread by word of mouth what Jesus had done. In that way, it became a point of discussion among the people that Jesus could use to preach on and from greater multitudes rather than being about that family.
This is the longest devotion this lent. If you’re still with me this far, I thank you. You honor me with your most precious of commodities spent on what I have to say, your time. Thank you. God bless you, and Godspeed.
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Mark, thank you for these great devotions during Lent. Something came to mind as I read Luke 8:51, "And when he came into the house, he suffered no man to go in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of the maiden." There are at least three times, that I can think of, where Jesus included only the disciples Peter, James, and John, as eyewitnesses. Peter, James, and John were eyewitnesses at the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-3), they witnessed Jesus raise Jarius's daughter from the dead (Luke 8:49-56), and they accompanied Jesus while He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-38.) I wonder what the significance of that is? Were they just Jesus' closest disciples or perhaps He wanted them to be eyewitnesses to these events, to strengthen their faith?