Luke 8:32-33

Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then 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.

Our lectionary bible readings take a turn back to Luke’s gospel. The 2 verses above are plucked from the middle of the account of Jesus healing a man “who had demons” There is much for thought here. There is a long conversation to be had on the nature of mental health. There is a long conversation to be had on why this man was isolated and on his own. There is a long conversation to be had on personal accountability and consequences. The price of pork! The livelihoods of the farmers! The pollution of the lake!

Yet none of those are central to this story. The remarkable thing here is that Jesus grants the demons their request and they leave the man and drown themselves in the lake. The demons are gone. The man is released. Jesus is Lord.