You Are Worth the Disruption

Daily Gospel - Matthew 8:28–34

The Set-Up

Jesus and His crew have survived the storm on the Sea of Galilee and land on the other side in the region of the Gadarenes. This is Gentile territory, and Jesus is about to show them that grace does not respect borders.

“When he came to the other side... two demon-possessed men coming out of the tombs met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way.”

Notice where Jesus goes…straight into the graveyard. The establishment had failed these two men, abandoned them to the tombs, isolating them in the dark.

The demonic forces holding these men hostage recognize Jesus. “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”

There is a massive herd of pigs feeding in the distance and the demons beg Jesus to send them into the swine. “And he said to them, ‘Go!’ So they came out and entered the swine; and suddenly, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the water.”

Jesus doesn't hesitate and trades the town's most valuable economic resource to buy back the humanity of two outcasts. 

The swineherds run into the city and report the massive financial loss. “Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.”

The townspeople walk out to the graveyard and see two deeply traumatized men fully restored to their right minds. They should be weeping with joy.

Instead, they look at the dead pigs, they look at Jesus, and they tell Him to get out. Jesus’ brand of disruptive, liberating grace is simply too expensive for them, so they politely ask the Creator of the universe to leave.

The Takeaways

• Grace Goes to the Graveyard. Jesus stepped off the boat and walked straight into the tombs to find the people society had thrown away.

• People Over Profit, Always. Jesus intentionally destroyed a massive asset to save two human lives. The Kingdom of God will always prioritize the marginalized.

• The Demons Know the Truth. While the religious elite debated Jesus' theology, the oppressive forces of the world recognized His authority instantly. The systemic evils of the world know they cannot survive in His presence.

• Healing is Disruptive. When you start doing the work of liberating oppressed people, you are going to disrupt the economy of the people who were profiting off the status quo. Expect pushback.

• We Still Ask Him to Leave. We love the idea of Jesus until His grace starts costing us or demanding we change our social structures. When grace threatens our comfort, we still ask Him to leave.

The Good News

The Good News is that God places a premium on your life. The world might calculate your worth by your economic output or your social standing, while Jesus looks at you and declares that your liberation is worth crashing the entire economy.

The Good News is that when the rest of society gives up on you and exiles you to the tombs, God refuses to leave you in the dark. Jesus will sail through a storm, walk into the graveyard, and bankrupt the Empire's portfolio just to get you back.