Come Out Of Us!

Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!" 

Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be quiet! Come out of him!" Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, "What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out." And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region. (Luke 4-31-37)

The Egyptians believed there were 36 different parts of the human body and any of them could be entered and controlled by evil spirits.  The ancient world believed that the air was thickly populated with evil spirits seeking entry into men and women. There were spirits of deafness, of dumbness, of fever; spirits that took a man’s sanity and wits away; spirits of lying and spirits of deceit and of uncleanliness.  The Jews thought much the same and called them demons. These were the spirits Jesus exorcised.  

In these days of increasing religious and political turmoil these demons – especially spirits of lying and deceit – are everywhere and have entered many of us.  Satan, the father of all lies, is pleased.

We all must say, “Be quiet!  Come out of us!”  We all need the presence of Jesus – our exorcist – to cleanse us of our evil spirits seeking to control us.

Deacon David Pierce